Teach me about fishing kayaks please!

[Jan-78FJ40]

Teach me about (ocean) fishing kayaks please!
What's a good one, one person or two, how stable are they in a significant swell, how easy are they to deal with, is transporting them a major pain in the ass, how hard is it to fish from them, anything that come to your mind please...
Thanks,
Jan

 

[skidplate]

Hi Jan, I am in no way an expert, so I can't "teach" you anything, wish I could. This is just my opinion based on my limited knowldge. I have a Hobie Quest sit on top that comes standard with two aft rod holders, and I added one that sits on the "console" in front of the seat. It is a solo kayak, which I like. I think it is 12.5' in length, a little too long to haul in the the back of the standard bed pickup (but i've done it). I also have an Ocean Kayak Caper which is 11' and fits ok in my truck with the tailgate down. I have roof racks on my truck and my FJ40 and both carry the kayaks with no problems. To answer your question, the longer the kayak, the easier it is to paddle, the better it is is to handle open water. You can customize your yak to fit your needs. Obviously, the smaller it is, the easier it is to transport. This is just my $.02, but I find I use the Caper more than the Hobie just because it is easier to load and unload. The pic is of my Ocean Kayak Caper on my 40.

 

[RHINO]

for ocean a sit on top would be my choice, the longer the better for general paddling and floating w/o being moved around as much.

they are very easy to fish off of once you get past the whole "its so small" thing. stable enough that the sit on tops can be fished sideways with feet hanging in the water.

its a very different thing than a regular boat, but i really like the ease of transport i;e, no trailer and light weight. i like the solitude and quiet. i am a freshwater guy, small lakes and mellow rivers so i cant say much about the ocean. if you look though at what the ocean guys are using, its not much different.

 

[Jan-78FJ40]

Thanks everyone!!
cheers,
jan

 

[Johnnymiz]

i have an ocean kayak aegean. 14' 2 man kayak. it can be configured to 1 person or two AND it's long enough to put a little kid in the middle. pretty stable. very easy learning curve...none of that turning upside down s***. it surfs pretty well if u know what you're doing. easy to right if you dump it..and you have to work to dump it. i built a cart with wheel barrow wheels to transport from the car to the water. pretty indestructible and the kids love it. they have a blast surfing it.

 

[Mxndrnks]

I also am no expert here. In fact I just started kayak fishing last year. But here is what I have learned right or wrong:

• -sit on tops are better
• longer is faster and generally more stable. However, yaks like the Maibu fish N dive and Mini-X are really stable for how short they are.
• My friends use Mini-X's because they are easier to launch especially when going down some of the cliffs here is San Diego. I use a tandom yak with the seat set up in the middle. I leave them in the dust which is great at the end of a long day when you just want to get in.
• Kayaks are cheaper to buy off craigslist in the winter. people buy them in the spring/summer and when it comes winter time they start trying to dump them.

That is the basics I have for now. While I dont plan to buy one for a while (I have two I can borrow) when I do.... this is the one I dream of:

Malibu New 2012 X-Factor Kayak

cheers and good luck!

 

[KayakPanic]

easy learning curve...none of that turning upside down ****.

I highly suggest to ANYONE who owns a kayak that they learn more about "that turning upside down shat." Invest in a few rolling session lessons, and you could save your life with that move!

Jan- I fly fish out of my whitewater boats (2 playboats, 1 river runner) in the mountain west. It is a lot of fun, and you can fit way more beers between your feet than in a float tube/belly boat. I have also trolled lures behind my kayaks. Both very successfully. You can sneak up on fish very easily in kayaks.

You need to decide what you are going to use it for and when. If in the ocean, sit-on-top will probably be best, because you can bail out of it easily and swim away if you roll it over. Many ocean fishing kayaks have rod holders, and rudders and things of that nature.

That is basically what I do in the lakes I fish. I had a mishap last summer, and rolled over while fly fishing after dusk. I lost my $500 perscription glasses and a Gerber knife, but held strong onto my flyrod and paddle. I consider that 1 mishap to be a very important learning lesson for me.

My advice is to buy a kayak, any kayak, and take it out and try to fish out of it. It is a lot of fun!!!

 

[drmwvr]

View attachment 619745

Teach me about (ocean) fishing kayaks please!
What's a good one, one person or two, how stable are they in a significant swell, how easy are they to deal with, is transporting them a major pain in the ass, how hard is it to fish from them, anything that come to your mind please...
Thanks,
Jan

I have a Perception Illusion 14 (about 5 years old). This has been a good kayak for bay and close-in, off-shore fishing. Make sure you get a rudder as this make long paddles easier since you focus most of your paddeling on forward propulsion, not steering while in open water. Mine has hatches in the deck both fore and aft...I would buy one today with an open compartment aft as this allows you to acess stored items and keeps the center of gravity lower for items such as coolers, tackle booxes, etc.

Also, buy the best paddle you can afford...lightness is your friend when you will be using the paddle for more than 30 minutes.

Two of the attached pics are me and my yak off of Galveston and one is a yak like mine.

Good luck with yoru search, let me know if you have any specific questions.

 

[Johnnymiz]

I highly suggest to ANYONE who owns a kayak that they learn more about "that turning upside down shat." Invest in a few rolling session lessons, and you could save your life with that move!

he asked about kayaks for fishing in the ocean. i live at the beach. 99 out of 100 kayaks at my beach are sit on tops for that exact reason....if you get hit with big wave while launching or landing, it's easy to bail. rather than maybe going over the falls sideways and getting drilled. no roll over learning curve...just bail to the ocean side so you don't get hit with the boat when the wave catches it.
if i owned a sit-in kayak, of course i would learn to roll it.

 

[stevezero]

I have a wilderness systems tarpon 140 sit on top. Great size, great handling. I put two kinds of scotty mounts on it. a couple of surface mounts in the cockpit, and two flush mounts behind the seat for trolling. You can wire a small transducer on it for a battery powered fishfinder.

The two best recommendations i can give are to try to find a demo day at a kayak store. put your butt in as many seats as possible and see what you are comfortable in. That includes dumping and climbing back in(if the store will let you do that). sit on tops are very easy to get in and out of, compared to a sit in.

the absolute best advice i can give is to use drybags for everything, and TETHER everything. You will roll over, you will get swamped. if everything is in drybags and tethered, you have a much better chance of keeping your stuff. Also, get one of those collapsable paddles, that is accessible if your paddle leaves you. You can use it to paddle back to your paddle.

 

[Enigma]

put your butt in as many seats as possible and see what you are comfortable in. That includes dumping and climbing back in(if the store will let you do that).

Somebody has watched way too much Jackass, I'm pretty sure no stores will allow you to dump in their boats......

 

[KayakPanic]

Rolling a kayak back over after it has rolled is the preferred method. I would never buy a sit-on-top personally. I have used them in rivers, and when you roll (and you will), there is no way to save yourself. You are then at the mercy of whatever the river/lake/ocean throws at you. I have used "duckies" in rivers, and once you swamp them, them remain swamped until you swim to shore.

As far as drybags, I highly suggest them, but river kayakers NEVER tether anything to their boats such as paddles or fishing rods. There exists too great a hazard for entangelment or strangulation that it is not worth the $200 or more you would stand to lose if you dropped a fishing rod or paddle. Most paddles will float also.

 

[Eleanor62]

Hi Jan, I am in no way an expert,

 

[4Lo4Sho]

Check out the Jackson Cuda. It's a new boat released a few months ago and everyone I know with one loves it. I plan to upgrade from my Malibu X-13 fairly soon. Search youtube and you'll find a great 15 minute video that shows all the unique features of the boat.

Also, a great wealth of information can be found on REDIRECT in the forums section.

Tight lines!