kayak fishing

[Zack Thomasson]

hey if any one has any tips on fishing out of a kayak talk


















thanx

[Dale Fortin]

if someone can show me in a video how to tie a kayak to the roof of a car (or wherever you put it) that would be great. :-)

[Dale Fortin]

oh im thinking of a canoe. well there are ones with a 2 seater. i get mixed up with these because i use both sometimes. well just be carfull. if it were me i would use a canoe only because it is more roomy.

[Dale Fortin]

make sure it is balanced before you get in and stay low when you'r in and seated try not to wabble. make sure most of it is in the water befor you get in. i love to kayak. i dont have one but ive gon on trips that ive kayaked. never fished in one though so im not sure how to fish from one. im acualy one of the best that can steer and look out for things. (ive notived). im just about as good as some adults that know what they'r doing (not to brag). the only problem is sometimes i scrape the botom. stay about half a foot above ground in water and try not to drag it on the ground on land unless launching it. try not to forget to wear a Life Preserver. like mac said "take it slow" and enjoy yourself. =)

[Mac]

Well, I guess I break all of #1's rules. I love fishing out of my yak. Take it slow and easy and have fun.

[Teeg Stouffer]

Fish from a kayak all the time, on moving water and flat, and love it. You will too! These guys have given good advice.

[Charles Singleton]

Buying your fist yak? Go talk to your local dealer, and ask to paddle one of each model they have for sale. If you can't paddle it, don't buy it.

When (not "if") you turtle, be prepared. Rig yourself a step - a simple 6 or 7 ft loop of rope (and, maybe, a 6"-12" piece of metal pipe). Hang that from the "off" side of your yak. When you put your foot in the step, that will not only give you a way to get moving up and into the yak, but will also hold down the other side of the yak, keeping it from rolling toward you.

[Jeff Workman]

My wife and I bought Wilderness Systems Tarpon 100s from austinkayak earlier this year. We've had them fishing a bit and I've been impressed. They are stable enough to stand up; but you have to do it carefully. I intentionally stood up and then stepped to edge to see how stable. Stood up fine; but flipped when put weight on edge. I was wanting to check that. I was also wanting to check out how difficult it would be to get back in. More difficult than anticipated. Couldn't get in from side or from back while wearing life jacket (hooks and etc. on life jacket caught straps and etc. on kayak). I need to figure that part out yet. Will definitely allow you to sneak up on fish better and fish more in solitude.

[Stone 239]

Great tips/link, CS. Any suggestions on buying a first yak? I'm gonna head out on my first yak trip this weekend (SW Florida backwaters). Just cruising, no fishing yet.

[Charles Singleton]

Best bet is to go to the gillyakkers forum. There is also texaskayakfisherman.com for fishing for just about ANYthing from a kayak (bluegills to tarpon or marlin).

My suggestions for kayak fishing:
#1 - NEVER fish alone!
#2 - ALWAYS wear your PFD.
#3 - Go with an experienced yakker the first few times. Look at his/her rigging; see what works and what doesn't.
#4 - Keep a good eye on weather; it can turn deadly in minutes.
#5 - Find a nice, quiet, shallow spot (<3 ft), and practice casting and moving around on your yak (with no more gear on board than absolutely necessary). Some are quite forgiving, and others (like mine) don't give you any slack at all - one mistake & you're wet up to your ears.
#6 - Speaking of getting wet, practice deep-water reentry. You ARE going to turtle, and it WILL be at the worst possible place/time. You need to be able to get back into the yak w/o pulling it into shallow water.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but you really should get on the TKF forum and search the archives, especially the New to Kayaking section. Lots of good info there, not to mention lots of nice people - just like here, just more kayak-oriented.

Welcome to the ranks.