Andrwhite610
Well-known member
What ya catch?
Kayak advice
- Thread starter skiltonian
- Start date
5footfenwick
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2006
- Messages
- 422
Trout and Fallfish
Nice! I wish your youthful energy and strength were infectious.
Andrwhite610
Well-known member
Haha it’s a workout no doubt. My father quickly added a motor to his kayak and stuck to lakes.
sandflyx
Well-known member
I run a 30lb electric to my nucanoe frontier, I run pine creek and several local rivers. want to get a 55lb or better for more torque for the faster waters. Also run a 2.5 hp gas on it for big lakes here. bought a kayak buddy so I can use it in the salt too. noisey but gets me there. 5,5 to 6 mph.
Forestfishin
Active member
For what you describe I’d probably be looking at one of the smaller Crescents. The new Smallie looks cool and think it is motor ready. Never owned one but they seem to have a good reputation. But…
I own 4 fishing kayaks, some paddle better than others, but paddling upstream for any length in decent current sucks. Not sure what the river you’re planning on fishing is like but it might be a good idea to rent and fish out of a kayak on that or a similar river first. Pedal would be another option but are generally a good bit heavier and water depth can be an issue depending on the river.
I own 4 fishing kayaks, some paddle better than others, but paddling upstream for any length in decent current sucks. Not sure what the river you’re planning on fishing is like but it might be a good idea to rent and fish out of a kayak on that or a similar river first. Pedal would be another option but are generally a good bit heavier and water depth can be an issue depending on the river.
BruceC2C
Active member
Just ask the OG of Kayak fishing, Jeff Little…👑
…..nuff said…..
…..nuff said…..
pcray1231
Well-known member
Alright, some history with this. And I do yak the skuke and fish, and rooftop my boat. Your trade offs are weight, width (wider allows more stability, even standability, but slower and heavier and harder to rooftop), and extra goodies like seats. Plus shorter = more maneuverable in riffles but longer tracks better on deep flat sections. Some rocker can help there on a longer boat. Draft is important to me, I like to float and rock bounce down 3" deep riffles and not have to get out and drag so much.
1. You want a sit on top.
2. So many fishing yaks are 100+ lbs, and decked out for lakes. You aint rooftopping that easily. You don't want to portage it around dams (Auburn, Hamburg, etc) or even park 50 yards from a put in, like the port clinton put in.
3. The only real thing that makes it a fishing yak is rod holders.
4. If using J-hooks, most can only handle like 33" wide, and hard to find one at that width that you can really stand on.
5. Models with pedal drives tend to be bigger, heavier boats, and have thingies hanging down. Yeah I know the Hobies and such fold up, but upper skuke and most streams I yak on you literally scrape down some of the riffs in summer. Like hang up and shift weight to keep moving. A decision has
I have 2 yaks, a cheap big box store 10 ft Pelican and a Jackson Coosa (original, the new version is called Coosa 12, nearly the same boat but I think they are discontinuing). There's a lot to like about the Pelicans, they are super light, like 30-40 lb range. I can do a solo trip and portage myself. They are plenty sturdy to hit rocks and such and they paddle just fine. And cheap. The molded in seats do suck though, and usually no scupper holes in seat so you sit in a little puddle of water. The Coosa is a much better boat, and more money. The seat is the main advantage, much better for my back, I can sit higher, and stay dry. And I love the channel for a drag chain. Good rocker so even at 11ish ft it turns easily. Its 32" wide I believe, just makes the j hook, and I can stand but its iffy and I would never stand down a riff, which is where I wanna fish. Sitting is fine. It is 63 lbs with the seat off. That is light for a molded fishing yak and let me say, its still pretty heavy. It limits me on where I can go if alone, no portages and put in and I better be able to drive right up to the put in or take out. If I could have only 1 boat I'd actually choose the cheap Pelican.
If you are lower skuke and generally go to 1 place and there isnt a ton of current or riffles, I'd go like 11-12 ft and look for 60-80 lbs, and consider pedals. Hobie, Jackson, Wilderness Systems, Old Town all have good ones. I really love the Bonafides. The Jackson Coosa X is really built for rivers but they keep making the coosas heavier and heavier. If you wanna be more mobile and run distances, portage, be able to carry it 100 yards when needed, etc, I'd go lighter, like 30-50 lbs, and screw the bells and whistles. Pelican is gonna dominate that category due to their construction method. There's a few others like the Vibe Skipjack, Eddyline Carribean for higher end with a proper seat. Crescent hasa few on lighter side. If light and pedals are both a must, look at Brooklyn Kayaks, I believe they have a pedal model that comes in around 60 lbs transport weight.
1. You want a sit on top.
2. So many fishing yaks are 100+ lbs, and decked out for lakes. You aint rooftopping that easily. You don't want to portage it around dams (Auburn, Hamburg, etc) or even park 50 yards from a put in, like the port clinton put in.
3. The only real thing that makes it a fishing yak is rod holders.
4. If using J-hooks, most can only handle like 33" wide, and hard to find one at that width that you can really stand on.
5. Models with pedal drives tend to be bigger, heavier boats, and have thingies hanging down. Yeah I know the Hobies and such fold up, but upper skuke and most streams I yak on you literally scrape down some of the riffs in summer. Like hang up and shift weight to keep moving. A decision has
I have 2 yaks, a cheap big box store 10 ft Pelican and a Jackson Coosa (original, the new version is called Coosa 12, nearly the same boat but I think they are discontinuing). There's a lot to like about the Pelicans, they are super light, like 30-40 lb range. I can do a solo trip and portage myself. They are plenty sturdy to hit rocks and such and they paddle just fine. And cheap. The molded in seats do suck though, and usually no scupper holes in seat so you sit in a little puddle of water. The Coosa is a much better boat, and more money. The seat is the main advantage, much better for my back, I can sit higher, and stay dry. And I love the channel for a drag chain. Good rocker so even at 11ish ft it turns easily. Its 32" wide I believe, just makes the j hook, and I can stand but its iffy and I would never stand down a riff, which is where I wanna fish. Sitting is fine. It is 63 lbs with the seat off. That is light for a molded fishing yak and let me say, its still pretty heavy. It limits me on where I can go if alone, no portages and put in and I better be able to drive right up to the put in or take out. If I could have only 1 boat I'd actually choose the cheap Pelican.
If you are lower skuke and generally go to 1 place and there isnt a ton of current or riffles, I'd go like 11-12 ft and look for 60-80 lbs, and consider pedals. Hobie, Jackson, Wilderness Systems, Old Town all have good ones. I really love the Bonafides. The Jackson Coosa X is really built for rivers but they keep making the coosas heavier and heavier. If you wanna be more mobile and run distances, portage, be able to carry it 100 yards when needed, etc, I'd go lighter, like 30-50 lbs, and screw the bells and whistles. Pelican is gonna dominate that category due to their construction method. There's a few others like the Vibe Skipjack, Eddyline Carribean for higher end with a proper seat. Crescent hasa few on lighter side. If light and pedals are both a must, look at Brooklyn Kayaks, I believe they have a pedal model that comes in around 60 lbs transport weight.
