Hey guys I just wanted to know some of your thoughts on the matter of putting a stringer or cooler on your yak while you fish. Im thinking the stringer will create some major drag. If stringer is best, whats some of you guys ways that you rigged it?

IMO, for keeping fish a cooler is the only way to go. I'll never drag a stringer full of fish again, it's like having the brakes on going up hill.

Cooler. No drag and a cold fish that has been on ice is easier to fillet.

i do both.

many of us have lost fish or whole stringers while yaking especially in the timber or creeks where snags are more likely. it is possible to damage rigging on the yak if it gets snagged on something solid. Crappie tend to get lost the most. if you stringer your fish, i recommend u tie both ends using the length of the yak. this will decrease the amount of drag sugnificantly. if your yak holds water in the tankwell you can leave your catch back there when the temps are low enough. when the temps are warmer coolering with ice or ICE BLOCKS becomes a nessesity.

next time I am going with a cooler

I have a black pac on mine, where do you guys put a cooler?

Tank wells are designed to hold good sized coolers, cooler bags, crates and more.

I usually let the type of fish im going for determine the size cooler ill be taking.

Some like to rig up their coolers. Other like to keep it loose in the back or upfront somewhere. Rig it like you want and do what works best for you.

But, keep in mind that the taller the cooler the more wind its going to catch

Yak manufactures are now making compartments under the seats, in hatches to store below deck and on the gunnel walls or below a multi position seat. This is why some anglers have already gotten away from crates.

I use both as well.
If I'm fishing close to the launch, or a short trip, I usually just take stringer.
If I'm going to spend the better part of a day or the whole day, and cover a lot of water, the ice chest goes along.

When you use a stringer, the fish dies a slow death. It'll swim till it dies building up waste product in the meat. I can certainly notice a difference. If you kill it before stringing it, then you are holding it in whatever temp the water is..great for spring, horrible for summer. The cooler is nice but it is bulky and acts like a sail, ...great for downwind but a PIA for up/cross wind. My best solution is a freezer bag using a bottle or 2 of frozen water. I bleed the fish for a quick kill then slid em in.

I use a cooler exclusively. I share space with my drinks and my fish. I also bleed my fish usually and slide them down next to my frozen water bottles. If the weather is warm I go with much more ice. I don't keep trophy size fish so a small igloo normally works great. If the wind is up I might bring a coleman stacker cooler. they have a big footprint but are only 8" tall. You can just stand a canned cola upright in them and they transport well since they are designed to nest on top of each other.

In those pictures with the coolers, did y'all glue the rod holders on or screw them on?

Most people screw them on.

Stringers for me, ive had a a ice chest with a bag of ice and almost a limit of crappie and it threw off my center of balance bad.

Stringer. I have a sit in kayak and just pull them in when I move. Haven't been finned in the leg by a cat since....hmmmm last week.

Cooler all the way.