And I actually enjoyed it quite a bit. It was a lot easier to lug that thing around instead of the jon boat.

One thing I disliked was the lack of storage, but at the same time I kinda liked taking it back to just one rod and focusing on one lure.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts.

If anyone is interested here's a video of the experience:

When I'm not in my Skeeter, my wife and I are fishing from our Wilderness Systems Kayaks. I love them and there's so many places I can get to that other wise I wouldn't get to fish in my big Skeeter.

Not bad. Being able to stand in a kayak was quite impressive. Good job.

Enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks guys!

I'm not a yakker, but I do not think it is normal for the bottom to be flooded with all that water. What gives?

When I returned the kayak, I asked them why there was so much water and apparently they forgot to give me some plugs... At least I didn't sink haha. It wasn't too bad, kept me nice and cool.

I just bought my first kayak and your video has inspired me to get it out for the first time. Thanks for sharing, man.

I saw someone who had a milk crate bungeed on the back of his kayak. He mounted some rod holders on the crate so he had about 3 rods on there and put all his trays in it. Thought it was pretty smart setup.

I'm glad you enjoyed it and that I inspired you to get out on the water! Good luck and tight lines!



Yeah I've seen a few of those around too. I think I'll snag one when I get my setup going. I've also been trying to think of a good way to store a rod or two along the length of the kayak so it doesn't snag on low hanging branches.

An angler-style yak rather than a cruiser will have the mold cut-out for a milk crate, at least two flush-mount rod holders, and more. Storage is better than you would think. Depending on the model, they can be a little more stable a standing platform as well!

I live in College Station and fish from a kayak often...PM me if you wanna meet up sometime!

Yeah man, I'm always looking for people to fish with. I'll shoot you a PM once I get my kayak rig set up!

Looks to me like you need a dedicated fishing kayak. The Kayak angling community has EXPLODED over the last few years. There are a lot of great fishing platforms offered nowadays. Storage space on a good kayak is plentiful. Check out the kayak fishing section here on TFF

+1 The guys & gals on the kayaking forum are an awesome source of knowledge on all things yak fishing.

As far as an effective method of fishing... A buddy of mine was fishing out of his $50K bass boat this weekend and zeroed (post-front bluebird skies). He met a guy in a kayak who had caught 7, including two over 5. IMO the secret to yak fishing is that you know you're not going to cover 1,000 acres, so you slow your game down and fish an area more thoroughly before moving on. It's a more relaxed way of fishing, at least until you hang a big one for the first time and try to figure out how to grow a third arm!

Yeah, I've been lurking around over there and reading threads trying to figure out the best setup for myself. I agree with you on the slowing down part. I fished a couple tournaments in college and it stressed me out more than anything haha. The guys I would fish with were accomplished tournament fishers and fished quick and moved from spot to spot pretty rapidly. I've pretty much been a bank fisher until last year and really enjoy taking it slow and spending an hour on a spot really trying to pick it apart.

Introduce yourself and mention that you're new at yak fishing and you'll get half a dozen invites by midnight. They're always looking to introduce new members to their "plastic navy" addiction.

If you try to figure out a new lake, especially a large one like Fork, by yourself in a kayak, you'll be frustrated before you get started. The yak forum guys are great about sharing their knowledge of techniques, locations and hot spots (unless you're asking about one they're fishing in a tournament!). At least you'll come away with some general ideas of where to start and not wear yourself out covering water. That is *not* the yak's specialty!

Another option is to hook up with Private Water Fishing. They've got a number of outstanding small lakes you can fish that are managed for big bass. Your odds go up considerably and it's easier to pick them apart. Most of their properties are in East Texas but there are some scattered throughout Central Texas as well. I fished a number of their lakes from my kayak and it was a perfect fit for that kind of fishing. As a bonus, your chance of landing a giant goes up considerably if you stay after them.

Tight lines!

"Plastic Navy" ~~ I like that.

Be careful! "Once you go yak, you may never go back!"

I don't think kayak fishing is for everyone, but it puts you so close to nature, fish too, that it is really very addictive.

And, you can pop a small kayak into the back of a truck and hit a few hours on the lake without near the fuss of a boat so for many, they get out more often.

Brad

The biggest thing for me is the portability. My other boat is a jon boat, but with no trailer it gets pretty tiring to load it up and drag it to the water every time I want to fish.

Yes, portability is outstanding. I can grab my Propel 10 and lift it into my truck bed, cinch it down and off I go.

I hope the kayak you rented didn't give you the impression that it was representative of a true fishing kayak. Go to one of the sponsored events by the big dealers . . . Mariner Sails in Dallas does them as does Austin Kayak, and demo a few different models.

Fishing kayaks are SOTs: Sit on Tops and you'll never experience a wet butt again. The better kayaks can be fished with scuppers either plugged or unplugged and they drain well. I have never seen a fish. like the one you dropped, swim around inside a kayak. That was a hoot!

Storage? There are guys on the fishing tournament circuits who carry 6 and more rods. In general, fishing kayakers go out a bit "finesse" and we usually carry, say, 3 rods or so. And, we sort of know what presentations we are going to fish on a particular day so we bring a few Plano Boxes with us that are targeted to what we need.

Brad

When I returned the kayak they informed me that they forgot to give me two scupper plugs, so that's why it flooded. When I showed my wife the video she said I should have kept that bass in the boat as a fishing buddy

I'll have to try out some of the nicer kayaks. I'm not too far from Austin, so I'll have to make my way down there one of these days. Thanks for the info!