I will mainly fish the Brazos from PK to Whitney based off my location. My question is... What yak would you say is the best Kayak for this section of river and why? I really like what I see with the Cuda and Coosa but dont want to limit myself to those in this thread. Not sure which one I would choose between the two. I figured I would ask the experts. I REALLY need to get out of my sink.

LOL...you got bit hard, huh? I think you need to buy a Cuda, and then let me borrow it every now and then.

yeah man...I'm in way over my head now. lol!

A Wildy Ride 115 or 135 is good for shallow water too. Those boats draw very little water so you end up paddling over a lot of stuff other boats would get stuck on...

I've got a Hobie PA. It's an aircraft carrier. I'm looking forward to taking it to the Brazos soon.

Have fun paddling that beast, because there aren't a whole lot of places to use the drive system.

I like to use my original WS The Ride and bought the new Ride 135 for use on the river. It's one mighty fine sled.

I Have the WS pungo 120 and I love it....just not for fishing out of. It shocks me how shallow I can take it. Wonder if the 135 is comparable?

The Pungo's are great ... Bought a Pungo 100 last fall for the wife and I'm not sure she will ever paddle a SOT again ... She LOVES it!! But then ... she isn't much into the fishing when we're out.

Hard to beat the Cuda. I used a Native Utimate 14.5 before I got my Cuda, it worked well also.

you can pretty much use any kayak on the brazos. There are lots of large pools and some shallow class 1 rapids so any boat would work. I personally would want something 14ft+ for three reasons...

1. weight capacity- Im a big guy so I need some high weight capacity

2. storage capacity- storage for gear when camping and fishing is crucial

3. speed- those winds blow pretty hard on that river. A kayak that is longer is easier to paddle and more efficient. Talked to a guy that rented a coosa while making the 20 mile trip from PK and he said the coosa was terrible with the high winds. Id pick the cuda over the coosa any day on the brazos. Now on the devils it would be different due to the amount of rapids and the coosa would be great there.

I paddle my trident 15 when Im on the brazos and it works great.

WS Ride 135

I think the Cuda would be a great choice. It drafts shallow, has tons of storage space and with the seat in it you will be comfortable all day. Great yak for that river. I'm taking mine o the Colorado for three days and 23 miles this weekend and can't wait to fish out of it again.

One of the main reasons I bought the new Ride 135, was for doing overnight camping trips on the Brazos. I was blown away by the performance of the yak when I went to test paddle it.

I haven't had the opportunity to paddle either Jackson kayaks, but those who own them, love them.

Have not been in that part of the river yet, but Coosa is excellant for Kayak fishing Rivers. If you feel you might fish open water, ocean etc. sometimes the Cuda may be a better Fishing Kayak.

Here is a great video of why the Coosa makes a great river fishing Kayak
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojxmt5S7O...mp;feature=plcp[/url}

rides are nice for river fishin IMO.

I'm looking forward to doing the trips down the river this year. I'll be taking my Pro Angler but will more then likely not be using the mirage drive that much. I took it out the other day and used the paddle. It paddled pretty good without the drive installed. Certainly not as quick as a skinny kayak, but not as bad as what I had been told.
Update: I took the PA out on the lake this last Saturday and tried paddling it for a pretty good distance. Although I love the PA it isn't meant for long range paddling. LOL.. I think I would still like to try her in a river. Just as long as it's just more directional paddling as in a rudder use then paddling a long way.

Don't pull the trigger on anything until you get an opportunity to test the new NuCanoe Frontier 12. Our Frontiers are tentatively scheduled to arrive in time for the Dallas Boat Show. This awesome fishing platform will be perfect for the Brazos.

I started out with a 9.5 yak and now I am up to a 17 ft 2 inch yak
I love the longer boats, more capacity ,stability is great and speed is much better.
Once you paddle a longer yak it is hard to go back.
99% of my paddling is on the Brazos from Pk to down south of Waco.
Ron

Hey Yak, remember the 2/3's rule about weight. When a manufacturer says weight capacity XXXlbs.

This is where they have put weight on the yak to there is little or no freeboard. In order to keep a good amount of freeboard and good paddling you should use 2/3's of the weight capacity listed. I'm a heavy guy (245 lbs), my gear another 75-100 lbs. I need a kayak with a weight capacity of about 550 lbs. Don't let someone tell you otherwise.

Some dummy will say, hey I weight 350lbs and my 9ft. kayak does just fine. Yeah right!

Thank u. That makes total sense.

If I was camping, which means I would also want to fish with live bait at some point, I would pick a Malibu Stealth. This is a big kayak, and I don't like to be without when camping and fishing.

If I was just going for the day, and I was fishing lures, I wouldn't be as picky. I like both my ulimate and old ride (the new one is even better). Any shallow draft yak that is easy to get in and out of would work well. I have done the daytrip in a big boat (xfactor), like a stealth, and it is not fun paddling and dragging that barge upriver.

I disagree with an earlier statement made. There are plenty of places to use a peddle or drive system on the first 50 miles below PK. Not so sure about below Whitney. Any drive system that you have better be easily retractable and tough though.

I have a coosa and took it down the 20 mile run. It was windy and rainy the last two days but I had no issues with the kayak at all. As far as storage goes, i was able to pack everything i needed in the hull for a three day trip, only kept what i needed for the fishing on the deck/crate. With the seat in the lower position you will have no problem in the wind. I took it out on Hubbard in the wind and it was some work, but on the river is no issue at all.

I like the Cuda, but the Coosa has a lot more storage inside the kayak and that is what i was after.

I like my Cobra Navigator. 45lbs and up to 450lb on weight cap. Tracks well, fishes well, dry and stable, but not as big and wide as it's big brother, the FnD.

That said, I still like my canoe better for this trip. It'll carry up to 950lbs, which the amount of beer my buddies drink, comes in handy.

If storage doesn't matter would u go with the cuda?

Cuda still has good storage. But if I was not concerened with Storage and was going to use my kayak for more than fishing rivers, the Cuda would be a great choice.

I am never in a hurry, so I would still choose my Coosa. A lot of guys complain because they think you get pushed around in the Coosa on the lakes. I take my time and when I fish I fish all day. So the Coosa was best fit for me. I have not once said, while out in my Coosa, "gee, I wish I would have bought a different Kayak."

Go point. I need to "test drive" both before. Is there a local dealer that does that I wonder.

shouldnt the cuda have more storage than the coosa since its bigger? That holds true for most kayaks.

I don't think the depth of the hull is as deep in the Cuda vs the Coosa. It may even out though, I am not 100% on that. I know the openings are smaller on the Cuda to put things in your hull, than on the Coosa.

I have both. And while the Coosa is a great boat, I prefer the Cuda on the Brazos because of its mostly flat water and lack of technical rapids. If hill country rivers like the Llano or the San Marcos were my home waters, I would prefer the Coosa because of its superior manuverability.

Storage is great in both boats, but the Cuda has more because of the added length. But I will say that for an 11' boat, the Coosa will store a lot.

"I have both" ....... U lucky dog!!!!

I agree 100% if flat watr Cuda would be best

I have a Coosa and like it a lot. If the wind is blowing hard, sit in the low position and your body won't act as a sail quite as bad. I have not been in a Cuda yet so I can't speak for that boat. If I were you, I would test drive a bunch of boats and see what fits your style and your checking account. Will you want to haul a 14' boat different from a 10'-11'? Can you load and unload a 14' boat with gear by yourself? Lots to think about. Good luck! Show us some pics after you pull the trigger!

This is the classic speed vs maneuverability quandary.

If you plan on covering any sort of distance and will generally fish other flat water (lakes, bays), go with the Cuda. If you don't really care about how far you go and you plan on fishing other, smaller rivers (San Marcos, Devils), go with the Coosa.

Head to head, if you ONLY paddled the stretch of the Brazos mentioned, then the Cuda is the better yak, because has much more efficiency, speed, and tracking.

We have both the Cuda and Coosa in stock and available for free demos every day we're open at our San Marcos location. Come hop in each yak, back to back, and you'll be able to make the best decision for you.

as low as the water is, the best kayak to own is someone else's.

Malibu X-factor provides substantial staorage due to hatch/hull design. At 14.5" , it is fine on the Brazos and not much slower due to it's wider girth. It paddles silimar albeit slightly slower than my Manta Ray 14.

Here is the Cuda on a three day two night trip from last weekend.
Notice, the only thing above deck besides me is the K2 cooler and the extra beer i'm carrying for someone who ran out of room. Inside the kayak are Hooligan 2 tent, twin matress, sleeping bag, bag of charcoal, cooking supplies, pump, clothes and other mixed gear. Paddles straight and glides well.

the rear looks low in the water.

Can anyone tell me what a Cuda cost with rudder? I havent even considered price differances between yaks.

I had a lot of weight back there as well as my 250

According to Jackson the Cuda is $1,399 w/ rudder. The WS Ride 135 will set you back about $1,149 with rudder.

I'd still take the Jackson. It has more storage space, better seat which is included.

OK, those are your personal opinions.

yakitup, the best thing you can do is paddle each kayak that you're interested in, preferably side by side. That's the only way you'll know you've bought the best kayak for your needs.

Isn't that why he asked the question? So he can get everyone's personal opinion?

Yea, I'm an idiot.

I guess I should have said I don't think the Cuda has a more storage (comparing the specs of both) or a better seat than a Ride.

or just left that first line off. We all just love our kayaks so much we get a little defensive when someone suggests another. I do it as well. no harm no foul.

I should have said, that I had a Ride 135 and the Cuda so I based my opinion on that. Since I have fished and camped out of both.

trudat

My Brother just bought a Cuda. Super pumped hes getting into te sport of Kayak fishing.I'll try and test his.lol. I really like the ride since I already have a pungo 120. I really take all you guys advise so it's good to see people's passion for there preference. It could be worse fellas... U could be working mon thru Friday in Tucson Az were fishing is almost none existent! Think I might go crazy! Trying to plan another trip with yaknyota. Is there a thread anywhere that is a place we could show off the yaks and brag about em? It would be cool to find a thread that just had people's yaks and what they have done to them. It could be called the "show off" thread.