Great Thread

This thread is pretty interesting. Thanks to all the folks that contributed.

What is a good kayak that would be suitable for lakes and calm rivers, but also would be able to take beyond the breakers?

What's your budget?

Things To Ask Yourself Before Looking At Kayaks
1) Where are you going to be fishing?
2) What's your experience level?
3) What species are you going to be fishing for and how are you going to fish?
4) How much gear or how many rods will you be bringing on the water?
5) Are you going to trailer the boat, put it in a truck bed or car top it?
6) How do you want to propel the boat, paddle, pedal, motor or sail?
7) How much do you want to spend?

I think the first thing should be figuring out where you want to use it and what type of conditions: fast moving river, out in sea; is it rocky, weedy?

Then, start with kayak type. Usually and most likely on-top for fishing purposes.

Then go get some basic recommendations for width and length of kayak based on where you want to use it and in what conditions.

Also do not forget to factor in weight and overall size when transporting kayak. People somehow often times miss the transportation aspect...

There are also finer aspects like materials: fiberglass is usual way to go, but if cheap then plastic ( https://outdoorempire.com/7-best-angling-kayaks-reviewed/ )

Then, basically go to any kayak shop online narrow selection down with your chosen features. See models and start Googling them and searching for reviews & opinions based on what you can afford.

Following these steps should get you a nice kayak!

Ok...your going to laugh. Especially you pros and kayak salesmen. I spent most of my years owning a fish and ski or jet boat of some kind so I have been around water and fished in lots of different conditions. We are now in the Motorhome era of our lives, retired and traveling around the country. Every chance we get we stay at a lake for a few days and do some fishing. I purchased an inflatable kayak, a Challanger 2 seater. I can give the wife a ride or have added space and capacity when she wants to stay warm and dry. The Kayak will roll up in a bag and store in the basement when not in use. So far it has been wet a few times, done a fair job of getting us off of the bank and around the beds. I'll agree that a solid boat with SOT would be better but I don't want to pull a trailer. This is most likely the first step before a better boat but for now it works.

This is the information I was looking for. Thanks so much!

I did look around for three months before I made my decision. The length, width, and of course the price was a big factor with me, since I wanted a single person Yak. My first and only Kayak is an Ocean, 13-9, 28" wide, with a built in MinnKota saltwater trolling motor, I bought two years ago. I've only fished West Bay and East Bay in it, and I love it. I'm 5-10, 200 lbs, and I've been in it for 5-6 hours straight fishing, and have stayed comfortable. I've made it more user friendly to where I don't have to reach back for anything. I've caught some nice Reds that pulled me around a little, and some huge Sheepheads that pulled me around a lot. My buddies laughed at me when I told them I bought one with a troll motor. That is until one day when the wind kicked up out of the south, while we were heading back and I pulled them back with my yak. They don't laugh about it anymore. As long as someone goes with me, I don't have a problem loading or unloading it on or off my trailer. The main weight problem is the battery. I carry it separately, but since I only move it twice, it's not that big of a deal. I like the fact I can get into some real shallow areas, especially when I can see fins popping up out of the water. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Nice Yak!!!
What kind of range or time are you getting out of the battery ?

I don't think you are wrong at all, especially for what you want to use it for. My favorite kayak to ever own or paddle is my Jackson Kilroy. I can store four 9' fly rods, spinners, or bait casters fully protected in the rod tubes beneath the gunwales.

It is light, stable, maneuverable, and realatively fast. I fish inshore saltwater and mostly transport this kayak to the fishing areas on a mother ship. Easy for me to get on and off the boat. Easy to drag over sandbars, etc. and just tons of features for the fisherman.

I also have a Perception Pro 12 (sit on top). I good fishing kayak as well but I prefer the Kilroy for the Texas Coastal bays. I would not want to take either one of then off shore or use in rough water.

Nice list for beginners

https://1source.basspro.com/index.php/co...k-fishing-ready

My thoughts on the four most important criteria, not to include price or proximity to service and sales availability:

1) Do you stay seated or do you want or need to stand and fish?

2) Paddle or pedal preference?

3) Transporting the vessel?

4) Where do you fish?

The criteria I eliminated up above, like price, are important, no doubt, but if you can answer these four questions, you will eliminate a huge proportion of the kayaks out there from consideration.

So, just for example, if you really want to stand and fish, there are just a few kayak platforms that really allow this with relative ease. Sure, lots can be stood in but without enough confidence to do it casually.

And, for paddle versus pedal, I have actually changed my thinking here a lot. A pedal kayak requires more maintenance, it generally requires a heavier hull to support it and it generally has issues with certain fishing characteristics: really skinny water and weeds come to mind.

For the third, you have a small car, no truck and don't want to trailer a kayak. You really eliminate a lot of vessels with this issue.

And, the fourth is a big deal. You can get a "jack of all trades, master of none" kayak that is pretty good on rivers and lakes, for example. If you plan to kayak fish from a single vessel, you may want one like this. But, if a large majority of your time is on one sort of body of water, you can focus attributes specific to it.

A Hobie PA 14 is a very fine kayak, one you can stand in effortlessly. But, you can rule it out most likely if you plan to car top it. I use this as an example of how one criterion might limit another. So, if one needs a light kayak to stand in and getting to the lake or river is an issue, a Diablo model might work.

Endless things to think about. Let me warn you, too, that regardless of how much you test a kayak at a demo, your idea of your "ideal" kayak will likely change over time. Mine sure did!

Brad