Has kayak fishing died off a little?

Just curious. I used to be huge into It. Seems the haydays on this forum was like 2008-2015 or so. Maybe a little longer.
Now It seems dead comparatively.
Same with the Texas kayak fisherman forum.

What do y’all think?

this year it is wind

Nah it's alive and growing. Posting boards like this are old school. FB and various social apps geared to anglers are much more popular.

I do see what you've been seeing, and it's true depending on the region you are in.
I don't do face or any other media sites other than this one, and I used to go on the TKF which is pretty much a ghost town.
I bought and sold several kayaks on the TKF site back in the early 2000's, but now they barely have a dozen listings if that.
Probably more due to covid and the supply chain shortages, ACK closed it's doors, and some manufacturers are just now catching up.
But the signs are out there, and in my opinion it has died off a little and a lot of people have a hard time justifying spending a few thousand dollars for a one man boat.

Man I had no idea ACK closed up. I bought a lot of kayaks from them.
Just looked It up and some website called “the house” picked them up I guess. They have a statement on the website saying better selection than ACK. Just looked at the kayaks and all I saw was mostly a bunch of inflatable junk. Shame

Yes, it's alive and growing. In fact, I've been using my kayak more this year due to high fuel cost and winds. I live in NW Houston, and I'm not ready to drag the boat to the coast until the conditions are right.

As for posting on the kayak forums; I usually get too busy for posting or do not want to post an average day on the water.

I think it's getting more popular. The June 25th Bob Hall Pier Offshore Outing, organized by YaketyYak, has 112 WannaGos signed up, on the TKF page. I'm not one of them, but I'd like to see a video of the "Lemans Start"! Lighthouse Lakes parking lot is usually full on Saturdays. I don't do Facebook, and only do this forum and TKF(as TexasJim). Being retireded, I normally only fish weekdays, and avoid the crowds. IslandJim

Maybe everyone is so busy yak fishing that they have little to no time to sit on the computer.

I don't have any idea on whether its more or less popular.. just that the last couple of years have affected a lot of businesses and people's lives. With all the new brands out there I would guess things are still on the upswing. Miss the days when everyone was communicating in just a few of the major kayak forums. Lots of great information with lots of debate on best way to do stuff. It was more of an international flavor back then as there were lots of Aussies that posted their stuff as well as those from the UK on the forums I frequented.. Often wonder what happened to some of those guys. Back in the early to mid 2000's it was dominated by salt water fishing ... today that has been reversed and fresh water kayak fishing is more in the talk. Back then kayak safety was discussed much more than today.

Don't know why anyone would put out two lines fishing offshore or freshwater, from a kayak.

It’s growing

Demographics—A lot of the newer kayakers are younger and are on FB/Instagram/etc.

2015/2016 was a pivotal time that created frustration
—Trinity flooded washing in grass carp into several great local fishing spots that are now devastated.
—traffic started to get exponentially worse.
—several classic kayak lakes became closed to the public or more difficult to access (Mountain Creek, Van City, etc)

Was the beginning of having to drive farther for honey holes; so with all these factors, the established kayakers became more secretive and posted less.

Kayaking in general exploded during Covid lockdowns. Any store with kayaks sold out and supply chain issues caused a shortage of kayaks. I think kayak fishing is growing, too. The kayak bass tournament landscape is stronger than ever. I see a ton of people fishing from kayaks now, way more than two years ago when I really got dedicated.

I fish lake Clark in Ennis and lake Waxahachie and see kayaks most every time I go to either one of these lakes.
Also still do the Brazos below PK 2 or 3 times a year.
I used to see a lot of canoes being used but now I see way more kayaks-
I fished out of a pontoon for many years, and it certainly has its advantages, but the kayak gets 90% of my fishing time now-
Not sure how much this fits in this conversation but it’s what I’m seeing, but like many others just don’t want to post what I think of “average” fishing trips.

As much as I enjoy my trips, most are not post worthy.

With that being said, I do still enjoy reading about others trips, although they may have thought of the trio “average”.

I don't see a drop off at all along the central Texas coast. I see as many kayaks on the water as ever if not more. I think it's fair to say the activity on this and other kayak fishing forums has dropped off substantially due in my opinion to social media (Facetwitt, Instachat, etc.).

The activity has dropped a bit, but it was very predictable. As people have become less attractive they tend to lurk more than they post. People started getting less attractive about 20 -30 years ago and as they started having children, their offspring were uglier than the parents were, It’s only going to get worse unless laws are written to only allow pretty people to mate or at least limit the number of kids ugly people can have. Before you know it, this group will only see one post a week, maybe every two weeks and eventually, it will just be a monthly inquiry about how to make a kayak trailer out of a jet ski trailer. That again goes back to my theory since jet skies generally only support pretty people.

So you're saying you're ugly and shouldn't breed

it's hard to argue with science

And I am sticking to it. I adopted other peoples ugly children. 4 of them. I am going to make the world beg before I share my seed.

The GIF is too short. I was wanting to see what kind of air the bike gets after it launches over her!

Solid logic there. Cracks me up.

Personally I think participation has slowed some. For me, it has put a bit of a bad taste in my mouth how everyone is a "prostaff" or a "youtube personality". It used to be 40 years ago when I started people did this because they loved it not for some kind of a reward. I understand brands need reps but "true people with skill" not a gopro and a lame [censored] Facebook or tictok page. Just my 2 cents.

I have 4 kids and LOVE fishing with every one of them Trying to tackle kayaking with all of the kids has been difficult to say the least. I have 2 kayaks in my garage gathering dust regrettably.

I was on Athens on Monday - saw a lot of other kayaks but all of them were on docks. Mine was the only one on the lake.

I've many times been in the same situation. With more than 1 kiddo it's best to find a spot from land as a home base and run some baits out with kayaks. Have the kiddos who want to paddle go out in pairs. Usually it ends up a good day of fishing and swimming. Most kids love to take yaks out and tip each other off etc. Great fun and natural learning how to deep water reenter the yak.

I can understand people migrating to Facebook message boards rather than forums but I’m not seeing the participation in the real world either like I was 10 years ago.

Following that theory, jon boats prove that there is someone for every one.

Lol-
Some greatness of thought up in here-
Both made me smile-

this forum is def on its way out. BUT Kayak fishing is NOT..its super hot..EVERY single post i reply to in facebook marketplace, small boats, kayaks especially, dont even last a couple hours, except the idiots that want like $500 or more for a Stock kayak, but the $350 and below ones go so fast...literally like 10-15 this week alone, people are even trying to capitalize pulling out these old crappy kayak they havent used in years and trying to sell them.

its so hard to grab a used one Im at the point I've given up trying to get one, I have a canoe, im just going to spruce up, take my son out instead of myself in a kayak. Seen some pretty good mods for canoe, so I'll worry about a yak once the season goes.

I can’t think of any kayak I’ve ever owned or would want for $350 or $500.

Ocean kayak speck, scrambler, wilderness tarpon....there are a ton of great kayaks for that price range. Just because you don't know them doesn't mean they don't exist. I have had the speck offshore at the rigs several times, frenzy is another one.

Here is one hell of a deal... bad news its in south florida... looks good as new... guy has it listed as a 10 footer... its a manta ray 14... 14 footer.. I have two of them and would have snatched this one up when it first showed up in craigslist.

https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/boa/d/palm-beach-gardens-kayak-native/7484723137.html

here is another great deal.. the white/blue kayak.. its old.. doesn't matter, Aquaterra Prism, later became the Perception Prism.. one of the best paddling kayaks in its day. Don't know what the yellow one is but one of them is only a hundred bucks.

https://galveston.craigslist.org/boa/d/dickinson-kayaks/7472210431.html

Based on my experience with Craigslist Dallas, good deals over 1 day old are scams or the item has been sold and the seller didn’t bother to delete the post.

I’ve owned a tarpon and I know of every one of those. I’m not new to the sport. My tarpon was not $350 or $500. And I stand by what I said. Pedal drive for me.

I'm glad you found a fit. Everyone doesn't have your budget or the desire to pedal. Some, like me prefer old school and simple.

there's a sucker born every day... sell it or smell it!

https://houston.craigslist.org/boa/d/willis-hobie-pa-14/7475498565.html

Your Vikings weren’t $350-$500 either.

Your right. I have 6 kayaks and a canoe. All serve a purpose. I got my canoe for 300, the speck for 300. Neither of those boats will I ever get rid of.

That's just crazy. Not something I'd buy or own but I will say it's still waayyyyy cheaper than a boat.

This is a good example of folks assuming they know "what it's worth". The market will tell you what it's worth. There's not going to be any comps for this type of kayak so how does he know? What we pay or have invested in a kayak means absolutely nothing when it comes to selling it. I'd be shocked if he got 7k for it much less 8k.

That was posted 30 days ago.. and still no takers. But he knows it’s value.

It's like a classic car. Spend a ton of money fixing it up but you best be doing it for you because you like it. Nobody gets their money back like that. Expect about half of what you dump into it. Who...today has 8000 for a kayak, most people are struggling to come up with gas money to even get to the water. Hahahahaha

Here's a good example of a scam. Same kayaks, same ad in 2 different cities.

https://austin.craigslist.org/boa/d/austin-fishing-kayaks/7479974304.html

https://houston.craigslist.org/boa/d/dickinson-fishing-kayaks/7478808437.html

And the phone number on the For Sale sign is a San Antonio area code.

It might not be a scam but not sure why someone would try to sell it in two different locations without noting this info in the description.

I have a tandem Jackson Big Tuna 14ft I was looking to sell online for $900. Has a few flush mounts. Have additional rod holders brand new, just not installed I can throw in.

Kayaking is still my preferred fishing method and I am still rocking my Wilderness Ride 115x that is 8 years old now. In the beginning I relied on this forum heavily but once I got past the learning curve I stopped looking at this section as much as I did when I was learning.

The wilderness ride is still a winner to the folks that know it’s history.

Agree can't believe they don't make it anymore.

Only kayak I sold that I kick myself for selling and not buying another one.
That old Ride 135 had a lot of memories for me, and sentimental value

I'll probably be buried in it, I have no plans to ever get rid of it

There's a nice orange Ride 135 on Corpus Facebook Marketplace, asking $600. If I was a stand-up kayak fisherman, that'd be a deal for me. Not too long back there was a really nice blue "The Ride" on there for months for $200! That was a LOT of kayak for the money. IslandJim

Forums aren't what they were years ago. Now the price of gas? That price has to have an effect, right? It does effect me.

I think it’s still hot, but as others have said-the discussions all happen on social media sites now. I dumped my FB and definitely feel like I don’t know what’s up with who’s going where, etc. Still not enough motivation to go back to FB mind you, but it’s definitely quiet ‘out here’, lol.

I just bought a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120 for $600. Included life jacket and paddle. I used my Brother's a few weekends back and really liked it. I'm going to add a trolling motor. Last owner had lost the MSO paperwork. I reached out to Wilderness Systems with the serial number and my personal information. This was like 11 pm at night. By 8:30 am the next morning they replied that they'd printed the MSO doc and would be mailing that day. Quite unreal customer service.

I pretty much only fish Clark and Waxahachie now also. I fished Clark Saturday morning and ran into another kayaker in a nice Old Town up the creek north of the bridge. I can't comment on the overall popularity, but I know guys who had older boats that bought higher-end kayaks for fun, and now they like it more than using their boats. I think with the advancements in kayaks lately, they are more of a viable option for folks that are used to fishing out of boats or for folks that felt kayaks wouldn't be comfortable or stable enough for them.

Steve, if you ever see a lanky guy in a bright green Native Propel on Clark or Waxahachie, be sure to say hello.

I sure will, I’d love to meet you -
I bet I will see you out there sometime-

I just moved to TX (Missouri City) and tried getting some help to shorten the local learning curve at TKF. Unfortunately, there has been very little help and I'm disappointed. Now I'm stuck watching videos and listening to podcasts. I'm going to Academy today to hopefully pick up a Fish & Game pamphlet to learn the rules. I just watched a video today and realized those sea trout have some teeth!

The kayak fishing forums in OR & CA were much more active.

Dave

OR2TX: I'm surprised you didn't get much help from the Houston/Galveston TKF guys. They're usually very helpful and knowledgeable about the upper coast fishing. Don't give up. Lots of us on TKF aren't kayak fishing as much, because of the crazy high winds. Ask your questions in the general forum areas, not the Houston section, which is in deep sleep mode. Tons of nice guys with good info that aren't afraid to state their opinions. I've never kayak fished north of the Coastal Bend, so can't help much with areas. If you see Pat Goff respond to someone's inquiry don't miss it. He's around Seadrift, but has fished everywhere! IslandJim in Rockport

Years ago TKF was the most active kayak fishing forum in the world... seriously. I read them all..everyday, from California to the North East coast to south florida and even Austrilia and South Africa. Back then everyone would share info as so much of rigging of a kayak wasn't as easy as just getting on line and ordering something. No one had fish finders on their boats back then.

^^thats the truth! And that’s what was kinda fun, even though we didn’t know it. Heck I remember thinking those fancy rails were kinda cheating, lol! The kayak I have now is not new, but is definitely high end of 5 years ago. But still, I miss the simplicity-and light weight- of some of my early rigs.

I have kept my kayaks simple. I'm not a fan of fishfinders and all the stuff. I prefer flush mount rod holders because they are the strongest. I think everyone should learn the habits of fish. That's what gets you in front of the fish. Not the fish finder and defenatly not the gopro. I've never really used either and caught some great fish in my time.

Try bass fishing with artificial baits and get back with me on the fish finder. agree with “trying” to keep it simple and flush mounts.

I resisted a fish finder for awhile, because I used to have several ponds I fished that I knew so well I didn’t need one. But then I tried a few of the large lakes and saw the value-where exactly is that ledge I’m looking for…oh there it is, drops marker… If I’m fishing for striper I probably won’t take it because I’m not using slabs. If I EVER get to the flats around Port A (just need buddies to go) I won’t need it…I’m pretty sure. So I’d say it has its uses just not every trip. But I do like the idea of simple. I’ve entertained going back to a tarpon 120 or 140 and trying the minimalist approach I used to have.

I won't disagree a fishfinder can help. I just dont prefer them. I've fished all over the country, coastal, inshore, lakes and rivers. The trends are the same everywhere. Find structure at the right depth and your in there. The method I prefer is to cover water. I do on ocation use navionics but rarely. So many people spend more time looking at the screen instead of actually fishing. If you explore and fish the fishfinder you will learn is just one more thing to tangle on.

Gotcha. Yeah I have a buddy that has one of those video game fishfinders, it shows some amazing stuff for sure but I’m not certain it’s actually changed the game or not. My depth finder used to be, and sometimes still is, a big ol’ crankbait, lol…

I feel the same way, but then I rarely target bass.
I always HOPE I catch something, but just keeping things simple. for me allows me to just enjoy being on the water in the kayak-

yaks are so expensive nowadays.

Bass fro Chop: They are expensive, but kayak fishing can be done for very little money. Like pyledriver said, a used Tarpon 120 or 140 can be bought and rigged for less than $500.00. They are fast, light and have caught thousands of fish. Other yaks are a bargain, too, like some of the older Ocean Kayaks. Pedal kayaks are great for some folks, but they are heavy, slow, and expensive. Not everyone needs a $1000 fishfinder, either. Simple, light, fast and cheap works for me. IslandJim

I recently purchased a used Vibe and plan on going soon for my first time. I used to float tube with some folks (Fishbrain) on here. I can't wait to get some time to go try it out.

Wait, what, you have fished with Fishbrain? Wow, wish he would still post on here. He’s a legend in my book.

Yep, I did. He's down in New Braunfels now.