Best BTB Kayak 2023?

So I am interested in everybody's 2-cents-worth, and I will be giving change.
What is the best Texas Gulf Coast Beyond The Breakers kayak - off the shelf? Classic power, no pedals no motors ... you know, a real kayak ... like under 100-pounds ... not a tiny boat!

Cobra Fish n Dive. Handles the surf, very stable lots of room and below deck storage for most all your gear.

Ok, I will take a look!

Whoa. I have never seen anything quite like these! It looks like San Antonio is the only place that carries them? Great BTB option!

They don't make them like they used to for offshore fishing in my opinion. When Wilderness Systems came out with the Tarpon 160, many years ago, it was the most popular choice for anglers from Texas to Florida and on up the eastern seaboard..the west coast seemed to prefer the Ocean Kayak Big Game or Tridents as California was where those boats originated. I've never owned one but have paddled it and have had many friends who had them. With a rudder, it is a winner. The downside to it was its weight, about 85 lbs. They aren't made any more but you can probably find a good used one along the Texas gulf coast for around $700, a bargain if that's what you plan to use it for. Guys in the 240 to 280 lb range loved them. I see used ones for sale in Miami and Galveston Craiglist from time to time.

https://paddling.com/gear/wilderness-systems-tarpon-160-kayak

I'm a lightweight, 165 lbs and prefer the Tarpon 140 over the 160 and still being made by Wilderness Systems.

https://www.wildernesssystems.com/us/kayaks/tarpon-140

What I like even better than the Tarpon 140 is the Native Manta Ray 14... I have two of them. Very comfortable seating, most comfortable foot braces, and a big bow for busting through the surf.. 14 feet in length and 28 inch beam, water tight front hatch.. No longer made but you can find them used.. Lots of them in south Florida and I forgot to check one out I'd seen for sale cheap the last time I was in Florida or I'd have bought it too.

Now the best of all for me is the Kaskazi Dorado II that I bought from a friend a few years ago.. just under 16 feet and about 24.5 inch beam and weighs about 55 lbs... carbon fiber and glass, imported from South Africa... but no longer made. . Expedition kayak designed for offshore fishing in the roughest conditions, bulkhead, can store up to 100 lbs of fish inside hull, and paddles like a dream, center hatch that I can put my 7' rods in to keep them safe when coming back in though surf.


center hatch


the most water tight hatches I've ever seen

Check out Stealth Profisha kayaks. They are similar to the Kaskazi Dorado.
https://stealthkayaks.com/product-category/kayak-range/profisha/

that would definitely be a good one as well.. and its still being made!

I'm never going BTB, but if I was, my affordable kayak pick would be a Viking Profish Reload, 15 ft, 68 pounds. The Stealth yaks are awesome, but way out of my price range. IslandJim

I tend to prefer the "offshore" type kayaks. I've had viking profits 400, 440 and the reload, actually several of each. I had a trident 15 and still have a stealth fisha 500. I always thought the reload was over hyped. I preferred the 440 or the 400 over the reload. I just never thought the reload tracked very well. It was fast and did cut through the water well I just felt it needed a rudder or skeg. I have had the 440 and the 400 in a storm that was producing 25+ft waves and never had a doubt i was getting back home. The trident is a great kayak, I could easily stand in it, the cockpit is flat which makes it easy. It was heavy. It also performed better with a rudder. Now the crown jewel is my fisha 500. I have sat sideways in the surf with ease, it's super light, super fast and turns on a dime witch is strange for a 16ft 3in kayak. The down side is going pee. It has to be in a bottle. Super stable sitting but I sure wouldn't try to get on my knees and pee over the side. They now make a roto molded version of the stealths and that would be a little more universal for rougher ground etc.

I’m happy with my Viking Profish Reload. For me it’s really comfortable with the sloped cockpit but that also makes it tough to stand in. Not a concern for me. Christian is right it needs a rudder for sure. Tracks worse than a Hobie without one. Not super fast but fast enough. Handles waves and surf well. Tackle storage with the removable tackle pod is the biggest advantage to the Reload. No issues storing all your tackle in that one pod along with your fish finder. Down side is there’s no hull access to store rods for surf landing like the Stealth kayaks have. Still a nice rear tank well for a long fish bag and or cooler.

The Reload can drift the flats in 6” of water loaded down or can go offshore in choppy waters and does both well. Works great for me.

Okay, ya'll know I'm going to have to chime in on this one. lol

It sounds like you are on a budget which I'm guessing is why you don't want peddle. With that being said, I normally would recommend the Stealth Kayaks but the best bang for your money is the Viking Reload. You can find a nice one for a decent price as compared to the Stealth Kayaks. I do agree in regards to what they are saying without a rudder but nevertheless, still a great kayak!

Some other options if you find it, and depending on your weight, are the Wilderness Tarpon 160 and the Ocean Kayak Ultra 4.7.

All I do during the summer is go BTB. I also run a BTB outing for new people that is absolutely free that has anywhere between 100 - 200 people that participate. I'll be posting up the details for that in February. I have done this outing for over 10 years. When you call, remind me of this and I will give you the rundown. This outing caters to new people going out BTB. I would love to chat more with you on this so hit me up anytime. 832-588-7091

this is great

I felt like after bill stopped importing viking the service has gone way down hill. They stopped bringing in the 440, now lost forever because of the factory fire, they stopped bringing in the 400 that was imo, the best all around kayak they made and super light weight simply to push the reload and the gt. Don't get me wrong the products are solid the issues I have are the people around the products. That ultra 4.7 is a sexy kayak but old, I haven't seen that yak in years.

Not sure if you have tried visiting https://texaskayakfisherman.com/forum/index.php yet. It is a popular site for BTB. Lots of good info from other experienced guys.

christian: I once told Ryan Ford that if Viking would put some type of pedal drive in the Profish 400, they could have the best-selling kayak on the planet. He said that Viking didn't want pedal drives, and that they hitched their wagon to the Bixpy star. The Kiwis don't understand that the US kayak market isn't made up of he-men like them. We're on average, overweight flabby, but don't want to admit it. Hobie gets it. And sells the most(expensive) kayaks. I'm glad I got a 400. IslandJim

I think Viking would still be fine if they just came out with a framed seat. Personally I like the current seats in the Reloads and 400's (especially using the one way scupper plugs under the seat) but most people look at that seat and turn their head. Again using Hobie as an example they saw that coming years ago and switched from a padded low profile seat like the Viking currently has to a framed seat (in 2015). Yes is raised the center of gravity but only by 3/4 of an inch.

It's a shame. Viking and Santa Cruz both have the same mentality. Santa Cruz ended up dieing, im afraid viking may too, not because of their products but again, the people. I always thought if the 400 had a real front hatch it would be the best. Couldn't even get that. Sad.

I wanted to chime in here in an inquisitive way. I recently bought a Jackson Kraken 15.5 since I do quite a bit of lake fishing. All the research I’ve done says that BTB fishing is what it was designed for.

Does anyone have any experience / input on the Kraken 15.5? Main thing I’ve found is that it’s way too long to haul around in the back of my Tacoma, even with a bed extender.

I put a rudder on it, and it tracks really nice. It’s fast, too!

Thanks for any input!

JR

are pedal kayaks
trouble free?
like
are the pedal systems fragile?

more trouble and more fragile than a good paddle..

I had a Hobie PA 14 prior to the Jackson Kraken I have now. I really enjoyed being able to pedal around while I had my hands free to fish. The Kraken is great. I have only had it for a short while, though. My first kayak was a Wilderness Ride. It was a paddle kayak. I caught lots of fish out of it.

As far as fragility, the year-model Hobie Mirage Drive on my PA 14 had rigid stainless steel rods on the fins. I bent them a few times bumping into stumps and rocks. I never had any trouble with the drive mechanism.

JR

Butch pedal systems do require some maintenance and because there is an object extending roughly a foot below or under the kayak pedal systems are prone to being damaged (stumps, sand bars and even grass). I wouldn't say they're fragile. In my opinion Hobie style pedal drives are in general a little more fragile than a quality prop style pedal drive system like Old Town's because of the number of exposed moving parts in the Hobie pedal drive system. For most pedal drive systems a quick fresh water rinse after each use (I wouldn't use high pressure to rinse them unless you're several feet away from it) will go a long way in keeping them running smooth. The Old Town prop style peddle drive system comes with a 5 year warranty. Hobie comes with a 1 year warranty I believe.

Jim Sammons (kayak fishing tales on YouTube) has paddles a Kraken 15.5 pretty much all over the world fishing offshore. It's in part his design so sure he is naturally biased but I haven't heard anything bad about those kayaks. For you in that Tacoma yeah that's just not a good combo. Seems like a roof rack might be a better solution than a bed extender. I would sure have insurance on that kayak though. That's a lot of kayak sticking out of the back of the truck for someone to run into.

I was looking for a Kraken 15.5 when I bought my Viking Reload. I like the framed seat and the ability to store fish down inside the hull. Ice lasts a lot longer if it's out of the direct sunlight. I believe Jackson used to make a fish bag just for that center hatch.

thanks men

Thanks for the input. The plan is to put the Kraken on a trailer. My days of hoisting a kayak to the top of a vehicle are behind me. My Hobie was on a trailer when I bought it. Times got tough during COVID layoffs and cutbacks, and I sold it. I’m pretty spoiled to the convenience of launching off a trailer.

JR

Yeah I'm with ya even though that kayak is supposedly pretty light a 15 foot long kayak is still a hand full to pick up. Buddy of mine uses a trailer and loves it. He built an 8' long lockable wood rod box on one side of the trailer that holds his rods and his kayak accessories. Top of the box also doubles as a fillet station.

Jim Sammons was asked to help with the creation of what is now the Kraken. It was supposed to be designed for offshore. It does it just fine but when it boils down to a rough current day, it will be a very tough paddle back. I have done those paddles before back in the day and I am so glad to have a peddle drive now. Every now and then I miss paddling but then I realize how much easier it is to peddle. lol

I agree pedals are better offshore. I wish I had the knees to be able to pedal more than a mile lol.

One of Jim Sammons biggest fears is having to go to a pedal kayak in old age!

Wilderness Ride or Tarpon 140.

I'm a lightweight so I'd pick the Tarpon 140 .. at 28 inch beam it will be much easier to paddle distance and through the surf.. For a bigger person.. say 230 lbs and up, I'd look for a used Tarpon 160 (discontinued) for offshore.. for inshore fishing the Ride would be fine. Just my opinion... never owned either one but have fished from all three..

My old friend Dean telling it like it is and was..

here is a good one for the money... discontinued but a great price .... don't believe the one below has the motor drive capability

https://www.facebook.com/commerce/listing/1621161101637397/?media_id=0&ref=share_attachment