Help - Selection

[hookster43]

Thanks for the tips. Yes I am green and I hope I am doing this right. I have never been on a forum like this, and I am still not sure how to communicate with all the members.

I am about to take a lesson with the kayak, but I do know how to fish!!
I want to purchase a kayak, but there are so many good products out there I am at stand still right now. Fish finders, gps, handheld radios,...
It can be overwhelming. I just want to fish at my own pace, with out too
much complication, oops, to late!! Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

hookster43

[PerryC]

Hookster,
I moved your post here because I though it would get more replies and exposure. Hope you don't mind

I always ask anglers who are looking at kayaks a few questions, such as do you have any kayak dealers near you who rent kayaks? Is so, which brands? Buying a model of kayak without paddling many beforehand is always a risk that you may not like the way it feels after you've spent a bunch of money.

Also, what is your body style? For example I'm 5'11" and 240. So for myself, I just don't fit into smaller kayaks very well.

Next would be is it more important to you to be able to sit back and relax while fishing, in maybe a wider kayak for example, or do you want a narrower/longer kayak which will get you from point A to point B with less energy expended.

If you could estimate where you plan to spend 80% of your fishing time, it may help also. Do you plan to hit mainly inshore such as bays, or lakes and such. Or is offshore where you want to fish?

This would be a good starting point I think. Looking forward to hearing from you soon,
Perry

[hookster43]

Perry, thanks for the speedy reply and thanks for putting me on the right track. I'll get better at this.
To answer your question(s) Yes I do have dealers near me, and today as
a matter of fact I went to Malibu Kayaks and tried the xfactor. I have
not been on another Kayak so I have nothing to compare to yet, but it
seemed o.k. I am going to take a lesson with a friend down south near
La Jolla as that is where I am going to begin. I have a couple of contacts
that fish the area and I am all ears at this point.
My body style is the out of shape kind, but I am working on it. I am 6'2"
240 + or - a few, You know!
Comfort is my main concern, I will be out on the water many hours, that's
just my style of fishing. I am the first guy casting and the last one to reel in!!! I fish a lot of cattle boats, and long range stuff, I am sick of it!!!!!!

I as I stated earlier, I will be fishing La Jolla at first, until I gain confidence
and then the sky is the limit, but mostly offshore.

Thank you so much for taking your precious time to share with me, I will talk to you later!

Keith

[fishfinder]

Great start try several boats I bought the xfactor just because of the rear 90* hatch sounds silly but i also loved the way the kayak handled . I fish in the bays and never paddle more than a couple of miles. If you want a offshore boat you want a lighter fast boat.

Please don't do what i did and go buy a ton of fishing gear. Keep it basic don't go out and buy a bait casting reel if you don't know how to use one. Wait on the fish finder. learn how to work your boat nothing is more frustrating than over shooting or running into the bridge pilling when trying to sneak into position. Go out a learn how to fish the bay and maneuver your boat when you master the basics then you'll be ready to learn new skills. I had the hardest time learning to work with the current and not against it- just that skill improved my fishing by 100%

recently a WISE old freshwater bass fisherman told me the key to fishing is the ability to approach the body of water and understand that 90% of the water in front of me doesn't hold fish. I must find that 10% were the fish are hanging out once you find that spot or spots then catching is easy
I thought he was going senile

Now i go out with 3 inch grubs in three different colors and i always catch fish bass, halibut, croakers what ever is in the bay

[Beachem]

Keith,

I’m going to jump a step forward. After you try several kayaks and found the one you like. Get a nice comfortable seat. You don’t want to scrimp on the seat. You’ll be sitting on it for hours, get a good one. Take a look at the Surf to Summit GTS Airwave it has a high back and it had an air cushion seat! It’s just an inch or two higher and really makes a difference after a long day of paddling around La Jolla. The air cushion is the absolute best. My wife and I both have them and it really makes a difference. I’ll post a link below.

Get leashes for your rods. A $15.00 leash can save you a bundle if a launch or landing doesn’t go as planned.

http://www.surftosummit.com/product/62.aspx

One more last thought, if your in San Diego area and going to try a Ocean Kayak Prowler give Allen’s Kayaks a call he had a demo set up with the surf to summit set that you can request.

Bob

[hookster43]

Thanks Beachem / fish finder, that stuff is huge, I reeeeeally appreciate that. One thing I already learned is to slow down and really do the research. Thanks guys, Keith