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Any kayak fishermen?

Rammer Jammer

Rammer Jammer

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I am soon going to be buying a fishing kayak. Old town and feelfree are at the top of my list especially with the wheel in the keel on feelfree. This will be for mostly fishing the duck River and maybe a couple small private lakes. Any recommendations?
 
I don't have a suggestion for brands or styles but I really like running a trotline out of a Kayak. Catching larger fish on spinner baits can be a lot of fun too! :cool:
 
Don't get too hung up on the wheel in the FeelFree. I was going to get one and liked that feature too but the store owner demonstrated that it was built for concrete/flat surfaces (just to move it small distances) and not for transporting the kayak from the vehicle to the water. In fact it got stopped on the smallest of rocks. So with that you're still looking at mostly carrying or dragging it. I still would like the 11.5 V2. That seat on them rocks. I'd have to put landing gear on it though because 9 times out of 10 I am by myself and nobody to help carry it, and often quite a ways from where I park to where I can launch. Native kayaks are great but more expensive.
 
I can't imagine anything better than a Hobie Pro Angler.
 

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[QUOTE="FLTENNHUNTER1, post: 5120857, member: 5033"
I can't imagine anything better than a Hobie Pro Angler.
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They are nice but I read the motion on your legs to make the system works hurts your back vs the pedal drives which is more natural.
 
It's worth trying out both drive systems to see which you like. The rotary pedal drive ones are easier on the hip and knees IMO. My wife has one with the Hobie 180 fin drive in it, and she likes it. It killed my knees though. You can go faster with the fin drive/Hobie system and don't have to take the drive up when you get in shallow water. But it killed my knees. I like the motion and instant reverse of the rotary pedal drives over the Hobies. That's why it's an individual thing. I have peddled the Native literally miles in a day and never felt any strain on my knees. I barely went across a 30 acre lake in the Hobie and had to swap back to my rotary pedal kayak.
 
Crow Terminator said:
Don't get too hung up on the wheel in the FeelFree. I was going to get one and liked that feature too but the store owner demonstrated that it was built for concrete/flat surfaces (just to move it small distances) and not for transporting the kayak from the vehicle to the water. In fact it got stopped on the smallest of rocks. So with that you're still looking at mostly carrying or dragging it. I still would like the 11.5 V2. That seat on them rocks. I'd have to put landing gear on it though because 9 times out of 10 I am by myself and nobody to help carry it, and often quite a ways from where I park to where I can launch. Native kayaks are great but more expensive.
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This was a lot of help. I was almost sold on the feelfree because of the wheel in the keel. But, if it hangs up easy, that kinda defeats the purpose.
 
How big (or small...) are you? That can play a big part in moving water stability and maneuverability. I would paddle what you are looking at in current, maybe even rent one for a day. Make sure the seat is comfy and doesn't hurt your back. A memory foam seat cushion does wonders for that as well. On the smaller side, NuCanoe Flint is very good in moving water. The new Unlimited is supposed to be the bigger brother of the flint (12'6"). Jackson has great boats too. The Coosa HD seems to be the flagship of the moving water series, along with the budget minded Bite ($799 MSRP new!!!). Both of those hulls perform great in skinny water. the coosa HD is a bit heavier though, but built like a brick sh!thouse. I have lots of experience with those two brands but have seen lots of FeelFree Lures and Natives on the water lately, as well as the Old Towns (have paddle the Old Town and didn't really like it in current).
 
Right now I have an Ascend 128T and an Ascend 12T. They are decent priced, and both are very comfortable. All day river floats go well in them.

Make sure you get one with a good seat, the ones molded into the hull are miserable to sit in for more than a few minutes.

Sit on tops are way more comfortable than sit ins.

Paddling while fishing can be tough, but I just deal with it. It can be done.
 
I am a little old school on the kayaks and will always take a canoe over a yak anytime. If you are open to another option, you could look at and OT Disc 133 or buy a TN built Mohawk(Chattanooga) 15T. The OT is a little fat but gives good stability with enough secondary stability to be able to stand up, plus you ll have a lot of extra room for storage. The Mohawk 15T, is a great solo/tandem flat water boat that would be great for the Duck. At 15ft, it tracks well enough for longer paddles but is short enough to cut in and out of eddies as you paddle. Seems canoes don't carry the attraction as kayaks but they are certainly are the more capable craft in 90% of situations. Plus at the weight some of these new kayaks are coming in at, you almost need a trailer to haul them to water.
 
Rollo said:
How big (or small...) are you? That can play a big part in moving water stability and maneuverability. I would paddle what you are looking at in current, maybe even rent one for a day. Make sure the seat is comfy and doesn't hurt your back. A memory foam seat cushion does wonders for that as well. On the smaller side, NuCanoe Flint is very good in moving water. The new Unlimited is supposed to be the bigger brother of the flint (12'6"). Jackson has great boats too. The Coosa HD seems to be the flagship of the moving water series, along with the budget minded Bite ($799 MSRP new!!!). Both of those hulls perform great in skinny water. the coosa HD is a bit heavier though, but built like a brick sh!thouse. I have lots of experience with those two brands but have seen lots of FeelFree Lures and Natives on the water lately, as well as the Old Towns (have paddle the Old Town and didn't really like it in current).
Click to expand...
5'11" 210lbs
 
Grnwing said:
I am a little old school on the kayaks and will always take a canoe over a yak anytime. If you are open to another option, you could look at and OT Disc 133 or buy a TN built Mohawk(Chattanooga) 15T. The OT is a little fat but gives good stability with enough secondary stability to be able to stand up, plus you ll have a lot of extra room for storage. The Mohawk 15T, is a great solo/tandem flat water boat that would be great for the Duck. At 15ft, it tracks well enough for longer paddles but is short enough to cut in and out of eddies as you paddle. Seems canoes don't carry the attraction as kayaks but they are certainly are the more capable craft in 90% of situations. Plus at the weight some of these new kayaks are coming in at, you almost need a trailer to haul them to water.
Click to expand...
You'll have to find a used Mohawk 15T cause if I'm not mistaken they're not making canoes anymore cause some years ago the one place that produced Royalex stopped making it. Mohawk canoes in chattanooga only sales parts/accessories I believe.
 
A bunch of us just went on a kayak fishing trip that had several portages. The light kayaks were definitely the favorites. Some of those brands it takes two people to carry them.
 
I'm an old man. Getting down into and especially out of a kayak requires major effort on my part. I bought the kayak a couple of years ago. I have had canoes all my life. I prefer my canoes. If you don't have weak knees, creaky joints, or arthritis then a kayak should be fine.
 

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