Kayak upgrades

[canebreaker]

I fish a lot of lakes with speeding boats around. Have to watch their waves to turn into them or risk a flip. I looked at a lot of Utube videos for DIY's. I settled on the first one in this video.
Now I can set them in the water, fish without watching boats and their waves.

 

[snapping turtle]

Have you ever looked into a canoe called the sports paL?
the small ones are as stabilized as about any small craft and I can stand and cast. I would think they are about as short as your kayak and most likely weigh less. We had a 12 footer and a very big lab could hop in from the platform with a duck and not rock from side to side.

I KNOW I KNOW. Not as cool as the craze for fishing kayaks at the moment. I just find the more comfortable by far and easier to get in and out of the water. When I saw the stabilizer the sports pal has them kind build into the sides.

Meyers Boat Company - Official home of Meyers boats, Michicraft and Sportspal canoes, Snark sailboats, Seacycle waterbikes, and Walden kayaks

I had a 15 footer at one time and I think it weighed about 50 pounds and with a nice trolling motor it was really fast to cruse around and comfortable to boot. I used to see one around with a 10 horsepower outboard also and that thing could move out. I don’t think they are made for a 10 horse motor but a 350 chevy engine was not standard in a Vega either.

 

[smokingman]

That looks fairly simple to set up and fairly light,does it work well for you?

I have never fished from a kayak,but enjoy paddling one at least a few times a year on the rivers of Indiana.

I have fished from a canoe many times and learned the value of an anchor while in the boundary waters. Think big lakes with high winds. By the second trip I had changed from a grapple type to a simple 1/2 gallon milk jug filled with sand(or many times rocks on that trip because the less weight I had to portage the better). A 1/2 gallon jug with a bit of para cord works well for me,and unlike a grapple type I am not pulling half the bottom of the lake up. Do you use an anchor?

 

[DCR]

Put an anchor trolley on mine. Invaluable last May while battling 5 sharks and a Goliath Grouper in the Keys

 

[bwframe]

Put an anchor trolley on mine. Invaluable last May while battling 5 sharks and a Goliath Grouper in the Keys

 

[indyk]

Sweet!
We bass fish a bit out the kayaks during the spring, summer, fall. We fish the nooks and crannies that guys never get to touch or even lay eyes on, waters you can’t even fish from the bank, we are there.
The amount and size of these bass are amazing on creeks!
Little Eagle creek, Fall creek,Blue, White river, they all flow from good water.
Bass fishing from a non designated fishing kayak is a learning curve for sure, even if your savvy on bass fishing and kayaks you can’t overload your kayak like this guy here. Although we have thought of a more compact system to prevent roll overs in current that isn’t as stable as we see here.
When your snaking in between runs or where you have to get out and move the kayak because the run is too dangerous or fallen trees blocking the run, that kayak can’t be overloaded like a big lake kayak
etc but has it’s advantages vs a loaded down build.
The winter time is certainly the time to start applying those add on’s and upgrades but one has to be mindful when they fish the creeks, and rivers of what you can and what you can’t attach.

 

[DCR]

Excellent points. You need to know how to deploy your anchor in current. You reminded me of my fallen tree episode in the Keys last year. I was stuck in a tidal creek with bad tide info and the current was ripping. I waited it out for 2 hrs, but it still didn't turn. I had used up all my sunscreen and decided to make a run for it. I had to paddle in sections and then rest...until I got to the fallen tree. It had fallen in the last couple of hours. The water was too deep to get out with a ripping current. I couldn't go around or under. I had to hang onto the tree and snap limbs off until I could get past it. Took me half an hour. Scariest kayak adventure I've ever had. I had filed a Float Plan, but was way overdue. Couldn't use my phone, but wife could spot me on google maps, unfortunately it was erratic, as sometimes I would appear in a lagoon, sometimes in the middle of US1.

 

[n9tkf]

Added a trolling motor last year. Mostly fish Patoka Lake and a few smaller lakes. Trolling motor is a game changer in the wind. Can also pull up the motor and paddle if needed.