Fish retention on Kayak

I'm a Canoe fisher and have been looking at getting a Kayak. One question I have is how do you keep fish. I love catching panfish and usually use a bucket with water to keep them in while fishing. :D :D

Check out this page http://www.texaskayakfisherman.com/f...pic.php?t=1040

Scroll down to his "clip on stringer". I love this idea, but I am too chicken to use it Florida (gators and sharks). :oops:

I like to use those insulated bags that you can pick up at Wally World, put the fish on ice, and store in the yak.

I can see the gator problem. Here in Illinois we have the snapping turtle problem.I'm using a WalMart fish basket with a floating lid?trap door.works good and doesn't cause to much drag on my canoe.Plus side is it holds more fish for the skillet than a stringer.
Dennis

I don't know the brand, but Joe Hyde has a photo of one in his column this week in Warmwater.

I use two of the metal stringers hooked end to end so they're long enough to reach over the side and keep the clipped fish in the water until I'm ready to pull the yak out of the water.

I'm using this rig on waters that don't have sharks or gators.

Hi Folks,

Just a caution! If your paddling moving water, or if you have preditors
in the water like our southern gators, make sure you have some means
of quick release for your fish stringers. Results otherwise could be
embarrassing or worse.*G* Warm regards, Jim

I think that one of the canvas creels would work well for kayaking. It wouldn't take up much room and would stow in a crate or under the bungee cords. After all, if you're keeping the fish anyway, why not a creel?

.

There are a few articles around the web on adding a live well to your kayak. They're mostly designed for keeping bait alive, but should work equally well for keeping your catch alive/fresh until you're back on shore (assuming you're targeting fish that fit...doesn't work well for some of the saltwater kayakers).

I had this image in my sick mind. :mrgreen:

Take your catch and just take an appropriate sized hook through its back or jaw. Troll it behind your boat. If anything eats it you will still have one fish, just larger. Do the same with that fish and so on. When all is said and done you will only need to take the one fish home, could wind up being a tuna! :roll:

jed

Hey Jed,

You ain't "trolling" on FAOL are ya? :lol: Warm regards, Jim

What do you do Jed when the fish gets so big it pulls You backwards!!!!!!!! :P hehehe Like the movie Grumpier old men and the catfish dragging their boat!! :lol:
Dennis

:idea: Throw out a sea anchor and start up the grill (a portable one on gimbles). Just about the time the coals are ready the fish should be tired out.

Go to the food forum for a recipe. I assume that we all have portable laptops and a cell phone with a data connection so you can download the recipe while the coals are warming up and the fish is tiring itself out.
:roll:

jed