Advice on kayak

[Ksmirk]

Ok I find that the more I am flyfishing the more I am wanting to do different things but this little voice in the back of my head keeps saying "Are you sure" so I have gotten to an age that I'm not afraid to ask questions even if it makes me look a little goofy. I have been looking at the kayaks and have found one that I really like and with my knowledge of kayaks which is about as much as I know about women so a little help would be much appreciated.

Flyfishing from a kayak, are they pretty stable? I'd rather not get wet in 40deg water

I've been in Louisiana and will be working here for sometime and would like to go give the reds a try in the marshes, would this be a good fit for a kayak?

I have been looking at the Old Town FS10 and would like to get your thoughts about this kayak.

Paddles, I know how a regular paddle works but can someone throw me a bone on what I need to look at to get a good quality paddle? I don't need the most expensive I just want a good quality paddle.

I'd like to get the kayak to use in the small rivers back home and thought that since the guides down here are getting $500 a day to fish for reds I could use that money to purchase a kayak and just go when I feel the urge and only spend the money once. Any advice would be greatly appreciated to say the least! Later,

Kirk

[jeffro]

I'd go for an OldTown canoe

[cycler68]

Kayaks are plenty stable for fly fishing. I regularly site side saddle in my Hobie Revolution and don't feel tippy in it at all. I've had it out in winds up to about 25 mph (too much for fly fishing) and waves up to about 18 inches or so without a problem. If things are rougher than that I don't go out. I can't fish if it's rougher anyhow.
I think taking a kayak out into the marshes would be ok if they aren't too thick and you can find channels you can sneak through where the rushes aren't too thick.
I don't know anything about Old Town products so I'll leave that to others. I've only owned the one kayak and just used the paddles that came with it.
I would also like to make one more comment about using a guide. I think it would be well worth the cost employing a good guide at least once if you aren't knowledgeable about fishing reds. IMHO a good one will teach you more about fishing in one day than you could learn by yourself in a month of Sundays. A lot of very good fishermen use them when fishing unfamiliar waters.

[ldice]

The only Kayak I would use is the Native Ultimate kayak. It uses a pontoon style hull, and they claim that you can stand up in it. The cockpit is open so that you don't snag your fly line,and they make covers to close it up if you don't want to get wet. They cost a little more, but it's true when they say you get what you pay for. i bought mine this year, and I am glad I did. I was going to buy the cheaper one until I found a dealer that had a demo day. I had tried the wilderness system kayaks, and was about to pull the trigger on one when a friend that was working there said I need to try the Ultimate, and that was all it took. The kayak was out this year on a lake that had pontoons pulling skiers creating large wakes, and it handled the wakes like a champ.The friend of mine told me to head into a wake instead of it coming in from the side. I forgot one time and he was shocked that the kayak just skimmed across the wake with out tipping. To me that one time was well worth the purchase.

[Greybeard]

Kirk, I'm new to kayak fishing, having just bought a 14' Redfish Angler less than 3 weeks ago. I've been out in it 3 times under gentle conditions. Before my purchase I researched the dickens out of kayaks and my experience so far bears out my theoretical knowledge. Take my advice with a grain of salt but I think it will be pretty close to right or I wouldn't offer it. There are two kinds of kayaks - sit on top (SOT) and sit in kayaks. The Redfish is a SOT and the Native Ultimate is a sit in kayak. They're both good for fly fishing but they have different purposes. The Ultimate would be my first choice for fishing lakes, ponds, and sheltered water. It can be swamped and you need to know how to unswamp it - and you'll be in that 40 degree water while you do it, if it ever needs to be done. Its a stable kayak and highly recommended for fly-fishing by many users. It will probably be my next kayak. The reason I went with a SOT kayak is because they're essentially unsinkable - but that doesn't mean you can't get dunked or wet. You'll still have to deal with 40 degree water! The SOT kayaks are rotationally molded and have a fully sealed hollow space that floats you and your stuff. There are holes in the bottom called scuppers and any waves or other water that gets into the kayak drains out. The design of the kayak is such that the bottom where you sit is somewhat above the water line - hence the water drains out.

The FS10 by Old Town that you're looking at is a sit in kayak. For fly-fishing in particular, I'd encourage you to look at the Native Ultimate before dropping $500 on the FS10.

You mention fishing small rivers and maybe reds (I'm not sure). If the small rivers don't have rapids, the Ultimate would be my first choice. If you wanted to go out in the Gulf (or for me its the Chesapeake Bay) you really should be looking at SOT kayaks. There are many good ones - the Hobie Revolution as mentioned and the Heritage Redfish are just two. If your planning to go down rapids I suspect you'll want a shorter more maneuverable kayak than a 12 or 14 footer. You'll probably be looking at SOT again but not necessarily (there are skirts you can get to keep a lot of water out). Bottom line, one kayak can't do it all very well - but there are kayaks that you could fly fish from that will be suitable for just about any environment where you'd want to take a kayak.

As for paddles, I'm told you need one to fit your kayak and beyond that everyone told me to get an asymmetrical carbon fiber paddle. That's what I use and so far it seems reasonable. I figure when I've done this for a few years and have found the limits of my equipment I'll know what to look for in my second paddle.

Just one last note - you'll be sitting low and I'd recommend an 8' rod and careful attention to your back casts or you'll be slapping the water. This isn't a theoretic issue, if you catch my drift.<g>

[ldice]

I was told that the Ultimate can float even if it is half full of water, and The best way to bail it out is to cary a 1 gallon bleach bottle and cut out the bottom of it. The sales person said that gives you a 1 gallon at a time bail out. The SOT are going to be a wet ride, and I would like to take my chances with the ultimate. The KC paddler store told me that it would be really hard to flip that ultimate kayak.Native sells a set of covers that will seal off the kayak, and turn it into a sit in kayak making it a nice warm ride.

[Ksmirk]

Well I'm over my wanting to shoot the rapids stage in life LOL our rivers are just tailwaters that while they have some current not too bad unless they are generating then well your choice would be downstream pretty much doubt I'll be paddling up river in that current but heck ya never know. The closest this thin would get to the Gulf would be the marshes some water is deep but most in the 1'-2' range with about 30' of slimy stinky @$$ mud! I tried to wade one weekend down in Cocodrie and well got the boys muddy and my legs were straight! had to do the quicksand dance to get out then change when I got back to the truck. Found a guy that has a 10' Jon boat and my little brother has a 8' buster boat back home that if I get to drive I might just bring it along they are very solid when standing up and it's free

I will still end up with a yak I know mainly for some good exercise as after blowing my knee running is not in my life anymore I need some good cardio PLUS something I can fish out of so when I get back in town I have a shop I need to go check out and they give lessons also so when that day comes I fill the yak up with water I'll be able to get it out and going again. Guys thanks a mess for the advice and opinions it has really helped! Later,

Kirk

[Hextall]

I've owned and fished out of a redfish 14 for about 5 years now, and really like it. I went with a SOT mainly because I feel it's much easier getting into and out of the boat while I fish sand bars around the coast here in NH.

I've stood up and fished from it as well... but only when it was perfectly calm. It's not something I'd do regularly because at least for the fishing I'm doing, the advantage of gettign closer with a kayak trumps any advantage standing up would give me.

Another data point comparison though... the redfish is over 70 lbs. Many SOT are heavy because they have to be made of thicker plastic to handle our weight and not collapse. The Ultimate is just over 50 lbs. 20lbs might not seem like a lot until you try and carry the boat for 20' or try to put it up on your car.

I wouldn't worry about getting a better paddle now. In fact, if you're willing to invest some money, I'd probably suggest getting some kayak paddling lessons over buying a more expensive paddle. The kayak's design decides how fast the boat goes... not the paddle. To take advantage of the boat's hydrodynamics, you'll need good paddling stokes.

FWIW... For a fishing vessel, I am saving and planning on getting a hobie boat with the peddle drive system. I see them around here and they look like great fishing kayaks. but they are about 2-3 times more expensive than my redfish was new. pros and cons...

[Gigmaster]

You can't go wrong with ANY kayak. They are the ultimate boat. Tough, fast, and virtually unsinkable. As to SIK, ,or SOT, it's mostly personal preference. Everything is a trade-off. SOTs are easy to get in and out of, are open, so you won't feel cramped, and are self-bailing. But, they are slower, heavier, you will get wetter, and even with thigh straps, are difficult, if not impossible to Eskimo Roll. If you roll over, you will be separated from your boat, and so will your gear. In fast water, they maneuver like a drunken Clydesdale, so you're gonna go in the water...a lot. SIKs will keep you dry (especially with a spray skirt), are fast, and can cover miles easily, can turn on a dime (at least the shorter ones), can be easily rolled, saving you, and your gear, are warmer, and virtually indestructible. They are also much lighter. My personal preference is for SIKs, which I have, but I know lots of people who use SOTs and love them. It's up to you.

I have never owned an Old Town, but they have gotten good ratings. If you really want to know about a particular Kayak before you buy one, go to http://www.paddling.net/, and check out the 'Reviews' section. This will tell you what people who actually bought one think about it.

I have a Pelican Pursuit 100 and absolutely love it. I bowfish, fly fish, spin fish, run jug and trot lines from it, as well as go through the occasional fast water, and exploring. It's the best $200.00 I ever spent. I hardly ever use my canoe any more. In fact, it's up for sale right now. I want to buy another Kayak (a SOT, so I'll have one of each).

As far as paddles, they need to be matched to your height. Paddling.net has everything you need to know about how to select a suitable paddle. A lot depends on your intended usage.

Good luck, and have fun.

[Ksmirk]

Well fianlly got around to going to visit Dave at OKC Kayak last night and talk about a wealth of awesome information! I got every question answered alnog with some I had not even thought about, funny he closes up shop at 6:00pm and when I finally got out of there at 6:45pm there was a Native Ultimate 14.5 in the back of my truck Dave got me set up with the right length of paddle, we added a flyrod holder where it's easy to get to but out of the way, a slick little anchor system on the side of the yak, a PFD that is geared toward fishing, and a wealth of great information and a source of future information. I had to pass of the spray skirts something about my pockets are deep but mainly filled with lint LOL.

Well now it seems I have an awesome fishing platform and seems there are a mess of folks here in the Okc area that have yaks and get together a couple evenings a week when the weather is a touch warmer so looks like I have a social platform to boot. I'm pretty happy with this purchase as the folks on this site have offered a weath of information and some great links not to mention the people here in town are just full of good information also. Guys a big thank you goes out to each of you that offered me opinions and experiences! Later,

Kirk