Hobie Mirage or Nucanoe?

Fishing Paddling
1

Hi all,

I am tired of my pontoon and the whole wader bit when using it. I am going to keep it for rivers, but I am looking at getting either a Hobie Outcast Mirage or the Nucanoe. I plan to use it for stillwater fishing for trout here on the east side of Washington. There is only one Nucanoe dealer here in the Yakima area and none for the Hobie Mirage so I am hoping you guys (or gals) can help me decide which is the better fishing platform I only fly fish and generally do not drag woolly buggers around trolling. Given the high price of gasoline I really don’t want to drive all over the state looking before I am ready to pull the trigger on a purchase. I have zero expirence with kayaks but most prams are simply too heavy for an old guy like me to man handle around. Any input would be helpful. Thanks for any ideas or suggestions. Should I wait and see what the new Native craft looks like?

Jim Harper

2

Have you looked at the Native Ultimate?

3

No, I am tending to favor the Hobie Mirage because of the ability to move and fish at the same time. Maybe, I need to look at that one also. Thanks. Jim

4

How are you planning to get your final choice to/from the water? If you’re tossing them in the back of a truck, either is probably fine. If you have to lift them on top of a minivan or SUV, the weight might be a big factor.

5

I have no experience with a Nucanoe but I do have a Hobie Revolution and I previously owned an Outback, I also own an Ocean Kayak Prowler 13 sit on top kayak so i can tell you why I like each one and where I use them.

The Hobie is great as long as you have clearance, it takes a foot or so for the flippers to work. You can raise the flippers to slid over shoals but you have to be able to do it before you reach the shallow area, other wise you can bend a shaft or get stuck, or in a worst case flip if you get caught in swift water. That being said, I find it to be almost no problem in the areas I fish and the worst I have ever done is to slightly bend a shaft when I struck a rock that I couldn’t see.

What the Hobie is great at is letting you fish while you pedal. I never could figure out that paddling and casting process. Paddle, put the paddle down, cast the fly, paddle again. I like fishing small streams and ponds and “banging the banks” with the fly, This is where the Hobie is best. You pedal and cast at the same time, you steer with your left hand.

When I used the Prowler I usually paddled somewhere and got out and waded. I was going to keep the prowler for times I needed to paddle but I am now going to sell it because if I don’t use the drive and plug the hole the Hobie paddles as good as the Prowler.

You really need to go somewhere and demo both before you make a final decision. You will find some real kayakers have a negative opinion about the Hobie because it is not traditional, if fact there is a real love hate thing about Hobies, you either really like them or you really don’t, I like mine.

Good luck in your search.

Duncan

6

PM Warren P. He can give you a fair run down, on owning the Nucanoe, over the other watercraft he’s owned in the past. There’s also a thread, here, in Paddling, about his new craft and what he honestly thinks about it.

7

Here is the link to Warren’s article:

http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/showthread.php?t=20220&highlight=nucanoe

I just may eventually look into one myself.

8

I’m another person who can’t really speak to you about the Nucanoe, but I’ve owned a Hobie Outback for about five years and I absolutely love it. I’ve never operated it in fast moving water so far since I mainly fish ponds and lakes but I find it to be very stable, easy to operate and super quiet. As far as loading for travel, it is a bit heavy at around 56lbs (I think) and anything that size/shape can be awkward. When I sold my pickup truck, I picked up a small trailer for a SkiDoo and it works great for the Hobie.

With the wheel system, you can toss in all your gear and get it to the water very easily. This is by far the best personal fishing craft I?ve ever used.

Jim Smith

9

4beader,

I cannot give you any advise on what you should purchase. You need to demo both and decide for yourself which one will do what you want it to do. I have never owned a Hobie Outcast Mirage, but, have seen them being used by others on the rivers here. They look like they handle very well and I did notice that in very shallow water they had to drift through due to not enough water for the flippers to work. I never had an interest in a demo of one due to the seating position that you would have. My back would not take sitting with my legs straight out in front of me for very long. I have seen people in kayaks and once again, my back would not tolerate the position you must sit in. With the Hobie, it looks like your legs, feet and flipper arms would be a nightmare for your fly line to tangle in plus you are confined to fish straight ahead only unless you side arm the cast and turn your head to the left or right to fish. All of what I have said is only from observation and not from actual experience of using the Hobie and all of my observations are from using a fly rod because that is all I use no matter what species of fish I am fishing for. If one should use a spinning rod it might be different. My NuCanoe allows me to have my knees bent very much like sitting in a chair or I can sit cross legged if I want and I can change positions to get more comfortable. I can relocate the seat to another location in the NuCanoe if needed. I can haul another person with me if needed. I can turn sideways and fish. I can, if I wanted to, stand and stretch and the most important feature , as far as I am concerned, is that the NuCanoe is very, very stable. I just feel you have more freedom of movement in the NuCanoe where in the Hobie, you are pretty much restricted to just one postion and that being your feet straight out in front and your upper body leaned back some. It just does not look comfortable to me. I need more freedom of movement and have the option to change how I sit and where I want to sit.

I cannot give you your decision. I think you really need to demo both and make that decision for your self.

I love my NuCanoe and feel for $699, that I have the craft I want for my fly fishing style and now you need to determine what craft will fit your style. Don’t take what others tell you is what you want. You determine what it is you want since it is your money you are spending. My personal opinons only and nothing more…

10

I’ve owned many different modes of water craft…Even a Hobie Float cat 75…Still have that…But since I got my Hobie outback…I use nothing else!..Hope you can try all the boats suggested…But if you try the Hobie…I’d bet money on what boat you buy!!! In shallow water you can still effectively use the mirage drive…Ya just use shorter pedal strokes…Lets see ya do that with the new Native ultimate drive!

11

Also bear in mind that you can still use a paddle with the Hobie Outback, either for fun or if you find yourself in extreme shallows/rocks.

12

First, thanks for all the input. I will be hauling whatever I buy in my Tundra pickup. I guess it was foolish to posy such an open ended question, but I am seeking to gather all the information I can before driving to Portland (100 plus miles) to make a purchase. I still would like a bit of information on the stability of both vessels. I am 67, almost 68, and not as steady as I used to be. I want something that I will not worry about tipping over on me. I sure as heck do not plan to stand in it but will lean over when releasing a fish. Jim Harper

13

Jim,

I use my Hobie Outback about twice a week during the fishing season which down here in Georgia goes from February until Late November. I’m 58 and as much as I hate to admit it, I’m about 40+ lbs overweight and not nearly as nimble as I used to be. I’ve caught and released many hundreds of fish from my kayak and I fly fish 90% of the time. I’ve never had the line tangle in the pedals, but I have accidently hooked the rope that attaches the front handle and I just have to break off the fly and retrieve it when I get to shore.

I must admit that I have dumped my kayak twice. Both times when I was trying to get my fat butt into it from the shore and I had one foot in the boat and one one the bank and… I guess you get the picture. I’m not even sure if that counts as dumping the kayak since it would have happened in any boat if your not quick enough. Anyway, other than those two times, I’ve never even come close to tipping and I’ve leaned out to retreive flies and reached up to push off from branches when I drift too close to trees.

I don’t think that Warren’s concern about the pedals and leg position will be a problem either. The pedals are adjustable (takes about 10 seconds) to accomodate people of all heights. You can shorten the stroke if that is more comfortable for you. I find when I’m drifting along, I often just hang my legs off each side. My feet are not in the water but it’s sort of like being on a beach chair. I find the seat very comfortable and have never experienced back aches or pain even after 4 straight hours of fishing from the kayak.

I only have three issues with the Hobie Outback.

  1. You can’t back it up with the pedals. But you have the kayak paddle right there so that’s really not an issue.

  2. There are a couple of tie downs inside the kayak that I had to remove because my fly line would tangle in it during the retrieve.

  3. If you’ve got to go. there’s no way to relieve yourself gracefully, but that’s true in any kayak and most canoes as well.

As you can tell, I’m really sold on my Hobie outback and I’m with Bill on this one, I think if you try them all out, you’ll end up with the Hobie. Just one man’s opinion.

Jim Smith

14

Warren - I’ve fly fished and spin fished out of my Outbacks for several years now. Casting sideways works well enough. Just tonight, I was drifting parallel to shore casting towards the low branches and weeds along the edge.

I just switched to a longer rod and really like it (10 ft instead of the usual 9). I haven’t had any problems landing fish with the longer rod (some buddies predicted it would be really hard to land the fish with a longer rod).

I use a longer handled net than those typical trout nets. Sitting up above the water in the Outback meant I had to really lean towards the fish to net it until it dawned on me to go looking for one with a longer handle…problem solved.

I have had my line get caught in the pedals. Happened a few weeks ago for the first time. It was windy and I had some line on the water that I’d stripped in but not yet cast back out. If I strip into my lap, there are more things for it to catch on.

The wind pushed the line under the kayak since I had an anchor attached near the back. I quickly figured out that just pushing the other pedal forward prevented the problem. I had the fins folded up against the hull and the wind pushed the line under the nose of the kayak. If I would have left the fins upright instead of folded, they likely wouldn’t have caught.

The nucanoe looks very interesting though I was surprised when I saw how much it weighed. That might be a factor for Jim since he said he’s in his mid-60’s. Hoisting 80+ pounds of nucanoe might not be as easy as the 57 pounds or so of a Hobie…even less I think if he went for the shorter Hobie Sport.

Jim - for canoes and kayaks, the shorter they are, the slower the are. The wider they are, the slower they are. That’s why touring kayaks are 16’ long and really skinny. The Hobie Sport may end up being a little slower than the Outback simply because it’s a fair bit shorter.

Odds are, it’ll be fast enough for what you want but like others have said, it REALLY is something you should try before you buy.

And not just a quick 5 minute test ride. Spend an hour or two in each model. Find out if you end up with “hot spots” or if your legs feel weird.

In my Outback, I put my feet down when I’m anchored or drifting. Otherwise, they’ll eventually feel a little sleepy. I’ve spent 3+ hours at a time in my Outback and only stopped due to the call of nature.

I’d love to try a nucanoe one of these days but I think my wife might get a bit grumpy if another watercraft follows me home any time soon… :smiley:

15

Thanks to the very informative input form all of you, I think I am going to go to Portland next weekend and look at the Hobie Sport. Hopefully I can get a chance to try one out. I still wonder just how you can go (pee) in one of those. Also, the NuCanoe has a place for an anchor, just how have you rigged an anchor on the Hobie? Jim Harper

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I land and get out of the Hobie when nature calls. I suppose you could try something like a pilot-relief-tube like some pilots have but I’d rather not warm the water I’m fishing in. :smiley:

There are gel packs sold for hunters who don’t want to leave their deer stands and don’t want to create a scent near them…

As for anchoring…I put a “cam cleat” as far back as I could comfortably reach from the seat. I picked a style that’s open on top so I can easily toss the anchor line overboard if I get in a jam (waves, current, whatever…the anchor can be a liability on any small craft and being able to quickly dump it can be important).

I have a float on the top end of my anchor line so if I toss it over, I should be able to retrieve it later (unless I’m in water deeper than my anchor line and that’s very very very rare for me).

I also added Scotty rod mounts since the built-in rod holders are intended for spin rods. I’ve tried a couple of styles…I generally put a backer inside the kayak where they’re attached. I use a material like you’d find in cutting boards (got it from TAP Plastics’ scrap bin or just find a cheap cutting board). I’m probably being way over cautious though…but at least for the cam cleat since it’l have the strain of the anchor on it…

Other folks like an anchor system that lets them move where the anchor’s pull is hitting. Some of those don’t allow for a quick getaway so look closely if you go that route.

Before you drill any holes for attaching things, make sure you can reach that spot from inside the yak (if you need to put a nut underneath, it really helps if you can reach…).

Different models have the hatches in different places and they move the hatches year to year as well. I have two Outbacks purchased a couple years apart and the hatch locations forced different rod mount locations.

Good luck with whatever you decide on.

17

The NuCanoe has the following optional equipment that can be purchased and installed on their crafts:

Anchor system that contains the anchor, rope, rope cleat, eyelets to run the rope through plus excellent instructions on how to install

Double paddle hold down same as above: comes with everything needed plus installation instructions

2 different style padded seats with backs that fold out of the way when not needed

2-wheeled dolly to strap onto the NuCanoe for transporting across country when needed

Rod holders that screw down into the threaded holes where the seats can be relocated

Pre-formed area in boat for a battery if you use an electric trolling motor

Extension handle for the trolling motor

A foot controlled trolling motor

A dry box that straps down into the boat at any location you want it via the many pre-installed tie down straps–this box could be used for a cooler or anything else you so desire

Not sure if that is all the optional equipment but I think it is. Heard a rumor that they are working on a fold away leaning bar option which I would be interested in trying

No, I do not have all the optional equipment on mine. I do have the extra seat for my 10 footer in case the wife or someone else wants to go along. The 12 footer comes with 2 seats. I also purchased their anchor system, the double paddle hold-down system and 2 of the padded seats with backs. At the present time, that is all I need for mine. I do not plan to use an electic motor. I really do not feel it is needed plus I do not want to haul around the battery nor do I want to have to pay the State each year to have it registered. The only optional equipment I would be interested in trying would be the fold-away leaning bar when they come out with it.

No, I am not connected with NuCanoe and I do not receive any thing from them for promoting them. I just like mine very much and urge everyone to at least look at one and demo one. They are not for everyone, but, for me, they are perfect…

18

Couple of things, you can stand up in the nucanoe, and they support FAOL as a sponsor. I’m sure you have looked on here at the information about them.

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JC, of course I have. That is the primary reason I am considering one. They just happen to help support the BEST fly fishing site. Jim Harper

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I forgot to mention that my local NuCanoe dealer here in Yakima wants full retail (I know that is usual) PLUS he wants $150 for a delivery fee to his store from the factory in Bellingham, WA. I am not sure but I don’t think this is normal practice and that is a big minus for the NuCanoe. I just think when buying from a dealer there ought to be little if any charges for his getting the boat to sell me. Jim Harper