Looking for suggestions for a freshwater kayak for flyfishing smaller lakes for panfish and largemouth bass.
Am thinking of taking the plunge (I hope not into the lake) into this mode of fishing. Easy maneuverability, portability, amenities for rod, accessories, etc.
Budget would only allow for approximately $1000.00, hopefully a lot less!
Thanks in advance!
Bob
p.s. Is casting from a seated position very tiring? I’m 61 years young.
You might look at these:
They are a sponsor. I own one and really enjoy mine. Kayak bottom, paddles very easily with a double paddle and have the advantge of sitting with your knees bent instead of straight out in front of you.
Very stable, comfortable, weight 65lbs for the 10’ one and 85lbs for the 12’ one.
I highly recommend them…Give them a look-over and see what you think…
By the way, I’m 61 years old too and love my 10’ NuCanoe. I did purchase their optional seat bracket so that I could install a swivel seat.
For lakes you probably need a shorter kayak, but I would not go below 12 feet. You also need to watch the weight if you are going to be loading and unloading it by yourself. My first choice would be an Ocean Kayak Prowler 13. It weights about 54 pounds and is very stable. Wilderness system Tarpon 120 would be another choice. It is a little heavier, but still manageable. For weight and durability, the best bet would be a Huricane Pheonix 120, which weighs in at 38 pounds, but you will likely go over the $1,000 to get one fully equiped.
Notice all of these are sit on top kayaks. They tend to be a little wetter, but are much easier to get in and out of, and cast from. Make sure you get a good seat with good back support.
As far as casting from a seated position, it is all technique. You will loose about 10 to 20 feet on your distance, but you make up for that with stealth. It is not tiring, it just takes practice.
ive got a hobie revolution, love it. its a little over your budget, but it comes complete. you dont have to buy any extras like a paddle or a seat. as far as mobility and ease of operation , you cant beat it. sit back and peddle, both your hands are free to fish with. very stabile, i dont think i could roll it even if i wanted to. weight is between 50 and 60 pounds , i think. im 60, and have no trouble carting it around.
i use it in the marshes of texas and the rivers and lakes of the adirondaks. cant say enough good things about it.
what ever you decide on, make sure you get a little seat time in it before you buy it.
In my opinion, you really only have two choices; go with a Hobie Outback (or one of the other models with peddles) or wish that you had. I fish out of my Hobie Outback 90% of the time for the past four years and I wouldn’t swap it for any other kayak on the market, unless it was a newer Hobie Outback. If you shop around on Craig’s list, ebay etc., you should be able to get one within your budget. I picked mine up off of ebay locally for around $850. Once you try one, you’ll never go back. Just one man’s opinion.
Jim Smith
I also have a Hobie Revolution and can vouch for it. I love using the pedals rather than the paddles and have discovered an additional benefit of using the pedals. When going against the wind with paddles every time you raise the paddle to take another stroke you have a wind catcher. With the pedals you don’t have that. The mirage drive, the Hobie’s propulsion system, is always in the water and always providing power so you can make good progress against the wind or current and just keep moving right along at a good speed.
Good suggestions above. Also check out MR and Heritage Redfish models. 12-13 ft should do ya and keep the weight manageable.
Another fishing kayak to consider is a Native Watercraft Ultimate. I just purchased an Ultimate 12. I have less than 2 hours in it so far, but have spent about half of that standing up and paddling. It barely meets your budget at about $970.
http://www.nativewatercraft.com/ult_12.cfm
Scott
Waupaca, WI
I just picked up a Hobie Outback from the FAOL BB this winter, and so far, I love it. I use it for lake fishing bass, bluegills, crappie, and pike. It’s a touch heavy for getting on and off a roof rack, but otherwise, it’s perfect.
Absolutely not true about paddling against the wind. If you feather your paddle correctly, each blade slices through the wind horizontally. Please know what you’re talking about before you post. Thank you.
Some paddles are adjustable so the blades are off-set…so one end is slicing the wind while the other is paddling.
I took my Hobie Outback fishing this weekend, along with 2 guys who used a 2-man plastic pontoon bass boat with a trolling motor. The motor battery gave out after about 10 minutes on the water. I offered to tow them around with my kayak, but they instead opted to take my unused paddle. I didn’t need it! 
They used the paddle the rest of the time…taking turns, and eventually discovered the paddle separates into 2 pieces so they could both paddle at the same time. They watched me put it together earlier, so I assumed they already knew that. Anyway, I admired their persistence with the paddling, especially after the wind picked up.
I have a two float tubes, round caddis and fish cat. A Scadden Pontoon boat with standing platform, Also have WS Tarpon 12’ and 16’ kayaks. I use all of them and would highly recommend all of them for particular situations.
I fish from my kayaks in situatuions that require paddling miles to get where I want to fish. Take away the paddling factor and I’m in the pontoon. Way more comfortable and with the standing platform you can even stretch your legs without going back to the bank.
I just fished the Bow River in Calgary and noticed that all the pontoon boat guys wear flippers so they can maneuver while casting. I’ll be taking my fliipers on my next pontoon trip to try that out.
The BAD part about a pontoon is the “assembly required”. Takes 15-45 minutes to assemble or diisassemble depending on how far you break it down. I break mine all the way down and put it in the trunk of my car.
One more thing to make sure you consider is the type of access you have to your lake. You can’t drag a pontoon boat through woods or brush like you can a kayak.
Regardless of what kind of boat you buy I highly recommend the Stohlquist Kayak PFD. Fits comfortable and goes over the backrest of kayak or pontoon seat. I have the fisherman model that holds tippet, fly boxes, etc. I even wade with it.
Good LUCK
Perception actually makes a solid fishing yak for the money now, the “Caster”. I have a 12.5 (which is more like 12’3"). You can get them new for about $600. I’m a very big guy and it suits me fine, easy to paddle and maneuver and very stable. Not one I’d try to stand in though.
Bob;
You have received some very good advice here for sure. You mentioned “Taking the Plunge” so the only thing I can add is be sure to always carry, and use, a good PFD.
I’m 69 and own an ODC 816 pontoon, very stable and have no problem casting while seated. I don’t think I could do well in a yak sitting with my legs streight out though.
Native Water Craft Ultimate 12. Under your budget. Stable. Easy to carry. Easy to cartop. Easy to fish from…AND…THE most comfortable and adjustable seat on the market. Its a great boat. I actually have one for sale in the For Sale area of the forum. I love mine, just don’t have time to use it. I have it listed for $750 and I’m in Jackson, Mississippi. Just FYI.
I don’t know anything about the Hobie boats, but I can vouch for the Ultimate 12.
Hope this helps.
Alan.
Myself wrote:
When going against the wind with paddles every time you raise the paddle to take another stroke you have a wind catcher.
Boy do I wish I could take that back, shoulda thought about how you can feather the paddles to keep from catching the wind while they are in the air. That said I still like the Hobie system real well and think it’s worth the extra $$$ because you have both hands free to fish more of the time than with paddles. I’m also pleased with the speed and stability of my kayak. And I have a suspicion I can generate more power with the Mirage drive than I could with paddles. I’d need to experiment a bit to confirm that.
I can think of a few drawbacks to the Mirage drive though: 1. You need to be in deeper water to use the Mirage drive than if you were paddling. It also catches weeds when they are near the surface. 2. The Mirage drive has no reverse. If I want to go backward it’s back to the paddle. 3. I also have to use the paddles for a draw stroke.