I'm thinking of buying a kayak for fishing and paddling for a little exercise. Does anyone have any recommendations?

I'd like to help but that whole thing came along a little late for me. I'd have been all over kayak fishing. I've tried the sit on top kind and made a big fool outta myself. Sadly these days my boat want's a motor on it. Sigh...........

Good luck I hope you find a nice one.

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Real men love cats!

I use a standard cheapie 10' kayak and mounted a rod holder behind the seat,a pair of clips to hold the paddle on the right.Rigged a pair of carabiners with a trolley line to connect the anchor line too.Its a great way to get access to some good fishing.the sit on top types are popular in a hot climate.I use a splash skirt on a sit inside type on high mountain lakes,the weather gets nasty at 10,000'

I have a Wilderness System Pungo that works well for me. Stable, big opening for your stuff.

I've been fishing from kayaks for 15 or so years. ( Mix of salt and fresh) I'd suggest searching for some kayakfishing forums and wading in. paddlingdotnet, fishingkayaksdotcom, stripersonline, and a few others come to mind as great resources . That said, I always recommend to try before you buy. Just because a group of folks like a particular brand ( or even style), it does not mean you'll be comfortable in it. Your size , weight tolerance for getting wet/burnt all come into play. It's easy to get convinced that xyz is the perfect boat until you learn otherwise after the purchase. Myself , I am in the minority and prefer a ( 12'-14' and 29"+ wide) sit in kayak vs sit on top. (Steer clear of those 10' pool toys sold at box stores. ) My only other advice would be to keep it simple. Loading down a yak with all kinds of electronics, rod holders, propulsion systems etc tend to make it a real PITA to rig and haul. Understand that the beauty of the thing is that it weighs 60# and is as simple as a hammer. Try making it into a bass boat and the joy leaves fast.

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Dave

Check around your local sporting goods stores,the sales are in the fall,but you might find a good deal.

Don't know what your budget is, but I will vouch for Poke Boats. They're expensive, and very light. I have the Poke Boat Maxi, made of Kevlar. I can carry it with one hand, and I use it for photography. It would be excellent for fishing. Large open cockpit. They are not good for open water or strong winds, but are great for shallow & swampy areas (which I like) in light winds. Google poke boats. I warn you though, they're way more expensive than the molded plastic boats that weigh 3 times as much.

I have an aluminum canoe which I really love. It is scarred and scratched and dented from bow to stern, and I am proud of each and every mark. It is a Sportspal 13 footer with a square stern. I can load and unload it on my truck ladder rack by myself. A 3 hp outboard pushes it nicely at around 9 mph. I am a big river runner and most of my rivers are more rock than river. So far knock on wood there have been no punctures. It is a very stable boat and the rubber sponsons on the sides really help, I have been told a man can actually stand up and fire a shotgun from it, but I haven`t tried that yet. The beauty of a canoe is you can take more than just one person. If something were to happen to my old boat and it got gone, I`d buy another just like it .
Jack

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It's a very popular concept here in NC.
After much research - settled on two Native Watercraft 'Ultimate' 12'-ers, one for wife and I.
Have fished them extensively. Incredibly stable. All my use is in saltwater. NO maintenance, wash down and done.

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

I have a friend who is a published and very serious fisherman and he prefers the Native Watercraft also.

And the main thing I've learned from them "like your 'biffy', get a two holer".

Put squaw up front to paddle, you sit in back to troll & drink beer

Put a wooly bugger on the end of your tippet,set the fly rod in the holder,paddle along the shoreline for an hour and you'll have enough trout for the family's dinner.Easiest fishing Ive ever done :-)

I see these on the Willamette River being used for salmon fishing. The flippers are amazingly efficient as they allow the kayak to easily keep pace in the current and allows the fisherman to have his hands free. I paced a couple of guys trolling with theirs in my 12' rowing whitehall and found that we were well matched.
MirageDrive : Hobie Cat

Agreed. Great way to take big striped bass too. Nothing like a real Nantucket Sleigh ride in the early morning fog !

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Dave

I have a native ultimate 12 as well. It's my favorite for sheltered water fishing. More of a kayak/canoe hybrid realy. For fishing the bay/open ocean, I prefer the (now discontinued) Old Town Loon 138 or WS Pungo. Much drier and less likely to swamp in big waves/wakes.

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Dave

I don't own one yet, but take a look at the, Hobie Pro Angler. It is awesome. They make it in a 12' & 14' model. Ergonomic seat, Pedal powered with a flipper type mechanism. Places to mount rods, fish locator, tackle. There are some neat videos on You Tube you can see for yourself.

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Mbr; LEAA,KSRA,M.C.League

I have a Old Town Loon 13ft. It is big enough for local lakes and small enough for local rivers. At 60lbs it is a bit heavy, I would like less weight.

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Dennis

I looked at these ,and liked them, but my rocky rivers would destroy the paddle mechanism in no time.

Might want to spend some time at Paddle-Fishing ? Index page

I started kayaking a number of years ago before my sons were even teenagers and it's been a great activity for us. I now have four kayaks for floating Ozark streams and rivers and we do some flatwater lake paddling as well. I love kayaking about as much as I love riding my Harley.

About four years ago I decided I wanted to do some kayak fishing so I bought a 12 foot Pelican designed for fishing. It's stable and handles well. It has a rod holder in front of the cockpit and two behind it, and the stern storage compartment can be used as a livewell.

It's a good choice for the task but after one season I decided that it just wasn't for me. The whole fishing and kayaking thing just didn't work out. Next season I bought a 14 foot canoe to fish out of in the same areas and I much prefer it to fishing from the kayak.

I kept the Pelican kayak, though, and we use it when we camp & kayak. It's roomy, stable and holds a good bit of gear inside the hull.

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- Change it back -

Have considered this for photography but don't think it would be stable enough--maybe I, am what would not be stable enough. I would hate to dump my D700 in the drink-- was thinking of slow non moving lakes etc. Borrowed a canoe but quickly found out THAT would not work either.

I fish out of a Malibu Mini X. I have two and they fit nicely in the bed of my Toyota Tacoma truck. Mainly fish freshwater and have found that model to work well. Good luck!

We tour more than fish but we always fish a little while we tour. 3-7 nights out at a time and great camping.
Great sport!
Thanks
Mike

My yacht

That's one thing I do a lot of while kayaking . . . photography.

I think you'd find the right kayak a lot more stable than a canoe because of the lower center of gravity. My Liquid Logic XP10 (orange one in the photes below) makes a great photography platform, and my Nikon D70 with 70-300mm zoom is a regular companion on our kayaking trips.

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- Change it back -

I never fished fresh water--so these comments will not apply unless you fish salt water.
There are anumber of folks around here that fis close in and protected bays or causways at night from Kyaks.
Most of them continue to do so even though they have gotten caught in a tight a time of two.
I fished for years by wadeing---needed a boat to get to the areas I like but the back won't allow it anymore.
Flat bottoms are pretty good until you get caught on the other side of the bay when a front moves thru.
I ended up with a18 foot boat that I could fish the causeway and ship channel with. It was shallow drafted enough to get me into some pretty closed in places and close enogh to get out of the boat--14 inches.
I could wade where a Kyak would not go and still fish in heavy wind.
A 150 HP will get you out of some pretty scary places in a 18 foot bay boat.
Blessings

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TEXAS, by GOD

My outfitted Native Watercraft Ultimate 12' in a coastal NC bay. Caught a bunch of red drum that day.

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

I always take my Nikon D-800 with a 70-200 f-4 and a 17-35 f- 2.8. I store them in a Pelican case and only remove them when it is safe to do so. I learned last year to NEVER take anyone else along when photographing. It cost me more than $1000 to get my Camera and lens repaired. My companion made a major blunder and capsized us while I was shooting pix, it was a totally unnecessary thing and his poor/dishonorable behavior was awful , he dealt with my loss by ignoring it. That mishandling of the situation ended our friendship. After more than a year I realize I am much better off without his company. Anyway I just wanted to offer those thoughts that canoes and camera can mix , but it can sure be risky. Here`s a early AM shot of High Rock Lake near Salisbury NC.




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Hi Jack,
Great picture. One of the things I learned is if it is made waterproof and Mil Spec it stands a chance. Another is never take anything you can't afford to lose and lastly if you really like it, tie it off to your person.
Our first couple of years were expensive in lost and broken equipment. Rods, reels, cel phones, paddles, camping equipment, unopened bottle of fine Canadian (heartbreaker). There is a learning curve but we are getting better.
Thanks for the picture.
Mike

HA!! My wife won a rat trip once, my back was out for 6 months. I am not even sure I could sit in one with no back support. I am lucky to get to the mail box and back.

In all surveys killer whales like them because they are crunchy inside.