Fishing Kayak, sit on top or sit in? Why?

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  • Mr. Ed

    This IS my Happy Face
    MDS Supporter
    Jun 8, 2009
    7,899
    Edgewater
    I am envious of the alternative power mode, that is sweet! and... I'd add a sail, I'm a sailor at heart... lol

    Well, you might want to think about that. I've sailed most of my life, and the performance of the Hobie sailing rig on this kayak is disappointing. It doesn't point, and a close/beam reach is about the best you can hope for. It won't beat for shucks. Downwind it's great, and you can fold up the flippers for more speed. You'll need at least 10-15 knots of wind to make it move, and a very skilled hand on the sheet to keep from capsizing. As long as you don't expect much, it can be good fun.
     

    DJones2987

    Active Member
    Dec 6, 2016
    645
    Hagerstown
    I gave my last boat to my nice about six years ago and started kayak fishing due to my bad back. I love it and fish the same spots that I did in my boat. Severn river, Love point, BB, TPL etc. I have a Ocean Kayak Trident 13, modified some but a great kayak. There are better, but none that weigh 66 pounds in my price range. I moded mine by putting a trolling motor on the rudder post so when the wind and tide turn the wrong way, I can still get home.

    Sit on top is the only way to go for our kind of fishing. I paddled sit ins for some years for recreation and, unless you are hunting whales with a spear, they don't do too well with a rod and reel.

    Come on over to www.snaggedline.com, the Maryland fishing kayak site. It truly is lots of fun.

    Thanks for the link to the forum. I'll join it tonight. And a good friend of mine said he much prefers sit on tops, he fishes the same areas I do so that says a good bit.
     

    pbharvey

    Habitual Testifier
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 27, 2012
    30,155
    Maybe it's just me but I get a very different fishing experience when I fish from my kayak. There's something about being down almost in the water with the fish that makes you feel a little like you're in their world. Plus getting pulled around by a fish is a ton of fun.
    I lurk over at snaggedline. Good intel there from the pocket protector crowd. I doubt I would've taken my kayak out in the bay without reading snaggedline.
     

    John from MD

    American Patriot
    MDS Supporter
    May 12, 2005
    22,731
    Socialist State of Maryland
    Most people who fish from kayaks mod their vessel in some way. Some mods are for comfort, some for more storage, some for alternative power. Hobies are probably the most versatile but, at their weight, I couldn't get an empty one in my pick up bed. The ones sold by Bass Pro and are good starter models for small money. People who fish lakes, ponds and small rivers may even stay with them.

    I know you are in HGR but, if you ever get to Bass Pro, go to the fly fishing area and ask for (I think) Tom. He is a snagged liner and is extremely knowledgeable about yaks.
     

    John from MD

    American Patriot
    MDS Supporter
    May 12, 2005
    22,731
    Socialist State of Maryland
    "Pocket protector crowd". That's a good one. I'm going to get some real belly laughs out of that one at the next meet and greet, if I can make it.

    There are some rocket scientists in the gang but mostly they are just American Fisherman. The most dedicated species on the planet. :thumbsup:
     

    DJones2987

    Active Member
    Dec 6, 2016
    645
    Hagerstown
    Most people who fish from kayaks mod their vessel in some way. Some mods are for comfort, some for more storage, some for alternative power. Hobies are probably the most versatile but, at their weight, I couldn't get an empty one in my pick up bed. The ones sold by Bass Pro and are good starter models for small money. People who fish lakes, ponds and small rivers may even stay with them.

    I know you are in HGR but, if you ever get to Bass Pro, go to the fly fishing area and ask for (I think) Tom. He is a snagged liner and is extremely knowledgeable about yaks.

    Which bass pro? Arundel Mills I'm assuming? That's not a far trip, though I prefer the Harrisburg store better.
     

    DZ

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 9, 2005
    4,091
    Mount Airy, MD
    I have a Wilderness Tarpon 120. Nice all around kayak. Tracks well and is pretty stable. Comfortable enough for a full day on the water. I have sat in some that were rather uncomfortable. I use it mostly in flat water, but have gone down Seneca Breaks in it. For my skill level, that's about as much as I would attempt in it.

    I bought mine online during a sale from Austin Kayak.

    I recently bought a 240cm paddle to replace my 230. I really like the extra length.
    8fe1dbcca78532f2c15cd19966c4f37f.jpg
     

    tallen702

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Sep 3, 2012
    5,102
    In the boonies of MoCo
    Given that your location is Hagerstown, I'm assuming that you're mainly going to be doing the rivers in the area instead of lakes or the bay? That will actually have a lot more to do with what kind of kayak you'll want to use than just the attributes on paper.

    If you are doing river fishing, you're going to want something with better secondary stability than a sit-on-top as you'll want to be able to recover from the start of a roll if you hit a rock, get into a decent rapid, or find you in some other similar situation. There are a lot of great rivers to fish in the area and kayaking gives you better access than walking or driving in by a good bit. The Cacapon is a good example as is the famous "Trough" of the S. Branch of the Potomac down by Moorefield. The only way to get in to the Trough is by kayak or canoe more or less, and the bass fishing there is unbelievable. You can do those rivers with sit-on type kayaks, but you're going to get wetter either from being splashed in wave-trains or from eating it on a ledge or a rock. Being on a river involves more out-of-boat risk. Should you capsize, you have to deal with currents, submerged obstacles, the risk of foot entrapment, etc. So the better overall stability and recovery that a sit-in type boat offers is a plus for rivers.

    For lakes and the bay, sit-ons are much better than sit-in as far as "recreational" type kayaks go. They have superior primary stability and the lack of an enclosed cockpit makes casting farther out much easier. You also don't run the out-of-boat risks you do on a river should you tip over. Sit-ons tend to track better on flat-water than lower-end sit-in kayaks due to their hull designs as well. If you decide to go with a sit-in type kayak to give you river and lake usage in one package, it's worth it to spring a little more for one that has a built-in spring-loaded skeg that will drop down in flat water to help your boat track straighter.

    My kayak fishing has mainly been done from a LL Bean Manatee DLX which is a gussied-up Perception Prodigy 10. It has a very wide cockpit, but spray decks and spray skirts are available for them which will keep you warmer and drier in the colder months. I even use my spray deck (not a full skirt, just covers the front half of the cockpit) when it's warm to keep the sun off my legs and give me a work platform for lures/baits.

    My one caveat is that you are going to get what you pay for with kayaks. The cheapo ones have thinner hulls and don't track as well as some that are just $100-$200 more. Tracking is HUGE. It's probably the biggest requirement for me. If you can't keep it moving in a straight line as you paddle, you're wasting time and energy as you're always correcting course.

    The picture below is a good example of how closed boat stability really helps on rivers. I'm surfing the wave at the bottom of the gauge weir on the Antietam there. Not that you'll be surfing during a fishing trip, but had I tried getting into that kind of chop with an open boat, I'd be swimming.
     

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    tallen702

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Sep 3, 2012
    5,102
    In the boonies of MoCo
    I use it mostly in flat water, but have gone down Seneca Breaks in it. For my skill level, that's about as much as I would attempt in it.

    The breaks are a good practice loop to get more experience in swift water. If you put in upstream of the intake lock at Violets Lock on the C&O and paddle across the river above the remains of the old diversion dam (which marks the start of the breaks) to the VA shore line, you can hug the VA shore and make your way into the old Patowmack Company Canal (39.060891, -77.333691) which was built by George Washington and Co. The remains of the canal flow a little smoother than the rest of the breaks and there are a couple of good, but easy rapids that are straight-forward with no consequences should you wind up swimming. Some of the local paddling clubs have put up signs to show you the way back out to the main river before you hit Elm Island so you can cross over at the bottom of the breaks, take out at the shore and haul your boat up 20' of the slight slope of the bank to the C&O and paddle back up to your car so you don't have to set shuttle. Everyone from the Girl Scouts to the serious kayak schools in the area use it for training.

    My buddy did a "window shade" on the one Class II- in the old canal a few years back while surfing the hole. Lost his sunglasses, but that was the extent of the damage.

     

    DZ

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 9, 2005
    4,091
    Mount Airy, MD
    The breaks are a good practice loop to get more experience in swift water. If you put in upstream of the intake lock at Violets Lock on the C&O and paddle across the river above the remains of the old diversion dam (which marks the start of the breaks) to the VA shore line, you can hug the VA shore and make your way into the old Patowmack Company Canal (39.060891, -77.333691) which was built by George Washington and Co. The remains of the canal flow a little smoother than the rest of the breaks and there are a couple of good, but easy rapids that are straight-forward with no consequences should you wind up swimming. Some of the local paddling clubs have put up signs to show you the way back out to the main river before you hit Elm Island so you can cross over at the bottom of the breaks, take out at the shore and haul your boat up 20' of the slight slope of the bank to the C&O and paddle back up to your car so you don't have to set shuttle. Everyone from the Girl Scouts to the serious kayak schools in the area use it for training.

    My buddy did a "window shade" on the one Class II- in the old canal a few years back while surfing the hole. Lost his sunglasses, but that was the extent of the damage.


    to hell with that! I'll keep to running down river!

    Thanks for the tip, I'll look into that section.
     

    tallen702

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Sep 3, 2012
    5,102
    In the boonies of MoCo
    to hell with that! I'll keep to running down river!

    Thanks for the tip, I'll look into that section.

    LOL.

    In all fairness, he was trying to surf the hole and got his bow submerged and pushed sideways. The course through the old canal is actually very mild and easy to pick through. You'd have no problem going over that rapid heading down stream at all. It's a straight shot and no hidden rocks to worry about.

    The canal ruins themselves are pretty impressive when you realize they're from 1785 and despite 187 years of disuse and neglect, are still standing in admirable condition. With the exception of the little falls and great falls section of the Potowmack Canal, the system was entirely lock-less and essentially consisted of long artificial channels that had a more consistent gradient than the natural run of the river.
     

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    DZ

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 9, 2005
    4,091
    Mount Airy, MD
    LOL.

    In all fairness, he was trying to surf the hole and got his bow submerged and pushed sideways. The course through the old canal is actually very mild and easy to pick through. You'd have no problem going over that rapid heading down stream at all. It's a straight shot and no hidden rocks to worry about.

    The canal ruins themselves are pretty impressive when you realize they're from 1785 and despite 187 years of disuse and neglect, are still standing in admirable condition. With the exception of the little falls and great falls section of the Potowmack Canal, the system was entirely lock-less and essentially consisted of long artificial channels that had a more consistent gradient than the natural run of the river.
    I'll definitely check it out this summer.

    I usually check the river stage before I head out. What flow do you recommend for this area?
    http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/rive...144298,149321,146038,146039&data[]=hydrograph
     

    lowoncash

    Baned
    Jan 4, 2010
    3,447
    Calvert county
    The Walmart fishing kayak is not stable.
    It easily tips over. It is my only "fishing kayak" and it's no good for fishing for an adult. I use it only for kids


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    I bought a Lifetime sit on kayak from Walmart. Used it a good bit last year and found it to be stable. It's not a fishing kayak but it gets me out on the water fine. For $133 and change out the door I thought it was a good deal until I figure out what I really need and can afford.
     

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