FS Digest

Hey mate, whereabouts in this great land are you, and what are you looking at fishing for? There's a tonne of variation.

I would recommend buying second hand off gumtree, as you'll get great bang-for-buck, and the kayak won't depreciate so you'll be able to sell it without a loss if you want to move on later.

I'm partial to viking kayaks as they're mostly made on the sunshine coast and they're the biggest brand in the country. They're everywhere, perform well, and it's easy to get parts.

Hobies are also huge here if you want a pedal. I do like the revolution and outback.

There's a national facebook group called "Yak Hunters" which will be able to supply you with way more local knowledge, give you a go in their yaks, etc. Give that a look, it's a great community!

I'm on the gold coast personally, so if you're around here I'll give you a go in my small fleet. :p

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by CubitsTNE

FS Digest

Hey!

I'm Ballarat area, but I'm originally from and do a fair bit of camping on the Murray and Edwards rivers around Mathoura, Weirii, Cobram area. So probably targeting yellas and cod mainly there.

Looking to fish rainbow trout, brown trout and red fin in Lake Wendouree, Lake Burrumbeet, st. George's Lake and there's a few reservoirs around to fish as well. I know there's Tench and euros in St. George's. Think there's fish in blue waters, at least I've seen them swimming from, it's a lake near Creswick, which used to be an open cut mine.

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by Adzhe

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

Your future outlook of taking your daughter is going to limit you in what your after. Most of what I have seen out on the water have been solo yaks. There are two person yaks as you know, I just don't know how they handle with just one person. Things to consider are your waters flowing, calm, strong current, winds, and of course access in and out of the yak. I have a 12' Bonafide paddle power and it does everything I want under normal conditions. 20mph winds and up are the deterrent for getting around. My neighbor has a 12' Hobie peddle power and can handle the higher winds.

Trashfish72

Try to find a used one.... try to find one set up for fishing and make sure you enjoy it. I can tell you if you try to fish out of one you don’t set up properly you’ll end up hating it and it won’t be a “fair” trial for you. Even worse you may lose your gear on top of it. Remember everything has to be secured to yak, USE A PFD!!! there’s no reason not to get a waist band type or even rip cord vest be safe, test out all the areas you think you’d want to fish AND after you finally arrive at a decision if you do enjoy it the Hobie Yak power pedal system is awesome.... you can slide in or out for launching in shallow water and in my opinion is the best for fishing hands down. If you have a rod in your hand you can’t use a paddle!!! Plus they are set up to fish! Rod holders tie downs dry storage live wells etc!! It’s the Cadillac of fishing yaks!!!
Best of luck!!

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

Hey Trash that waist band PFD you mention, how reliable is that compared to the vest? I have a vest but gets a little uncomfortable on those 90* days.

Trashfish72

Very I know a couple professional yak and SUP fishing pros and they use them as well as a few river snorkeling guys. It inflated to a full PDF the only issue is if your knocked out for some reason you cannot activate it and you do need to put it on after inflation but if you not whitewater rafting you should be fine.... I mean at the end of the day you can only do soooo much and if you numbers up you may be fine with the PDF until jaws shows up!!! Lol!!! But they are my go to for sure. As you mentioned and for comfort...

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

Thanks trash might be worth looking into for later day use. The vest does have the automatic inflation but like anything, common sense needs to be activated when out on the water.

Trashfish72

U don’t want the co2 activation if your in the ocean. Can’t tell u how many times u come in soaked especially if u get something large and it runs against the current!! Also just landing a 20lb tuna the splash will soak u!! If going out in cold weather or water be sure to use a wet/dry suit too cause your gonna get wet. No matter what.... my 2 cents my friend!!

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

No ocean yaking for me. That 2' chop on the Pamloico River and I am riding the waves back to the dock. Had some 4' waves at one time this year that I got caught in. That was scary enough.

Trashfish72

Oh wow that’s wild. In any case then take into account the conditions before getting a CO2 activated PDF.

JohnG Loc: Long Island NY.

I’d go with a used pedal drive. They are more expensive but are the way to go for fishing. I have a Hobie Revo 13 and love it. If you ca afford it you’ll be very pleased.

Doccje

My advice would be to go all in. Spend the money on yourself now and enjoy the fruits of your labor. 2K in the bank has never caught a single fish

mick cieply

Purchased a Perception Pescador Pilot 12 Kayak three years ago for $1,800 from Austin Kayak (austinkayak.com).

It's a 12-foot-long pedal-drive boat (propeller) with an amazingly comfortable seat (easy to adjust, too). Although it is comfortably wide and stable, I don't recommend that the user stand up in it. It is stable in choppy water. There was no sales tax to pay and shipping was free. All the accessories which I ordered along with the boat came with a 15% discount.

It is set up to receive a Lowrance Sonar unit (I purchased a Hook 4X) and a Nocqua Pro Power Kit (a TINY, TINY battery. . . supplies at least 8 hours of power to run the sonar unit).

THIS BOAT IS NOW AVAILABLE AT AUSTIN KAYAK FOR $1,530; YUP! $1,530! I visited their website 30 minutes ago.

The Pescador is my summer kayak. It stays in NY (spend summers in NY State). My wife and I spend winters in North Carolina, where I fish in farm ponds; so I use a paddle-type of kayak which I purchased at WalMart for $456. . .the Avalon 120, a fishing kayak (also 12 feet long from Third Coast Paddlesports). It is narrower and lighter than the Pescador and is perfect for "skinny" or calm waters, and has tons of storage space. It would be perfect your enjoyment AND your budget !

I do not recommend taking a young child in a fishing kayak. . .not enough room because of rod holders, accessories, paddle management, etc. . . . not safe. BUT I recommend a kayak not outfitted for fishing: OCEAN KAYAK 2-PERSON KAYAK (12-ft). I own one. . .very wide and stable and ROOMY. . . could be slowly and easily customized for fishing. . .paid $800 for it from Austin Kayak.

May the Lord bless you with wisdom as you teach and raise that little one!

colo

Been kayak fishing for almost 9 years now and it is rewarding and fun, but i'll tell you we moved to Texas from Florida. Here in Texas the weather changes real fast and that is when you need a good kayak not a $200 or $500. I considered my options for almost a year before i bought my first one ,i'm on 3rd which is a Hobie pro 14, but there is Hobie outback's out there that could get second hand for about a thousand, and that my friend is safe, beginner friendly Kayak.Weigh your options with safety in mind first...money can be made back!!