By John Williams
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]The greatest weapon in fishing from a kayak is stealth. This weapon is useless if the kayak angler is not skilled at the art of boat control.
Every kayak angler knows that having a good anchor system is very important. Using an anchor trolley or “Choupique” anchor system can stop your boat and position it correctly for the direction that you want to fish. For the more advanced kayak angler, there’s way more to boat control than just dropping the anchor.
As important as anchoring is to boat control, finding little ways to avoid anchoring is the key to stealthy fishing. A basic rule of thumb to follow is to “use the wind as your friend”. This means that whatever shoreline, duck pond, reef or marsh island you are fishing, try to determine if you can possibly get upwind before you begin to fish the area. If you are strategic, you can set up a drift that will slowly push you down your target area, with the ability to make long casts with the wind – all silently and without effort.
In shallow water, if you are drifting too quickly, and your boat is equipped with a “Choupique” anchor, try letting the rear anchor down until it barely touches the bottom. This will slow your drift just enough in many cases. If you come to a stop, simply raise the anchor a touch and you will be slowly drifting again. In very shallow water, you can drop one leg over the side and put your foot in the mud to make a short and quiet stop. Try sitting “side saddle” in the boat with both legs over the side and crab walking the boat along the marsh. If your boat is near the grass, it’s very effective to push your foot or leg into the marsh grass to temporarily stop the kayak. If you use a Hobie Mirage Drive kayak, you can also stop your boat in shallow water by pushing the fins against the bottom. In deeper water, some anglers like using drift socks to control the speed of their drift.
You may have heard the saying “95% of the fish are in 5% of the water.” Many kayakers I see on the water make the mistake of sitting in one spot on their anchor flogging the same water over and over. Staying on the move to cover water is the main idea with the mobile style of boat control discussed in this article. Once you have found fish, it’s time to put the anchor down and fish carefully. Watch other anglers to learn their tricks—and stay open to developing boat control tips of your own!