Walking into a kayak shop and attempting to discern which boat is for you may seem a little daunting, especially if you are completely new to the sport. For the sake of simplicity we will be concentrating on fishing kayaks and thus only the Sit on Top or SOT Kayaks for short. Cockpit kayaks or Sit Inside Kayaks (SIK) are generally used for touring, exercise, and camping as they can haul more gear and their efficient nature allows you to cover more distance with less effort. The nature of SIKâs requires a snug fit around the cockpit and thus they are not usually used for fishing…usually, there are exceptions to everything of course.
Before even walking into the kayak shop you should have a good idea of where you plan to fish and what youâll be primarily fishing for: Stalking the flats for bones/permit/ reds, deep jigging offshore on the wrecks and reefs for snapper or Amberjack, or maybe just pitching shrimp under dock lights in the ICW or lake near your house. Maybe you want to do a little of everything? As with all things in life there is no such thing as a perfect boat but the great thing about kayak fishing is you can come pretty darn close.
One of the main factors I try to emphasize when placing someone into a kayak is efficiency, you will hear it over and over again and the concept is quite simple: Longer and skinnier kayaks will paddle more efficiently than shorter and wider kayaks. This is something to consider when thinking about the areas you will be fishing, will you be paddling long distances to fish? Maybe youâll paddle out a mile, anchor up and sit in one spot all day? Any fishing kayak will fit the bill for both extremes but you donât need a 15â kayak if you are only paddling short distances and paddling long distances in a short kayak will make you never want to paddle again! The longer a kayak is the more glide you will get and this helps you cover longer distances as opposed to a short boat which may not glide at all, but, if you are simply fishing the lake behind your house than it may be just what you need.
SOT Kayaks are basically available in three different materials and once again for simplicities sake I will give the abbreviated text:
- Roto-Mold (Polyethylene or simply âplasticâ) â Inexpensive yet tough, most fishing kayaks are Roto-mold, will warp if left out in the sun for extended periods of time, plastic is also the heaviest of the materials used for kayaks and can be difficult to repair.
- Trylon â A few kayak manufacturers are using this material (namely Hurricane Kayaks) as it is much stronger than the standard Poly material: itâs tougher, lighter, smoother and more rigid (This means they paddle better i.e. faster), and they do not warp in the sun! The material can be repaired like poly but it will last much longer so it may never be necessary. These boats cost a little more but the investment is well worth it.
- Composite (Fiberglass or Kevlar) â The lightest material available and also the easiest to repair. A fiberglass kayak can last a lifetime as any cracks or scratches simply require fiberglass cloth at the worst and usually only gel-coat to patch up. These kayaks will paddle much more efficiently than plastic or Trylon boats and will weigh substantially less but these are the most expensive boats and true-to-form fishing kayaks made out of composite materials are few and far between.
For all intents and purposes most people just getting into the sport purchase a âplasticâ or polyethylene kayak as they are more affordable and will get the job done just fine. The subtle differences between the various fishing kayaks can be hard to discern and so to aid our customers we have grouped fishing kayaks into four different categories, which I will further explain in this article: Pure Fishing Kayaks, Camping Capable Fishing Kayaks, Cruising Fishing Kayaks, and Fast Cruising Fishing Capable Kayaks.
Pure Fishing Kayaks
These boats are made for one purpose and one purpose alone… fishing! There are many reasons a kayak could be grouped into this category: Malibuâs Mini-X is a 9â3ââ X 34ââ plastic kayak that weighs 38lbs. The small size of the Mini-X means it wonât get you anywhere in a hurry but it is a rock-solid platform for fishing as it has a 300lb capacity for a paddler and gear, perfect for pond-jumping or short jaunts on the flats. The Freedom Hawk 14 (pictured above) is another specialty kayak made for the skinny-water angler as it has built in stabilizers that make the Freedom Hawk as stable as any flats boat out there. The Freedom Hawk has little for storage and that, coupled with a wide open cockpit, is what makes it a Pure Fishing Kayak. These kayaks can be used for activities other than fishing but there are many other kayaks better suited for exercise, surfing, or just cruising, these boats are made to put you on the fish. Another example would be Emotionâs Temptation (aka âThe Stealthâ): A 10â kayak thatâs short enough not to be a cruising kayak but has ample room for rod-holders, a live-well, a cooler and with a $579 price tag it will get you on the water, cheap. Purpose-built kayaks like the Mini-X, the Temptation, and the Freedom Hawk are great for the dedicated angler who wonât spend much time in the kayak without a fishing rod.
Camping Capable Fishing Kayaks
Up until recently very few SOT kayaks fit into this category as the standard SOT kayak only has one hatch (usually located at the bow) and an exposed rear tank-well (The exception was Ocean Kayaks Scupper Pro with bow and stern hatches). Overnighters were always possible like this but it was a wet and cramped affair until Ocean Kayak released the Prowler 15 Trident (pictured above) and with it the Rod-Pod. The Rod-Pod was developed so offshore anglers could stow their fully rigged rods in the kayak while launching in the surf to avoid snapping rods in the event of a capsize. It was a great innovation and also opened up the entire middle section of the Trident 15 for storage! So now you could load everything you want, including the kitchen sink, into a SOT kayak, the amount of storage is impressive by any standard. Ocean Kayak recently introduced this feature in the Trident 11 and Trident 13 so now you could have the great storage capacity available on a smaller kayak. I recently took a Trident 11 camping in Hellâs Bay and was amazed that I could fit everything into that little 11â kayak that I fit into my 19â cockpit boat…plus a cooler! Ocean Kayaks Tridentâs are a great choice for an aspiring kayak angler looking for a more versatile craft and the ability to load up and disappear into the backcountry for week or so.
Cruising Fishing Kayaks
These boats were designed with recreational paddling in mind and so they will be less voluminous than the aforementioned kayaks and thus they will paddle more efficiently. Although these kayaks are designed with recreational paddling in mind converting them to fishing kayaks is as simple as adding a few rod-holders, thatâs it. Hurricaneâs Phoenix 130 is a great example of these kayaks: Light, fast, and huge rear tank-wells that can accommodate a massive amount of gear. The benefits of these boats are too numerous to list but in short they will get you to where you want to go faster and more importantly it will require less energy on your part. Other good examples would be RTMâs Tempo (pictured above) and the venerable Ocean Kayak Scupper Pro (both 15â respectively), once again these kayaks were designed for recreational use but are easily made into speedy fishing kayaks with the addition of rod-holders. These Cruising Kayaks are great for anglers wanting the capability to travel slightly longer distances in search of fish or those who simply want the most versatile craft possible.
Fast Cruising Fishing Capable Kayaks
As you may have guessed from the name of the category the kayaks in this class were not laid-out with fishing in mind, they are long boats and usually quite slender when compared to the standard SOT kayak. These kayaks were made for exercise or even touring/camping but they can be adapted for use by kayak fisherman with the addition of rod-holders. These kayaks are not for everyone, some people may find the slender nature of the boats a little âtippyâ and thus unsuited for fighting fish, some of these kayaks may have limited storage capacity making them unsuited for carrying all of your kit but that doesnât mean they cannot fill a niche as a âlight fishingâ or a touring/fishing kayak. RTM makes a kayak called the Disco: 13â8ââ X 26ââ and 55 lbs, very smooth lines and a sharp entry make the Disco a dream to paddle but it has very little room for storage and its maximum payload is around 200lbs. For some average to larger paddlers this simply wonât do but for someone looking to do some light fishing or maybe more paddling than fishing it is a great choice as it paddles great and when not used for fishing makes a great surf, exercise, or just simply cruising kayak. RTM also recently released the Midway (pictured above), which is basically a larger version of the Disco and apparently it is quite the rave amongst offshore kayak fisherman in Australia. Another example would be Current Designs Kestrel 140 SOT or The Zone, both are composite boats that travel at light speed when compared to the standard poly SOTâs and although they were designed for cruising and touring they can be retro-fitted with rod-holders to get the job done, in a hurry too! The Fast Cruising Fishing Capable Kayaks are perfect for those of us who like to cover ground, have a very versatile kayak that is touring-capable, or even old salts who may want something a little quicker than their plastic fishing kayak.
A Quick Note on SeatsâŚ
Some kayak manufacturers include a seat with the retail price of their kayaks, namely Ocean Kayak; other companies build a hard plastic seat-back into their kayaks to save their customers a little bit of cash. Personally I prefer a high-quality seat such as Seair Sports Pacific Angler, its $120 price tag may steer many away but if you spend a fair amount of time on the water wouldnât you want to be comfortable? A good seat is imperative as your level of comfort will dictate how often you go paddling, if you donât feel comfortable using the kayak chances are you will not use it that often. A lot of people get hung up on high-backrests when in reality the most important thing is lower back support. Just take a look at any serious touring sea-kayak and you will see a small back-band and thatâs it because that is all that is really necessary. A high-back seat will allow you to recline in a more relaxed position which is not a good paddling position. Once again the best bet is to try out a few different kayaks and a couple of different seating arrangements to find what is best for you.
So what have we learned? That kayaks are as varied as their applications, there is no âperfectâ kayak, and that essentially any kayak can be used for fishing…the real question will be how comfortable you be doing it. The key is to go out and demo a few kayaks before you buy, how else will you know that a particular kayak is the one for you? And another point I canât stress enough is to avoid âangler packagesâ direct from the manufacturer as they usually tack on $100 for two rod-holders that cost $12 each and a fish decal. It is much wiser to paddle the boat bare-bones to get a feel for where you would want everything to go and once youâve figured that out you can install rod-holders and whatnot yourself or have your local kayak shop do it for you. Some kayak shops even offer free installation, anytime, provided you purchased the kayak from them. So get out there and paddle because if you are sitting at home right now youâre missing out…