Hi All
I've decided that Santa is going to get me a kayak for Christmas ....
Anyone like to give me some pointers as to appropriate clothing , safety features, items to take and general useful ideas. A fishfinder is already on the list.
Andy
Ages ago... I got too depressed at having to spend 5 months single handedly refitting half the house I coundnt bring myself to read about the fishing reports.
All my gear is currently buried under GIB offcuts , odds of framing timber , bits of pipe and sealed in half an inch of plaster dust . The wife now has a bathroom which put the rest of the house to shame so I did a complete refit of the bedrooms as well. Upshot of which is the kitchen now needs a 10 thousand dollar refit to match everything else !!
Thats it for this year I gotta get back on the water. Tinny would be nice but its a question of bang for your buck hence the kayak and what would be needed to kit out from scratch.
Hi Rockhopper. As far as clothing goes, I find that polypropelyne thermals are pretty good to keep you warm in winter. Does'nt really help that much if there is a gale blowing, but is comfortable and does'nt restrict movements. It also dries very quickly if you get dunked, and still seem to keep you warm even when wet. When it is cold, I normally wear a thermal top under a t-shirt. A good life jacket keeps most of the wind off.
The other thing that I would not be without is a knife that is always handy. I bought a cheap ($20) divers knife that has a sheath that I can strap to my leg. This way, I always know where it is and can get to it in a hurry if I need to cut the anchor rope or some such thing, and it doubles as a bait knife. A small waterproof torch is handy if you get caught after dark and you have a large boat barreling down on you.....
Just my thoughts, sure others will contribute their ideas.
Cheers
Rockhopper,
Couple of questions for you mate.
1. Do you intend to fish solely from the Kayak or use it to access the rocks?
2. Age/Health/Weight?
3. Budget?
Hi All
I suspect I'll be fishing from it most of the time. I live between St Heliers beach and the Tamaki estuary so I'm thinking of beach launch working along Rangitoto shoreline to Browns
Age mid 30's , health , probably below par , weight about 70Kg , 1m 90 (5ft11') tall
Budget , keeping to the essentials , lets see how far we get for 1500 excluding any electronics.
The boat to go with is a Perception Swing. You can pick up a fully outfitted boat and a decent paddle for just over $1500.
I second the Perception Swing also, it's a stable & easy to paddle kayak.
If you do get a Swing, fit it with the Cobra Hi-Back seat and you'll be far more comfortable than with the standard Perception seat.
Fit a Scotty 250 rod holder on the centre console just below the water bottle straps and you can troll while paddling and still be able to reach the rod when you get a strike. Flush mount rod holders behind the seat are only good for transporting the rods, not for fishing from, as you'll probably end up capsizing trying to pull a rod out with a big fish hooked on.
Good luck & good fishing.
When you mount your Scotty, Give forethought to what type of fishfinder you're going to have and where it needs to be mounted.
Generally mounting your scotty on the center console is the ticket. BUT if you plan to use a fish finder with bells and whistles and you need to push buttons. Mount the scotty foredeck and leave space for the electonics on the console.
Here Here to the point on comfort. Fortunately, the Swing is comfortable for about 75% of the people.
Guys
Looked at the www.scotty.com site - these rod holders look quite good. Who sells them in Auckland.
I have some flush mounted - but these are more for transporting than anything else.
Gloves are essential for dealing to grumpy fish - they give some protection to the hands from paddles (for those of us used to phones , keyborads & pens during our working hours).
Aquapack for the cellphone is a good investment.
I have also fitted lights to the kayaks - the higher ones about a metre , from fergs. Don't bother with the short ones , by the time you are seen it will be too late.
Pland
pland,
Hunting & Fishing New Zealand stock the Scotty products here in New Plymouth, so I would assume that their Auckland branches/franchises will also have them.
Any marine or tackle shop that sells electric downriggers should be able to source them.
Tasman and Golden Bay snapper still running hot We are not far away from daylight... Read More >
Variety is the spice of life On one recent trip, the plan was to spend a... Read More >
Fish where the fish are! Catching fish or just going fishing? I tackle this issue... Read More >
Thoughtful tactics required for better fish Over the course of each year the fishing varies,... Read More >