How windy is too windy
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Saltwater Fishing
Forum Name: Yak Yak Yak
Forum Description: The forum for Kayak enthusiasts
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=36866
Printed Date: 28 May 2026 at 1:35pm
Topic: How windy is too windy
Posted By: yakin
Subject: How windy is too windy
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 12:19pm
| Guys, pretty new to yakking (3 months), how Windy is too windy for fishing? are there any "rules of thumb" what about the swell? any advice appreciated I'm on the north shore of Auckland (torbay) so mainly fish there, Oh yes and where are all the fish ?????????? |
Replies:
Posted By: Charlie F
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 1:06pm
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DTL there's lots of variables here. Tide, wind and swell in combination can make for uncomfortable fishing. It depends whether you are drifting with a drogue or anchored.
What is more important is what you feel comfortable and competent with. Best to get out there in a variety of conditions. If its a bit gnarly leave the fishing gear at home and have a paddle close to shore, play around in the surf. If the swell is a challenge going out its going to be more of a challenge coming back in.
As for fish in Auckland, keep an eye on the Auckland thread and hook up with the guys there.
Good luck. ------------- So many fish, so little time, |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 1:23pm
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Hi DTL, There are quite a few of us from "The Shore", there is regular fishing on a Tuesday night out of Waiake, from 5:30 onwards, you should find people either going out or already out on the Browns Bay reef and the general area. As Charlie F said, it's different for each condition and each person, I personally have no issues (because i feel safe and stable) being out there when it's blowing 30 knots with a 1.5m swell BUT it makes fishing next to impossible. I don't encourage people go out in those conditions as to be honest it's a little pointless and not all that safe... Unless you are a little crazy, you can very easily base it off how many other people (in boats and kayaks) you can see out there already... if no one else is mad enough to be out there then may be you shouldn't either... The fish are here now too, had a mate this morning call me to say he had caught snapper for his breakfast off Waiake before 8:00am... Cheers, Mental ------------- http://www.kayakfishing.nz/forum/" rel="nofollow - www.KayakFishing.NZ Kayak Fishing - It's Catching! |
Posted By: Badfish
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 1:55pm
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As mentioned it is definately a personal/experience matter. For novies I'd suggest sticking to under 12-15knots until you get more adapt to handling the yak. 12-15 knots is about when you can expect to see white caps so it's an easy bench mark to work from. For me I fish with SPs for 90% of my snapper fishing and I'll still stick to less than 15knots anyway purely because it's easier to stay in touch with my baits without havin a whopping great belly in the line. If it forecast for 20knots I'll usually flag it unless I'm getting really land sick and neeeed to get out. But I'll change up tactics with either trolling or jigging becoming my method of choice. But I'm pretty exposed to most winds where I am, other of course will have different tolerances. ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: Hairy Little Dwarf
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 2:12pm
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Worth noting that even if you are confident in snotty water, there will be a lot less boats out there to lend a hand if you put out a distress call = longer response time until someone can get to you. Your clothing etc on these rougher trips should reflect a higher level of safety accordingly. Tethering yourself to the yak would be #1. With a bit of wind behind it, there's no way you could swim fast enough to catch up if you part company. As BF said - generally you have to be pretty desperate to go out in these conditions as it's definitely not a relaxation trip  ------------- The Dreaded Shark-Eating Man! |
Posted By: piwikiwi
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 2:48pm
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Went out the other day in a constant 15 knot onshore seabreeze and was horrible short sharp chop and alot of drift making softbaiting difficult. A 15knot offshore is however not nearly as bad as the water is alot smoother but remember you are drifting out and at some stage will have the hard paddle back into the wind. I reckon 30knots would nearly blow you off the yak. I know from windsurfing and guys with wind gauges that 30 knots is real strong and people tend to over exagerate the wind when trying to guess it from the beach.
Usually tends to be windier as the day goes on so 1st thing in the morning is more likely to be calm. Watch the previous evening forecast and I will even log onto our local live wind site in the morning if the trees are swaying as it is always windier out at sea.
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Posted By: kj
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 2:55pm
| All of the above and a really important thing to consider is the effects of land on the wind especially offshores. Here in canterbury we have fish around a volcanic cone, the coast consists of huge seacliffs punctuated by long, steep sided bays maybe 500m wide and 2- 5km long. the NE-NW winds that then get funneled down these bays can be doubled in stength and the directiopn can veer by up to 60 degrees. The result is you can be fishing up against the cliff without a breath of wind (blissfully unaware...) and come home time end up facing a grueling paddle into the teeth of a 40 knot offshore (when the forecast says 15-20 knots) There are other pretty unpleasent things that the wind does to- downdrafting, swirling, all sorts that make paddling a nightmare. Don't know anywhere else that cops this kind of effect, probably the Bay of islands and Coromandel in certain winds, but definitely something to consider. |
Posted By: Muppet
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 4:43pm
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You can fish in any wind its a case of knowing your area. All you can do is gain experiance in your chosen spots simple as that. I have personally fished a lot of gnarly days and caught some good fish so it can be worth it but never compromise your safety. |
Posted By: Naki man
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 5:29pm
If you are fishing anchored, it's directionally proportional to the amount of anchors you can carry to stop you from moving. I find that if it is a 2 anchor wind, the back well becomes a good live bait tank Seriously though, if you are going out in wind stronger than you normally do then make sure it is NOT an off shore wind - yes the sea might be flat and it might be easy to paddle out, however it's not much fun when you have to paddle back in a wind that may be putting you at your paddling limits. If you do get caught in a wind that is too strong to paddle back in, try zig zagging rather than going head on to the wind. Another thing is to tether yourself to your yak - if you get tipped out, your kayak will be out of reach in no time. If you are caught out in a strong on shore wind the thing to watch is the chasing sea - most yaks don't like being pushed by large chop. You can easily find yourself semi surfing, then almost stopping, creating an uncomfortable rocking effect. It can make an exciting trip home  , but the concentration makes it very tiring. Once again, tether yourself to your yak.Make sure you un-clip the tether before attempting a surf landing   ------------- The solution to any problem - work, money, love, whatever - is to go fishing - the worse the problem the longer the fishing trip should be. "I have a lot of very large problems" |
Posted By: yakin
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 6:37pm
Thanks for all the advice guys, Tuesday evening off Waiake sounds great mental but working 1pm-10pm at mo so evenings are a no no, however I got the mornings free so it's early morning fishes for the rest of the summer. 
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Posted By: JW
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 7:03pm
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"If you are caught out in a strong on shore wind the thing to watch is
the chasing sea - most yaks don't like being pushed by large chop. You
can easily find yourself semi surfing, then almost stopping, creating
an uncomfortable rocking effect." Good advice IMO - that's the one thing that got my attention pretty quickly when out in marginal conditions |
Posted By: littlebigfishh
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 8:13pm
| Hi all been lurking here a few weeks lots of interesting tips on this forum, just recently got into kayak fishing too, converted my sit in kayak but being less stable than a Sit-on I think I might make a DIY outrigger of some sort. |
Posted By: Naki man
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2009 at 9:02pm
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Hi littlebigfishh - welcome to the forum
------------- The solution to any problem - work, money, love, whatever - is to go fishing - the worse the problem the longer the fishing trip should be. "I have a lot of very large problems" |
Posted By: SLaine
Date Posted: 20 Jan 2009 at 2:41pm
| I take a lot of notice of what the wind and currents are doing, When i first got my kayak i went out and it was blowing about 10 knots, which i dint think was to bad but the current was going in the same direction and i didnt have a sea anchor then. I drifted 1.5 km in 25 mins, It took me 2.5 hours too paddle back and i was had it at the end. Much further and i may have been calling for help to get back. 10 - 15 knots is enough to keep me in close or not go out at all. |
Posted By: InSalt
Date Posted: 20 Jan 2009 at 7:43pm
| Bad practice I know but I quite often get out alone so I have set myself a personal limit of 10 kts. That way if it gets a bit worse which it often can I still feel comfortable.In reality if you are in open water at more than 15 fishing is going to be pretty difficult. OK if you are tucked up close to some cliffs or something but in open water white caps form at 15 kts wind against tide. |
Posted By: piwikiwi
Date Posted: 20 Jan 2009 at 8:53pm
| I agree with Insalt. I know I can get planing on my windsurfer in 12knots and this is about when it starts feeling uncomfortable in the yak. Im not saying you cant paddle or you are in great danger but fishing isnt much fun after that. |
Posted By: LEVCAT
Date Posted: 20 Jan 2009 at 9:12pm
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on waiheke i'll go out in anything...
have been out in 30knots and torrential rain before and all good i got 4 snapper so i was pleased... of course because it's waiheke i have the advantage an island which i can find shelter anywhere. still it is a pain fishing in this weather, and when ever i go out i make sure that i stick close to land, dress appropriately and only go out for short periods of time.... if i'm ever out fishing deeper water and the wind is due to pick up i always make sure that it is behind me when i am coming home... sometimes i will just paddle into the wind until i am buggered and do one huge long drift back into where i launched from and then maby repeat it one more time. |
Posted By: JB
Date Posted: 22 Jan 2009 at 4:24pm
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My personal experience says that in auckland you should always be able to find a spot out of the wind and ususally a hook up or 2 where you less expect it. I find swell easy to handle but chop a real b'arch. Chop is generally driven by the lenght of water wind has to drive it up and wind speed. An offshore 15knot is likely to leave very little chop close to shore but can have serious consiqences if you fall off (i.e blown out to shore). I've only been scared once on a kayak and it was off matai bay when a 25- 30knot squal hit blowing off shore. 2k's off shore it was only a short steap chop but if we made an error the next stop was chile... So the moral of the story is an onshore wind over 15not has a big chop that mean I probably won't go out whilst a 15knot off shore is OK but the squall that's on top of it is the one that's big trouble. So watch out for the off shore in my eye's, its that one that could bite you... |
Posted By: Rainbow
Date Posted: 24 Jan 2009 at 11:01pm
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DTL Since you are asking this question it is pretty certain that you have little or no experience in this game. Therefore beware of all the brave talk of 30 (near 60km/h) or even 40 knots that some of this guys claim to be able to handle. When the marine forecast talks of 30 knots this is the base line wind speed. It will at times be gusting to 40+ knots . At that wind speed you will have huge breaking waves up your arse or in your face. In either case you are goner no matter what kayak model you paddle. Make 15 knots your safe limit which gives you a bit of a safety margin as you can never totally rely on the forecast.
Rainbow
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Posted By: Wetwally
Date Posted: 25 Jan 2009 at 11:46am
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I have been caught in a 30 knot wind gusting more never again scared the bajesus out of me.What scared me the most if you tip out and you are not teathered to yr yak yr history.I agree with Rainbow 15 knots is a good margin.
Welcome aboard
Wally ------------- IF SWIMMING IS SUCH GREAT EXCERSIZE WHY ARE WHALES SO FAT ?? |
Posted By: Rainbow
Date Posted: 27 Jan 2009 at 10:28am
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Here is what the Met Service has to say about wind speed"
"Wind Speed
Wind speed is described in multiples of 5 knots. A given wind speed implies a 10-knot range; for example, if the wind speed is forecast to be 15 knots, wind speeds between 10 and 20 knots should be expected.Wind gusts are about half as strong again as the mean speed; for example, if the wind speed is forecast to be 30 knots, gusts to 45 knots should be expected". Rainbow
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Posted By: DeKay
Date Posted: 27 Jan 2009 at 12:07pm
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I find: 20knts is too windy. 15knts is doable. 10knts preferred. 1m of swell (swellmap) is doable 1.5m swell starts to get uncomfortable but it depends on the period. damien |
Posted By: piwikiwi
Date Posted: 27 Jan 2009 at 3:13pm
I agree with Dekay. The thing is how many of us carry an anemometer ? Not many I would say so we are guessing and going by what we have experienced in the past. What I found thru windsurfing is you will stand on the beach and swear its 20 knots + out there then an Aucklander would turn up with his anemometer and it would read 15 knots. 30 knots is real windy, I mean like wellington on an average day 
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Posted By: Hairy Little Dwarf
Date Posted: 27 Jan 2009 at 3:31pm
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http://www.seafriends.org.nz/oceano/beaufort.htm - http://www.seafriends.org.nz/oceano/beaufort.htm The Beaufort has a good visual indicator of sea conditions vs wind speed. Personally, I don't venture out (fishing) if its forcast to be more than 15kn as it ceases to be fun for me (although if it roughs up while I'm out there, I'll stay put and fish a bit longer)  .However, for general faffing around in stroppy water and having a great workout of physical and mental agility - you can't beat a good 30kn wind within the confines of a bay with a safe runout! Punching through chest slappers for an hour will give you a great nights (or afternoon  ) sleep, and you'll find your spatial wave balancing abilities will also improve - as will your self rescues.------------- The Dreaded Shark-Eating Man! |
Posted By: Tango
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2016 at 10:10pm
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Got caught in 17 odd knot Offshore wind about 1 mile out at Papamoa yesterday on Kayak not fun coming in, had to head in sideways as the wind was tiring me out. Will pay attention to the forecast as I didn't bother as it was calm in the morning but come 11:30 the the wind picked up and the whitecaps started showing. Should of paid more attention to the other boats leaving early. Watch that offshore wind, have a PH: in plastic or in the top of your wetsuit and, tether to your kayak if you get caught out as it was obvious to me that if you get rolled you are in serious trouble and no gaurantee's someone is going to save you. Lesson learnt. |