Rod holder - versatile kayak tool

[J.A. Veil]

I was paddling around Weems Creek this morning catching a few perch and trolling for a while. I looked at the two rod holders mounted on the gear tracks in front of me. It inspired me to write a short piece about different ways in which I use my rod holders. When I got started in kayak fishing I looked for a way to hold rods when traveling. Later when I began trolling often, I wanted strong but easily adjustable rod holders. I started out using Scotty products and have stuck with them. I am used to how they work. However this is not a commercial for Scotty. There are several other reputable brands out there that also work fine (for example, Ram and Railblaza, and probably others).

Here are photos of the Scotty rod holder I use and the cylindrical base that has a metal foot to slide into the gear tracks along the sides of the front cockpit area. The bottom prong (male end) of the rod holder fits into an opening on the top of the base (female end). To adjust or release, you rotate the collar on the base then position the rod holder where you want it. Small splines on the male end fit into grooves on the female end to lock the rod holder securely in place.

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The rod holder bases I showed above work very well in a gear track system. For the two rod holders I place behind my seat, I use the standard Scotty bases and bolt them through the hull with stainless steel bolts, nuts, and washers.


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Here are the three ways in which I routinely use my rod holders.

1) Rod storage while paddling. Many kayak anglers use a milk crate or similar box that they place behind their seat. Typically vertical PVC tubes are added for vertical rod storage. I personally don't like to have objects sticking up behind my seat. I use two rod holders in front of me and two behind me to hold rods at a slight angle above horizontal and in-line with the hull. They do not interfere with my casting, and they allow me to move under trees, low bridges, etc. without banging the rods.

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2) Holding rods for trolling. I spend a lot of time trolling in my kayak. I appreciate having rod holders that are easily and quickly adjustable. For the front rod holders, I simply rotate the cylindrical bases. For the rear rod holders, I lift, rotate, and push down to reset the lateral angle. Either one of these adjustments takes less than 5 seconds. I can also adjust the angle above horizontal. I added slip disks to allow an infinite range of angle adjustment.

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Typically, the two rods in front of me face forward but out to the side 45 degrees. The one or two rods behind me face rearward and out 45 degrees to the side.

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3) A place to rest a rod while paddling a short distance. While fishing close to shorelines, as I do for perch or pickerel, I typically have several rods laid on the deck in front of me. The rod that I am actively using can be leaned up against one of the rod holders to keep it from tangling with the other rods. The photo show one rod with a paddletail on the deck and a rod with a spinnerbait leaning on the rod holder. On my kayak, the rod holder works better when I turn it to the side -- it makes a broader resting area. Depending on how your rod is constructed, you may be able to drop the last guide into the trough made by the rod holder -- this makes for a very secure resting place.

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If any Snaggedline member has used his rod holders in a different way, please post here to share your knowledge.

[Mark]

The basic Scotty mounting base pictured here is very versatile:

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I suspect most kayakers use it as positioned above. They either bolt it through the deck or secure it into gear tracks. However, some may overlook that the same mount also provides a port on the side to lock down a rod holder:

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You can attach a Scotty rod holder to the side of the mount like this:

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When I noticed that the folks at Scotty provided this capability, I was very happy because I have an aversion to drilling holes into my boats. Also, I don't like anything permanently installed in or on my boat. Don't ask me why. I cannot rationally explain it. However, I do cartop my kayaks and every little gear addition glued or bolted to my kayaks adds unwanted weight.

So given that Scotty base mounts can be flipped on their sides, I decided to add them to my BlackPak and Milkcrate. I use a BlackPak in my Revo and the Milkcrate in my Ultimate 12 and Ultimate 14.5. Here's the Blackpak with two Scotty fly rod holders bolted to it in a sideways configuration.

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And here are the mounts on my milkcrate in my Ultimate 12:

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John mentioned that he doesn't like vertical rod storage behind his seat. I can understand that. It's a pain for me when passing under the Ridgely Avenue Bridge in Weems Creek or when I get too close to overhanging branches. Sometimes I have to pull my rods down temporarily. But most of the time, vertical storage behind my seat is no problem.

It's definitely no problem casting with them back there as long as I remember to never cast directly over my bow. If I cast even slightly to the right or left of the bow, the laws of geometry ensure that I cannot hit my rods. And I fly fish with long backcasts of line zipping past my rods. Hitting my rods behind my seat is not problem.

But again, if vertical rod storage is an issue due to bridges or branches, I can angle them back like in this photo:

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Regarding rod storage in front of my seat, I generally want nothing there to obstruct my casts. In particular, I keep my left gunwale clear of any attachments because I mostly cast to my left. A rod mount, fish finder or paddle holder attached to the left gunwale would surely impede my casting. That's especially true when fly fishing. If fly line can find something to wrap around in the confines of a kayak, it will. So I keep the left gunwale clear of obstructions:

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In summary, I use my BlackPak and Milkcrate as foundations for Scotty base mounts. And I attach the mounts sideways taking advantage of the port they provide in that configuration.

Now, I'm not an avid troller. While I have done so using the both the Blackpak and milkcrate as a foundation for my rod holders, my preference is to troll in my Revo using the built-in flush mounts behind the seat. But for rod storage on outings, I find the above scenarios with Scotty base mounts to work very well.