What do I need to add to my arsenal?

[nhunter344]

Hi All! Extremely green, clueless, new guy here.

This will be me and my son's first year kayak fishing. I have everything I think I need kayak-wise, now I need to know if what I have rod/reel wise will work. As far as target species goes, I just like being out on the water so anything that's bites. Wouldn't mind some nice (or any) stripers, blues, croaker, cobia, blue cats, you name it. Here is what I was planning on using out on the water.

St. Croix Avid Spinning 7' Med. / Fast Action - Shimano Stradic 5000 with 15lb Power Pro
Lox Iridium 7'11" Medium pwr / ultra fast action - Shimano Sustain 4 0r 5000 (cant remember) with 20lb Daiwa j-braid
Couple of 6'6" med pwr / medium action beater rod/reels with 15lb PowerPro
Daiwa 6'4" Pinster II light pwr / fast action with Daiwa Caldia 2000 reel 8lb Daiwa JBraid (was planning on using to catch bait)
Everything else I have is superlight trout setups and 10'+ surf setups, which I assume are no use in the boat.

From what I've read so far, I'm thinking I should have something heavier in the lineup. I am completely clueless so any pointers/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I know that this will be a continuous learning process, but Id like to minimize the learning curve when possible. If nothing else, I can use this thread as justification to buy new gear!

Thanks in advance and apologies for all the stupid questions I'm bound to ask in the future!

[rugbyfish]

Welcome! If you're planning on trolling for blues/stripers, 6'6" to 7' medium spinning rods with 2500-3000 sized reels should be perfect. You could certainly go heavier if you'd like, this is just my personal preference. I also use that setup for bottom fishing for croaker and eater-sized cats. If I'm fishing for larger blue cats, I switch to medium heavy rods with 4000 sized spinning reels. I spool my 2500 sized reels with 15-20lb Sufix Braid, and my 4000s with 30lb. It sounds like that Daiwa Pinster/Caldia would be a great perch/pickerel set up. I am a big fan of Daiwa spinning reels.

[ronaultmtd]

Nope- you are on your own justifying buying gear... no problem about asking questions- and anything over a 4000 size spinning reel is overkill in a kayak- for casting jigs and tossing poppers I mainly use a Sustain 3000 FG with 15# braid on a SE Teramar 7' medium action rod and a Stradic 2500 CI-4 (+) with 10# braid on a St. Croix Mojo Inshore 7' medium light extra fast rod...for my heavy sticks I use trolling and bait fishing, I have a Abu Revo 50 NaCl Toro Winch with 30# braid on a St. Croix Avid X 6'6" medium heavy rod...plenty for anything in the Bay from a kayak...Big Stripers, Bluecats, Cobia, Bull Reds...

[nhunter344]

Thanks for the info! I'm pretty big into conservation, so I always lean on the side of going a little heavier in order to reduce fight time and fish stress. I'm also super forgetful and always forget to tighten my drag before casting out (I always loosen the drag when I'm done to prevent memory in the drag washers). Who knows how many yards a good sized fish can peel off before I tighten the drag down. Its good to know that what I have will work for the most part even if its a little overkill. Hopefully in the future once I have an idea of what I'm doing, I can gear more appropriately.

It sounds like that Daiwa Pinster/Caldia would be a great perch/pickerel set up. I am a big fan of Daiwa spinning reels.

Used to be a Shimano only guy until I spent some time fishing in Australia with only Daiwa reels to use. Loved em. Sadly, unless we want to pay an arm and a leg, we don't have access here to Daiwas full lineup. We have the Chinese made low and Japanese made high end reels covered, but there is a whole slew of mid-range Malaysian/Korean made reels we don't have in this hemisphere. Reels are cheaper there as well. I found them to be, on average, 25% cheaper than in the states.

[DanMarino]

If you live in Gaithersburg I highly recommend making the Upper Potomac River your primary destination. Harpers Ferry, down to Swains Lock offers wonderful fishing for smallmouth bass. If you go that route, medium action or lighter work great and you won't need a large spinning reel or anything over 10-15 pound braid.
Lots of access points on the Upper Potomac out your way along the C&O Canal. Nothing better than August through October on the Upper Potomac.

[nhunter344]

Man, if there was an award for the most 11.5" smallmouth caught between Williamsport and Dickerson, I'd be the winner hands down. Can't remember the last time I caught a keeper SM. That's my go to spot for dinner-fare sized channel cats as well.

I know there's a couple portages involved, but I've been considering a weekend kayak trip from Williamsport to Mercersville or Shepardstown but I honestly don't have any idea as to how many miles a day is realistic to go that far and fish at the same time.

[gkreps]

Nhunter,
They are a few of us that fish the true upper Potomac from Hancock to Shepardstown. Give us a shout if you want to do a float!

[nhunter344]

Nhunter,
They are a few of us that fish the true upper Potomac from Hancock to Shepardstown. Give us a shout if you want to do a float!

I will definitely take you up on that offer once I know enough to not fully embarrass myself. I'm fine with sinking myself, I would hate to take others down with me!

[HeaveToo]

An 8 weight fly rod with a floating weight forward line
Airflo leaders in 10 foot sinking and 10 foot floating
1x and 2x tippet
Various flies depending on what you are fishing for.

--Hooking up with a big fish on a fly rod...PRICELESS!!!!!

[PigPen]

Nhunter,
They are a few of us that fish the true upper Potomac from Hancock to Shepardstown. Give us a shout if you want to do a float!

That looks like a cool float,. How long does that take?

[gkreps]

Pigpen,
If you wanted to float from Hancock to Shepardstown it would take at least 3 days. We break it up in sections, Licking Creek to Harpers Ferry takes about a day if you stop and fish all the holes. Dam5 to Williamsport is a slow float after about the first two miles. Most of the action is from the dam to the old rail road bridge, from there its slow water and a constant paddle to get to Williamsport. We usually skip the stretch between Williamsport to Dam 4 due to all the pleasure boat and Jet skis. You can float below dam 4 to Taylors Landing or continue to Snyder's landing. The float from Snyder's Landing to Shepardstown is slow also.