7/15 bay bridge.

[gillplate]

I have not posted in quite a while, mainly because I haven't done a lot of kayak fishing in a while. Last Saturday I had the itch pretty bad so I dug out all my gear loaded the kayak, and everything else for a 3:30 am. departure Sunday morning. I called anglers and confirmed that they had fresh bunker, and was happy to hear that they also had live spot. Got excited and figured it was going to be a slam dunk. Grabbed the flow troll bucket and added to the pile of gear. I rigged three rods for bait with big circle hooks and one with a 1/2 oz. +bust-em. I got to anglers at 5:15 am. Picked up 6 fresh alewifes and 4 live spot (that were a little smaller than I would have liked). Got to sandy point at 5:30 or so and put the flow troll and spot in the water to keep them peppy. It felt like the wind was a little stiffer than the predicted 3mph. or so but not bad. Looked like pretty close to high tide with water getting close to the bottom of the piers at the ramps. I rigged up and thought to myself, with all this pristine bait that I have,I don't think I need to take my tackle bag. That was my 2nd. mistake! paddled out and found the the tide to be ripping in still and wind coming from the south east. Oh boy. I went straight out to about the corner of the bend in the northern span and dropped bait on a piling. the wind and tide made it tough at the cylindrical pilings with only a narrow eddy to try to stay inside of. Drop live spot, get pushed out of the eddy, pay out line, engage bait runner, paddle back up, repeat,repeat, etc. etc.. Finally a taker. Line came tight and could tell he was against or around the piling, finally got him free from the structure and to the kayak. Short 16" but perfect lip hook. sent him on his way.(that's why I like big spot).From that point on things just didn't go well. I use 14# black fireline on all my reels, and have for about 10 years. The 1st. mistake I made was to put fish finders on all three bait rods the night before.(when hooked in front of the dorsal fin, spot usually head straight to the bottom not requiring any weight.) I had one issue after another with the fireline and the loose fish finders whipping around. I figured Id ad some weight to stop the line from wrapping with wind and kayak movement. Oh yeah, I don't have any weight, its back in the jeep. I go to get a fresh spot and realize my flow troll magnum is no longer tethered to the kayak handle. Great. I know it couldn't have gotten far, I just heard it bumping the stearn a few minutes ago. scanning the horizon I finally spot it probably close to 100 yds. away. Thank god I had my glasses on. retrieve my bucket.No Idea howit came off, caribeaner was still snapped in a loop to the line. My last spot line got wrapped up around another rod in my rocket launcher...many times, as I was paddling back up from a drop. Two rods basically tied together and useless without a little work, that I was not prepared to do in the swift drift I had going on. One bait rod left. I'll cut up some LY. Oh yeah, I don't have my bait knife, it's in my bag in the jeep. Paddle back in tired, wet and defeated. drop the pristine bait off to a buddy at Kent Narrows, and head for home. The older I get the more I think about a peddle kayak. I see guys out there whipping around the pilings while casting and jigging at the same time. Tough when the currents ripping and you have to paddle. The single factor that stops me is the weight of a peddle kayak. My ocean kayak Tetra 12 weighs close to half that of a typical pedal kayak. After last sunday I'm about half inclined to look at something more in the range of 30' 20'000lbs.! It just wasn't my day. I got complacent from a normal good success rate at the bridge and made more mistakes in one trip than I've made in the past 10 years or so. Thanks for letting me vent!

[brianisoutside]

A peddle yak like a Hobie outback definitely helps out there in the wind and current. I can pedal and steer while jigging the pilings without getting pushed off.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[gillplate]

peddle. That's right. pedal on my man. my bad.

[brianisoutside]

peddle. That's right. pedal on my man. my bad.

Haha, I used it wrong too. Have you used a foot propelled kayak before?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mark]

Many of us who pedal our kayaks eventually peddle them so that others can pedal them while we pedal new ones...and the cycle goes on as more folks are brought to the sport.

[gillplate]

I have never pedaled, nor have I ever been much of a peddler. All I know is at 50, after 30+ years of swinging doors and other such abuse, my shoulders seem to need a break. my legs feel pretty good, but I still need to consider loading that beast of a kick boat. For the past 10 years or so I have been using roof top J carriers. the weight of most pedal yaks almost seem to warrant a trailer.

[J.A. Veil]

I have never pedaled, nor have I ever been much of a peddler. All I know is at 50, after 30+ years of swinging doors and other such abuse, my shoulders seem to need a break. my legs feel pretty good, but I still need to consider loading that beast of a kick boat. For the past 10 years or so I have been using roof top J carriers. the weight of most pedal yaks almost seem to warrant a trailer.

Take a look at the Native Watercraft Slayer Propel 10. The hull weight (without seat and drive) is 62 lbs. I am a large guy and have used it since they were first introduced in fall 2014. To save a bit of money, look for a used one coming onto the market.

[Mark]

Native's Slayer Propel 10 and Hobie's Compass and Revolution are each pedal-driven sit-on-top kayaks that weigh less than many of the popular sit-on-top paddle boats. I'm 64 and I cartop my 70 pound Revo with the aid of a Yakima roller that supports the kayak as I lift it. A trailer would indeed be easier than cartopping. But the major disadvantage of trailers is that they are not allowed at many of the sites where I launch. A pickup truck is a great kayak carrier from what I can see of those who use them for that purpose. They require minimal lifting of your kayak and they are welcome at cartop launches. If/when I can no longer lift my kayaks to my van's roof, I will be seeking a pickup to carry them.