Over the recent years, fishing, as a sport, has seen more popularity. With the influx of new anglers, fishing has evolved to be a different sport than it was a couple of decades ago.
Simply getting a fishing rod and camping under a tree no longer defines “Fishing.” One of the popular ways is getting a kayak and leaving the shore behind. But is it really worth it to buy a kayak dedicated to fishing?
In my opinion, yes, it is absolutely worth it. With a kayak, you will be able to reach spots that are inaccessible from the shore, potentially increasing the number of species you can hunt, not to mention all the spots you’d be missing out on.
But unlike boats and other fishing vessels, kayaks do not require fuel or relentless maintenance. Besides, they are pretty cheap.
Like other options, kayak fishing also has its benefits and drawbacks, and in the end, it comes down to personal preference. If you are into fishing, you should try out kayaks. I think it’ll be worth it. Here’s why.
What Is Kayak-Fishing?
Kayak fishing is the activity of fishing using a kayak. That’s obvious. But why is it different from regular boat fishing? Why is it a separate thing? The reason is it is not exactly the same as boat fishing.
You cannot reach or access the same fishing spots with a kayak that you’d be able to with a boat. A prime example would be offshore fishing. Deep saltwater is off limit for a kayak. Neither can kayak traverse long distances to reach a preferable spot.
At the same time, kayaking enables you to reach certain places, where a fishing boat would be more of a pain than a help. Kayaks are significantly lighter and more portable than boats. You can load the kayak onto a SUV and go for fishing. Unlike boats, kayaks do not require a dock/ramp to launch on the water, which is not available in unconventional water bodies.
There are a handful of other aspects that puts kayak-fishing apart from usual water vessels and makes it a separate thing.
Advantages Of Kayak-Fishing
Kayak-fishing has a few advantages over both shoreline fishing and deepwater fishing, such as –
- Reach Further
Kayaks are relatively smaller watercraft. They give you the freedom to leave the shore and go a bit further. With kayaks, you can reach the innermost parts of a lake that is beyond the reach of the shore.
With the extended reach, you can cast the line in the heart of the lake and catch the biggest of the fishes. It’s simple, big fishes will obviously hang around toward the middle, in the deeper parts of the water.
With a kayak, the biggest of the fishes will no longer be out of reach.
Unlike fishing boats, kayaks are simple to carry to the lake and deploy in the water. If you are a regular fisher, an average boat will prove to be a pain in a few travels.
- Reach New Land
Kayaks will also enable you to reach new areas and new water bodies. If you have a kayak, you can explore new lakes and ponds nearby to see and try out the sources, what kind of fishes they have and how rich they are.
Carrying a fishing boat would not be the same. First of all, you may not have a dock to launch the boat from. Secondly, A small or even a medium pond would not be suitable for an engine boat. Third, You might not even have proper road access to drive your truck through.
Kayaks are small, lightweight, and can be carried by a single person, effectively opening up a lot more options for you.
- Simple Launching
Kayaks are much simpler to launch and operate compared to most engine boats. This is arguably the main reason why kayak fishing is a viable choice for many. As soon as you learn to balance yourself on the kayak, you are good to go.
A neat benefit kayak has that most other watercraft do not is the freedom of launching it on water. Your average boats need a dock or a ramp to release it on the water safely. They are also quite heavy and need help from several persons, if not from machinery.
Kayaks are much smaller and lightweight, and most kayaks can easily be carried and deployed by just one person without any ramps or platforms.
- Easy To Operate And Maneuver
Kayaks are very easy to operate and maneuver. Basically, the trickiest part of the process is to learn to balance on the kayak, which is not difficult at all. You may need assistance from someone the first few times, but once you get the hang of it, it’s easy sailing from there.
I literally mean easy sailing because sailing on its own is also very basic and takes no time to catch on. All there is to it is the oar/paddle. The paddle controls the motion, velocity, direction, turning, maneuvering, and even balancing. It’s all in the motion of the ocean, or rather the paddle.
Where there is lesser functionality, there is a lesser chance of fault and failure. In the case of a kayak, there is none.
- Cost-Efficient
The top-notch kayaks will cost you in the four digits, but most of the popular fishing kayaks are in the three-digit mark. And if you are willing to increase your budget a tad bit, you can expect to have a magnificent quality kayak, whereas an average quality fishing boat will easily cost you in the five digits.
But that’s just the beginning cost. Boats will often have issues requiring slight tweaks and maintenance, but the kayaks themselves do not have barely any issues. The equipment and the gadgets may need a touch, but that’s not on the kayak.
Anyway, the most obvious thing is, kayaks are manually operated, requiring no fuel whatsoever. Boats, on the other hand, need a constant supply of fuels as long as they are operational.
So, kayaks are much more preferable in this sense.
Disadvantages Of Kayak-Fishing
So far, it seems all fine and dandy, but there are a few drawbacks to kayak-fishing. First of all, They are not the most stable watercraft ever. Instead, they are rather on the harder side to balance, more so for the newcomers.
Secondly, as versatile as they are, they are not suitable for offshore fishing since both traveling long ways and balancing in the constant waves of the ocean are tricky with a kayak.
Thirdly, kayaks, in general, have storage issues. They are slick and low-profile vessels, but that also means there is not much space for storage. So, you should be careful about the danger of kayak fishing.
Is Fishing Kayak Worth Buying?
Yes. Despite the downsides, I would still recommend buying a kayak if you are into fishing, especially the pedal kayaks worth for fishing. Nowadays adding a trolling motor to a kayak is getting popular too.
Kayaks have more advantages than drawbacks, and the drawbacks are easily overcome able. At the same time, the advantages are nearly exclusive to kayaks and canoes.
Speaking of cameos, they are functionally the same as kayaks but slightly less stable. Overall, getting a kayak is a good investment of money if you are planning to fish regularly, or even every once in a while.
In the end, you are the one who has to make your decision; I am here just to point things out for you. Peace!
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