Has any one seen or used the new okuma baidarka kayak fishing rods?
They have leash attachments ,longer channeled forgrip and they FLOAT
I have not used them but I have wondered if anyone has tried using shorter rods in a kayak because of how unwieldy a 6’ rod can be, especially under a dock or pier. After seeing DolphinD land a big red on a 2’ SpongBob rod, I think I may try and pickup a nice 2.5 footer that will store easily in my kayak and can come in handy when I am working under docks.
I lost a nice red yesterday under a dock partly because my rod was too long and I couldn’t guide the fish away from the posts (only had 1’ of clearance over my head). All I had to show was a frayed mono leader.
14’ Pamlico 140 Angler w/ rudder
Switching to lead-free tackle.
I use 6 or 7 foot rods, ugly sticks, diawas, shimanos and I never have problems… then again I am fishing creeks where there is no dock in sight 
I absolutely LOVE Okuma reels so I may check one out.
On another note… I don’t think you have to have a yak rod to be successful. Like Jordan said DD caught that great red on a sponge bob combo and that proves you don’t need high end super expensive rods to get the job done. As for the leash attachemnts… whe I started yak fishin I had EVERYTHING and I mean all of it, leashed to myself or the yak… yeah it’s a great idea if you get swamped or roll your boat but I spent more time fighting the leashes and trying to keep it all organized tha nI did fighting fish and on one occosian I lost a fish while fighting the leash… I have my paddle leashed to my yak and that’s about it right now. I don’t go out where there is a big chance for a roll over and I am pretty careful on how I move. Can I possibly roll my yak and loose all my stuff… You bet yer butt I can, but the leash fight is not something I want to do again so I just try and be a little more careful. I have tailored my crap I carry to a milk crate with two boxes in it, one for lures and grubs and one for terminal tackle, and a small pouch with a measuring tape, scissors and some bug spray. I ditched the anchor for a stake out pole and I do have 4 rods with me, I only use one at a time but when I want to switch from bait to a lure I simply switch rods instead of rigging up the same rod all the time… Doplhin D has this down to a science… I think he runs 5 or 6 but as long as you have it organized it saves a lot of time… Sorry to drag this on But I have heard a lot of newer yak fisherman asking a lot of the same questions about rods and Yak-specific stuff…
“I’ll be your huckleberry…” --Doc Holiday
the milk crate with rod holders attached to it works for me. i ended up bolting the crate to the yak. its real easy to change rods with different lures or bait on them. as far as going under docks, that would cost me 8 rods. i work around them. stake out pole is great. how often are people rolling their yaks around here???
thanks ya,ll i was just looking for some thing new jordan i can get you shorter rods 5ft and under there is a shop by me that has a lot of 5$ RE TIP RODS i have had a few they are stiff but it might be great for docks:smiley:
Hey stillfishn, where are you at? $5 re-tipped rods?? What kinds? Thanks
Fresh fish tastes much better than fresh kissed butt…
Hey I have seen the okuma kayak rods and they claim they float, but as I have noticed with most yaking rods they are very long and seem to be unwildy the nice thing that they offer is that they can be attached to the yak via a loop on the bottom of the butt that a leash is designed for. I tend to use 6’6" 6-12 lb rods made by star and they tend to be very accurate with a very good tip yet still easy to manage in the yak
just my 2cents… I usually carry 2 rods, net, bait bucket, small tackle bag with the bare minimum, . I really believe less is more when yak fishing. Only take what I need to fish the intended area.
nikonjedi im in camden the retips start at 5 and go up to about20$ all kinds and makes .its called A@B outfitters it might be worth the trip stripers will be running in the river next month