After 21 years of kayak fishing I’m finally thinking of upgrading my perception kahuna. I’ve finally gotten dumped a few too many times of the coast of Edisto.
My question here is without me going to every store to try out kayaks what recommendation would you guys give for stability to fish off shore?
What I fish now…
the wilderness ride 135 is a good one but not fast but very stable for sure
I own both a WS Ride 135 and a Hobie Outback and enjoy both of them for different reasons (although my wife has pretty well taken over the Hobie if we are out together). Both are extremely stable and fishable boats and have their own nuances. The Hobie is great and versatile and the ability to fish hands free is really nice and eliminates the issue of swithching from paddle to rod but it is a pain to paddle if the rudder is up as the tracking w/out the rudder is lousy, plus it’s a wet seat down in a bit of a well and can get a bit uncomfortable to paddle in cold weather if you get any water in the boat. The Ride 135 is a nice dry seat with the new air-pro mesh being up off the deck, tracks great with or w/out a rudder (but really nice with the rudder) and has a huge payload capacity. Although I did buy both my boats through Time Out over in Mt. Pleasant I bought them both at the East Coast Paddle Sports & Outdoor Festival (http://www.ccprc.com/index.aspx?nid=1542) which is an annual event coming up again April 11-13 in Charleston. Literally every manufacturer and vendor that you could want will be there and it’s a great opportunity to paddle all the available boats at the same time and make a decision based on your own evaluation plus it’s a really fun day if your not in a big hurry to buy something.
Hobie Outback
WS Ride 135
Come and demo our 14ft Malibu Stealth kayaks
Very big in off shore action in CA,TX and FL
CAPT Dave
I’m curious. Are you getting dumped once out beyond the breakers or going and coming through the surf zone.
More info will help. If you’re dumping in the surf zone a lesson on surf zone could solve all your problems.
Boat drinks, Waitress I need 2 more boat drinks!
@Toobusy To answer your question…I understand a rouge wave every once in a while going out can dump you but my kayak isn’t the most stable boat. I’ve gone over a couple of times now because you practically can’t move around the boat. The last time I went in I was 4-5 hundred yards from the beach anchored up and I reached forward for a tackle box… fortunate for me I was prepared with everything tied in. Edisto gets a bit hairy when the waves come up being so close to St Helena and the massive amount of water moving with the tide across the beach…