Im finally gonna start!

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 2:04 am

Tomorrow it begins, slowy but surely. I've been fishing from the most unorganised unrigged kayak on the water and its driving me nuts. I have procrastonated on doing the necessary rigging to make my kayak fishing experiances more enjoyable.
The main things bothering me, My anchor line/anchor sit in a coiled mess under my legs, and deploys from the side of my kayak instead of the bow, thus causing me to sway back and fourth in a big semicircle when Im anchored up. I have no paddle clips or anything to hold my paddle while I am fishing, I usually sprawl it across my lap and hold it between my legs and belly as I am trying to fish...yeah its that bad

. I have no place for a stakeout pole, thus, I havent used the one I recently made and I really want to. I have no dry storage, meaning, I lose my keys in the water, also my wallet, cigarettes and my camera that had pictures of my very first red all get ruined due to getting wet

.
I have an idea for an easy/free fix for my anchor line problems. Im going to try it tomorrow and see how it works out and if its good I will post up what I did. I am also going to try to attempt something for securing the paddle on one side of the kayak and the stakeout pole on the other side of the kayak. So the paddle can be stowed away while I am trying to fish, and the stakeout pole can be stowed away while I am paddleing. I have a feeling I am going to have to just go out and buy paddle clips for that purpose though, if that is the case I am stuck waiting till Friday to get that part done being I have no cash till then.
The next thing I plan to do is to get something so I sit just a little higher above the water mabe make a few rings of pool noodle that fit inside each other and then stuff them under the seat itself, if I stuck a cushion or something on top of the seat, to sit higher, then I would just lose some of the backrest which I want to try to avoid.
I am welcoming any ideas, or helpful hints, so if you got any advice, especially if it involves any of my problems mentioned above, please post it up

mauso1 · Post by **mauso1** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 6:11 am

instead of the bow

Think about this...If it is deployed from the bow you are fishing into the wind.
Deployed at the stern..the wind is at your back.

Answer = anchor trolley. Also a good spot to stick your stakeout pole..through the ring on the trolley..

The next thing I plan to do is to get something so I sit just a little higher above the water mabe make a few rings of pool noodle that fit inside each other and then stuff them under the seat itself, if I stuck a cushion or something on top of the seat, to sit higher,

CAREFUL...I thought the same thing a few years back..I put a blow up stadium cushion under my butt..result = raised center of gravity and I ended up side down on top of an oyster bar..sure was hard to stop the bleeding..still have the scars.

Paddle clips are a good thing..however..I just let my paddle dangle off the leash if I get tired of it blowing off my lap..
Solution = a cheap paddle leash can be made from a piece of 1/4 rope if nothing else.

Todd · Post by **Todd** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 9:28 am

What kind of kayak do you have?

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 10:04 am

Todd wrote:What kind of kayak do you have?

Ocean kayak scrambler xt.

Chief1600 · Post by **Chief1600** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 10:27 am

I use a 4' piece of 3/16" nylon with a clip for a paddle leash. It works well for the intended purpose but, it seems like every time I let it float it ends up on the other side of the boat from where it is clipped on. The other thing is when you are fighting a fish it's something else for them to get tangled on. I've been thinking about some clips but hate drilling holes. Good luck on getting your boat rigged. You might want to check out Rik's anchor trolley. That's what I'm doing on my boat. Nice and simple, very few holes.

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 10:47 am

Once I get the stakeout pole/paddle situated, I wont use the anchor all that often, unless I am going into deeper flats for trout. Right now I have nothing as far as money goes, so buying an anchor trolley right now is out of the question until Friday. I will use my idea to hold me over a day or two and then I will go about it the right way using the anchor trolley.
As for the raised seat, I know it will be a little less stable, thus if it gets a bit choppy I will be able to remove it to get more stability, this is more of a tool to use when I'm at location and setup on calmer days therefore increasing visibility and comfort

.

beyondhelp · Post by **beyondhelp** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 11:46 am

As far as the seat is concerned, my mom always uses a chunk of high density foam that is only like 2" thick. It is very comfortable and she's very protective of it. If I borrow the kayak I don't dare use the foam for fear I might lose it. (J/k I 'm 6'2 in a sit in and I hate having too much crap in the cockpit)

Look for one of those gardening cushions at Home Depot or Lowes. They're like $3 and it sounds like it will fit your budget. It won't absorb water and can be cut to fit. If you research enough you'll find you can rig the kayak without spending too much $$ (I'm on the "do I buy gas for the car or food" budget it seems)

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 11:52 am

So far I temporarily solved the anchorline troubles untill I get an anchor trolley. I got dry storage thanks to a Folgers "aromafresh" canister. I got a place to store my stakeout pole when not in use. Im going to pick a set of paddleclips up this weekend so I have a place to store my paddle out of the way when Im not using it. All should be good. Im gonna try just throwing my PFD (cheapo oarnge one) under the seat itself and see how that works out. This way its accessible yet out of the way.

Chief1600 · Post by **Chief1600** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:04 pm

Even with the clips, go ahead and rig a paddle leash if you don't have one already.

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:08 pm

beyondhelp wrote: (I'm on the "do I buy gas for the car or food" budget it seems)

lol, I hear you on that. Lately I've been on the, pay bills, dang, Im out of cash...."Hey Mom, may I borrow $20 please?" sort of budget lately. Which is also the reasoning for my lack of fishing reports in the "west coast" section

That should change though, buisness is picking up at work which means its possible to start hitting bonus again, the more pieces I pull the bigger the bonus, up to $500 which I will have no trouble getting should buisness stay steady 8)

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:11 pm

Chief1600 wrote:Even with the clips, go ahead and rig a paddle leash if you don't have one already.

Yeah I need one, had go to swimming once for my paddle already

Sundancer · Post by **Sundancer** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:24 pm

Rooster wrote:... I have no paddle clips or anything to hold my paddle while I am fishing, I usually sprawl it across my lap and hold it between my legs and belly as I am trying to fish...yeah its that bad . I have no place for a stakeout pole, thus, I havent used the one I recently made and I really want to. ... I am also going to try to attempt something for securing the paddle on one side of the kayak and the stakeout pole on the other side of the kayak. So the paddle can be stowed away while I am trying to fish, and the stakeout pole can be stowed away while I am paddleing. I have a feeling I am going to have to just go out and buy paddle clips for that purpose though, if that is the case I am stuck waiting till Friday to get that part done being I have no cash till then. ...:

Velcro!
It may be shunned by the purists but it works for me.
I have several strips of adhesive backed Velcro running along the inside and outside of my cockpit.
I took a matching piece of Velcro and wrapped it around my paddle so that it forms a small tab. The tab is needed otherwise the paddle can "roll" its way off the hull mounted strip. Use is as simple as setting the paddle down by your side. The Velcro hooks up and you don't have to snap the paddle into a clip or fumble with a bungee cord. Do the same on the other side for your stake-out pole.
You could also use the tab on the paddle as an attachment point for your paddle leash.

Oh, the strips along the inside work great id you attach matching strips to the bottom of tackle box (the small 4-5 compartment type), pliers or knife. This keeps everything close but it's not sliding around under your legs. Once I accidentally dropped my Leatherman's tool. Luckily it actually stuck to the side of the kayak instead of bouncing into the drink.

One hint, I'm using the "hook and loop" style of Velcro so I attached the loop side to the kayak so that clothing doesn't "attach" to it. Then again, I guess you could do it the other way and stick you butt to the seat for Eskimo Rolls.

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:29 pm

I may try that, never thought of using velcrow, and I'm sure its in my budget, thanks for the tip 8)

Todd · Post by **Todd** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 1:06 pm

Rooster wrote:. Im going to pick a set of paddleclips up this weekend

Do not get the plastic paddle clips you screw in. They get in the way and break very easily. There is an easier way to do it with about .50 of small diameter bungee.

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 1:08 pm

I just thought of something that may cause me to not be able to use the velcrow. I have an OK that is rough in texture, therefore the adhesive wouldn't stick to it all that well. Would I be able to sand the area I plan to use smooth to get it to stick better?

Rooster · Post by **Rooster** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 1:52 pm

Here is a pic of my progress. I circled what all I did and typed text in on paintshop. However its hard to see, the pic shrunk from the one i made on paint, to the one on photobucket......

Paddle-Fishing.com

Im finally gonna start!

Im finally gonna start!

Re: Im finally gonna start!