SF Bay Kayakers, can you please help me find the right Yak for me?

 Hi everybody,

I am for 95% a bank angler. Only every now and then I am lucky to be able to rent a boat or get invited to one. The area that I live in (Sausalito, Marin County, CA) does not allow any kind of boats on its lakes, which is a bummer!
I do live in Sausalito, which is a little town right at the Bay of San Francisco and I have a nice little beach 5mins away from my apartment.

So I  am looking into a  kayak that I could use to mainly go out in the Bay and ocationally use it to go onto lakes like Berryessa or Clear lake. I would need to get the right gear to transport the Yak on my car (Honda Civic) first though.

Since I have a very limited amount of experience/ knowledge about such kayaks I would love to ask the community on advice and guidelines on how best to approach this. It would be also great to get an understanding on what kind of investment I am looking at here.

So in order to better scope my preferences here is a list:

* I am 6'4'' (200 pounds) and I would like to comfortably sit in the kayak and stand up to fish while as well.
* Would be nice if I could bring my gf with me every now and then (we have a Sevylor Colorado HF Angler Inflatable Kayak, that is nice to take with us in the car but it is neither comfortable to go for longer outings nor very adequate to fish or go onto the Bay with it).
* I would like to have some sort of foot-paddle system (the 'mirage system' looks interesting, not sure about the pros and cons though)
* I would like to have some storage for up to 5 rods and a couple of boxes
* Adding the ability for a sail is a plus

* I would like to install a fish finder

My car does not have a hanger or anything, so I would need that as well. (Honda Civic). Also I do not have a garage where I could put the kayak, there is a place nearby (on the way to the beach I was talking about) that rents Kayak space for 60 USD/month. What kind of other options do I have to secure it safely in the spot in front of my garage (from weather and robbery?

And last but not least. What kind of budget do I need to set aside for this?

My high level planning was:

* Kayak (can be used or a demo version): 2500USD
* Fish finder: 500USD
* Equipment (rod holder, etc.): 500 USD


Looking forward to your thoughts and recommendations!

Best,

-Seb.

Hobie i11s.  Check it out. That's  what I use.

Hobie outbacks are in your price range with a mirage drive. The slayer propel 13 is $2600 and feelfree is releasing a pedal drive for the lure series. A crate and rod holders wont be expensive. Look up "kayak crate" on youtube and youll see a lot of ideas. I like the ram 2007 rod holder alot as well as all scotty products ive used.

A good PFD is also very important. I have a NRS chinook and it is very comfortable and has a lot of storage pockets for gear

I'm pretty new to kayak fishing so take what I say with a grain of salt, but I have a Hobie Kona (tandem) and love it. It's not a fishing kayak by any means but it's incredibly stable with 2 of us on it, and a milk crate on the back with some home-made PVC rod holders works well enough for my small-scale fishing adventures. About $750 all-in (used). With your budget of $2500 I would definitely be looking at some of the better Hobie models. If you buy used you'll end up with an amazing setup.

There is a shop in Sausalito (where I also live) that demos all kinds of Hobie kayaks, so I would suggest going and trying a few out. I think it's called Wind Toys.

Your price ranges seem reasonable.

But, I think you're going to have a hard time trying to fulfill all of your stated requirements in a single kayak.  Especially, being able to take a second person and standing up. 

A Hobie Mirage Pro Angler 14 might be appropriate for most of your requirements, but the weight (~150 lbs) makes it a beast to get to/from the water.

Renting/borrowing a few different setups and brands would be worth the time and effort.

If you're going tandem and need pedals.. Get a hobie, they come with paddles and are around the price you were looking at spending. Not to mention they can have everything you want. Sail? Check out the tandem Adventure Island otherwise known as the AI..

However if you really think you'll spend more days out on your own or want to get a solo yak there are now tons of platforms with pedal drives to choose from.. I'd go find a place to paddle one and find out what you like. You may be able to buy two for the price of one if you want to just paddle too!!

As far as gear is concerned, game clip, a gaf, a net (needs to be atleast 18" wide), life jacket or good fishing style pfd, milk crate and pvc with a 3gal bucket and an bubble aerator can be your best friend and inexpensive live well / accesory rod holder combo...

You'll want to grab a Lowrance hook 4 or 5 ff 12v battery, ram mount ff holder, pelican 1120 case for the battery and I'd suggest either the ram tough tube with flush mount or the Scotty rocket launcher with flush mounts.. If you'd like a front mount the Scotty power lock is a good one..

Good luck and have fun, hope to see you out sometime!!

You can get a good used (pre-2015) Hobie Adventure Island for about $2500. It offers a lot of options in one package. It's a single, but it is possible to carry a passenger under some conditions. There is a tandem version (known as the Tandem Island), but it's going to cost significantly more.

Welcome .start here : http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=27534.0

You can get a good used (pre-2015) Hobie Adventure Island for about $2500. It offers a lot of options in one package. It's a single, but it is possible to carry a passenger under some conditions. There is a tandem version (known as the Tandem Island), but it's going to cost significantly more.

Welcome, Seb.

I would second the used Hobie Adventure. I don't recommend a tandem if you'll be paddling solo on the bay - it could be too much "boat" to deal with when the current rips and the wind blows. Bring the gf to lakes with the inflatable or rent another kayak once in a while to bring her along.

PFD always, plus other safety items. VHF radio is a must when on the bay, IMO.

Thank you all for taking the time to respond and help me with this! I really appreciate it.

I did demo the Hobie PA12 and the Outback tandem last weekend (with my gf). THe PA12 would be big enough to put her on the back if we want to go out together. The PA14 should be even better.

Though those are just the Hobie options. I am totally unaware of other pedal - turbine driven kayaks that would compare to the Hobie Outback/ Pro Anglers.

Is there a list somewhere that lists all those options?

Thanks again!

Thank you all for taking the time to respond and help me with this! I really appreciate it.

I did demo the Hobie PA12 and the Outback tandem last weekend (with my gf). THe PA12 would be big enough to put her on the back if we want to go out together. The PA14 should be even better.

Though those are just the Hobie options. I am totally unaware of other pedal - turbine driven kayaks that would compare to the Hobie Outback/ Pro Anglers.

Is there a list somewhere that lists all those options?

Thanks again!

The AI gives you a great sailing option that you won't have with a PA (at least not to anywhere near the same degree).

Thanks again.

The sailing idea is more of a nice add on then a main requirement.

In order of of priority the features that I am looking for would be:

1. Fishing platform that allows me to do fishing on the Bay, Lakes and Rivers
2. Ability to move it with feet powered drive (propeller, mirage, etc.)
3. I would like to be able to comfortable stand up
4. Be able to transport it with my Honda Civic (I have seen Youtube videos where people put PA14 on small cars)
5. Take my gf with me every now and then (she ways around 120pounds)
6. Do a bit of sailing with it (which is more of a 'get to the fishing spot quicker' kind of thing)



Thanks guys!

Thanks again.

The sailing idea is more of a nice add on then a main requirement.

In order of of priority the features that I am looking for would be:

1. Fishing platform that allows me to do fishing on the Bay, Lakes and Rivers
2. I would like to be able to comfortable stand up
3. Be able to transport it with my Honda Civic (I have seen Youtube videos where people put PA14 on small cars)
4. Take my gf with me every now and then (she ways around 120pounds)
5. Do a bit of sailing with it (which is more of a 'get to the fishing spot quicker' kind of thing)



Thanks guys!

I'd recommend buying two used kayaks, one for you, and a cheaper/lesser model for the gf.  don't buy for what you will only occasionally use it for, buy the one thats a best fit for most of what you want to do.  with your GF being only 120lbs and rarely going out with you, a nice used lightweight kayak will be fine for her.

Actually I'll just go point by point:

1. Fishing platform that allows me to do fishing on the Bay, Lakes and Rivers
2. I would like to be able to comfortable stand up

There are pretty much 1,000 fishing kayaks now that can do number one, and about 500 that can do number 2.  that's a slight exaggeration, but kayaks are very capable now, as capable as they've ever been.
Price dictates a lot of things, and local dealer support dictates the others.  I, as well as almost everyone else would recommend you do a demo. 

3. Be able to transport it with my Honda Civic (I have seen Youtube videos where people put PA14 on small cars)

This one is actually more interesting to discuss.  A civic, properly equipped with a yakima or thule rack, should be able to support somewhere around 120-150lbs on the roof rack.  if you were to bring two kayaks with you, like i recommended in a previous post, that will limit you to about 80lbs on the primary kayak and 50 on the secondary.  you could do that second kayak with a set of J racks.  to do that, you would want a minimum of 50 inch bars. 

5. Do a bit of sailing with it (which is more of a 'get to the fishing spot quicker' kind of thing)

Sailing doesn't really get you to a spot quicker.  Primary reason is it takes time to get yourself ready to go on the water.  A sail can be useful in the course of a long day, but if you're just jetting out to a spot, a paddle kayak unloaded from the civic, quickly deployed in the water and ready to go will beat a guy in a sail kayak anywhere within 2 miles rather handily, because it takes so much less time to get out there and fish.   Anyways, if you want a sail kayak, Hobie is the one brand that is "made" for sailing.  there are a few other after market sails and ways to add sails to fishing kayaks, but the majority of us don't use them for a reason, because we don't need them for what we're trying to do.