Here's a direct link to the report.   The heart of the matter are tables on Pages 36 and 37.  Depending upon where you live on the North/Central coast:  Coppers, Chinas, Gophers, Cabezon, and Lingcod all had samples over the recommended consumption limit for mercury.   Lingcod in Carmel!  Damn...

links.sfgate.com/ZLKL

Ron

Ahem - whoops... that should be "start behind the pectorals..."
Ron

Tried to go out of Stillwater on Saturday morning - when I checked it Friday afternoon it didn't look too bad.   But, by Saturday the swells had moved around enough that even the cove was getting pounded - so no joy here in the Bottom of the 9th...   You should have seen the swells at Pacific Grove on Saturday - unreal!   It was breaking all the way across the front of Coral St, and they were splashing over the wall at Lover's Point.  Reports were that they had 10-12 footers - and it sure looked that way to me.  Majestic to be sure, but not good yakking water.  Played golf instead - life is good!!
Ron

I have a lot more experience with flyfishing than I do with yakfishing.   If you're talking about lines for dry flyfishing or nymphing in shallow rivers, then I would agree with the floating line (or maybe a sinktip for the shallow rivers).   If you're talking about wet flies either in the salt or in lakes, most of the fish are down near the bottom - so I would go with a hi-density wet line.  They rate wet lines by sink rate, and the higher the sink rate, the faster it sinks.   The tradeoff is that you have to strip them all the way in order to cast - it's very hard to pull a wet line up and get it into the air when it's fully submerged.  Nevertheless, you've got to get the flies where the fish are.   Most fisherman make the mistake of not getting their flies in the zone where the fish are, and then can't understand why they aren't getting hits.   Another tradeoff with wet lines is weight - the ultimate wet lines are just shooting heads that tie onto a monofilament backing.  They sink very fast, but you're slinging the line like a weight, more than casting it.  I would avoid that for now as it's very difficult to cast that sort of line from a yak.

As for brands,  I have found that the finish on the line makes a huge difference in castability - the slicker it is, the easier it is to get a cast out.  That will be important in a yak as you're close to the water, so you lose the height advantage.   Albright does make decent lines.   For an all around product brand, I like Scientific Angler - they have put a lot of research into different line types and have good lines for almost any situation.   Cortland is the old standard, and also makes decent lines - as do Rio and Teeny.   You should be able to get a very good line for $50-$60, and it's certainly worth spending an extra $20 to make sure it's a good line.  You might want to make sure it has a braided loop on the business end - as you're starting out you don't want to get frustrated trying to tie on leaders - it can be tricky.

FWIW.
Ron

So NOW which Stillwater are we talking about?   If Carmel - I'm interested.  Never fished there, but hear good things.

I do two variations on popular knots:

For the improved clinch, I insert my finger in the loop, then twirl it around 7 times to make the twists.   It's faster, and then, you've got a bigger first twist to run the tag end through.   It consumes a little more line, but that's not much of a problem for saltwater rigs (bigger issue for flyline tippets).   With practice, I can tie that in about 15 seconds.   You just have to make sure to keep the hook out of the way.

On the blood knot - I tie it like a dropper loop.  Start with the two lines overlapped, and the tag ends held between ring and little finger on each hand.   Then twirl the two mainlines, just like a dropper loop - run the two tags into the separated twist, and tighten.  MUCH faster for me than tying a conventional blood knot.     

FWIW.
Ron

I've always worn a westuit, but have noticed several kayakers wearing waders - which I would think are more comfortable than a wetsuit, but not the same safety benefit as a drysuit.    Having gone for a "swim" while flyfishing in Montana in my waders, as long as I'm wearing a belt and don't have to go a long ways - this would be a good solution.   Any comments out there from folks who have tried both?
Ron