Hobie Adventure Rigging Ideas

Thanks Matt,

The rod holder mounting looks a bit problematic for heavier loads (rods) as well. That Australian guy (Yakass?) seems to have the right solution by having a length of cord attached forward from the rod holder tube to provide extra strength with a limited amount of flex. For the Adventure Island, he's attaching to the flexible paddle holder cords on the side of the boat. Looks like maybe something similar could be applied on the Adventure kayak for forward rod holder mounting by using an extra pad eye with a clip on cord.

As far as not being too concerned about capsizing an Adventure Island, actually, I almost bought the farm on this new boat already. Decided to go to a seemingly more sheltered lake (Lake Natoma) on a very windy day a few weeks back. Came around a rock cliff headland and got blasted by a good 40 mph wind gust out of nowhere. Hit me broadside with full sail deployed. Not good! Didn't flip the boat, but probably had the sail down to 45 degrees vs the horizon. Buried the outrigger float and was hanging on for dear life. It all happened in about 2 seconds. A good lesson for a sailing rookie like myself. At the critical point though, I noticed that the wind DID roll off of the sail at that extreme angle and I was able to pull out of the dive. Good to know. Lost my Hobie hat but fishing poles etc. stayed onboard.

I have the utmost respect for you guys running in what the AI crowd calls "kayak mode" with the Adventure. I've only done it once and the tippy factor took me about an hour to overcome. It's certainly a stable platform once you get acclimated though. And I've been totally ruined by having the outriggers always deployed and not even thinking about shifting my body weight around the boat. So far I've spent nearly all of my time on the water learning how to sail first. The learning curve is not too steep, but every trip still yields valuable lessons.   

Matt, it's good to know you like that M68 FF. I didn't want to have to buy a separate GPS at all. Lowrance makes good stuff. I still have my original "little green box" from way back when. I believe they also have a dual range transducer available for that M68 unit.

As far as rigging, all I basically want is good rod holder mounts for trolling or mooching. They have to be pretty beefy though, as it looks like we may actually have a decent coastal salmon season this year! Too bad we will probably still have that circle hook requirement though. I would much rather sliding sinker/mooch with a light weight noodle rod w/15-17 pound test vs the heavier winching stuff/circle hook - especially on a kayak. That circle hook set-up just doesn't seem to work well for light/limber rods.

If I ever see you or other members out on the water and you want to try the Adventure in sail mode, just ask and we can switch off for awhile. 

Karl

   

Hi MistralWind,

I actually ended up going with the Scotty flush mounts for that reason, trolling for large fish and salmon.  I also saw YakAss's problems with the RAM mounts so shied away from them.  Scotty is slated to come out with rocket launchers for their mounts (advertised on their site).  Until then, I am running 8.5" extensions and the regular rod holders.  They work nicely getting the rod out to the side, and being multi-directional, and stay well out of the pedals and my legs/feet.  The Scotty holder should work well with their crab davits as well, along with other accessories.  I really like that once I remove the rod holders, I have flush rails for loading and entry/exit into the kayak during dives.  The Scotty holders really hold tight.  I can't remember where I saw the idea, but I ran some pool noodle onto the rod extension shaft to hang lures from.  It works great!  I just finished installing a rod holder on the left rail.  I was going to keep it open, but found I really missed not having a rod holder there when trolling.  It is a tight fit, but they install great, as if made for the spot (which they likely are).  The plastic on the Hobie rails is very thick, and I found I didn't need as much backing plate as my other kayaks.

Here is my Adventure rigging post, showing the equipment I ended up going with:
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,28168.0.html

I find the stability to be right on with my Prowler 13.  It isn't bad once you get used to it, and I don't notice it after being on the kayak for a while.  I am loving the speed of the Adventure, easily 2 more mph with a quarter of the effort.  I got this kayak to cover water, and it does it very well.  I also have a bad back, so find the pedal system much easier on me.  I am considering the ama's though, as sailing would be a lot of fun!  Overall I am very happy with the kayak, it really increased my range and cut the effort in getting places down.  You really can't beat the Hobies for trolling.

You could (at least last year) still use J hooks for mooching on the north coast.  I will see what this years regs have to say about it though.  I hope to see you on the water!  I really want to see the island in action, what a set-up. 

Matt