Thanks for the add!

Hey all

Thanks for the add.  I have been fishing for years, mostly riding on friends boats or charters.  I moved to Sacramento a few years ago and quickly realized there’s a ton of promising water but one issue.   I can’t get to it from the bank (also dislike bank fishing lol). 

My girl and I have been contemplating trying kayak fishing after hours of YouTube or getting a small bass boat.   

Hoping this group can give me some thoughts for a noob. 

1.  I fish mostly in the delta and lakes.  With the boat traffic there how safe/unsafe is it?   I honestly have never really watched how the kayaks handle the wakes since I usually cut the throttle and idle by. 

2.  Being that I’m used to fishing off a boat do you think I might be let down by the kayak experience?   

3.  Where to start on the kayak?  Pedal drive?  Motorized? Super basic?   I love fishing and could spend every day on the water but I’m also a lazy ass so guessing the traditional oars would end up in one trip then just collecting dust lol. 

Thanks in advance. 


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Howdy Ekanjpn!  Welcome to NCKA!

1. Might depend on where your fishing, delta is pretty big, and well your range is a bit more limited than a boat.  But i've had great and terrible experiences, a hydrofoil flew by me once at what seemed like a hundred miles an hour splitting between two kayaks, could have been deadly.  But, I've mostly fished around Turners cut, and like spots where it's still 5mph or just less transient traffic where people want to go fast. 

2. No, not at all, a whole different experience where things are slowed down to the pace of the universe, and your more connected to the water, and the fishing.  To each their own though.

3. Really depends, best advice is to try a few different kayaks.  A Hobie PA can be a great choice for bass fishing, rigging, and being able to stand and sight cast at targets.  There are a lot more out there though and if you have the $$$ to spend, everything from motors to motorized stake out poles, high end fish finders, all are possible.

Howdy Ekanjpn!  Welcome to NCKA!

1. Might depend on where your fishing, delta is pretty big, and well your range is a bit more limited than a boat.  But i've had great and terrible experiences, a hydrofoil flew by me once at what seemed like a hundred miles an hour splitting between two kayaks, could have been deadly.  But, I've mostly fished around Turners cut, and like spots where it's still 5mph or just less transient traffic where people want to go fast. 

2. No, not at all, a whole different experience where things are slowed down to the pace of the universe, and your more connected to the water, and the fishing.  To each their own though.

3. Really depends, best advice is to try a few different kayaks.  A Hobie PA can be a great choice for bass fishing, rigging, and being able to stand and sight cast at targets.  There are a lot more out there though and if you have the $$$ to spend, everything from motors to motorized stake out poles, high end fish finders, all are possible.

Thanks AlsHobieOutback!   I’ve fished mostly around whiskey And Bethel areas but have been eyeing the sac river and American river up here in sac also.  I haven’t explored much up here since the accessible areas I have found are either packed or super sketchy off the bank. 

Slowed down isn’t bad for me.  Right now I would be happy just to cover more water and get access to more areas.   

I’ve looked at the Hobies and they are nice but $$$.   In the kayak world does the higher end really get you more for the once or twice a month guy or are they all similar until you get to the ultra high end stuff?   Also if I get a pedal drive can most of those accept a trolling motor or do I need a specific characteristic?   Where can you try out kayaks?

Sorry for all the questions I really do appreciate the info !!


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Welcome to NCKA Ekanjpn 

It really depends on what you want to do that will determine what kayak you are most wanting to spend your $$$ on.  Many people buy multiple for this reason, they call it their "quiver" of kayaks    Hobies are very nice for a lot of things, especially trolling or making headway against current or windy conditions.  But sometimes simple is better, which is why I prefer my Malibu X-Factor for most ocean fishing, with less things to worry about, lighter, and able to withstand a lot of conditions.  But for lake trolling, I like to use my Outback, with a down rigger and sit back and peddle around looking for a bite.  I'm not sure about dealers in your area, but good ones often have ones to demo or rent so you can test them out.

ekanjpn,
I was in the same position as you a year ago. I'm in Sacramento and wanted something to fish the lakes, delta and eventually the bay and beyond. Couldn't afford 3k+ on a Hobie. Ended up getting a new Feelfree Moken 12.5 V2  for $900. I've added a rudder,  FF, rod holders... and its been great. It is a paddle boat though. I have bad knees from motocross and Hare Scramble racing when I was much younger and found out I couldn't deal with a peddle kayak for any length of time after borrowing a buds for a tryout. I have just ordered a 36lb thrust trolling motor that I will be putting in the sonar pod. Easy street from now on. Will I upgrade? Maybe in a few years from now.
My point... get what you can afford, make it work and enjoy it.

I typically rockfish with my wife on our Hobie Oasis tandem kayak.  I use a pedal drive and my wife uses an electric motor (Bixpy Jet).  We installed Hobie Sidekick (outrigger) to make it more stable.  If you are a patient person, you might want to look for a used kayak to start.  My personal recommendation is a pedal drive kayak. 
For the last 6 years of kayak fishing, I purchased a total of 6 kayaks and sold 3 of them.  You can see our Hobie Oasis tandem kayak set up at the following link:   Ask many questions and watch kayak YouTubes to narrow your search.

Paul

It really depends on what you want to do that will determine what kayak you are most wanting to spend your $$$ on.  Many people buy multiple for this reason, they call it their "quiver" of kayaks    Hobies are very nice for a lot of things, especially trolling or making headway against current or windy conditions.  But sometimes simple is better, which is why I prefer my Malibu X-Factor for most ocean fishing, with less things to worry about, lighter, and able to withstand a lot of conditions.  But for lake trolling, I like to use my Outback, with a down rigger and sit back and peddle around looking for a bite.  I'm not sure about dealers in your area, but good ones often have ones to demo or rent so you can test them out.

Thanks. 

Ocean is pretty much off the table (I think).  Planning on mostly lakes, rivers and the delta.  My biggest concern is probably the boat traffic.  I keep thinking how often it felt sketchy on a bass boat lol.   

Plan is not have the quiver lol.   I have too many of those for other hobbies as is haha.   

Can I add a motor to any of those if I want to later?   Been watching a guy on YouTube and he has a motor and the pedal drive.  I like thinking of having the option if the battery (or my energy) poop out. 


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ekanjpn,
I was in the same position as you a year ago. I'm in Sacramento and wanted something to fish the lakes, delta and eventually the bay and beyond. Couldn't afford 3k+ on a Hobie. Ended up getting a new Feelfree Moken 12.5 V2  for $900. I've added a rudder,  FF, rod holders... and its been great. It is a paddle boat though. I have bad knees from motocross and Hare Scramble racing when I was much younger and found out I couldn't deal with a peddle kayak for any length of time after borrowing a buds for a tryout. I have just ordered a 36lb thrust trolling motor that I will be putting in the sonar pod. Easy street from now on. Will I upgrade? Maybe in a few years from now.
My point... get what you can afford, make it work and enjoy it.

Thanks plug-n-jug!   That helps a lot actually.  I’m weary of spending $3k on something I don’t know much about.   I’m guessing with the add ons I’m going to end up closer to $5k.   

I just want to be sure that if I got the $1k ish route that it will be safe and good enough that it doesn’t give me a false sense of not liking it, not realizing it was due to the gear.   


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I typically rockfish with my wife on our Hobie Oasis tandem kayak.  I use a pedal drive and my wife uses an electric motor (Bixpy Jet).  We installed Hobie Sidekick (outrigger) to make it more stable.  If you are a patient person, you might want to look for a used kayak to start.  My personal recommendation is a pedal drive kayak. 
For the last 6 years of kayak fishing, I purchased a total of 6 kayaks and sold 3 of them.  You can see our Hobie Oasis tandem kayak set up at the following link:   Ask many questions and watch kayak YouTubes to narrow your search.

Paul

Thanks Paul.   The bay/ocean are probably not in my future.  Went out a month ago and saw a party boat roll by a couple guys on a kayak and knew that water wasn’t for me unless on a boat. 

I’m wondering can all pedal drives accept a trolling motor or the jet drive?   I can get lazy so I can imagine wanting the motor later on


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Thanks Paul.   The bay/ocean are probably not in my future.  Went out a month ago and saw a party boat roll by a couple guys on a kayak and knew that water wasn’t for me unless on a boat. 

I’m wondering can all pedal drives accept a trolling motor or the jet drive?   I can get lazy so I can imagine wanting the motor later on

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I am not sure about other manufactures but Bixpy makes many different adapters.  You want to check out their website for details.  https://bixpy.com/motors-batteries-adapters/

Paul