Why Fish In A Kayak?

Hey there fellow kayak fishing enthusiasts – or probably more importantly those who are a little sceptical – and welcome to my post answering the all important question of why fish in a kayak? Fishing from a kayak to me is one of the most fun elements to fishing and a pastime that I turn to when the stresses of the world overtake me.

But as a friend of mine who recently bought himself a new aluminium tinny once said, why would I need my kayak now that I have a boat? Don’t get me wrong, I do love a good day out on a boat as well, but there is just something about floating up and down the river with a fishing rod in hand that seems to really do it for me.

Anyway, as a late answer to his question, I have come up with 6 reasons to fish in a kayak below… Let’s have a look.

One thing I really love about fishing is the fact that inherently, wherever you are, the view is generally so good that it almost doesn’t matter if you are not catching fish (well almost). And in my opinion there is no place where this is truer than floating around on a kayak. It is quiet and peaceful and unless you are fishing with Steve, who honestly could talk underwater, then it is also quite restful as well.

We will discuss some other advantages to this below, but if you really want to get away and fish in an area where you can’t easily be disturbed by others, then kayak fishing is the go.

Whilst we are on the peace train, another major advantage on the water is that in a kayak, you are completely silent meaning you can’t spook the fish. Now the jury in well and truly out as to whether fish get scared off by noise – I mean we have all caught fish in the middle of kids playing or boats flying around but the pundits express the advantages to keeping quiet so I have included it here.

Obviously without a boat motor (or even a quiet trolling motor), kayaks are silent as they drift around. So if you are chasing a particularly twitchy species of fish then a kayak is the perfect foil for a sneaky attack!

Check out my: Watersnake Trolling Motor Review

One of the main reasons to enter any type of vessel to go fishing in is that you often want to get to bodies of water that you cannot reach from the bank. Boats are the obvious choice for off-shore fishing and also work well in most other areas as well however kayaks however can get to even more places that even smaller boats just can’t reach.

A good example of this is where we often go chasing fish in the mangroves. One particular areas where we often get lucky is on the other side of a large fallen tree in the tributary. Boats and tinnies just cannot get here as they get stuck on the tree. A kayak however can skim straight over the top – or worse case in an extra low tide can be dragged across the exposed trunk.

Of course another advantage here is that a kayak can be launched pretty much anywhere without the need for a boat ramp etc. meaning you can be closer to your fishing grounds right from the outset.

This again probably goes in line with the above however in addition to being able to get to more places, once there they can generally be maneuvered around with greater ease as well. They can be turned on a dime and their drift usually adjusted with a single tap of the paddle in the water.

This makes it a lot simpler to keep the vessel over a good fishing hole or structure (a.k.a the strike zone) for longer when the fish are biting. And as per advantage #3 above, they can also work across much shallower water than a boat.

Longer kayaks are generally more stable however the shorter the kayak, the more maneuverable it will be.

Check out these: Fishing kayaks

Ok, so this probably doesn’t have anything to do with any actual added advantages to catching fish but as you are paddling (or peddling in the larger models), you are obviously getting some exercise as well. So if you are looking for some fun, and a workout at the same time, them jump into a kayak and go for a fish.

For a start, for the advantages that you get as outlined above, fishing kayaks are definitely cheaper to setup and maintain than a fishing boat. Apart from the obvious purchase price differences, you don’t need to pay for fuel, batteries or oils on a kayak and servicing is also not required as often.

Customization is also a lot cheaper and most after market accessories that you wish to fit to a kayak can be easily attached via a mounting track, flush mount or even stuck straight to the hull. And for those who think about these things, a kayak is also a lot more environmentally friendly than a boat as well.

And there they is – my 6 reasons as to why you would fish in a kayak. I hope it has been helpful and as usual, please let me know of your experiences with them.

Also, please do not hesitate to comment below if you have any questions, concerns, corrections or would like me to check anything else out for you.

Until next time

Have fun

Paul