Which kayak for Texas rivers?

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DPT
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Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by DPT »

I recently went down San Marcos river kayak fishing for the first time and what a blast!! :) Now I think I want a kayak for river fishing.

I have internet searched and Ocean Trident 13 and that looks pretty good. I live in West Texas so getting to try out and compare kayaks before I buy doesn't work too well.

I also web searched the Scupper Pro, Perception Search 13, Tarpon 14, new Necky Vector, Hobie and a lot of the other name brands but have no on the water experience with any of them. :roll:

I am 53, weight 190, and 6'2". Are there some better yaks for fishing Texas rivers. I hope to do more river fishing around Dallas and Austin.
Iamdamoder
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by Iamdamoder »

We are pretty happy with boats like these on the SMR.

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DPT
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by DPT »

Thank you for the time to post pictures Iamdamoder. I have not thought about sinks but you all do look pretty comfortable in them. Mmmmmm, I will have to give sinks some consideration.
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Guitlucky
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by Guitlucky »

I went with these guys down the san Marcos in a ride 135. Not too many river trips under my belt either, but I felt my boat was way too big. Not quick or responsive enough in my opinion. I think a good sink would be the way to go, or for that matter, anything that turns good. Not that I knew what I was doing, but I felt I could have done better in a shorter/ narrower boat.
texnomad
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by texnomad »

I stopped using sinks because my knees gave up on getting me in and out of them. Other than that and that they can fill with water, they worked just fine. I used float bags in my sinks to limit the volume of water inside the yak. That way it floats higher when you get swamped for whatever reason.
whitedog
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by whitedog »

Put in the Colarado several years ago with a group. One guy had a SINK. He turtled, and the yak swamped. Because of swift water and the bluffs on our side, he had to push the yak across the river. Once there, he was able to pull the SINK out and turn it up side down to drain. A sit on top yak rarely requires draining while on a trip. Flip it up right, and crawl back in. Plus if you do much wade fishing, a sit on top is more convenient for getting in & out.

There are some guys that are sold on SINKS. I have never understood why they preferred them. In my experience, 80% of kayak fishermen use sit on tops.

I found the Tarpon12 to be very versatile. I fish rivers, lakes, and bays. If you primarily fish rivers, wouldn't buy anything more than 12.
texnomad
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by texnomad »

Sinks put your center of gravity a bit lower. Hull designs being equal the sink is harder to turtle. The trouble is most sinks nowdays are built for rolling which is not and never will be in my lifestyle. In my opinion, a hull built for rolling normally does not have the initial stability we like for our sots to have. All three of my sots have had excellent secondary stability also. Still for me the choice is set by my knees.
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Brady S
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by Brady S »

Coosa by Jackson Kayak.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-1nq7m97lo" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Designed specifically for rivers and camping trips. Cool thing is, you can stand up and fish out of them!
DPT
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by DPT »

Thank you for the replies. I think I would rather go with a sot even though TKF just posted the review of the Raptor sink that was interesting. The Coosa does have some nice features. Lots to choose from, that is a good thing. :) I will need to check out the Tarpon 12.
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fisher of people
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by fisher of people »

The Tarpon 120 is a great all around boat. Stable, comfortable, relatively fast, reasonably maneuverable, nice to fish out of. For river fishing, I definitely would not go over 12 feet, you will lose too much maneuverability in exchange for speed and glide, which you don't need nearly as much. You might also consider a canoe. I have a Wenonah Vagabond, which I love, several users on this forum have Old Town Packs. Solo canoes are much lighter than SOTs, more comfortable, and have a lot more space. Biggest drawback is that they are more affected by wind. Next time you make it down to the San Marcos area, go by TGs and demo some of their boats. That will be by far the most helpful thing in making your choice.
gwinyak
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by gwinyak »

I fish the San Marcos often. I prefer sots. I have a 12 1/2 foot Emotion Mojo Angler and a smaller 10.3 foot Emotion Stealth for quick throw and go trips.

If your looking at the Tarpon 120, I would suggest looking at Academy and their new 12ft perception sport. I think it is the same boat as the Tarpon 120, for a much more attractive price.
CTR22
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by CTR22 »

native ultimate
Billy Jack
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by Billy Jack »

My friend and I are also in Lubbock and had a problem shopping for kayaks. We decided to make a fun mini-vacation/kayak shopping trip. We drove to Austin and ended up at MOC Kayaks. Dan and Danny Walker, father and son, spent a whole afternoon showing us various brands, styles, etc., and educating us on kayaks. The next morning we met Dan and he hauled us and five kayaks to the lake for an on the water experience. We tried all the models and sizes we had settled down to. We decided to buy and let Danny install rudders and ship them to Lubbock for us. The whole experience was well worth the time and effort. We were never pressured to buy, but after our shopping experience we wouldn't have bought from anyone else.

My friend got an OC Trident 13 which he likes and I got a Native Mantaray 14 which I love. We have fished AH, WR, Buffalo, a city lake, and made a 4 day trip to PK and floated several miles of the Brazos below PK.

Since getting some education and experience I'd say the closest and cheapest best choice is the one mentioned earlier, the Perception 12. It does look like a Wilderness. It has a hull like my Mantaray. My Mantaray is very maneuverable with a rudder, which you really need if you are going to fish in our west Texas wind, and it is an easy paddle with lots of glide.
There are a couple of other Lubbock kayakers I've met. One has a Native Ultimate and my neighbor has 2 kayaks and a New Canoe. Send me a PM and I'll tell you more about our experience in getting started in the sport. If you want to see any of our rigs we'd love to show them to you.
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Re: Which kayak for Texas rivers?

Post by DPT »

Thanks for the suggestions guys. For a brand new yak that Perception at Academy is a great deal!
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