TexasKayakFisherman.com

Have you telephone poled or personally seen it done off the Texas coast? I am trying to decide between a 13.5 kraken and a 15.5 kraken that is $500 cheaper.

I started out with a 15.5 Kraken, but I aways came in backwards. I always heard that was the way to avoid the telephone pole issue, so that's the way I learned. I'm now using a 2018 outback, and Istill return backwards, again just because it's the way that I learned. I just saw a video of a guy telephone poleing in a 2019 outback, so I guess it could happen in any kayak. I will bet though that the 15.5 (if you surf it in) will have a much greater possibility of telephone poleing than the 13.5. I have been offshore in the 15.5 in some bad conditions, poor judgment on my part, but I had no issues returning to the beach in reverse. So, if you go with the 15.5, I would suggest giving the backwards re-entry a try.
FYI, I would sell my Kraken. If you are interested, let me know and I'll give you some details.

I’ve come back through heavy 3 foot surf with my boat loaded down with 100 lbs of fish. My Stealth is 18’2” long so I was worried. I chose not to surf quickly, and as I worked slowly it was fine.

As you come in as you feel the wave lifting the back of your boat up paddle backwards, hard if you have to. Where people get caught is trying to paddle with the wave. One of two things happen, bow plows below the water and you cartwheel or the bow plows and the boat turns quickly broadside to the wave and you flip. If you have learned to paddle in backwards you are doing the same thing but you paddle forwards as the bow is lifted. As the wave goes under the boat you continue inward. It is best to practice without fishing gear!

The trick is to keep the kayak from sliding down the face of the wave.

I came from whitewater kayaking on flooded rivers and creeks. Its fairly easy to stay up if you turn broadside to a wave... you just have to put your paddle blade on top of it and lean hard into it. It takes practice. It probably also takes thigh straps that I have on my Tarpon 140. Once it catches you, you are committed to ride it till it falls apart, but its really not too hard to learn and its safer than going nose in once the surf reaches a certain size.

I done it last year down on PINS