Ok, so I bought a used hoodoo tempest 120 under the assumption I could stand on it while fishing. I am a 240lb bodybuilder frame dude. I asked around and people have said I should be able to do that fine. I find this to be untrue.
First off, I have a back injury from the military which cost me my career after surgery and pain is a limiting factor in day to day. So that means standing on unstable surfaces is out of the picture. I have tried standing on this and was capable but it was super sketchy and not really stable and that was only possible in calm water. I need to be able to stand here n there cause sitting too long kills my back and if I’m trying to be won the water for several hours I need something stable to do so.
That leads me to my question. What kayak should I look into that can facilitate me actually standing and catching fish. I know that if I hook a bigger fish and I jerk at all I’m going under and I lose 1000$ rod and reel and all my stuff. Not looking to do that. Any recommendations would be super helpful. I can’t necessarily spend 3-4K on these brand new ones from the big box stores. But hopeful for some recommendations that maybe I could even get a wider kayak and put a trolling motor on it or something.
I also struggle getting this thing up on my roof rack so something substantially heavier wouldn’t be ideal for roof rack use. However I am looking into possibility of a small trailer/ kayak combo if affordable.
Thanks for any help.
Posted by patrickachuff275
14 Comments
An inflatable boat might be better for you and it’ll be more stable. Check out sea eagle
Something that may be worth the investment & help open up more options for you would be the [BerleyPro Will-I-Loader](https://www.berleypro.com/product/will-i-loader/?attribute_kayak-weight=45-55kg¤cy=USD&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22188355350&gclid=Cj0KCQjw953DBhCyARIsANhIZoYJ0GtxxFEEFMNvHesx7fMGmJw90PpC8CgmyrKXfv1odQAixjQoSvIaAnJ3EALw_wcB) I’ve had my eye on one for a while now since I also cartop my Hobie Compass in my JL on 35s.
Nucanoe unlimited
Are you fishing lakes or rivers? It sounds like you need a framed seat that will sit higher than average.
Bonifide ss 107 or 127 are considered some of the most comfortable and stable, good for lakes. Not the best on rivers. Kinda expensive and heavy.
Jackson Bite will probably fit your bill well. No frills, wide and stable with good seat, not too heavy. Under $1k.
A crescent shoalie would be a pretty good all around option, better river option. sacrificing some stability for paddle-ability.
Nucanoes are also great stability, pretty affordable, they will also weigh a little more. They have a big line up that would also probably work well.
I’m a big guy, not a bodybuilder, but not exactly a low center of gravity either. I have a Jackson Knarr and can stand in it, but for me it’s still not comfortable. What I can do is kneel on the seat and be extremely stable, which is enough for me. I also use an inflatable NRS Pike which is honestly almost as good. If standing is the goal, any kayak is probably going to be tricky, but a larger inflatable that would be more of a skiff would probably work much better, and not be too heavy.
I would also suggest an inflatable. NRS Kuda or Star Rival (currently on sale) is a very stable platform. It’s very light, so you can easily put it on the roof. You can load it with incredible weight and deflate it if you are not using it. People are afraid of puncturing it with hooks, and it is incredibly hard to do. Check out videos on YouTube. You can glue on pads for accessories and place them whenever you want.
Sounds like the Native Slayer 10 LTE might be a good fit for you. Good stability, pedal driver, mostly affordable, and fairly light.
Or harbor freight trailer and used hobie, nucanoe, or native
Wish my 4Runner looked as good as yours but glad to know I’m not the only one roof topping a purple fishing yak!
https://preview.redd.it/uifabadqc2bf1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=71ec7d2b51e9e90bed1b455348ed8109932b2ec1
There are stand up bars like Hobie H bar. Have not tried myself but suppose one can lean against the bar while fishing (or at least stand up once in a while)
I don’t have recommendations on a specific kayak but I will recommend that you get seat risers for what ever you end up with. I’m 6’4″ and 230 and getting 4 inch seat risers made it so much easier to stand up and sit down. It also gave me a way better angle with my legs to the pedals, helped my knees out a lot.
The only thing I can add is that I was super unstable at first, it felt impossible, but after months and months of practicing it became effortless. If you can just get to the point where you’re not constantly thinking about balancing.
My problem was mostly the over thinking, constant readjustment, and just too much movement in general. Once I learned to relax and focus on fishing it became like a second nature. I’m on a native slayer propel 10.5. Probably undersized for me but after a year, standing is not a problem at all.
Unsure where u live but a live2fish board checks a lot of these boxes. 12’6 and super stable while only being about 55lbs. Definitely pricey new but u can find them used at 1500 if u put the time in looking.
If you have a place that does demos, I would highly recommend doing that. There’s so many kayaks on the market, and most people are going to be biased to the 1 or 2 that they have tried. The used market can save you quite a bit on the cost as well. There are a lot of people that have gotten into the sport, and find it’s not right for them, so there are deals available. Good luck in your hunt.
Destroyed body and back vet here, I have a shearwater 125 and I modified a jet ski trailer to be able to wet launch and slide it out near water.
https://preview.redd.it/ski2p8elv3bf1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=904751596e4a7f69919c60e2b8c2b822141af0d9