I am in search of my first kayak and need some advice. My main purpose is fishing. I will fish rather large bodies of water and many small bodies of water. I do not aim to fish in windy conditions but, I do not want to go home if the weather gets rough. I do not want to spend much more than $1000 on the yak. I have narrowed my choices down to a few yaks and I am wondering if anybody has any experience with them or can give me any advice. The kayaks are the Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120 & 140 and the Ride 135. I like the tarpon line up for their speed and weight but I am wondering of its stability. Any advice will be appreciated!
tarpon 120
The tarpon 120 ultra lite is 20 pounds lighter than the regular tarpon 120, so you could carry 20 pounds more fish back to the car with about the same effort. More seriously, other things being equal the lighter boat is a lot easier to deal with off the water.
I think…
…these kayak will have more similarities than differences.
The Ride will be the most stable because of its 33" width, but it will also be the slowest. The Tarpon 140 will be the fastest at 14’ and 28" wide.
But all these boats will be super stable; I don’t think that will be an issue at all.
I’d also look at the Commander 120 which might offer a little more versatility especially if you’ll be casting a lot.
Find a local paddling specialty shop - not a big box sporting goods store - and try them all out.