Hello! First off I’m a newbie at kayaks. Looking for a 1 or 2 seater that would be good for fishing and crusing… I’ve been told
Hobies are good, however is there another comporabtle brands? Thanks
much more to narrow down
– Last Updated: Jun-28-16 1:02 PM EST –
Cruising what? fishing where? One or two seater = big difference. sit on or sit in? SOT (sit on top) can be wet, and thus is more of a warm water boat than a sit in.(3 season) I would start with a single sit in rec boat unless you know that you will only want a warm water boat and will plan to get wet, then a SOT. Your size and the capacity of the boat is important to consider also.
spend some time with the gear guide section.
Hobies
Hobies are kind of oddball kayaks in that they have foot pedals that propel paddles underneath the boat. While they do keep the paddler’s hands free for fishing they are very heavy and extremely expensive.
Boats good for fishing tend to be wide and flat bottomed (barge-like) so you have a stable platforms and room for gear. If you really want to cruise you want something lighter, narrower and easier to paddle to speed.
It sounds like you have not had much experience with kayaking so renting or going out with an outfitter would be a recommended first step. There are many variables in choosing a boat – we usually suggest starting with something used if you are not really sure what you’ll be doing. Without knowing your size, where you plan to paddle and your budget, it’s hard to get very specific with recommendations.
2nd this ^
Depending on where you want to paddle and fish, you may even want a canoe.
newbie
First you need to know what kind of kayaking you are planning to do - smooth water or white water and that narrows down the options. Then you need to decide if you want a sit inside or sit on top kayak. I find it easier if you are carrying gear to have a sit inside. Length determination is helpful if you are kayaking alone, and needs to be able to get the kayak up on a roof. I find shorter kayaks are easier to get up on racks but are less easily controlled in the water and ‘shimmy’ - Hope that helps.
consider canoes
I also agree that if your primary concern is fishing and you want the option of solo or tandem paddling, that you consider a canoe. Take at look at the Mad River Adventure 14 molded plastic canoe:
http://www.madrivercanoe.com/us/products/adventure-14
Due to the low gunwales (sides) and the relatively narrow width, you can paddle this with kayak paddles. I used to have the 16’ foot version and we used a 230 cm in the bow (which is narrower) and a 240 cm in the stern. Canoes are often better for most fishing in lakes and rivers and it is easier to switch from solo to paddling with a partner in them. The Adventure canoes are relatively inexpensive and easy to find used (we got ours from a Craigslist ad for $400 including a 30 watt MInnKota motor). The stern is designed to mount an electric trolling motor if you need it. The boat is versatile and we even used it on mild Class 1 and 2 rapids.
Hobie makes traditional SOTs too.
The Hobie Tandem Oddysey is a pretty decent tandem SOT. It does not have peddle. Check the reviews here.
For best advice go to a kayak fishing
website. Most of those who post here are not into fishing from SOT kayaks. Find some folks with real world experience.