# Fly fishing kayak?



## Clayton (Oct 7, 2008)

Whats the best yak to get for fly fishing? I DON'T want to spend more than the price of a freedom hawk. Not for the boat itself anyway. Also, I have never been kayaking before, so nothing too terribly unstable. Finally, I have a pickup with a six foot bed so a 14 foot boat could be a hassle lol.

I know some of you kayak, so share! I probably won't try to run white water in this thing but I do enjoy rivers in general.

Thanks in advance for the advice!

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## pipes530 (Apr 17, 2009)

Clayton,
Here is my two cents. Although pricey.....you can not go wrong with a Native Ultimate 14.5 kayak. 1st, they are a cross over between a yak and a canoe. You sit down in the craft like a kayak with an open cockpit like a canoe. They track through the water like a champ, and are very very stable. They are stable to the point you can stand up in them and the best part are the seats which can not be beat. Sat in mine for over 4hrs and none the worse for wear. Sometimes a used one can be found for sale at Native Kayak owners forum. This is my experience and there are several choices. Best advice...paddle before you buy & make your decision from there.


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## TheCream (Mar 19, 2009)

Clayton, here's my $.02 worth. Although the Native is a great boat, there is no internal storage. It's essentially an open hybrid canoe. Great platform, for sure, but if you should take a tumble in tough water, anything not strapped down you're going to lose. A SOT kayak gives you internal storage options for secure gear transportation. Although my SOT is perfectly stable, I prefer to sit and fish. I have no issues casting from the seated position and in order to deal with the wind (you WILL get wind blown no matter what you pick) you need quick access to your paddle. I sit with my paddle in my lap, so when I need a quick paddle kick to straighten the boat or keep me off the shore, I can do so without even putting down the rod. The internal storage also makes it easy to transport your gear to and from the water. I can rig my fly rods before leaving the house and store them inside the boat, full length, securely, pull into the lake/stream and be ready to go very fast. My boat is a cheap Future Beach 13' SOT from Dunham's and it is rock-solid in the water, I have never dumped and only came close in the surf in October in SC. That was due to me being a newbie to dealing with surf and the boat still stayed upright when it SHOULD have rolled.

As for transportation, I have a Ranger with extended cab. I use a cheap bed extender that plugs into my hitch, so I can transport my boat with ease.


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## Clayton (Oct 7, 2008)

The Dunhams boat definitely holds a certain thrifty appeal, made stronger by the fact that my wading jacket crapped out and I need a new one (which will be the last one, it's gore tex time) which eats into the budget. 

Oh well. Any further advice, fly folk?


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## bruceride (Aug 1, 2011)

I'll cast another vote for the Native Ultimate. I have the 12 footer. Even understanding the potential issues of the open design, it's more stable and tracks better than the Tarpon 12 I borrowed prior to buying the Ultimate. Come down to New Lex and try mine any time, if you want to. (I'm the guy that bought the A3 from you last fall).

I use this primarily as a pond / resivior / Hocking River kind of thing so I'm no more concerned than being in a canoe about things getting wet. And it's pretty darn hard to roll. And it is dryer than any SOT by its nature when I'm in the resevior. It would stink in real rapids or in the ocean getting thru the breakers, I'd for sure want a SOT for that.

All that said, buy the one that suits *you*. I'm thinking you can have fun on any of them!!!


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## FishingAddict (Nov 15, 2011)

I got a kiwi angler for fly fishing platform. open cockpit thats set up for fishing. easy to stand. reasonably priced.


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## RebelWithACause122 (Mar 29, 2011)

Clayton, do you plan to stand and fish, or attempt it from a sitting position? I kayak fish a lot, and I fly fish some... but I've never fly fished from a kayak... or sitting down. I fish mostly out of a Hobie because I like trolling and the pedal-drive system is great for that... but not great for smaller rivers because it needs like 2 feet of water to operate. I also have a Future Beach traditionaly-paddled kayak, it's an Angler 144 (currently for sale actually). It's a 12 foot SOT and has a very stable hull. All 3 of my kayaks are 12' and I haul in the back of my S10 without even needing a bed extender (sticks out 4' past the tailgate and I put a flag on it). If you're not too long of a drive from the Akron area, I'd be happy to let you try it out.


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## TheCream (Mar 19, 2009)

I'm one of the worst casters I know, and I have zero issues casting from a seated position. I can stand in my SOT, but as much as I have to grab the paddle to reposition in the wind, I find there's no point in standing up. It's more advantageous to sit with the paddle in my lap, for me. It's far more convenient.


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