Newbie Greetings

Hello NWKA's.

I'm a native Washingtonian whose spent the last decade away doing some explorations. I'm back and loving it! Part of my stint away was outside Philly where I got into kayak fishing on lakes for bass. Now that I'm home, I've spent this season with out much luck fishing rivers for salmon and steelhead from the banks. I'm thinking that it just might be time to put my yak into some body of water near me and give kayaking fishing a go for a larger species.

I have a 10' Old Town Vapor (SIT), that I've rigged with flush mount rod holders. As I'm reacquainting myself with the area, I'm curious as to what the group's thoughts are using this type of kayak for our waters here? I don't really have much dough to fork out for a new yak at this point, so I'm pretty much gotta use what I've got for right now.

Do you all mostly fish the coastal waters paddle trolling for salmon in the salt? If so, how do you get your presentations down to the proper depth?

Or do you fish the fresh rivers, if so, do you pick and choose your rivers that lack rapids because a lot of them have some rapids and I'm not a whitwater paddler, let alone with fishing gear strapped and stowed on my boat that just doesn't entice me.

Thanks in advance, I'm excited to do some kayaking fishing in the PacNw. I also feel like I should apologize for the barrage of questions.

Cheers
Fshrmon

p.s. is there a meetup of kayak anglers near the Everett area?

Welcome to NWKA!  I'm not the one to answer your questions, but worry not, there are some guys who will chime in soon enough with great ones.

I see you are located in Everett, so I assume by "coastal waters" you mean Puget Sound.  In the sound salmon can be fished for trolling, jigging, fly-fishing, and casting.  I use ounces of weight on a dropper on a sinker slide to give me some depth.  Others use various divers, and a few have installed down-riggers on their yaks.

I've not fished a river in my kayak, but many rivers that enter Puget Sound do not have rapids for many many miles upriver, though they can have substantial flow. 

You have picked a good year to come back, as we are expecting another record pink salmon return this year.  They are small, plentiful, and easy to catch.  Perfect entry level kayak salmon. 

Searching/perusing this forum will yield a huge amount of useful information. 

I think a 10' kayak may be short for rough water, but much of the time Puget Sound is a big lake, so use what you have, but do not push the conditions.  I assume that if you were fishing around Philly you are aware that cold water is a killer, that you dress for immersion, and that the water is cold year-round.

Think safety, safety, safety.  Safety first, fishing second.

Thanks so much Fellas!

I appreciate the advice/suggestions and the welcoming. I've spent a good portion of time lately trolling through the search features and have found a wealth of info. I'm looking forward to sharing and learning from the board!

Cheers.
Fshrmon