the new yak! and a sad story..

Picked up a malibu stealth at west marine for 60% of msrp last week.
took her to green lake the day i got it to mess around, tossed back three teeny tiny trout caught on a chartreuse/orange rooster tail.

Friday i picked up a piranhamax 170 and went straight to installing it. had a few ideas,  but decided to go with a rubber fitting gluedd to the hull with the transducer mounted to the side of it, suspending in water. i wasn't to sure it was going to work, and after no response from here *cough cough, decided to do it anyways.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/77986199@N06/7484448538/#sizes/l/in/photostream/

mounted the FF there so i can have the option to install a rod holder behind the cup holder, not to clutter up the surface space so the gator hatch is still accessible.. used a liquid tight wire fitting, but i had to splice the transducer wire to fit it through.. skeptical but it works fie after some soldering and heat shrink.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/77986199@N06/7484444318/#sizes/l/in/photostream/

had to shave the fitting to to fit the contours of the hull. placed it as far back as i could reach, layed out plenty of marine goop and set it.

took it out this morning for crab, and decided to bring a pole along test out trolling. launched from golden gardens and dropped my pod around 8. the FF worked great, depths were correct, picked up grass with and had no problems.

paddled back closer to shore to try re-entry.. hesitated since i was in swimming trunks and a sleeveless tshirt.. but jumped in anyways. it felt great! after a few different attempts, i was comfortable.

 headed north towards carkeek park and tried to work the 50-70 depths. setup was '5 squid, green&white glow, double hook with a chartreuse spinner and a 5.5oz banana weight. worked for an hour went back and pulled the pod. 5 dungies over '7 and three'6+ red rock.. kept two and two with no barnacles and went back to trolling. now working the 70-90' depths, twenty minutes in the line starts peeling! i scoot forward and try pulling my (brand new, never used) rod out of the flush holder. FAIL FAIL FAIL!!!! just when i grabbed it a wave took me up, and as i dropped i almost tipped. let go of the rod, not realizing it was fully out of the holder, to balance the boat and i hear a splash. "FUUU****" i took my pfd off in a second and dove my ass in the water before i finished screaming. must have been 15' under when i caught up to it... happy i practiced re-entry, or i would have let the rod go.. no more fish though. decided i had enough for the day and headed back. pulled the pod, kept two more dungies and threw the rest back. frozen gizzards in bacon oil w/ garlic works fabulous. left my pod out there, gonna try again tomorrow before i go to work.





with a makeshift rod leash this time.

Isn't that FF obscured by your right foot?

Isn't that FF obscured by your right foot?

not at all, its about an inch left from the inside of my right foot when seated. keeps out of my way when I scoot forward

Cool, thanks.  I'm still trying to decide where to mount my FF and various other things.  I don't want to mount until I'm sure I'll like where they will be located.

Jumped in Puget Sound, no PFD and virtually naked.  Hope your life insurance is paid up.  Leash your gear.

Wait...let me get this strait, you were fishing in trunks in Puget Sound and dove in to retrieve your lost rod!  You are a MAN my friend, I'm not even sure weather to believe you or not, you are a fisherman afterall , if you had said you pulled a 30lber in after all that I would have definetly written you off as a true fisherman, ie BSer. 

Jumped in Puget Sound, no PFD and virtually naked.  Hope your life insurance is paid up.  Leash your gear.

I had already been in the water a few hours prior, it's not thaaat cold. I surfed most of my life, a lot of it around 5am before school in a spring suit or less.. I'm kinda used to cold.. but it's not recommended for everyone I suppose

I haven't even been out on a large body of water with my kayak yet. But I do know the biggest danger is more than likely stupid people with power boats, as I used to be one when I was 15-19 years old. What if you got hit by a boat, were knocked out, floating in the water freezing unconscious?

Unlikely scenario you say, but I experienced a similar incident in Florida while on my jet ski many years ago. But the water there was nice and warm. A different guy in a PB stooped and pulled me out of the water as I was unconscious. (don't think it was the same guy) I don't have alot of Kayak experience yet, but I do plan for the worst and hope for the best. Most of the craziest things that have happened to me, have been on the water. Just saying, be careful man so we can fish some time together 

I had already been in the water a few hours prior, it's not thaaat cold.

Stay in 20 minutes.

I surfed most of my life, a lot of it around 5am before school in a spring suit or less.. I'm kinda used to cold.. but it's not recommended for everyone I suppose

In WA?

Good story, bad precedent! Diving after a fish on a line 15' down in 50ish degree water with no wetsuit, alone, is way too risky for me, even if I thought I could pull it off. I've got grandkids I want to see grow up.

+1 on leashes!

Didn't he say he froze his gizzard???  Water temp at Neall Point on Vashon 53.6 degrees now.  Brrr! 

Wow, makes me shiver just thinking about it.