It doesn't take much ...

So here I was returning from a tuna fishing trip offshore and I saw this kayaker in Monterey Bay, and he was FISHING!  My first thought was "cool, I'm going to do that".

I already had a double kayak and all the fishing gear.  I talked my buddy Tom into it.  I had an old shorty wetsuit and paddle jacket.  Tom just put on shorts and a goretex jacket.  I dug up an old milkcrate from my garage and used hose clamps to hold down PVC pipes as rod holders.  That was it!  Our first time out we paddled to the Mile Buoy out of Santa Cruz and I landed a 12# California Halibut.  That was the beginning.  Now I have a better wetsuit, nicer seats, a fish finder, GPS, VHF, real rod holders, and the list goes on.  Perhaps it's even too long.

So ... how did you gear up for your first time kayak fishing?

-Allen

I got my boat near the end of the summer and had little time or water to play.
Would not go out on the ocean without someone else who has been.
Spent a lot of time last winter rigging, way more rigging than needed.
First few times were in the river for experiance behind the paddle, all we took was t-shirts and shorts with a steak to cook for lunch when we stopped.
First time on the ocean I took some of my rigging "stuff", had a great time but after about 2 hours of bobbing like a cork, I had to come in. And of course I rolled the boat in the surf, all fun, no loss of gear. anything more than a pole and tackle out there is too much, the next time only a few items were taken and I managed to stay aboard the yak on the way in.
 Just like FishinT says, never had a bad trip in the yak!!! 

My fishing buddy had this little row boat with an outboard and a couple of small holes.  He showed me a web site called baytubers.com and it looked like fun.  He talked about buying one for himself and selling the row boat.  He said he had a friend that was selling what is now my boat and it became a matter of who could get permission from thier respective wife first.  Like I said, it is now my boat.  I bought the boat in March.  My buddy and I took the boat out the next weekend.  It was a great trip with lots of sand, calico, and kelp bass.  It only got better from there.  Relocating has put a crimp on my catching but not on the enjoyment of just getting out on the water.  The closest thing I've had to a bad trip was snagging my anchor on the bottom of the Willamette and having to cut the line.  Eh well, one of life's little lessons.

who's next?