old timer but still a newbie to Kayaks

Hello to all, this is a request to the group.  I am 72, with 2 hips and 2 knees replaced and would like to try the kayak as a fishing vessel.  Not really supply, agile, however you wish to put it, but would love some input from users as to whether I could handle this?  Thinking of the "H" bar for stability.  Thanks in advance for the advice and btw I started fly fishing at age 8, love it the most but have spent my life chasing the finny monster in many forms.  larry

I would say the only one that can answer that question is you, try it out if possible hit one of the demo days at the local shops to see if you can handle the paddling  or peddling but the biggest concern I would think is can you recover after going in the water, it's not a matter of if you go in but when. If you can't get back on the deck easily it limits where you can fish. Your the only one that can decide if your body can take the action of kayak fishing. Just my $0.02

I believe you can do anything you wish, however, carefully consider whether you would be able to reenter your yak if you should capsize in rough or cold water.  If your physical strength and agility are so limited you cannot get out of rough or cold water quickly, I'd suggest considering another fishing platform such as an inflatable pontoon boat which offers greater stability.  I'm 64 and as one old fart to another I know us older guys like to think we can keep up with kids half our age. The truth is we cannot so err on the side of caution.   

You mentioned using an H bar, which as far as I know, is used to steady yourself while standing. I have seen only one person stand in a kayak around here (Langston) and he didn't stay standing for long. The most stable position is sitting as low as possible. I'm not sure an H bar will be of any help while seated.

I have found the most physically demanding part of kayaking to be loading my yak after a long day on the water. Reboarding your yak after being dumped is probably harder, but you can reduce the chances of getting dumped greatly by limiting yourself to going out in only ideal conditions. If you can handle your kayak out of the water, you likely can handle it on the water. The only other question is if you can handle sitting for lengths of time.

Give it a try. Many of us know Upnorthtex, who is older than you, and who gets around real well in his yak. Maybe you should PM him and get his thoughts, if he doesn't chime in here.

Got you beat on age, I'm 74, fairly fit with some hip problems and some knife work on rotator cuffs a couple year ago. Have a sit on top fishing yak and don't have any problems getting where I want to go with the boat.

Like mentioned above is your ability to get back on board from a tip over. What I use is a blow up NRS paddle float, it made reboarding possible 100% of the time.

I have a small pond on my place and last summer when the water was warm I spent some time rolling the yak over and reboarding, did it about 15 times to find what worked best for me and the paddle float was a for sure winner.

As most of my fishing is working the shoreline for bass I'm usually within 50 yds of the shore and shallow water BUT I do go across some lakes in deeper water so the ability to reboard is a must. To me that's the part that's makes kayaking possible.

If I couldn't reboard I wouldn't have a yak.

As for standing up in a kayak at my age, well...I leave that to the young bucks..lol..

Check out the paddle festivals and try everything for free and talk with the experts. There is one happening at Vancouver Lake park this April 25th & 26th (see their website aldercreek.com) Also Next Adventure Summer Splash (nextadventure.net) Sellwood River Front Park, May 30th. This is where I decided to make my purchase and jump on the fishing yak adventure! Heck, I even went to the Northwest Paddling Festival at Lake Sammamish State Park in Issaquah Wa. It is held May 8th this year.

You might check out the Wavewalk kayaks, http://wavewalk.com/ .  I think here are several people on this board who paddle those and while I haven't tried one, the various sitting positions may make it more comfortable.   Someone in The Dalles (Hood River?) area was offering demos and sales a while back, too.

Dan