well that sucks.

As BugBoy said thanks to Next Adventure for their part in the kayak fishing and outdoor communities. Hoping maybe West Coast Sailing will expand their offerings now.

This speaks volumes about retail in Portland - it's a tough place for any business.

NA will be missed.

I think we've got to consider just how stagnant our west coast fish yakking retail has become in general. Yeah plenty people buy rec yaks and fish from them but the high high prices that are now prevalent in the industry from the likes of old towne, hobie, et al are pushing people away. So our retailers are seriously suffering.

Add into this that the days of truly oceanic capable human powered fishing craft are behind us. Nobody wants a boat bigger than 13 feet because they're "heavier" or " too hard to manage" . Truth is, the modern " fishing kayak", while shorter, wider, and " more modern in convenience",  is now 25 to 50 lbs heavier than, say, the old Ocean Kayak T 15 or Wilderness Systems Tarpons In some cases, that's more like 60-70 lbs more..

But, nobody is buying. Or, if they are, it's the cheapest, most minimalist thing they can find from Temu or Ali Babba.


In the 17 years I've been doing this, (some of you truly old hands are pushing, what, 25 years?) we've watched our retail capacity on the west coast shrink to almost nothing. Retirements, buy outs, consolidations, with only minimal backfill by people willing to take the chance, have pretty much devastated the supporting infrastructure of the sport out here.

Honest I don't hold anything against the owners of NA. They've done so much for the community in general over the years, far more than a few others. Good luck to all of them.