What rod length and action are most people using in their kayaks for the baits they are using?
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What rod length and action are most people using in their kayaks for the baits they are using?
7' medium action small zigs
It all depends on what style of fishing you are doing,just remember,long rods are a bit more bothersome to maneuver from a kayak.I personally carry 4 rods on most trips,two are 4’6” light action ,one 7’ medium light,and one 10’ medium light.With these 4 rods I can pretty much deal with any structure and technique for the species I’m after.
For me, I like a shorter rod for the same reason yaker stated, maneuverability. 5'6" LA tends to be my sweet spot. I also have a 5' UL that always goes. Then my medium is 5'8" or 5'10".
I wouldn’t go above 7’. The longer rods can be a pain if you need to run line again from break off or reach rod tip. Also tend to high stick them more in kayak. 5-6’ seems to be the majority of my rods. Favorite being UL in the kayak, between the light rod and moving kayak every fish seems more enjoyable.
Nothing over 7' for me. For crappie rods I use 6' light action spinning, and a 5'6" dock shooter. I use 7' ML finesse spinner and a 7' ML baitcaster for green fish.
I like them long enough to clear the bow. Anything longer than 9' becomes hard for me to restring, if I have a break off. Storage can be an issue with longer rods. Spinning rod butts are more bothersome, while seated they bump my pfd. I've cut a few of the butts off, and have had custom rods built in order to have shorter butt. I guess my average is around 7'
Most of my rods are 5' 6" plus two dock shooters. I only have two over that a 10' and a 12' These are mostly used from a pier or when bank fishing.
Depends on the style of fishing.
Everything from a 4ft spinning rod to a 16 ft jig pole for spawning fish that need a long reach over cover
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5'6 if I'm fishing tight covers..bushes, trees
7' or 8'6 if fishing open water or outside edge of structures
4'6 UL if I want to have more fun
I like a longer rod to be able to get a fish turned and headed up out of brush, and also for general control of the fight. 7 foot has always been a good size for me.
I usually carry 2 rods in the yak....a 7' St. Croix panfish and a BassPro 10' MicroLite, med light.
By far, the most used rod, is the 10'. Yes, it can be a pain. Line will get wrapped around the rod tip sometimes, but it's a 2 pc rod so I just break 'er down and untangle it. The 7' rod is one piece.
Ten ft lets me cast a LONG way, bring fish around the front of boat, and I miss very few hook sets compared to the 7 footer.
It's really according to how you want to fish. I have a set of 6-12', 6-8' rods for spider rigging and use 2-10', 2-8', 2-6' for longlining. 10' rod for jigging tree tops/brush piles. All my casting rods are under 6' and dock shooting rods are 5'-6'' and under. I even have a set of 6-3' rods for setting under low bridges where others can't get to and use these for tight lining. In the winter months these short rods are awesome to fish where I could not fish with longer rods. I have found that kayak fishing doesn't stop me from using any setup I used in my big boat. It is all in the setups you use for different styles and being able to build what I want does make it easier for me.
6'8" is my do it all multi-species rod, spinning rod is not an issue for me. I do sometimes get a little squeezed on a river with overhanging branches going backwards trying to drop my Smallmouth bait in the pocket with my 7 '3" baitcaster though.
It’s nice getting these opinions and ideas on how to best use your kayak. I was thinking in terms of small/medium stream fishing where the shorter length rods are really necessary most times. Bigger water gives you some more options.
Bob
I vertical fish jigs by simply placing my rod(s) in the holder(s) and watching the rod tips for thumps. This frees my hands to slowly paddle around/over structure. From my experience, the movement imparted on the rods by the kayak's movements (often the less the better) is plenty action to produce strikes. That said, the longer the rod is, the more amplified these movements are. I've found that any rod over 9' moves around too much whenever dealing with wind or boat waves. Coincidentally, a 9' rod is also the longest I can fully set hook with under my favorite bridge at my local lake. If I had to choose one length though it would be 7 foot. This seems to be the sweet spot for my style, and is the max length I care to re-tie, clear line twists from the tip, and easily bring the big slabs in close to lip. All of this said, if I'm going to be casting or shooting for crappie, I'll use my 5'6 setup for ease of maneuvering.
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i prefer anything 6 and above but you really have to watch how you stow your rods. especially if u fishing under trees or paddling under trees to get to the promised lands ;)
I use 6 , 12 foot rods on my kayak. It gets real busy at times .
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6 and a half to 7 feet for casting. The 7 footer is also good for fishing vertically with a double jig rig if I have room. Also have a short 4'6 ugly stick to vertical jig next to the kayak if the fish are really biting. Can get precise lineup with the depthfinder and fun bringing them up on 4 lb test.
I'm using 6 , 12 foot rods off my kayak ..
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Hey shad, you got a picture of your setup?Quote:
Originally Posted by Arkansasshad
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