Fishing in kayak brings new dimension to sport

By C. DOUGLAS NIELSEN SPECIAL TO THE LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

8 years ago

Outdoorsman Rick Welter enjoys kayak fishing at Lake Mead. He holds a stringer of nice catfish and striped bass from a recent outing. (Courtesy Rick Welter)

With today’s short truck beds, a truck extender such as this one by Darby Industries can make hauling a kayak easier. (Courtesy Doug Nielsen)

The Extend-A-Truck carrier by Darby Industries inserts into the hitch receiver on a pick up and can be used in the horizontal position or vertical for overhead hauling. (Courtesy Doug Nielsen)

Reader Rick Welter enjoys kayak fishing at Lake Mead. Here he holds a stringer of nice catfish and striped bass. (Courtesy Rick Welter)

Rick Welter caught this mess of two- to five-pound stripers while fishing from his kayak at Lake Mead in early April. The fish hit frozen anchovies. (Courtesy Rick Welter)

Kayak anglers can move stealthily on Lake Mead’s clear waters and create opportunity for plump smallmouth bass. Bronzebacks are thriving in the reservoirs rocky underwater landscape. (Courtesy Rick Welter)

The author’s Predator 13 fishing kayak is prepared for its maiden voyage at Lake Mead. Kayak fishing has exploded in the southeastern U.S. and along the coasts. Some anglers believe the sport is poised for growth in the Southwest. (Courtesy Doug Nielsen)

The problem with waiting for that new piece of outdoor equipment is just that — the waiting. And the online tracking services offered by the big transportation companies only serve to make the waiting worse.

Grandma always said watched cookies never bake. I suppose the same is true for tracked deliveries of outdoor gear. No matter how frequently you check, the delivery status never seems to change.

Such was the case about a month ago when I eagerly awaited my new fishing kayak. I became more eager every day despite already having a tentative delivery window arranged with the trucking company.

Then came the day when I checked the tracking website and found the message “out for delivery.” It just so happened it was on the scheduled day. Go figure.

I became interested in kayak fishing a few years ago after learning a friend frequently used his kayak in pursuit of striped bass at Lake Mead and Lake Mohave. Although paddle craft are limited compared to a large motor-driven vessel, the simple and quiet approach intrigued me.

So I began researching kayak fishing and shopping for a kayak built for a guy my size. Then one day I found it — the Predator 13 by Old Town, the company long known for its canoes.

The problem with getting new outdoor equipment is it comes with an obligation to accessorize it. So after the new Predator arrived, I began to add necessities such as a life jacket, paddle, rod holders, anchor and anchor trolley, and the all-important angler crate for carrying items essential to a successful day of fishing.

With those items in place, I made plans to test the kayak last weekend, but the high winds that buffeted Southern Nevada kept me off the water. So in desperation, I slipped out to Lake Mead after work Monday.

That didn’t give me much time on the water, but it was worth the trip.

The kayak slipped quietly across the smooth water despite my less-than-proficient paddling. I trolled a soft plastic bait for a few minutes without success, but at that point, it didn’t matter. It was just good to be on the water and have the maiden voyage over.

I loved this kayak’s stability. Usually, I feel like a kayak is trying to slip out from under me, but not so with this one. And its adjustable seat is quite comfortable. While I have much to learn about kayak fishing, I expect to have some fun adventures.

So why would anyone want to fish from a kayak?

“Kayak fishing has several advantages over fishing from a boat,” wrote reader Rick Welter, who touted a kayak’s economic advantages over a boat. “A kayak can be purchased at a reasonable cost, and you’re not paying for gas and the mechanical upkeep of a boat. They are much easier to store and haul around as well.”

Numerous options are available for transporting paddle craft and are priced anywhere from reasonable to you’re kidding me.

For now, I selected a truck extender that plugs into the hitch receiver and essentially lengthens the truck bed’s ability to support the kayak. It does the job at a fraction of the cost of other rack systems.

Welter, who also uses his kayak for duck hunting, has advice for anyone using the equipment.

“You have to know your limits when fishing from a kayak,” he said. “I won’t take my yak out on very windy days, and we know the wind can pick up suddenly and out of nowhere on Mead and Mohave. I prefer to stick close to the shoreline when I’m on the water.”

Welter uses frozen anchovies for striped bass and trolls crankbaits or swim baits for largemouth and smallmouth bass. On a recent outing at Lake Mead, he caught a nice stringer of 2- to 5-pound stripers while fishing for suspended fish with anchovies.

The largest fish Welter has caught from his kayak is a 10-pound catfish from Lake Mead.

“Over the years I’ve caught a ton of fish from my kayaks,” he said.

Freelance writer Doug Nielsen is a conservation educator for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. His “In the Outdoors” column, published Thursday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NDOW. Any opinions he states in his column are his own. He can be reached at intheoutdoorslv@gmail.com.