Beginning kayak fisherman are warned about the potential damage that shellfish can do to their fishing kayaks. This is especially true with oysters, who grow in shallow water in large communities called ‘oyster beds’.
This movie that Jeff McGovern shot right in the midst of a vast field of oyster beds examines this issue from a close distance:
And since you can’t mention oyster beds without talking about scratches, this blog post might be useful to read.
I’d say that not only beginners should beware of oysters and other shellfish, everyone should!
Blue
The question is how do you avoid going over those things with your kayak, if they are under water?
It’s always good to see a fresh area at low tide. That way you can get some idea of where to paddle. If you are exploring and new to the area be careful. The added height of the W helps a great deal, of course you can also stand for a better look and even paddle that way. I take it slow and even with good precautions sometimes you hit. When you do it sounds awful like you are tearing the whole bottom off the boat. Of course it just causes scratches but it does make you aware you hit something. Oyster beds are very dangerous if you fall on them. Also you never walk on them since they will cut right through the bottom and sides of all but the heaviest footwear. The waters where I fish are really clear now but even when they muddy up some the beds show as darker water. You’ll also see the way the water moves over them. Birds will look like they are standing on the water and it’s really a bed right at the surface. You learn to paddle and look not just dash off across the water. In areas like where the video was taken even with my long term association I still hit sometimes.
Being able to stand in your kayak and paddle is a necessity, and not just because it’s good for your back.
Moshiko