Wavewalk Kayaks

-”Here you go, a true inshore saltwater trophy 36 inches, 37 with a pinched tail, weight at 17 to 18lbs.

This redfish was caught on a topwater plug (Chug Bug) in about 2 feet of water as it cruised the edge of a mangrove island.
The rod of course an Emmrod which I suggested they call a “Topwater Special”. This was the first fish on this new model.

Later this week I’ll be trying the feat again only in the W kayak instead of on board a flats skiff.  -Jeff”

Went to Rainbow Reservoir in Windsor Connecticut, to fish with a friend on his boat.
Mike (known as Daddy Pickle) wanted some small mouth Bass.

I figured I cast a few from shore while waiting.
I must have cast 20 times, and on the last cast with the lure just rising out of the water by shore, a Huge Pike rushed and slashed at the dinger.
I almost $#!^ my pants, totally caught me off guard. With this approaching storm, my hopes weren’t too high.
We had slight winds to friggin pain in the >@$& winds, cloudy, water temps were a steady 50.5 degrees
everywhere.

Today, the back of the boat was a good place to be.

Pickle did start us off with the first smallie, but he said it wasn’t picture worthy, I think that smallies buddies heard him, so they wouldn’t play nice with him after that.

My arm and Hands are Killing Me!!
I couldn’t even tell you how many cast Pickle and I made today.
But if the bait wasn’t moving, you weren’t getting Nothing!

Cranking was the key, no pauses, most fish came out of 14′ to 30′,
deep down bumping bottom FUN!
I haven’t used crank baits in a long time, but Pickle has helped
rekindle my first Love…………….Cranking.
He may be sorry he did!

Another thing, when the winds did pick up, the bite stopped,
then when there was a lull in the winds, one of us would hook up!

LIFE IS GOOD!!!!

Rox

Hi,
Here’s a trip I did on Oct 19th fishing from Shore at Rainbow Reservoir, in Windsor Ct.
As you know they drained this place to repair the Dam, and since Oct 5th, it’s been refilling.

Walked down to one of my favorite fall spots, can’t wait to get my W500 back in here.
Armed with a hair jig with a small craw attached on my 6′6″ Custom St Croix smallie ultra lite rod with 8lb test vanish. And my 6′6″ St Croix rigged with 10# fireline with 10# vanish leader with a c-rigged worm.

What a beautiful day it turned into.
I got to the waters edge at 10:30am left at 3pm.
Windy, sunny no idea what the water temps were.

Fished deep water to shore, as far as my little arms could cast out to.
As I was crawling the hair/craw jig along the bottom, I got a solid Thump, set the hook, and the battle was on.
Pulling drag at will, the beast headed out to deeper water, got her turned and battle her back to me.
She came up to show me her big old head, and in that moment I was wondering, how the heck I would land her, 8#test and a bunch of rocks, so I figured I was gonna get wet.
This is one big Bass, get her closer to shore, then in an instant, she’s gone. She straightened the Hook!!!! Holy S#*****+!! Guess I should have fought her a little longer. :banghead:

Landed a good 2# smallie bumping bottom with a new hair jig and craw, she gave me a good strong fight, then another as the rig hit the water. And the very next cast…….Bam another smallie. :cha:
Then nothing, must have been a school moving around.

Moved down the bank some more and Grabbed the c-rigged worm and started working it from deep water to shore.
Slowly dragging it, and making long pauses, I worked down the shore line about a football fields length.
I would cast and work it back to me, take 10 sets from the spot I was started, repeating it over and over, then BAM, Big Fish, shaking her head Like crazy, 20′ from shore, Up she Comes with a Big Somersault and dives, My Drag is screaming, gain some ground and Off she ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ again, I get her turned and I all STOPS????????????????? Shes snagged on a stump or something, with my line taught, I can feel her shaking her head!!!!!!!!
I start running to the right with my rod tip Held High, hoping to free the Beast, she still on I feel her pulling then Bink!!! Off she comes on what ever she was hung up on, Lord Have mercy, I got to land her PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now the battle is won, she’s tired, I’m reeling her in with no fight left. Get my thumb in her mouth and She’s Mine!!! :cha: Frigging fish will be the death of me yet, my heart is pounding, my hands are shaking, snap a couple of pictures, get her back in the water holding her tail, I don’t care that I’m wet, I’m making sure she swims away strong, she feels like shes ready, I release her tail, she rolls slightly looking at me with the Big old Bug eye then in an instant she was gone. Caught a bunch more, all put up great fights, digging down deep. Man I love fall Fishing!!!
LIFE IS GOOD!!!!!!!!!

Rox

Here’s a short fishing report from John, a W kayak fisherman from Wisconsin, who just finished a great camo paint job on his W300 kayak (see previous post)-

-”Some of my co-workers made me go out on a bigger boat today. We headed down to Waukegan Illinois on lake Michigan. We were after big perch. We caught close to seventy fish. The catch included some nice sized fish including some 14 inchers. We hope to have a fish fry tomorrow night at the firehouse. I hope to get out early next week in the W kayak. — John”

If you’re planning to be kayak fishing in 2050 you should be prepared to go after different fish species, or head further North if you want to keep catching your favorite fish of today.

A new study found that global warming may affect the distribution of fish populations worldwide, with fish from warmer waters spreading to today’s cooler regions that are getting warmer.

According to this model, this could be true both for ocean kayak fishing and inland kayak fishing.

Read more about it in this CNN article.

Wavewalk now offers a new stake-out pole system for fishing kayaks:

Material: Anodized aluminum.

Dimensions: 60″ long, 3/4″ diameter.

Features:

1. Sealed, pointed end.
2. Comfortable, large size, Y-shaped handle.
3. Sliding aluminum collar with fixed stop, line clip and foam float (bright orange).
4. 8′ long, 1/4″ thick, braided, buoyant polypropylene line (yellow).

Price: $65.

Anyway on to the largest fish today. I had gotten out to cool off with a little wading when the big jack hit a minnow style plug. It was like trying to hold back a train. That fish hit with a quick flash and peeled off line against the drag. Thank heavens I was using a stiff bait cast rig with 16lb line. I was barely able to keep the fish from running right around the oyster beds.

Size wise it pulled lots harder than it looked but it’s still a nice sized jack for the inshore waters. The last shot is how a strong fish can actually bend a very strong saltwater treble hook almost open. A few more minutes on the line and this fish would have straighted the hooks and pulled loose.

Wayne T’s W fishing kayak is an interesting project from a number of aspects:

He first outfitted it with a pair of large size outriggers because he wanted to enjoy more stability at his advanced age (68). When Wayne is in his boat the outriggers barely touch the water and generate just little extra drag.

Wayne also outfitted his kayak with a pair or oars, with the oarlocks attached directly to the cockpit rim. He explains that the reason he did it is because it gives him better control over the boat than a paddle does.

“This is the best one man fishing boat I’ve ever used and I have tried them all…” He says, and judging by his catch he has evidence to back his words:

When he paddles it he uses a canoe paddle made from his Mohawk paddling kit.

It looks like Wayne used a pair of oars and oarlocks he took from a small dinghy, and all he had to do was to reinforce the kayak’s cockpit rim before attaching them to his boat.

Wayne also chose the simple and easy way to build his outriggers, and you can read more about what he did in this boat review.

Altogether, Wayne’s boat shows that with some planning and no big effort, kayak fishermen can literally transform their W fishing kayaks into a very different type of boat while preserving most of the advantages the original design offers.

As always, Jeff’s kayak fisherman’s mind keeps finding improvements and new ways to rig his W kayak.

Here is Jeff’s latest:

-”I was cleaning up my office this morning and came across this simple plastic TV tray. Hmmm I wondered and headed out back to the W. Not bad this might be something. Without the tall tackle pack in it the thing actually locks in place nicely under the rim providing a broader flat work surface, not to mention handy side pockets.”

As simple and elegant as ever…

Before…
After…

BTW, that kayak is Jeff’s 2008 model.

And in the same spirit, it’s fun to remember a somehow similar idea conceived a couple of years ago by John Earle, a photographer who worked on the cover of the inaugural issue of the MIT Sloan Magazine:

A prospecting customer recently asked me if we offer oarlocks for the W.

We offer neither oarlocks nor oars because there’s very little demand for rowing solutions, as most people nowadays prefer paddling.

Rowing used to be a popular recreational and sporting activity in the 19th century, and many fishermen still use a wide variety of small rowing boats and watercrafts for fishing. Practically speaking, paddling has too many advantages over rowing for anyone to consider switching from paddling back to rowing for applications such as touring or fishing, especially in the ocean or fast rivers.

However, rowing offers a type of physical exercise that paddling doesn’t, and it shouldn’t be completely ruled out as an option, especially on flat water.

It’s possible to install oarlocks in the W kayak and turn it into a nice rowing boat: Not as fast as one of those long rowing shells, of course, but very stable and comfortable. You’ll be able to launch, row and beach it where rowing shells are not an option, and you’ll be able to row standing as well - I tried it and it’s fun!

The W is a great boat for kayaking and kayak fishing, but it’s also easy to paddle with single-blade (canoe) paddles - both in solo and tandem modes.

The 9 ft long, two-pieces, dual blade Mohawk paddle we offer can be turned into two canoe paddles using the T-grip kit: Each of the two canoe paddles is good for canoeing in the lower positions (Riding, Sitting and Kneeling) and long enough for paddling standing up, as shown in this picture:

Paddling with a canoe paddle is fun, and it can be easier than kayaking when there are two paddlers in the cockpit.

The W tracks better than canoes, and it is stabler than canoes its size, which makes it easy to use in canoeing applications - even for small children:

When it comes to fishing, a short, single blade paddle offers the advantage that you can simply drop it in the cockpit as soon as you need to grab a fishing rod that’s showing signs of action… -You don’t even have to find paddle holders.

Another advantage that a canoe paddle offers is when you need to paddle through areas with many low hanging branches that could make handling a kayak paddle more difficult.

Once you get used to your W Kayak you’ll find that you’re likely to be out paddling it and fishing from it on windy days, when other kayakers and kayak fishermen prefer to stay at home or simply can’t use they kayaks because of ‘windage’ problems.

Thanks to its exceptional, ‘catamaran’ tracking capabilities the W kayak has less windage issues than traditional SIK and SOT kayaks, including sea kayaks. In addition, your ability to move fore and aft along the saddle as well as lean sideways give you effective means to counter affect the wind.

• Side Wind

You’ll be able to track well while a strong side wind is blowing once you’ve mastered the following things:
1. Position yourself in the middle of the cockpit (not in the back for this matter). In case of exceptionally strong side wind you can even position yourself a notch forward and by that let the stern ‘trail’ behind the bow. Generally speaking, you will find that your location along the saddle can help you in more than one way.
2. Lean into the wind, similarly to leaning into the turn - You can use the difference in the hulls’ height to act as a powerful ‘rudder’ that would help your W kayak track.
3. Apply the appropriate paddle stroke on each side of the kayak, that is use a weaker and regular style stroke on the side from which the wind is blowing, and a stronger, longer stroke on the lee side. By doing so you will compensate for the wind’s tendency to deviate your boat from its intended course.

• Head Wind

Interestingly, much of the headwind passes between the W hulls, and eddies have a lesser effect on it than they have on monohull kayaks that have broader hulls.

You can paddle against a strong head wind in the Riding position (recommended) or one of the Kneeling positions.
The more you lean forward the more power you’ll be able to apply in your paddling.
The paddle itself might become a mini ’sail’ when a strong wind is blowing, therefore it is advised to keep the paddle at a low angle above the boat, regardless of the direction from which the wind is blowing.

Yesterday I had a long conversation with a man who has built and designed fifteen small boats in recent years, including kayaks. He’s an avid fisherman too, and we naturally started talking about kayak fishing.
When the conversation got into details it became clear that although kayak fishing has grown tremendously in recent years the number of people who fish from kayaks is still very small in comparison to the number of people who fish from motorboats.

We easily agreed that sit-in kayaks, and recently SOT kayaks don’t provide a comfortable enough platform for fishing, and outriggers were an invitation for your fishing lines to get caught in them.

He found a funny way to summarize the situation, saying: -”Kayak fishing is a great idea with the wrong boat.”

Needless to say that we found it easy to agree that the W is the kind of boat that can take kayak fishing to the next level.

Yoav

Brandon, a W Kayak fisherman from Cape Cod landed this 37 inch, 30 lb striper off a beach in Chatham, MA, casting only 30 feet from shore.

-”I wish it was from my Wavewalk” he says

More on Brandon and his W Kayak: Brandon’s F2 -including pictures of fish he caught from it

When you hear ‘canoe’ you usually think of a big paddling and fishing boat for two or more adults, but it’s not necessarily true. Canoes come in all sizes, including very small ones for whitewater.

You may ask yourself what’s the point in canoing if double blade paddles are easier to use, but that’s a matter of perception, and for may people canoe paddles are more fun. Using canoe paddles presents an advantage in small rivers with dense vegetation, where a longer paddle could get caught in branches. It’s also easier to paddle the W in tandem using canoe paddles than it is with kayak paddles.

We recently added a preparation for a cockpit cover, which offers the passenger/s good protection prom spray and bad weather.

The W makes a perfect small canoe: It tracks well and isn’t prone to windage problems like regular canoes can be. It is also stabler and more comfortable than most canoes are. And last but not least, it’s also easy to cartop, which can’t be said about big canoes.

Photo courtesy of Pemi Baker River Adventures, NH

You can go paddling in tandem in your W Kayak, and by tandem we mean two adults, providing none of you is a big person (see Wavewalk website for details). However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you can go fishing in tandem, and again, by tandem we mean two adults onboard.
Although it may be possible we would hesitate to recommend it for the following reasons:

First, paddling requires less personal workspace than fishing does, especially if one paddler or both use single blade (canoe) paddles, which are shorter than double blade ones.

Second, paddling is a regular and repetitive action with little or no surprises. Even if you paddle in moving water (E.G. river, surf) you can assign strict roles to each of the paddlers, and by doing so increase your efficiency and minimize unpleasant surprises.
In comparison, kayak fishing can turn chaotic instantly if one of the crew needs to fight a big or strong fish. It’s important to remember that when two persons are onboard the W Kayak is less stable than when only one person is.

Third, fishing involves the use of hooks and other sharp objects. If both fishermen are experienced the risk is minimal, but if they are novices there is a risk that someone might be accidentally injured.

Fourth, fishing sometime requires a lot of additional gear, and with a second adult fisherman onboard the storage space in the W Kayak becomes considerably smaller.

As for fishing in a tandem composed of one adult and one child, it is a very rewarding experience that many W Kayak owners enjoy on a regular basis.

Whether you’re on a paddling or fishing trip in shallow water, you don’t want to have to turn back, or worse - get stuck somewhere because of underwater obstacles. Such obstacles may be rocks, tree roots, fallen branches and fallen trees that prevent you from reaching your destination, be it an interesting place to tour or a promising spot to fish in.

If you have to turn back the W solution is either to paddle backwards, or turn the boat, or turn yourself inside the cockpit and face the direction from which you came from: The W kayak is fully symmetrical front and back and it feels the same paddling forward and backward.

Another strategy you can try is poling with your paddle (preferably the Wavewalk PSP), or going over the submerged obstacle - whether it’s top part is underwater or even a few inches above water:
You position yourself at the back of the cockpit, thus raising your W kayak’s bow. Then you paddle forward full speed and try to get the boat to go as forward as possible over the barrier. If you succeeded in getting the middle of the boat pas the obstacle you’re almost there, and you’ll have to move swiftly to the front part of the cockpit and thus make your W kayak tilt forward and go over the obstacle.
It may not be as easy as it sounds, but practice makes perfect, and in this case it’s fun too.
It’s also great to know that you’ve gone where no other canoe or kayak could go…
This video shows how it’s done:

I recently visited a popular online kayak fishing forum serving kayak fishermen in a Southern state. One of the discussions in it was about the negative side of kayak fishing as the participants see them.
Most of the participants fish from SOTs and some from sit-in kayaks, but none of them fishes from a W Kayak.

These are the problematic points that the participants seemed to agree upon:

1. You really can’t do it [kayak fishing] right without getting wet and muddy. Either water will slosh into your cockpit or your scuppers will fill up. You’ll need to get about knee deep to launch comfortably, so you’ll probably encounter mud, grass, sand, or all of them (ergonomic problem)

2. You’ll have to get used to loading and unloading your boat and equipment. You’ll take 15 minutes to unload and you’ll take 15 minutes to load everything back into/onto your vehicle/trailer (storage problem).

3. You can’t take your kid fishing with you.

4. Paddling into the wind is difficult (’windage’ problems).

5. It’s very hard to relief oneself (ergonomic problem).

6. No place to keep your catch when you paddle back in. You need to tie your stringer to the side and drag it, which can be difficult and attract predators, or use the fish-in-the-lap approach (storage problems).

7. Fishing in high winds makes it difficult to cast.

8. You can’t really fish standing. If you’re accustomed to casting in a standing position (power boat, shore or pier) you feel awkward casting from a low, seated position (ergonomic and biomechanical problems).

9. Since there’s little room on deck everything is close to you and you may unintentionally “snag” nearby items with your hook (ergonomic problem).

10. Not being able to stand up and stretch after being seated for a long time - discomfort in your legs (ergonomic problem)

11. Lower back and posterior pains (ergonomic problem).

12. It can get very cold onboard (ergonomic problem)

Compare this to the W Fishing Kayak, that:

1. Offers dry launching and beaching even in difficult spots, and its cockpit protects you against spray.

2. Is a ‘Toss and Go’ boat - you can leave your gear and tackle inside when transporting it.

3. Offers enough room onboard for a second passenger

4. Enables you to paddle in strong wind

5. Offers to stand up anytime and for any purpose…

6. Offers sufficient dry and protected storage space onboard for every possible need.

7. Offers powerful casting positions such as riding and standing

8. Enables fishing standing in confidence even in the presence of wind and eddies.

9. Features a full size, spacious and deep cockpit.

10. Offers to switch between various positions and stand up for fishing anytime.

11. Enables your legs to support your torso and back in a natural posture.

12. Puts you higher on the water and protects you from wind and spray.



While the advantages of fishing standing are pretty obvious to most fishermen many who haven’t tried the W Riding (mounted) position may wonder what’s so special about it, and why it is considered so advantageous when compared to the traditional L kayaking position or to fishing seated in a canoe.

The answer is that it has to do with how much support you have for your casting and reeling-in efforts, as well as when you’re fighting a strong fish:
The result of every physical effort you make, whether it’s jumping, running, pulling or throwing something depends on the kind of support your body gets from the ground you stand on. Soft, slippery or shaky ground doesn’t offer you good enough resistance.
Similarly, fishing from a big boat enables better physical performance than fishing from a small, unstable one: You can cast to longer distances and fight bigger fish more easily.
Riding the saddle of a W kayak doesn’t offer you as much stability, support and confidence as the deck of a big bass boat, but it certainly gives your legs more support than a sit-in or SOT kayak does, and through your legs you get more support and power for your arms and upper body.
Imagine riding a pony, which is similar to riding a W kayak saddle: The horse rider can gallop and jump hurdles, throw a spear or shoot arrows like ancient warriors used to do, or a lasso like modern days cowboys still do, and so on. -Now try to imagine all this being done when the rider sits on the horse’s saddle in the traditional L kayaking position… It’s practically impossible because the rider lacks stability and sufficient support from his legs.
Like any analogy this one is not perfect but it’s close to the truth: The combination of having two hulls on the W kayak’s sides and riding the saddle that you mount in a posture that’s advantageous from a biomechanical standpoint changes everything when you fish.

As Jeff McGovern puts it: -”I would venture to say the W offers improved casting with any gear. From the riding position, I get more power with my casting and spinning because I can put my whole body into the cast and use my legs. The solid feel of the boat gives you a great sense of security. ” (Read More)

This is a particularly enjoyable activity.
Kids feel both confident and excited in the W kayak, and the boat’s cockpit offers enough space for you and a child to paddle in and fish from comfortably.

The best is to ride the saddle in the back and let the kid ride or stand up in the front. This way he or she can feel independent while turning back to you to talk or in case they need your assistance, which they often do - at least in the beginning.

Obviously, you need to be careful, especially when the children cast their lines since you might accidentally get injured by a fishing hook flying near your head.
For this reason it’s important to keep a watchful eye on the young, enthusiastic fishermen at any time.

Older kids who are experienced enough with handling fishing tackle can go W kayak fishing in their own boat, providing there’s an adult nearby who can supervise them.

Yoav