WAVEWALK FISHING KAYAKS BLOG » ocean

A W Fishing Kayak As a Symbol Of Hope In Norway

W kayak — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:43:12 +0000

Eric, from Walk on Waves, our distributor of fishing kayaks in Norway and Sweden, sold a W500 about a week ago.
Why would I mention this small news? Because Norway’s latitude is pretty much the same as Alaska’s, and there’s no navigable water to be found there this time of year, unless you want to venture in a part of the Atlantic Ocean known as the North Sea, which isn’t recommended…
Being situated that far North also means that spring starts later in Norway, even in comparison to cold regions such as the Northeast and Northwest, here in the US.
This is to say that Norwegian kayakers and anglers need to be more patient…

So why would a Norwegian paddler or angler buy a W kayak now, in January or early February?
Assuming W kayakers are sensible, and they don’t take a kayak in the ocean and fish in in extremely cold temperatures, the answer would be that it has to do with either some complex rigging projects, and/or simply Hope – That person wants to sit at home, look at their W fishing kayak, and imagine all the great, fun things they’d do with it as soon as the snow stops falling, and the ice on the rivers and lakes melts; The fishing trips, the rigging, maybe camping, or hunting?

Hope, Patience, and Imagination – and the Love of Boating, Paddling, and Fishing.
These are things that are easy to understand and relate to!

Sonora Fishing Kayaks – New Dealer For Wavewalk in Tucson, Arizona

W kayak — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 02:41:27 +0000

John and Susie Castanha, founders of Sonora Fishing Kayaks are Wavewalk’s new dealers in Tucson, Arizona.

John is passionate about offshore fishing, and he’s very excited about the new possibilities offered by W kayaks outfitted with outboard gas engines.

John and Susie Castanha

Maiden Offshore Voyage and Wheels For W500 Fishing Kayak – Ken From Katikati, New Zealand

W kayak — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:02:08 +0000

I went out in the kayak for the first time this morning. The wind appeared to have eased off, so I went out from Beach Road at 8am. High tide was early this morning, so it wasn’t the best time to go, but I didn’t want to wait any longer to try it.
I ended up paddling in the sitting position, and felt quite happy with that, even though the wind got up and I ended up having to paddle into a 500mm chop (20″) and strong head wind..

I shall have to do some fine tuning in how I use it, but the bottom line is that I am thrilled with it, and it will get a lot more use than my [name brand sit-in kayak].

Regards, Ken

Read more on the Wavewalk Kayaks New Zealand blog >>

New Kayak Flotation Down Under, By Dennis Hodgetts, New Zealand

W kayak — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:32:02 +0000

My son is 24 and bullet proof, and he goes fishing in huge seas, up to 3 metre surf [about 10 ft... a metre is a meter spelled in non-U.S. English, or about 1.1 yard]. He has repeated this several times.
His biggest issue is that if he took a rogue wave over top when several hundred metres off shore, his W500 could take water in, if he doesn’t use a cockpit cover.
So I decided to experiment with flotation. The photo shows what we came up with.

I have 6 inch floats. Each has a 2kg [about 4.5 lbs] of buoyancy. I have these in a light alloy tube, so they don’t sag.
We use these in a set of 2. They are detachable so can be replaced with the standard flotation modules for calm sea.
I made up 2 sets – one with six buoys on each tube and one with 12 giving 24ks and 48kgs of buoyancy respectively [roughly 52 lbs and 105 lbs].
We have tried the set with 6 buoys each and the W500 floats about 3 inches higher when full of water.
We have yet to try the 12 buoy set.
Dennis,
Wavewalk New Zealand

System For Quick Kayak Position Adjustments For Fishing Fast Species, By Brandon Cutter

W kayak — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 19:19:21 +0000

Brandon fishes offshore and in the estuaries of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The unique solution he developed was inspired by oar systems first here first by Wayne Taylor, and then by Dave Baumbaugh.
Says Brandon:

-I was trying to figure out a way to control the boat while in fishing mode: When targeting false albacore or bonita, speed to the fish and a quick cast are pivotal. These fish are extremely fast swimmers and pop up just for a few seconds, so I needed to be able to spin my W kayak and cast in an instant.

I drilled (29/64″ drill bit) 4 holes on the gunwale (port fore, port aft, starboard fore and starboard aft). Then dropped (2) smaller open oarlocks into the holes so they fit snug. I will not bolt them down in order to be able to move them on the water from paddling position (whether with both oars or just one) to storage position for the oar/paddle.

I plan on starting with the oarlocks in the fore position. This allows for me to paddle normally to propel the W kayak. I can rest the paddle perpendicularly at any time and cast over it. Once hooked into a fish, I can quickly move the starboard fore oarlock to the port side aft position and store the paddle inline.

If fish are breaking sporadically (like false albacore and bonita usually do), I plan on splitting the kayak paddle and using half as on oar on the port fore position. I should be able to spin the boat to the proper angle with the left hand and cast with the right.

I doubt I will be able to test it until the spring, but can’t wait.

Brandon