By Chris Henderson

Trolling in the Wavewalk 700

In pursuit of trout and kokanee (land locked sockeye salmon) I fish by trolling. Trolling is basically putting your lure out a certain distance behind the boat and at the right depth and then moving at the right speed to maximize the effectiveness of your chosen lure. In my case I use a flaher and then an NTO Scent Spinner. This combination needs to be moved at about 1 -1.5mph. That is a constant speed. So you must paddle to fish. The Wavewalk 700 is uniquely designed for accommodate this. First you could motorize it and then it is easy. But I like things a bit more traditional. So I paddle the entire time I fish. Since I am moving about 1 mile per hour you can pretty much figure out how far I travel by how long I am on the water. In my last trip I launched at about 10:30 and then I finished at about 6pm. So I paddled about 7.5 miles. I stop for the occasional rebaiting or catching a fish but those are fairly short stops.
What makes the W700 well suited for this is the long paddle strokes that are possible vs. the multitude of short strokes in shorter kayaks and the distance the kayak glides with one stroke. It allows you to paddle slowly but go the right speed. This makes long days trolling possible. I have to build myself up but by the end of the fishing season I can go all day long.
If you want to stay traditional but want a kayak you can troll in, the W700 does great!

By Terry Wilkison

Hawaii

The weather has been uncooperative for fishing lately so I’ve been working on some projects. Pretty happy with them and its nice that they don’t take long.

I’m off to the mainland for a month but excited to fish when I get back in late April.

I’m not a fan of cutting holes in a boat. I use 3M 5200 Marine Adhesive Sealant and roughen and clean the surfaces. It gives a good watertight bond for about a year, then I just redo it. I try to be mindful of stress points “hard edges” so to speak.

I’m going to glass over the mdf on the transom and braces at some point for extra protection, and I’ve placed a fish bag on order that should fit perfectly. 

By Terry Wilkison

Hawaii

Was able to go fishing today. Left the house at 4 and was out in the water before first light. I made my way from the west side of the island out to a point that I’m very familiar with and a good first fishing run as I’m getting my routine together and used to the new setup. On top of a new boat I’m changing my fishing style from trolling to catching and using live bait. We get large mackerel scad locally called “opelu” which I have never fished for before so it was all new to me.

I installed a Garmin 64cv and boy I’m glad I did. Not only was it great for marking bait I could see the depth of my damishi used to catch them.

I was able to get 4 of them which isn’t bad for my first try (figuring out what colors and hook size). They are large bait, nearly a foot and fight hard while having a fragile mouth…. I bridled up the first one and 5 minutes later I noticed he was running along the surface which I thought odd, all of the sudden the water exploded and I saw the flash of a big ono (similar to king mackerel) my reel started screaming and the drag froze on the run….. ugh!!! That got my heart going. I had 2 more bite offs (using wire) and caught the cuda fly lining a piece of opelu that got sliced in half, there were 3 cuda taking turns with it. Right when he picked it up 3 mahi swam right by, if id just had waited a minute! The water clarity was about 80 feet so I could see straight below the boat for the action.

Also had a humpback come by and check out the S4, he gave me quite a show with a couple large tail slaps before making his way up the coast.

It was a choppy confused sea today. There was a large north and a northwest ground swell of medium period that rolled by like hills, the south wind started driving a 1 to 2 foot chop on top directly opposing that made it snotty. I didn’t win any speed records but cruised along at a leisurely 6 knots and riding it comfortably on the saddle seat. The boat did terrific, and the stability and safety I felt with it were great.
Catching bait, fighting fish, messing with the fishfinder and re tying cut off lines, I never had to worry about stability. Looking forward to next weekend! Getting my go pro mounted this week is a high priority!

More offshore fishing with Terry »

By Terry Wilkison

Hawaii

Got to go out today finally! I headed over to Kaneohe bay to run out to the sandbar a 2 mile trip and brought my beach chair along. The tide was running high so the sand wasn’t dry and I didn’t get to beach and break out my chair for a nap so I enjoyed taking a nice long walk across the bar enjoying watching the smaller fish, turtles and such that frequent the area. The S4 did very well, a lifelong boater I am impressed at both the function and obvious time spent to design a craft of such function at this size. The winds were 25 knots and while it looks calm in the pictures that is only because it was about 8 inches deep and the sandbar is quite large which knocks down the chop. Outside the bay were large breakers and inside for the trip across it was a short period 1 to 2 foot chop, the boat did just fine. I really enjoyed how I could run way up in the shallows with no concern and just how easy the boat made the trip. While the big boats could make it there quicker by the time they carefully anchored at the drop and they had to jump in chest deep I was already in the better spot! I have purchased a Garmin fishfinder and will work on my fishing set up tomorrow. Going to take it fishing on Monday! Hopefully I’ll get some beginners luck!

I’ve attached some pictures of my last 10.5 bullfrog tender.
Rotomolded sponsons. It turned me on to microskiffs before they got trendy. Slightly over powered 🙂 with a 40 hp before port n polish, carb and tuning work. I never GPS’d it because I had to keep one hand on the tiller and the other on the rail! Numbers told me it was somewhere in the 30s, it always overreved, i had a 13 inch prop but it could have spun a 17 or 19 with ease i think. It  was about 10 years old and had to retire it from service as the aluminum hull and rivets finally gave way to crevice corrosion and she would take on water. The weight and torque of the 40 hp Johnson probably didn’t help!

• 

• 

• 

• 

First fishing trip in my S4 »

Gary Rankel has just published a guide to kayak fishing in the heart of Florida’s Nature Coast:  “Finding the Treasures of the Trails – Kayak Fishing Citrus County” (https://squareup.com/store/buendia-press).

The tragic deterioration of water quality and associated sport fisheries throughout much of Florida has prompted a mini migration of anglers to the Nature Coast looking to paddle their kayaks in the relatively pristine lakes, rivers and inshore area.  Ditto for central Florida’s burgeoning “boomer” demographic seeking something more adventurous.

The book’s how-to section provides a comprehensive review of all things kayak fishing, including a few tips, tricks and techniques you may not have seen before.  The where-to-paddle-and-fish section contains 27 color maps depicting launch sites, fishing routes and hotspots for targeting redfish, snook and seatrout in and around the Crystal, Homosassa, Chassahowitzka and Withlacoochee Rivers bordering the Gulf of Mexico, as well as largemouth bass and other freshwater species in the Tsala Apopka Chain of Lakes.

Anglers who’ve paddled around the marsh a time or two and think they know it all, as well as newbies to the sport, no matter where they dip their paddles, should find the book educational and enjoyable.  So should manatee watchers, scallop snorkelers and other tourists to the Nature Coast looking to broaden their overall outdoor recreation experience.

Gary’s new book may be ordered online at https://squareup.com/store/buendia-press.