Paul

Roberta The Kokatats pants arrived on Tuesday and I gave them a shot last night launching at a boat ramp. All I have to say is wow. Worth every penny! Put on some rock cleats over the boots so I wouldn't slip and walked into the water to mid thighs and dry as. You could feel the cold of the water as long as you stay submerged but as soon as you get out... no longer cold. For the top, I opted for the Kokatat Tempest Paddle Jacket. The neck & wrist gaskets are really tight but the instructions say they were designed that way and you need to use a cup or pot to stretch them out to suit you. You're right I don't think I'll need anything until winter comes. I'm hoping the long thermal rashies I've already got will do the job. Thanks heaps! Regards Paul

"mate, all I am waiting for is an invite with the yak boys!! hehehe" Zarn, we got group chat on Whatsapp. Convenient as everyone has different schedules and can sometimes only go out at different times but it's there to see whos going and when and we always bounce ideas off each other. PM me if you're keen to join.

Well done Gav Sexy Gloves too

Make yourself a small bait tube. Costs less than a livewell, takes up less space and you can hang it on the side of your yak and you don't need batteries to run it

Should have gone with you that night! Well done

Just tried some trevally sashimi and I thought it was absolutely delicious but not one of the fish I often hear about eaten raw. Anyone else rate it? Cheers Paul

Hi Raiders One of the boys threw a live squid out yesterday and hooked up to what we originally thought was a king from the way it fought. After landing it, we noticed body shape was very similar to a kingy but the colour was different. We've looked at several photos on the web and they all tell a different story so it's been quite difficult distinguish between amberjack and samsonfish. Any thoughts? Cheers Paul

Hi PittwaterFishing Not sure if it will be as useful to you but me and a few mates have been smashing salmon and tailor the past few days on our yaks with light gear. Lures used were: Halco Twisty & Sliced - chrome/silver/gold ranging from 3g to 15g Spanyid Maniac - pink and blue - 7g ZMan - 3" MinnowZ - Gold Rush on a 1/12 jighead I'd probably adjust the weight accordingly to where you need to cast your lure. The trick I found is a quick retrieve and a few jerks to represent darting fleeing action. It's interesting seeing them on the surface with polarized sunglasses. Once the lure hits the water, as soon as they detect the darting fleeing action from the lure, they can instantly change direction to smash it. The lures were lucky to stay in the water for 3 seconds without being attacked. The ZMan was actually being trolled by one of our mates with paddles trying to catch up to us, but he wasn't going very quickly. Surprisingly he caught the biggest salmon out of all of us with it. Hope that helps. Cheers Paul

Entertaining read Tony. Great catch!

Thanks Roberta Like the look of those Kokatat pants. Are the boots on those pants durable enough to walk around in and to launch and beach with or do you wear additional boots for extra protection? I'll be going all year round and offshore so I think I'll get the neoprene longs. Was tossing up with getting a wetsuit instead as I occasionally enjoy snorkelling shallow waters but not sure how comfortable they are for kayaking and they're pretty expensive. Cheers Paul

G'day raiders It won't be too long before summer's over and the cold weather starts creeping in. As I'll be expecting to cop a lot of spray, I'm looking at thermal & waterproof clothing to cover from head to toe and preferably light and easy to move around in. Just wondering if anyone has recommendations for winter clothing or other winter essentials for kayak fishing? Cheers Paul

Definitely agree on the huge difference between a rehearsed version and the real thing. I've also wondered about the ziplock bags too. Can put that one to rest now. Although I wasn't there, about 10 years back I had a mate swept off the rocks at Avoca Beach and his mate jumped in to help him only to get swept out as well. Helicopter came to their aid and they were both lucky to make it out alive! It was a different story back then too as safety information and the internet wasn't as widely available as it is today. I'm really glad you've started this thread as it's given me a lot to think about as I will embark on a few offshore trips soon. Cheers Paul

He was waiting for his father to get back.

The boys sent this around on WhatsApp last night. Scary! Lucky the Adventure Island has arrived this week 6) Reentry from the rear was shown in the video but it should still be practiced by all owners before hand. If you're having problems, exercise and strengthen the required muscles to elevate yourself. This guy did it quite well given the circumstances. While you're at it practice flipping the yak over too. This video shows how: 7) Get an offshore rig for offshore. Keep the PA where it belongs, luxuriously inshore. I took it for a trial and went towards the heads of Botany once and it was anything but pleasant so didn't proceed any further. 8) .....

Thanks for the heads up Roberta. I agree that the PA's would attract more attention from thieves as it can store more on it. Typically my PA is secure as it gets stored in a LUG at the back behind my car so thieves would have to either steal the car too or move it first. On my short day trips, I can't remember it ever leaving my sight as the trips are so precise from leaving home to launching to beaching to packing up and going home. BUT NOW that you've got me thinking, I have left it unattended when we stepped into Coles during our Jervis Bay trip and didn't really think much of it at the time as it was a busy area during the Christmas rush and parking spaces were more valuable at the time. With a few planned camping trips coming up, can't afford to be that complacent anymore so the locks are a great idea and I will DEFINITELY be getting one! I'm guilty of keeping the seat on the yak too, but it is tied down more to prevent it from flying off than security from thieves. Shame about your buddy's Vantage seat. Like all other Hobie parts, I assume it was very expensive to replace too and you rarely see an accessory like that sold separately from the yak second hand. Gonna double check my towball now too, not really sure how it's connected tbh but I don't think it's a pin so hopefully it's something more secure! Cheers Paul

Hope to hear your reports/reviews of the Tandem Island. I stewed on it for a bit but it's too large for me to store and transport so going down the Adventure Island path instead. Cheers Paul

Great bream and flatties Roberta! Very sad to hear about your shoulder and that you have to stop for a while. You've been an inspiration to the fishing community, in particular the kayak fishing community and your "Adventure before Dementia" motto is something I'm planning to live by in the years to come. Hope you recover quickly and get back out there soon! Cheers Paul

G'day Raiders With the crappy weather over the Australia Day long weekend, I haven't had a chance to get the yak wet once which is quite depressing. I have however been Geeing myself up with a few of my favourite videos (below) and will be sure to hit the water when things clear up! Note: Everything is always cooler in slow motion and with sound effects. Kayak fishing isn't glamorous! Paddlefield 2 - Paddlefield 1 - White Sea Bass Fishing from Hobie Mirage Revolution - (I have seen better videos since, but this is the one that got me into kayak fishing)Hobie Fishing and FastLaneSC Slay Cedrox MX - Sailing to Catalina Island the Hobie Adventure Island Way - (All the boys will be getting an Adventure Island in the near future and a trip like this is on the cards)Expedition - The Old Man and the Sea - http://vimeo.com/51561987 (Three men embark on a Hemingway like adventure in search of Marlin) I See Real Wild Red - Kayak Snapper Fishing - (Love the double hookup and how he manages his system. Big fan of snapper too so some inspiration to get out there in the future)Me with a Rat King on the Line - (Crappy video I know but a reminder that I need to get my GoPro sorted lol)Enjoy! Cheers Paul

Great stuff Tom. That is a LOT of Fishing! Glad you got onto all the species you we're targeting and shame about the lizard. Looks like you might need a camera mount on the yak to get a photo with all them fish: D

Think the snapper was 4kg, not the burley

No luck on the kingies yet mate but the tailor, salmon and bonito are definitely there. One of the boys even managed a mac tuna today too. We've been focusing on surface action only though so the kingies could be there, just swimming deeper. Good luck! Cheers Paul

Thanks Butch Some great info there and very inspiring. Hopefully won't be too long before I get to give it a shot. I've always felt the smaller snapper have fought similarly with the initial explosive pulls so very keen to try and get onto something bigger. Cheers Paul

Great catch Butch What type of gear are you using and what's the fight typically like with a red like that? Would love to get onto one in the future. Cheers Paul

Yep, the salmon were very difficult to entice in the afternoon. So frustrating as they were right in front of our eyes and what worked in the morning failed in the afternoon! Cheers for the tips, will try that technique on the bonnies next time I'm out. Gav is a pelagics man and doesn't like hanging out with us estuary folk too often ... Just kidding After some soul searching, he realized Pelagics, sailing and offshore is where his heart truly lies so he sold his PA and upgraded to the Adventure Island. Extremely tiring, as it felt like we were herding cattle or sheep.

I had a 6-8 kg ready to go in the horizontal rod holder just in case the kings were out but was really keen on landing a sambo and a bonito as I haven't caught any before. Really disappointed that I haven't had a bonito yet. That would have completed the trifecta for the summer. There's still time Then I gotta do something about my Blackfish PB lol