Hard Learning... - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

Deamon · 07-14-2013, 11:29 AM

On the day before a good dude had planned on coming down from L.A. to fish the jewel with me, we get a tip on a fresh spot of squishees w/fishees on them. Perfect timing! We set-up, make plenty of bait and gain quite a bit of confidence with this area. We go beyond dusk and into the night without much going on. The plan was to make it until morning hoping for a biter or two...

I don't know what time it was (10:30pm?)...but things became a blur and at the same time, super slow motion...I get bit, it's solid on the bottom rig (which was straight up and down from its rod holder). The reel is burning line and I'm thinking this is what it's all about. I reach for the rod, it's absolutely pinned in the Scotty mount. I'm trying my best to get it out. Then the hard pull goes double bendo (Roby later said he saw the seal), I'm leaning too far up and to the side of the yak and I've quickly realized I'm beyond tipping point (here's where the slow motion kicks in). I bail out of the yak and into the drink pushing off to relieve the top side weight and the yak proceeded to right itself...NICE! But the hard pull straight down dumps the yak anyways. Cha...CHING...(3) set-ups, HDS-5 that will no longer turn on (under warranty but 3-4 week service) misc smaller gear that sank out or floated off. Just like that, I'm in the water treading with full waders and I've got 100# braid wrapped a few times around one leg.

Some details:

I love my Hobie Revolution and I completely blame operator error but there's just less room for error on this more narrow yak...
I had (4) rods out in my "spread". Two up top and two on bottom. Wind and current pushed all lines to my starboard side which is the side I flipped over and was immediately wrapped on. I need to get a knife on my vest.
The Scotty mounts had the rod's angled up on abt 45 degrees to avoid using clips (big mistake). Angled up high with that strong of a pull got me. The yak had no chance to plane and go for a ride. I pretty much set up a rope and pulley system that wasn't anchored down...AT ALL.
I've got to come up with a better way to clean my hatch's O-rings. I had way too much water enter which then made it noticeably unstable when trying to jump back on. I'm not sure if I could've gotten back on without Roby holding the other side down...

I'm grateful Roby was nearby to help. Good thing I had my vest on but the waves were flat and the water warm so there was no panic. Roby quickly reminded me about the concern w the braid and encouraged me to get untangled asap. Thanks Roby. Jim

YakMedic · 07-14-2013, 11:41 AM

Glad you made it through safely Jim. Sounds like a bad night but luckily you had Roby with you. There is always an inherent risk fishing from a small plastic boat, and the seas are always willing to teach us a lesson or two.

alanw · 07-14-2013, 12:39 PM

Wow man that's crazy! I'm glad you did some things right - wore your PFD and went with a buddy.

No leashes? Oh well, lesson learned there but imagine if the hooked up line was the one that wrapped around your leg... definetly get that knife on your PFD!

vincentek9 · 07-14-2013, 01:20 PM

yikes. sorry to hear about your loss. i tend to keep my drags real low in case of a line peeler, then i can still yank my rod out of the holder. sometimes i even click it on freespool and thumb it a bit to keep a tiny bit of pressure while taking it out of the rod holder.

jaws197 · 07-14-2013, 01:31 PM

Damn Jim!
Sorry to hear you go through that, but glad you are ok!!!!!

Please do get a knife on that vest brother!

Looking forward to seeing you back on the water soon!

Phaen · 07-14-2013, 01:32 PM

Wow. Very glad to hear your alright Jim. Thank you for posting this, just adds a few more things I have learned from you already. Sorry to hear about your lost gear. Your Curado and Torium are still safe

bellcon · 07-14-2013, 01:50 PM

Glad your safe Jim, sounds like it could have been much worse.

Advice?
1. Don't fish more than 2 rods in that situation.
2. Make sure any dead sticks have the drag set lighter.

JeffB · 07-14-2013, 02:04 PM

Glad to hear you're ok, that's nuts...

RobFish · 07-14-2013, 03:24 PM

Glad to hear that you're OK Jim.
That night fishing stuff slightly scares me. I like to see things.

GregAndrew · 07-14-2013, 07:57 PM

Tough lesson Jim. It is way too easy to get complacent in kayak fishing, and probably the cause of most lost gear after the first year (I know it is for me). I have gotten to the point where I try to dumb-proof my yak, just because I know how I am. Kinda makes me think we should make a sticky on safety issues to consider when you set up and fish from your kayak? Something beyond the basic safety gear. Tight drags would be a start, but Tony just showed me a rope ladder he added to the back of his PA today to help in remounting. Things like these can be far more important than simple "Innovations". Maybe title it "Confucius Says".

jorluivil · 07-14-2013, 08:21 PM

Sure Am glad you're OK.

ful-rac · 07-14-2013, 09:17 PM

Yeah glad your still alive. Hearing about the situation from robys perspective...definitely made it sound alot worse. He had a better vantage point, so he could see the whole situation/disaster. Spectra wrapped around body, flipped kayak, hooked seal, night time, waders on....this could have turned out really bad...glad it didnt.

About that PA rope ladder.... Definitely not my idea, but a damn good piece of safety equipment for PA owners. Makes re-entering the PA just too easy. I tested it out this weekend and once you get your foot on it, all you have to do is lean forward and your back on. Ill post some pics tomorrow....

mrJB · 07-14-2013, 09:39 PM

Jim -

After getting wrapped up in rigging after pitchpolling a Hobiecat many years ago, I always wear a diver's knife strapped to my leg for those type of emergencies. No sense in having a knife in your boat when you need it in the water; good to have either on your vest, leg, or any other easily accessible place. Glad it all came out OK...

JB

lamb · 07-15-2013, 09:50 PM

Jim,
Stoked to hear it all ended well.
It's a sobber reminder how quickly the things can turn ugly out there.
Thanks for sharing!!
Only one 1st hand post like this is worth all the effort of running a web forum. Everyone who read this will be better prepared if this ever happens to them. Night fishing for a big fish off the kayak is one tough game!
Way to land a hand Roby!!

07-14-2013, 11:29 AM	#1
Deamon Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 1,972	Hard Learning... On the day before a good dude had planned on coming down from L.A. to fish the jewel with me, we get a tip on a fresh spot of squishees w/fishees on them. Perfect timing! We set-up, make plenty of bait and gain quite a bit of confidence with this area. We go beyond dusk and into the night without much going on. The plan was to make it until morning hoping for a biter or two... I don't know what time it was (10:30pm?)...but things became a blur and at the same time, super slow motion...I get bit, it's solid on the bottom rig (which was straight up and down from its rod holder). The reel is burning line and I'm thinking this is what it's all about. I reach for the rod, it's absolutely pinned in the Scotty mount. I'm trying my best to get it out. Then the hard pull goes double bendo (Roby later said he saw the seal), I'm leaning too far up and to the side of the yak and I've quickly realized I'm beyond tipping point (here's where the slow motion kicks in). I bail out of the yak and into the drink pushing off to relieve the top side weight and the yak proceeded to right itself...NICE! But the hard pull straight down dumps the yak anyways. Cha...CHING...(3) set-ups, HDS-5 that will no longer turn on (under warranty but 3-4 week service) misc smaller gear that sank out or floated off. Just like that, I'm in the water treading with full waders and I've got 100# braid wrapped a few times around one leg. Some details: I love my Hobie Revolution and I completely blame operator error but there's just less room for error on this more narrow yak... I had (4) rods out in my "spread". Two up top and two on bottom. Wind and current pushed all lines to my starboard side which is the side I flipped over and was immediately wrapped on. I need to get a knife on my vest. The Scotty mounts had the rod's angled up on abt 45 degrees to avoid using clips (big mistake). Angled up high with that strong of a pull got me. The yak had no chance to plane and go for a ride. I pretty much set up a rope and pulley system that wasn't anchored down...AT ALL. I've got to come up with a better way to clean my hatch's O-rings. I had way too much water enter which then made it noticeably unstable when trying to jump back on. I'm not sure if I could've gotten back on without Roby holding the other side down... I'm grateful Roby was nearby to help. Good thing I had my vest on but the waves were flat and the water warm so there was no panic. Roby quickly reminded me about the concern w the braid and encouraged me to get untangled asap. Thanks Roby. Jim __________________ Recreational Fisherman's Catch...2% Commercial Fisherman's Catch- 98% Recreational Fishing Kayakers Catch- .00001% "The reality is that the wall was built to keep all Asians ~specifically Japanese and those that think they're japanese~ out of the U.S"

07-14-2013, 12:39 PM	#3
alanw Made in U.S.A. Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Dana Point Posts: 1,625	Wow man that's crazy! I'm glad you did some things right - wore your PFD and went with a buddy. No leashes? Oh well, lesson learned there but imagine if the hooked up line was the one that wrapped around your leg... definetly get that knife on your PFD! __________________ Hobie PA 14 ¸.·´¯`·.´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><(((º> Jackson Kraken ¸.·´¯`·.¸.·´¯`·.´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><(((º> Malibu X-Factor ¸.·´¯`·.´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><(((º> Malibu Stealth-12 ¸.·´¯`·.´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><(((º> Its not a spelling B its a fishing B ~yakjoe

07-14-2013, 01:20 PM	#4
vincentek9 MAYNEE-YAK Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: So Cal Posts: 533	yikes. sorry to hear about your loss. i tend to keep my drags real low in case of a line peeler, then i can still yank my rod out of the holder. sometimes i even click it on freespool and thumb it a bit to keep a tiny bit of pressure while taking it out of the rod holder. __________________

07-14-2013, 01:50 PM	#7
bellcon Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: San Pedro Posts: 999	Glad your safe Jim, sounds like it could have been much worse. Advice? 1. Don't fish more than 2 rods in that situation. 2. Make sure any dead sticks have the drag set lighter. __________________

07-14-2013, 02:04 PM	#8
JeffB Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: La Jolla Posts: 1,216	Glad to hear you're ok, that's nuts... __________________ If you're looking for me I'm

07-14-2013, 11:41 AM	#2
YakMedic Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Wrightwood Posts: 623	Glad you made it through safely Jim. Sounds like a bad night but luckily you had Roby with you. There is always an inherent risk fishing from a small plastic boat, and the seas are always willing to teach us a lesson or two.

07-14-2013, 01:31 PM	#5
jaws197 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Poway, CA Posts: 148	Damn Jim! Sorry to hear you go through that, but glad you are ok!!!!! Please do get a knife on that vest brother! Looking forward to seeing you back on the water soon!

07-14-2013, 01:32 PM	#6
Phaen Junior Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Pacific Beach Posts: 22	Wow. Very glad to hear your alright Jim. Thank you for posting this, just adds a few more things I have learned from you already. Sorry to hear about your lost gear. Your Curado and Torium are still safe

07-14-2013, 03:24 PM	#9
RobFish Massive Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: San Diego Posts: 382	Glad to hear that you're OK Jim. That night fishing stuff slightly scares me. I like to see things. __________________

07-14-2013, 07:57 PM	#10
GregAndrew Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2,384	Tough lesson Jim. It is way too easy to get complacent in kayak fishing, and probably the cause of most lost gear after the first year (I know it is for me). I have gotten to the point where I try to dumb-proof my yak, just because I know how I am. Kinda makes me think we should make a sticky on safety issues to consider when you set up and fish from your kayak? Something beyond the basic safety gear. Tight drags would be a start, but Tony just showed me a rope ladder he added to the back of his PA today to help in remounting. Things like these can be far more important than simple "Innovations". Maybe title it "Confucius Says".

07-14-2013, 08:21 PM	#11
jorluivil Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 6,856	Sure Am glad you're OK. __________________ www.facebook.com/Teamsewer

07-14-2013, 09:17 PM	#12
ful-rac Emperor Join Date: May 2009 Location: Buena Park Posts: 3,649	Yeah glad your still alive. Hearing about the situation from robys perspective...definitely made it sound alot worse. He had a better vantage point, so he could see the whole situation/disaster. Spectra wrapped around body, flipped kayak, hooked seal, night time, waders on....this could have turned out really bad...glad it didnt. About that PA rope ladder.... Definitely not my idea, but a damn good piece of safety equipment for PA owners. Makes re-entering the PA just too easy. I tested it out this weekend and once you get your foot on it, all you have to do is lean forward and your back on. Ill post some pics tomorrow.... __________________ There's nothing colder than yesterday's hotdog.

07-14-2013, 09:39 PM	#13
mrJB Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: O.C. Posts: 352	Jim - After getting wrapped up in rigging after pitchpolling a Hobiecat many years ago, I always wear a diver's knife strapped to my leg for those type of emergencies. No sense in having a knife in your boat when you need it in the water; good to have either on your vest, leg, or any other easily accessible place. Glad it all came out OK... JB __________________ "I Brake for Halibut"

07-15-2013, 09:50 PM	#14
lamb Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2,563	Jim, Stoked to hear it all ended well. It's a sobber reminder how quickly the things can turn ugly out there. Thanks for sharing!! Only one 1st hand post like this is worth all the effort of running a web forum. Everyone who read this will be better prepared if this ever happens to them. Night fishing for a big fish off the kayak is one tough game! Way to land a hand Roby!! __________________ [------------------------ <)))< ....b-a-a-a-a