Kayak fishing OTF?

[Baja_Traveler]

There are a few of us die-hard fly fishermen on this forum. I never leave the beach without at least one fly rod on board.
Yes, you are a bit limited in cast distance while sitting in a kayak - but since you can position yourself in prime fish areas, a long cast is not usually required.
In the bay when there is no wake activity from power boats, I will stand in my PA and make casts. I always bring a 6 and 8 weight setup in the bays, and only occasionally the 10 weight to throw larger flies and streamers. In the ocean - yes - I also fly fish off the kelp in open water, I predominately use the 10 weight.
Give it a try - you'll have a blast.

[taggermike]

I havent fly fished in long time but this still may be helpful. You can use long rods on a kayak. I cast 9 and 10 foot jigs sticks from a seated position in a kayak. A fly rod should work fine. Have a stripping basket in your lap and keep the bow area clear. The path of you rod and targeting area may be limited. Being right handed I find casting a jig stick with other rods behind me forces me to move the rod from around 4:00 at the start to around 10:00 at the end. A fly rod may be similar. If the casting line isn't right a few paddle strokes will correct it. Casting Distance is reduced, but like Baja_Traveler said, you can just set up closer. Go for it. Mike

[Rocketfish]

Wow guys, good to hear, as I've always wanted to try fly fishing. A guy at work brought his setup for me to try in our warehouse, and it was a blast casting.

As for the stripping basket, is that necessary? I was thinking of just stripping line and letting it float to my left in the water.

Finally, here's an important question. Does fly fishing off your kayak seem to provide any advantage over a traditional baitcaster or spinning reel setup with a swimbait? do you guys notice whether or not fishing OTF yields better results at all?

I want to pick up a 6 or 8 wt setup at that swap meet coming up this Saturday. Hopefully I find something good and inexpensive since I'm just trying this out.

[Baja_Traveler]

There is no advantage to using a fly rod at all - in fact it borderlines on being a disadvantage since you are cast limited, cant change cast direction much once committed to the back cast and re-casting takes more time. But that is why I love it - more challenge and tradition, the same reason I shoot black powder rifles...

[Rocketfish]

Originally Posted by Baja_Traveler

There is no advantage to using a fly rod at all - in fact it borderlines on being a disadvantage since you are cast limited, cant change cast direction much once committed to the back cast and re-casting takes more time. But that is why I love it - more challenge and tradition, the same reason I shoot black powder rifles...

Good to know. The reason I'd love to try it is mainly to make flies. I think there is something awesome to be said about fooling a fish to eat something you actually MADE, with crazy material like hairs and feathers haha.

OK, thanks for giving me stuff to think about. At the least, I may buy a fly rod for surf fishing since it's all about the cast.

[Kayak_Bernie]

You could always stand and fish off a SUP like the L2Fish from Live Watersports. I feel comfortable casting my fly rod in the bays and you can rig up a leaning bar so that you can cast long distances and cast in a swell or boat wakes with no problem. Check it out on instagram : #L2FISH #Livewatersports

[Rocketfish]

Originally Posted by Kayak_Bernie

You could always stand and fish off a SUP like the L2Fish from Live Watersports. I feel comfortable casting my fly rod in the bays and you can rig up a leaning bar so that you can cast long distances and cast in a swell or boat wakes with no problem. Check it out on instagram : #L2FISH #Livewatersports

wow Bernie that looks like a lot of fun. that is not an ordinary SUP that they use though. very cool nonetheless.