I pulled the trigger on a kayak upgrade this morning.

[FinsnFur]

John, my new one is a Wilderness Systems 2016 Tarpon 120 Angler.
It's 12' 3" long and weighs 63 pounds.
I got it for 995 cause it was last years models. You could pay a little more and get some even better, stability etc. Mines not the top of the line, but it's not the beginner model either.

Todd, I love it! Too bad we didnt live closer we could do some outings. Cant wait to see what you end up with.

[FinsnFur]

By the way paddling doesnt really where you out, well...me anyway, unless your fighting some whitewater or racing across the country. It takes so little to glide these kayaks along.
When I got my other one the girls were afraid they wouldnt be able to have the strength to get back to shore with it.
I said are you kidding me? Its not like that at all. You need to try it so you can see how simple it is.
They did, and they agreed. It's like sweeping the floor. Very little effort.

[riverboss]

Boy those old paddle boats you see at the vacation spots will sure wear your butt out.


Sent from my Tank Xtreme 5.0 using Tapatalk

[slagmaker]

A friend of mine has one of those paddle boats. It works well in his little ponds but man I sure wouldn't want to do any distance in one.

[JohnP]

Comments/Recommendations on this one:

https://www.backcountry.com/wilderness-systems-tarpon-100-angler-kayak?skid=WIL001T-SON-ONESIZ&ti=UExQIENhdDpGaXNoaW5nIEtheWFrczox

[Dave]

Todd,
You may want to check out the Hobie outback.  New they are pricey, but around here I could pick a used one up for around a grand on craigslist. Pretty much powered by paddling the 'mirage' drive with your legs almost like a recumbent bike.  It's simple and moves you along smoothly (they actually hooked a hobie up to a regular kayak and had an olympic kayaker paddle against the hobie - the hobie kicked ass) The mirage drive is a paddling system so you barely need to touch a paddle, allowing your hands to be free to fish. You can troll on larger pieces of water.  I've had mine a mile offshore (NJ) chasing stripers when there was no wind.   
The outback is their plain-jane model, while you can go bigger with other models. 
Anyway, just thought I'd throw that out there.

[weedwalker]

Comments/Recommendations on this one:

https://www.backcountry.com/wilderness-systems-tarpon-100-angler-kayak?skid=WIL001T-SON-ONESIZ&ti=UExQIENhdDpGaXNoaW5nIEtheWFrczox

John. the 100 series are ok for a small adult or a child. They aren't too good for a larger sized adult. I think an adult should stick to an 11 1/2' or longer kayak.

[Todd Rahm]

Thanks Dave. Been doing some research and I like the Hobie but think my entry level (first for me) is narrowed down to an Old Town Predator PDL. After watching a bunch of videos and doing a lot of forum reading the Hobie had two down sides (Ok three if you count price).

1. With the Peddlers you have the ability switch directions and back up. (Bonus: With the Old Town you can lift the whole drive to remove grass if needed.)
2. There's a few attachments that may require you to drill into the kayak. The Hobie seems to have a higher rate of cracking from the drilled holes. The Predator on the other hand has removable and replaceable plates for these attachments.

If I ever get to the states it might be a full time venture for me. I told the wife I just want be retie somewhere, where I can be on the water fishing all day drinking my coffee.  Its been heavy on my mind for a while and Jim just got me excited with the whole concept. 

[FinsnFur]

Sorry Todd.
I mean, your welcome

[Todd Rahm]

LIAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Thanks though.

[JohnP]

Thanks Ed, Jim's is the 120 Angler and the one I posted is the 100 Angler.  The price is what caught my attention on the 100 glad you brought the size to my attention of it would have probably been a gift to my grandson. 

[Okanagan]

FWIW personal experience on the Hobie pedal power vs traditional double end paddle.  I have two sit in kayaks and fished with Dave last year in his hobies.  We fished open water deep enough to keep the underwater propulsion gear from touching bottom.  Wonderful for trolling and casting into structure from open water, especially for the big stripers and blues that called for two hands on the rod.

For my fishing here at home on a big swift river and tight shallow estuaries, I have not tried the hobie but think I prefer my paddle boats.  Crossing strong eddy lines and maneuvering or powering through swift swirling current pockets, crossing wide shallow sections, and landing or launching from shallow gravel bars (all in swift current) seem to favor the clean bottom and instant, precisely placed power stroke of a hand held paddle.  I travel though such water to get to fishing spots but don't even attempt to fish from the kayak while having to maneuver the boat through tricky swift spots with a paddle in hand.

The few times I've HAD to maneuver the hand paddled kayak while playing a fish have been traumatic to my soul.  IE. a 16 lb. salmon pulling me into a kelp bed in swift tide current.  I would never have landed that fish had not my son in another yak pulled along side, grabbed my boat and maneuvered us while I played the fish.  With a hobie I could have leg powered out of the kelp without letting go of the rod or doing the weak one hand paddle with one hand on the rod. 

I would love the hobie for fishing trout on our inland lakes.  Hands free power to move the boat when and where needed is a huge bonus when casting or playing a fish.

Open water:  hobie.  Rivers:  probably the hand paddled kayak for me.

[KySongDog]

This is not a fishing kayak but definitely unique! 

[FinsnFur]

Wow, thats crazy crafty