[simond11]

After looking at the weather report last night I decided to go for a kayak this morning, launching from Coogee beach. Swell was expected to be around 2.5-3mts and wind around 9Kn. I decided I would take with me the barest essentials - paddle, PFD and one rod. No seat, no tackle box, no lip grippers...nothing.
Entering the surf was not too bad, with waves crashing over the bow. Paddled as far as Bronte trolling a large Halco lure. Got one big hit but lost it. It is quite hard to paddle with a huge swell, as you sometimes "miss" the water with the paddle. The Prowler 15 was riding the waves superbly. Even without backrest, I felt comfortable and very safe. Paddled back towards Maroubra then back to Coogee. Re-entry was ok, yet waves from behind were a bit tricky.
I have decided that when I go out on the ocean, I will take with me the barest of equipment. It makes it so much easier when you don't have to carry a whole lot of c*&^% with you. Next time though, I might take a couple of different lures, just in case. There was a lot of surface activity with slimies everywhere.
I took my marine radio and mobile phone, just in case.
I also realised that the stability of a lot of our kayaks depends a lot on the amount of stuff we carry with us. I don't think the yaks were designed to have an extra 10kg of equipment placed in various areas of the yak that would possibly un-balance it. I believe all yaks are stable to some degree. It's just that sometimes we expect them to perform miracles when we modify them.
Just a thought.
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[Davey G]

good on you for summing up the conditions and preparing accordingly. too many stories of guys going beyond their skill levels and getting into trouble. a 2.5m swell is serious stuff and those who aren't sufficiently skilled can get into real trouble, fast.

carrying the bare minimum might not let you catch the most fish, but it will certainly help you get back safely. good idea about the phone and radio too.

btw, any idea what the hit was from?

 

[Y-Knot]

g'day Simon, 2-3 mt waves...sounds like a killer paddle... im looking forward to purchasing something that will handle those sorts of conditions.

 

[simond11]

Not sure, but seems there are some big kingies out there at the moment. I met a guy down at Coogee, David, a couple of months ago who paddles a Cobra FnD, and he regularly goes out after kingies. He catches squid in Gordon's Bay, then rigs them up for trolling. Hoping to go out with him on Saturday am towards Wedding Cake Island then hug the coastline to Bondi. Problem is that when the swell is high, the waves start picking up momentum and you can't really go too close to the cliffs. Some serious waves out there. Water temp felt like around 21-22C. Lots of seaweed.
All the same, it was magic out there.
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[Peril]

Thanks for that Simon.

Been thinking about how I will approach this matter when I start testing my yak and myself this summer, when I want to explore the surf zone (thinking of getting some grommets for shark baits :twisted: ). Very quickly come to the conclusion that minimal is best - one rod, no forward rod holders, no FF, no crate, no anchor, no net etc. I can always throw a few lures, leader etc into my livewell, which is a dry well if I don't put any water in it. Can also store the rigged rod in the centre hatch.

Hadn't considered not taking the seat. Care to expand on your reasoning for this?

 

[simond11]

I agree, Paul. Back to basics. When it'a group of us going for an organised paddle on rivers, lakes, estuaries then bring it on. But if on your own it really is hard taking a lot of equipment. The hardest thing with ocean kayaking is finding a safe spot for the rods on re-entry. The easiest place on the Prowler is just shove em' in the front hatch, or strap them down on the front hatch. This way, even if you fall out during the re-entry there is no chance of the rods snapping. That's why maybe 2 piece rods may be better. Dunno...
Hey Davey...when can I come over to your neck of the woods for a fish? Every time I return from a trip and we use the south-west runway for landing I always look down at the water and wonder how good it would be to fish that area.
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[simond11]

Hey Dave. I guess the seat just adds more weight. You see, after I park the car at Coogee, I probably have about 200 metres to walk over sand to get to the water. I have found that the carrying handles on the Prowler were placed there before a rudder was put on. The rudder tends to shift the weight of the Prowler towards the back, so the handles are not placed in the right spot to balance it when carrying on your shoulder. Adding a seat to it would further shift the weight backwards. Look, it probably would not make much difference at all when you think of it. I will try again tomorrow morning with the seat and see what happens. Will take soft plastics out this time and put them in the back compartment of seat.
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[RedPhoenix]

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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[Dodge]

The rudder tends to shift the weight of the Prowler towards the back, so the handles are not placed in the right spot to balance it when carrying on your shoulder. Adding a seat to it would further shift the weight backwards

Simon one thought comes to mind to trim the yak for carrying and maybe compensate for the rudder out of balance.

Could you temporary tie the seat near the front of the yak to offset the rudder while carrying, and locate properly at the waters edge

 

[simond11]

Hi Dodge
That is a point, although now I come to think of it, the seat is really not going to affect the weight of the yak that much. I guess I was more interested in minimising the gear I was taking. Certainly the seat helps, especially when you are out for about 2 hours. It will be interesting to see tomorrow when I (hopefully) go out whether the seat makes a difference.
I have rigged some squid for trolling, and plan to slow troll them around the headlands. Seems there are some bruisers of kingies around, and I think that maybe the 50lb outfit might be the go :shock:
Will let you know.
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[troppo]

Swell at 2.5 - 3 metres? :shock: That is huge. Were there white caps around the place or was it big wide ocean swells?

 

[simond11]

BIG wide swells. Sitting in the Prowler, the waves would come up and sometimes obscured the Clovelly headland. Amazing stuff just riding on top of a big wave. Luckily they were not breaking, as the water was quite deep (about 17mtrs). I can see white caps now on the ocean, as the wind is now coming in from the NNE at around 18Kn.
It's quite exhilarating being so close to the ocean, sitting in a kayak. I must admit that I still fret when I prepare for the beach re-entry. The yak seems to want to go sideways, and being a long yak, it does that quite successfully!! Not really meant to be a surf ski, I guess :?
Cheers

Simon
Prowler 15

 

[troppo]

Simond11, with reentry to beach and yak turning sideways, I have to admit, even in the little waves I play in, I get anxious at that point. When I am powering in - "YES, YES, what a blast!" - then all is great. But when the nose starts to slide around to one side or the other and I dig the paddle in as a rudder but no response, Ima thinking Ima infa a dunking if not careful!

 

[Peter_M]

Old post I know - but a good one. I am a an exponent of the KISS principle too. I believe that the less stuff you take, the more fun you have! I usually just go witha 40lb handline and a two chrome wobblers. Never use a finder, anchor or any of that stuff. My ongoing challenge is how much stuff I can leave, not how much I can take.
Regards
Peter