As the winter is at front of the door, kayak fishing is rapidly increasing in popularity. This may be the moment to talk about safety. Be a fanatic user of your kayak and the follow these tips for the better fishing experience.
Safety Tips
We know you feel more comfortable in your kayak but the topic of safety is definitely something to think about for both the beginners and the well-experienced yakkers! The chance of getting into a nasty situation is small, but if something unexpected happens, you have to be better prepared.
In summer, it is usually not a problem, the temperature of the water remains around 20 degrees and you would love to surprise by a wave and end up in the water. With such a ‘refreshing’ temperature, the dive is usually not a disaster, and you simply relax on the kayak or you can swim with the kayak all the way.
You can fish more from the shore, by wading or if the size and depth of the river make it possible. River fishing has a bad rap especially in urban areas due to lack of water clarity. If you want to improve your success at catching fish in a river, you may require traveling more to find a great place for large fish to congregate because of the water depth and temperature. Therefore it is always preferred to keep an extra fuel saver and buy always buy only the best trolling motor battery so you can enjoy fishing all day with no worry. Furthermore, it will cost you a lot of material for fishing in still water but this will be the best experience in your life.
We usually find ourselves in areas with a strong tidal flow. It is definitely the idea to secure yourself by kayak by means of a rope, which is sure to happen if the distance between yourself and the kayak becomes too big. Maybe it sounds strange, but you’re probably disoriented when you fall into the water, and before you know it, your kayak drives 15 meters further; and then pick it up again.
PFD
The next thing you need to consider is a PFD. Have you ever heard of a PFD? This stands for Personal Floatation Device which, in fact, is the life jacket that you wear around your neck and chest and which are available in various variants.
A PFD consists of a type of rig in which pieces of foamed rubber are processed on the chest that causes extra buoyancy if you get into the water. Also, there are PFDs that consist of a kind of neck strap in which there is an inflatable section that is activated when you hit the water by a gas pattern. (The gas pattern responds to pressure in a different way).
The advantage of the inflatable vest with a gas pattern is that it is very compact and almost does not obstruct you while fishing. A disadvantage of this vest is that you have a big inflated area around your head when you hit the water and that will definitely affect the backwash on the kayak. Now you can let the air escape from the PFD by means of a valve but yes do it once in the water. The first variant containing the foam rubber pieces might be little less comfortable while fishing because it is a lot thicker, but it is a lot easier when you are actually in the water. Both contribute to the piece of safety and it is so wise to wear them while fishing.
Clothes
A next point is the clothes and then I do not mean a t-shirt or rain pants but the kind of clothes you need when the water temperature is low. A dry suit or a dry suit. This is important for everyone who walks on the water outside the summer to practice his hobby !! And that matters for both salt and sweet fishermen !!
A dry suit is nothing more or less than a complete suit that keeps the water ‘outside’ if you get into water. This is achieved by closing all openings with rubber seals. Rubber seals around the sleeve openings the head and possibly the feet ensure that there is an airtight seal between everything in the drier suit.