Kayak Fishing - Drift Fishing with Bait 15-03-14

I spent a few hours drift fishing with bait on the south coast of Cornwall.  There was a brisk off shore wind and the drift chute was a great asset.  It was not a great days fishing but managed a flat fish and a few bonus Mackerel as they passed by.  Below is a short video of the trip.  Due to wind noise on the sound, I had to limit live commentary.

Using a Drift Chute when Drift Fishing from a Kayak

I do a great deal of drift fishing from the kayak and find a drift chute a great asset for that type of fishing.   Below is a video showing different ways a drift chute can be used when casting lures from the kayak or vertical jigging.

New Kayak Seat - Crazy Creek SOT Kayak Seat III

My Ocean Prowler Big Game kayak came with an Ocean Comfort Plus seat however, after nearly three years of use the two bars that act as supports for the backrest have worn through the material causing damage to the kayak by scraping the plastic.  Efforts to repair the material and contain the metal bars proved fruitless.  Clearly it was time to invest in a new seat before the damage became a hole in the seating area.

Rather than purchase another Ocean seat I decided to look elsewhere and purchased a Crazy Creek SOT Kayak Seat III from H2o Kayaks.

The seat is advertised as the "formula one of sit-on-top kayak chairs" and reviews from other kayak users suggested that this was indeed a very good comfortable seat.  I sometimes spend up to 8 hours on the kayak fishing therefore, a comfortable seat is very important and it will be interesting to compare the new seat with the Ocean seat.  The advertised features are as follows:

• The “Formula One” of sit-on-top kayak chairs.
• 4 brass swivel clips secure seat to kayaks with attachment cleats. 
• Chair is easily detached from kayak for use in camp. 
• Adjustable back is ergonomically contoured for exceptional comfort. 
• Zippered pocket on back with drain fits 70 oz/2L hydration unit. 
• 5″ closed-cell foam back and 1″ memory foam seat. 600D coated polyester. 
• Limited Lifetime Warranty.

The dimensions measure 32" x 16" with the backrest and seat divided as 18" x 14".  These measurements are fine for my kayak.

Fitting the seat to the kayak was fairly standard and straight forward with the four adjustable straps, two at the front, and two at the back clipping onto existing pad eyes using the brass swivel clips.

The zippered pocket on the back with a drain hole is something I did not have with the Ocean seat and this could be useful either for a hydration unit as advertised or for other bits and pieces.

Sitting in the seat it does feel comfortable with plenty of support for the back and plenty of cushioning for the backside, more cushioning than my Ocean seat.

A recent trip proved the seat is indeed very comfortable however, time will tell how the seat wears after many trips out at sea and how long it lasts before I need to replace it.

Anchoring a Kayak at Sea

When I first started thinking about fishing at anchor, apart from how to set up an anchor system, I had other questions such as, how much line I should let out, how the wind affects the position of the kayak, and how do I retrieve the anchor. Below is a video I have created that hopefully, contributes in some way to answering those questions based on my own experiences in the areas I fish.  See Kayak Fishing Set Up Video for how to set up an anchor system.