Darren.

Welcome aboard, Gino!

Fantastic haul! Congrats!

No. If you were to hit a yak store, probably most will be sold without a rudder. But, a rudder does help with tracking straight, helps with wind, etc. My yak did not come with one, it is a $200 add-on... That said, those of us with favorite kayaks have come to those conclusions based on trying out the yaks, etc. The best advice I can give you is to get to a store that has demo days where you can take several kayaks out for a test drive. If not, most will let you at least sit in the kayak in-store. You really want to be comfortable in whatever you buy. I personally like my Native Ultimate 12 a lot. There are plenty of owners over 6' tall that use these yaks. But others like the WS Ride, Commander, a Moken Angler, Jackson Coosa, Cuda, etc. It is a very personal decision only you can arrive at. I like to stand in my kayak a lot. But I also have jury-rigged my seat to sit up nice and high, so I'm good either standing or sitting. FWIW, before I arrived at my current yak, I did fish a model I couldn't stand in. Taught me what I really wanted. And if I had the money today, I'd *probably* buy a Hobie Pro Angler 12.

Beast of a sow!

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Mario!

Welcome aboard, Brett!

Hi Nick- welcome to the forums. Like others have said, keep it simple. Be careful watching TV shows where they use XYZ bait and slay a ton of monster bass. That's TV, not reality (necessarily). I happen to be a fisherman who primarily fishes soft plastics, and even more specific than that, stick baits or finesse worms in a few different manners: 1) Wacky style 2) Mojo Rig 3) Texas Rig 4) Jika rig I get plenty of distance casting weightless Senkos (and off-brand) from shore, but I'm more often in my kayak, so distance is not as important for me. Between senkos and ribbon tails, the difference is in the action. I like to fish ribbon tails on a texas or mojo rig, but senkos can be fished all of the above and more. Above all, be patient, be innovative and don't overthink stuff!

4" hot pepper frog stick for me, along with watermelon magic sticks.........

Excellent! It will serve you well. Enjoy the new frontier of kayak bass fishing!!

Welcome aboard! I'd start with soft plastics. Something like a Bass Pro Stick-O in 4", fish it wacky rigged. As well, Zoom makes some great worms, the Trick worm and Finesse worms. Colors can be simple stuff like watermelon, green pumpkin, black, and variants thereof.

Very nice gear! Congrats!

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Joel!

Welcome aboard, Cory!

Hey Drew, welcome!

And that's a good reason to put them behind you. I recently added two 6'6" rods to my arsenal, and they're about as long as I would feel comfortable laying in front of me with my 12' yak. Being able to lift my seat is a huge space maker. Part of why I can do what I do. Not everyone has a yak with a seat that can lift out of the way like that. I wasn't putting your choice down, it is just something I'm no longer doing -- for now. I always leave a caveat because I'm constantly changing and tweaking how I fish from my yak. Where I like things to be, etc. So it's a continually evolving "game". I may yet go back to using a crate. Who knows.

I gave up on even using a crate (for now) last year and the vertical mounting of my rods. Now I lay them in front of me as well, and I keep my tackle there as well (and under my seat since I mounted my seat across the gunnels). This has been, by far, the best to keep my rods out of the way when casting and fighting fish.

Welcome aboard, Matthew!

While I agree, there is hate for Quantum...and every other brand by brand lovers, my baitcasting adventures started with a BPS Tourney Pro (awful experience), then was "rescued" by Quantum via the Shaw Grigsby combo from DSG. Believe his reel is an Accurist, correct me if I'm wrong. Bought another Accurist 570(?) later during a BPS Spring Classic. I barely use either of these anymore. I left Quantum for Shimano and Daiwa, and now, I'm back to Shimano. Chronarch 50e models, specifically on the BC side. Stradics, others on the spinning side. Never had a Quantum spinning reel although they have a nice feel to them - the models I have looked at. I now choose to stick with Shimano due to the consistent quality I've had with them on the spinning side, and now the casting side. Daiwa is also good, the Lexas are a fine reel, although the recent experience i've had with mine soured me on any future purchases (of the baitcaster). Nonetheless, I loved it prior to the casting issue. I think Quantum makes some of the best-looking reels on the market, I just won't buy one. Personal preference. So that makes me a Shimano brand guy, I suppose, but I won't pooh pooh someone else's decision to buy Quantum. If my opinion is asked, I'll give it. Everyone's experience will be unique.

Wow. Y'all put me to shame. My *current* bag only ways 10.9 lbs. But that's just what I'm using right now. I try to keep my setup as light as I can in my kayak. And I try to bring only my "best", or most productive stuff. And I'm finally carrying some hard lures, cranks (lipless and lipped) - one 3600 size box. If I were to weigh all of my tackle, it would easily crest 50 pounds. But most of it sits and never sees use....

Welcome aboard, Nick!

You said "of the season" in your title, when I read my post it looked as if I meant your first bass ever, so I added (of the season)....

First bass (of the season), happy angler! Congrats!

Welcome aboard, Matt!