Kayak Koz

Interesting... I'm not sold on AMD, but you're forcing me to take a deeper look. What I see right now is that if I have to rely on integrated graphics for a while, that AMD may be the way to go - as long as dual channel RAM is used. But from what I saw on Tom's Hardware, I'm not sure if the extra $110 for the Ryzen 7 offers that much more performance than the Ryzen 5 5600G. I need to do some more research. Thanks for the heads up.

I built my current PC just over 10 years ago and it has served me well all this time. Back then I spent about $1,300 on it and including a cool, NZXT tower case, Intel Core i5-2500k 3.3 GHz CPU, a 1TB HDD, ASRock Z68 Extreme motherboard, 8 GB of RAM, 1000W power supply, and a mid level NVidia video card. A comparable Alienware system was about $3k at that time. But as software and technology changes, the system bogs down, especially with hard drive bottlenecks. Some drivers are now longer being supported, and the dreaded Blue Screen of Death has been common despite all of my troubleshooting. Because my hardware is so outdated, there are no simple upgrade paths worth the time, effort, or money. So it's build or buy time. But now I'm stuck in the paralysis of analysis. AMD or Intel? Ryzen 3 or Ryzen 5? Core i3 or Core i5? Maybe i7? Integrated graphics or not? OK, now which motherboard? Built in WiFi or add on card? I will say that I prefer integrated graphics only because if you don't have that and your graphics card fails you're out of luck until you can buy a new one. The biggest issue is the graphics card, primarily because of the chip shortage. Used graphics cards that cost $150 new are now selling for $400-$500. At those prices it makes more sense to buy a pre-built PC that comes with a mid level graphics card. But a lot of those reasonably priced pre-built PC's (like HP Pavilion Gaming) come with cheap components and almost no upgrade path. That's another thing - I want this entire package to be under $850. It's an arbitrary number and I don't have a budget, but I just can't see dropping any more money than that on a PC. I'm not really a gamer. The only games I have on my system are Civilization 5 & 6, Kerbal Space Academy, Fishing Planet, and OOTP Baseball. But I would prefer to run them in full graphics for once, and I may try out some VR in the future. I expect for the next week this is going to give me a headache as I decide which path to take. Knowing my luck by the time I decide, whatever I need will be sold out!

I did a write here on BR on my Seastream Angler 120 pedal drive kayak. I bought it for $1,399 and I love it. The price has gone up since then, but occasionally you can still find a deal.

Secret spot? I'd settle for any spot that produces a few bites this summer even if 10 other boats and kayaks were already there ? The bass fishing is so poor right now in my area that the fishing guides are calling it "fair at best" for an hour or so at first light. At this point I'm ready to hang it up until the water cools down in October. I love my kayak, but I miss bank fishing the smaller lagoons where I used to live in SC.

I prefer a small, soft cooler and some ice packs. As for the effects of any added weight, while it can impact the way my kayak rides on the water where I noticed it most is unpacking the kayak at the end of a long day.

That's why years ago I switched to using a trackball instead of a mouse.

I'm usually holding my rod in my left hand, then grab the fish with my fish grippers that are in my right hand. Once clipped, I transfer the grippers to my left hand and remove the hook with my right hand. I try and reduce any chance of cuts and abrasions on my hands because knowing my luck some brain eating amoeba in the water would find it's way through that cut and feast away for a few seconds.

It's when they raise up that you need to start to worry. A couple of years ago I posted some tips on fishing with alligators:

I think the only hard and fast rule when fishing with alligators is to use an abundance of caution. I've have alligators come out of the water and chase me around the bank, slam into concrete fishing pads, stealthily stalk me along the bank, camp out 30 feet in front of me while I fish, attack my lures, and I've had them swim away when they see me. Mating season or not, protecting babies or not, some are just territorial. That being said, I had no problem fishing in jon boats in alligator waters, but with my experiences I was not brave enough to get in a kayak in those same waters. Keep your head on a swivel at all times. They might not even be stalking you, but waiting for an opportunity to grab what you catch. That can make for a really bad day in a craft low to the water.

I think I have about a dozen rods now, but not all of them get used. My spinning gear is sitting in my rack because I prefer to use baitcasters. In the past, most of my gear was $100 rods and $130 reels, but after buying a kayak this year I started upgrading my equipment as well. Nothing too extravagant, but more than I was used to spending. I bought a new Lew's KVD rod, a Dobyn's, and a St. Croix. I also purchased a Lew's KVD baitcaster reel and loved it until I bought a new Shimano Curado. So now I'll probably buy another Curado with a slower gear ratio in a few weeks. Normally I had out with just two rods on my kayak, but I think I'll add some rod holders and go out with three or four. When fishing from the bank I don't mind tying on new baits, but it's kind of a pain doing it on a kayak. It would be easier to set up at one or two rods for soft plastics before I head out on the water.

When I was in SC I loved the bank fishing and going from lagoon to lagoon. Over time, you realize that each lagoon has their own seasonal rhythm. So you learn at one time of year under certain conditions the bass may be out of reach because they spend most of their time where you can't cast to them, but you can get to them in another lagoon. Pressuring the bass are not your issue - it's finding where they are staging and feeding at any given time of year under different water temperatures and weather conditions. The good news is that in many lagoons and ponds you can figure that out and find the bass. I'm finding that's much harder to do in a big lake.

Same thing here. It's weird how I lost all touch with spinning gear.

I replaced the rudder cables on my kayak the other day and it wasn't too much of a pain. But it won't quite move the rudder full starboard. I dropped one of the screws under the deck plate, and while removing the deck plate was easy, when all the screws were out it was a bit warped and it was a pain to put back. That's because you need to line it up perfectly so you don't end up creating a new or wider hole in the plastic. I still live the kayak, but it's been so hot and muggy lately and the fishing has been so slow it hasn't been that much fun out on the water. I can't wait for fall.

I'm pretty accurate when it comes to casting. I practice a lot throwing under docks and under trees along the bank. But I'm not immune to having to pull my kayak up to the bank and dislodge a bait from some shrubbery. (A shrubbery!) Casting from a kayak - at least my kayak - is a bit of an art form. Between rods behind me, a pedal drive in front of me, and my Lowrance to the left or right of me I have obstacles to navigate with what is usually a cast somewhere between sidearm and 3/4 overhand.

When the rain stopped for a while today I headed out to our docks and fished with it for about 20 minutes. I even caught a nice little 2lb largemouth. Up until this point, most of my baitcaster reels have all been Lew's reels and I've been happy with those. Earlier this year I bought the new Lew's KVD reel ($139) and I have really liked that reel. That price point had always been my limit, and I didn't see the need to buy a more expensive reel. Not that the Curado 200k is that much more expensive at $179, but now I see and feel the huge difference in craftsmanship and quality. I really like this Curado, and my KVD reel now feels inferior. This is the 8.5:1 model paired with my 7' M St. Croix Mojo Yak rod, but I think I may move it to one of my MH rods instead. I got the higher speed reel because I do a lot of fishing while moving on my kayak, and with slower speed reels it's easy to close the gap on the bait too quickly while moving and lose the intended action of the bait. So now I have a strong feeling I'm going to be adding some more Shimano's to my arsenal. I may pick up another 200K or a DC in a 7.x gear ratio. Life was easier when I just used two rods from the bank. Ever since I got my kayak the Bait and Tackle Monkey has hit me hard.

Sometimes it depends upon the body of water I am fishing, the location on that body of water, season, weather, etc. But most of the time it comes down to a hunch or whatever I feel like throwing. If that doesn't work, then I get methodical and start running through any baits that I brought with me.

... but it was pouring rain all day, we're under a flash flood watch, and it's going to rain and storm all day tomorrow. Not only that, but my kayak is out of commission until I install new rudder cables (they arrived today as well). Weather delays like this reminds me of waking up early Christmas morning and your parents telling you that you can't open your presents until they finally get up and have their coffee. But you can bet that if the rain lets up for even a few minutes I'm stepping out of my office and down to our docks to give it a try. I can hear it now, "Mommy - why is that man fishing in a suit and tie?"

Here's an update on some recent developments: The other day I went and did a maintenance inspection on the kayak and was looking for a way to adjust the rudder control so it didn't bump the seat. That's when I noticed that both of the rudder cables were frayed (see photo below). I'm thankful that they did not snap when I was out in the water, especially when I was night fishing last week. FWIW, I do have a paddle strapped to my kayak just on case the pedal drive goes out or in case I need the paddle to steer if the rudder has issues. What concerns me is that I've had this on the water probably only 15-20 times. I contacted Seastream and they suggested that perhaps I had the cables too tight. I don't think so, but maybe that was the case. However, what is disappointing is that there was no mention of this in the instructions. You would think that would be key. Second, the rudder control handle now has a lot of play in it, perhaps from the cable loosening as it frayed. But the entire housing for the control unit feels loose. All of the screws on the surface are tight, but there's substantial wobble in the housing. I haven't opened it up yet as I was waiting for the new rudder cables to be delivered (I order two pairs!). They came in tonight, so tomorrow I will bring my tools to work where I store my kayak and start taking things apart tomorrow night. None of this is going to be a deal breaker for me, and it shouldn't deter anyone looking to buy this kayak. But I suggest keeping a spare set of cables on hand. It would seem to me that the best solution would be coated cables, but I'd have to check the diameter of the cable conduit to see if they would fit. I'll post again when I get this sorted out. I'm worried I might find some fraying issues at the rudder control handle as well.

Next time you forget your scale or tape measure just cut some fishing line to measure the length and another to measure the girth. When you get home you can measure the line that you cut and then drop that data in this form to estimate the weight: https://www.bassresource.com/bassfishing/fishcalculator.html

I have a 5" Lowrance Hook2 tripleshot, so I have the sonar, downscan, and sidescan. However, I purchased this as a reconditioned item directly from the Lowrance website so I saved about $200. It looked brand new to me. I think 5" is a perfect size for a kayak, at least with the mounting option and setup that I have. Anything bigger would really be in the way of actual fishing. Keep in mind I have a pedal drive, so I have to fish around both the fishfinder and the drive unit. Here's the link to their reconditioned items: https://www.lowrance.com/lowrance/type/reconditioned/

So the other day I was thinking that I have 8 or 9 chatterbaits and do I really need that many...

I store mine in a meeting room at my hotel. I moved to rural Georgia this year and found it to be really strange that homes with actual garages are few and far between. Heck, a lot of homes don;t have actual driveways, just a worn out path in the grass going up to the house. I found a home to rent, but of course it doesn't have a garage. But it does have a screened in porch so that's where I put all of my saws and woodworking equipment, covered with a tarp. My tools are in shelves in the laundry room. I miss having a garage.

That's the reason. I've seen this in dozens of lagoons over the years. The more stained the water over time, the more pale the bass.

Well, @GreenPig told me I needed to do some shaky head fishing this time of year on Oconee, so I went to teh Tackle Warehouse site and bought some VMC stand up shaky heads and some Berkely Bottom Hoppers. That got me thinking that about the closing rates of my drifting kayak when casting spinnerbaits and other moving baits and reel with a faster speed would help so I added an 8:5:1 Shimano Curado 200K. Then I thought that the new Shimano would pair up well with one of my Dobyns rods, so naturally I needed a new rod for the Lew's KVD reel that was currently on the Dobyns, so I figured I'd buy the Lew's KVD rod for that. And of course I might as well buy some new line for that new reel. So a $20 purchase turned into nearly $400. But hey, at least for that coin TW is sending me a free T-Shirt and sticker!

My tall, all around white light has not come in yet so rather than just have the shorter white light in the stern I wanted to make sure there were lights up front in case I had me headlamp off. As it turns out, I was the only one out on that part of the lake until well after sunrise.