Been pondering the idea of a kayak. Ive seen lots of threads on how to put a trolling motor on a kayak, but I couldnt get a good sense of how many did this.

 

The idea is a bit off putting to me. Im want to get an idea of how necessary some of you feel it is. I know that its personal preference but Id still like to see who of you do put trolling motors on your kayaks and why.

I'm pretty new to the kayak bassin scene, but I don't feel there's a need for one, not on my kayak anyways. Part of the main appeal to me is not having to worry about a motor or batteries when I go. I can break my paddle down stuff it in my rod pod so all I have to do is cart my kayak where ever I'm fishing and reassemble my paddle and I'm ready to go. I have a bass boat and a johnboat also, so I'm not fishing bigger bodies of water out of my kayak, which is the only reason I would consider it. 

I agree. The simplicity/elegance of the kayak is by far the most attractice idea in kayaking to me. I have no problem paddling to get from place to place. Im mostly thinking about positioning and battling against wind/current.

 

13 minutes ago, GoCougs14 said:

I agree. The simplicity/elegance of the kayak is by far the most attractice idea in kayaking to me. I have no problem paddling to get from place to place. Im mostly thinking about positioning and battling against wind/current.

 

I paddled several miles with and then back against the current of the Kansas River last fall in my kayak. Other than wishing I had gloves by the end of the day, it wasn't bad at all. As for positioning, I'm a fan of dropping an anchor and working an area thoroughly, or using my paddle to make small adjustments while the wind blows me along. Letting my yak get stopped by emergent weeds, or paddling the nose onto the shoreline works well also, along with tossing a rope around a tree or laydown. 

I've got a motor on my Big Rig. It is excellent for control while fishing. Foot pedal steering leaves my hands free for fishing. Helps with trolling and controlling the wind. Very relaxing. You can remove it for long trips. They are very stealthy. No splashing paddles and no paddle in the way.

Now for down sides, your adding about a hundred pounds to your weight with a big battery and the motor. Your run time is limited. I get 3-4 hours depending on wind, speed and distance traveled. Your max speed is gonna be about 5 mph. You have to recharge after every trip.

With all that being said, I love mine. Most trips I never touch a paddle. And if I plan on staying on the lake all day I just remove it and paddle. IMHO, stealth, ease of operation and control make it worth having. I'm a fisherman first and my kayak is a tool.

Side story! When I first started fishing with grandpa on Sardis lake he didn't have a trolling motor and he skulled a Jon boat with three people all day. How the heck did he do that? He was a lot tougher than I'll ever be.

Sure do! I've got a MinnKota C2 30 on mine,
rigged in a similar manner to BassYaks. If I had
the money, I'd just buy one of their rigs...

While it isn't absolutely necessary, here's where
a motor setup shines: elbow problems!

My first foray into yakking was great, but I soon
developed elbow issues to the point where I had
trouble lifting a coffee mug without shaking like 
a leaf in pain.

Paddling exacerbated the issue, so the motor
alleviated that aspect, allowing me to get to my
spots w/o heaping more pain on me.

Since then I've resolved the elbow issue, but 
continue to motor because I absolutely love it.

I don't have to break out my paddle in windy
situations, and so on. I can move to spots while
fishing along the way.

In heavy weeds, or super shallow situations, I 
paddle around, but that's it. 

So to me, it is worth it. I absolutely love motoring
around in my yak.

i have one as well (30lb minn kota on my ride 135) and it's 50/50 as far as pros vs cons.  mine is EASILY removable so i can take it off and fish the river, put it in the back seat of my truck for transport, etc.

 

PRO:

easy to navigate the wind

hands free steering

trolling is a breeze!

Pretty stealth believe it or not

 

CON:

battery is heavy, must be charged

extra rigging to deal with

slower than you think

limited run time then it just becomes dead weight

16 hours ago, GoCougs14 said:

I agree. The simplicity/elegance of the kayak is by far the most attractice idea in kayaking to me. I have no problem paddling to get from place to place.

 

This. Ive run bass boats, Ive rigged canoes with motors, jon boats, hell I even spent a few days just tooling around in a float tubes and I really can't see any of those being conducive to what I do fishing. So for me, I don't use motors on my yaks...

I prefer to paddle. Keeping it simple works for me and paddling is good exercise. Most states if you put a motor on a kayak you have to register it. I have a bass boat but spend more time fishing out of the kayak.