Thoughts On Canoe Or Kayak

[hoosierbass07]

 The hot thing right now are sit-on-top kayaks.  I have a Ride 115 and love it but - it is heavy.  When you pick a kayak or canoe make sure you factor in the weight of it and how you are going to transport it.  If you can transport a sit-on-top and deal with the weight, I would recommend a sit-on-top.  Also, the most important thing about kayaks is the seat!  If you do buy a kayak make sure it has a very very good seat.   

[carlm01]

I have a seaeagle 285 pro , It's an inflatable , I love it it's lightweight has a swivel seat and a floor   and can be rigged with some nice options ,I just added a Hummingbird Helix 5 SI/GPS Combo.. All done with scotty mounts and a 40# TM...  Good luck with whatever you choose...

[ClackerBuzz]

don't buy that meyers sports pal. like goose i have a Radisson canoe.  it's airplane grade aluminum ie super thin. you can't take it into shallow streams or you will dent, puncture, jar loose the rivets...and even worse loosen the seam.  a welded seam runs up the middle and there is a metal tracking piece over it.  my canoe is leaking from that seam. it would take an aluminum welder, a whole lot of time to strip the inner ribs/foam, and a bunch of money to fix my leak.  i just keep a huge bath towel in the back to ring out as my bilge pump. the cost/time/hassle is too much so i deal with it.  i sold my second radisson (my lake only canoe) b/c the other one is sinking faster and faster. 

 

if you get a canoe go with polyethylene material.  i also have a sit in kayak and love it as well.  its better on small streams bc it can handle the rocks.  i prefer sit in b/c i also live in the north.  i didn't like sit-on top kayaks in March and November b/c it's just too easy to splash cold water on myself.  

i like to stand while i fish so i like being in the canoe much more. i also use a trolling motor with 2 batteries when on larger lakes and only my canoe can handle that

[FrogFreak]

Try a wavewalk kayak, they're stable and fun to fish from. Wavewalk.com.

[Raymurda]

SOT Kayak all day and twice on Sunday.

[Dogmatic]

I own several small watercraft (2 canoes, (including a sportspal),2 kayaks(SOT), and a inflatable pontoon). I just bought 14' semi-vee jon boat that'll be the focus of my attention(decking out like a bass boat), but my favorite ride, the one I grabbed for most of the small water exploring I do, was the pontoon. But, you might want to check these canoes out (they should be in Harrisburg). http://www.riverridgecustomcanoes.com/main.html

If I was in the market now, I would definitely be checking out the hybrids, mainly because every once in awhile ya might want to take someone else along and the space in a canoe or hybrid is a big plus,also standing,and control of your craft while doing so, is really important.

[MrM_vs_Wild]

I have been fishing from an Old Town Sportsman square back canoe for the last 2 years and its been perfect for me.  I typically fish Pymatuning reservoir on the PA/Ohio border (yeah its a huge lake and even I've been surprised at what I could handle when the wind picked up and the rolling waves got larger).  Either way, I don't use outriggers although I do have them, but I don't feel like it makes much of a difference in such a big canoe (15.5ft).  My buddy and I stand up and fish from it all the time and we've never gone over.  The only downside is that I can't really take it out when I'm by myself and I'm a pretty big guy.  I think it weighs like 110 lbs.. just tough to manage getting it up onto the roof rack without damaging my vehicle.  I also have a kayak that I will take out occasionally but I much prefer the canoe.  I use a 45lb thrust trolling motor and take 2 batteries when I know I'll be moving around a lot.  It moves slow, around 4 or 5 mph, which on a big lake like Pymatuning limits my ability to cover a lot of water, but for hitting specific area it has been really effective, especially when I go places the big boats can't get too.  I also use this canoe to float the Youghiogheny, Allegheny, and Shenango rivers.  I have been debating on getting something bigger, but honestly for the money you really can't beat this canoe.  I think I paid 500 for it at Dicks brand new when they were having a spring sale.  After watching Keepingitreelfishing's video on the sportspal I must say that I would probably recommend something like that over the old town just based on weight differential and ease of use.  But if you don't want to deal with outriggers and want a big space to hold your gear then a canoe is definitely the way to go.  You should PM keepingitreelfishing on youtube, hes pretty good about getting back to people and he lives in Jersey.  Maybe he'll show you the ropes.  Tight lines!