Hard earned hali - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

roadx · 05-10-2014, 08:07 AM

Me and a co worker started off at shelter island about 8am and headed to the newly relocated bait barge in SD bay (sewer of the south). it's quite the trek over only to find out there was mackerel only. no dines or chovie's, the good news was the mac's were on the smaller side in the 8"- 10" inch range.
we drifted the edge's and i picked up one legal 25"
after that things got ugly. me and my buddy got tangled up when we were handing beers off and some how i flip my 12' PA?? not sure how it happen but i think it may have been the combination of swell, rod in the rod holder being pulled making the yak lean and me leaning too far over the bow area. im sure many beers on the water had nothing to do with it.

my front hatch was only secured with one bungee. when i flip it allowed water to enter through the hatch and into the yak. this was the first time trying to flip a half submerged PA12. matter of fact, i had never tried re-entering a PA12 up to this point.
flipping it over would have been very difficult if not impossible by myself. first attempt about wore me out and when i did enter the yak it had too much water in it and it basically sunk and flipped again.

hanging onto the yak again while my buddy scrambled to pick up all the floating gear.
after a little breather we flipped the yak again and my buddy pumped out the yak with a hand pump i always carry. again, it would have been very difficult to hang on and pump the yak out by myself, and in the ocean, i may have not been able to do it at all !!
we got enough water out so i could climb back on with assistance.
tired i surveyed the damage. one lost rod and reel ( toro 50 / ugly stick) and one broken rod (shimano compre).
i used to go out to LJ any time day or night by myself and really never thought anything of it. now i have a different prospective. i will not be going out by myself in the ocean, the bay, maybe?
please, if you dont have a hand pump, get one! (a fiftyteen dollar item) it may save your gear, your life or even someone else's.

not hugh but good eating

WildernessWanker · 05-10-2014, 08:18 AM

Perfect example of "worse case scenario" and sounds like you handled it well with the help of a friend. On top of the lesson of having a pump is the importance of keeping hatches secured. I went out with a friend who kept the front hatch of his Prowler just loosely sitting there, one day he took a wave over the bow which opened the hatch then another which put gallons into his yak. No pump and it was a horrible ride back in to empty it, he almost rolled countless times and ruined some gear he had stashed inside.

Sent from my SPH-L520 using Tapatalk

cell128 · 05-10-2014, 08:19 AM

I would have shat my pants....I just got one of those pumps too I'm surprised how much water they can pump. My co workers say I should take a gun for shark protection lol

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

Amish Ed · 05-10-2014, 09:48 AM

Glad you had your buddy with you and that you're ok. I bet you keep those hatches secure now.

Cbad Mike · 05-10-2014, 10:39 AM

Wow.... Glad it all worked out in the end.
I always carry my pump.... I ride a Malibu.

Deamon · 05-10-2014, 01:32 PM

Nice butt! I helped a buddy pump out his yak after we go it on shore... Took two of us w the hand pumps FOREVER to get it empty. I can't imagine doing it from another yak or God forbid, while in the water alone. Good stuff to share. It'll make me get that bow hatch double strapped from now on...Jim

GregAndrew · 05-10-2014, 02:14 PM

A great reminder to know your kayak, think about what could happen and plan your actions. Knowing how to approach pumping out your yak from the water, and having the pump accessible from that position is very important. They get a lot more unstable with some water inside,(and a lot more prone to taking on more water) so your best position for pumping one out may be in the water. High profile kayaks like the PAs can present some real difficulty to that. Lots of people still think they can just go under and lift it like a canoe, but it does not work that way. This is every bit as important as knowing how to remount your yak if you are going out alone. In very severe cases (your yak is about to sink) you can try to intentionally turn it upside down. Then breathe deep breaths into a hatch from beneath, or use a hose from your bait tank to help replace water with air inside your yak before trying to turn it over (better too much than too little).

WildernessWanker · 05-12-2014, 03:46 PM

That's a crazy video, one I don't think I've seen before. Seems like he lost a ton of gear but he was lucky he was able to re-enter his kayak. There was a video on here not too long ago of someone who flipped their PA, only to land and empty it then pedal right back out into the chaos.

Sent from my SPH-L520 using Tapatalk

05-10-2014, 08:07 AM	#1
roadx . Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 1,155	Hard earned hali Me and a co worker started off at shelter island about 8am and headed to the newly relocated bait barge in SD bay (sewer of the south). it's quite the trek over only to find out there was mackerel only. no dines or chovie's, the good news was the mac's were on the smaller side in the 8"- 10" inch range. we drifted the edge's and i picked up one legal 25" after that things got ugly. me and my buddy got tangled up when we were handing beers off and some how i flip my 12' PA?? not sure how it happen but i think it may have been the combination of swell, rod in the rod holder being pulled making the yak lean and me leaning too far over the bow area. im sure many beers on the water had nothing to do with it. my front hatch was only secured with one bungee. when i flip it allowed water to enter through the hatch and into the yak. this was the first time trying to flip a half submerged PA12. matter of fact, i had never tried re-entering a PA12 up to this point. flipping it over would have been very difficult if not impossible by myself. first attempt about wore me out and when i did enter the yak it had too much water in it and it basically sunk and flipped again. hanging onto the yak again while my buddy scrambled to pick up all the floating gear. after a little breather we flipped the yak again and my buddy pumped out the yak with a hand pump i always carry. again, it would have been very difficult to hang on and pump the yak out by myself, and in the ocean, i may have not been able to do it at all !! we got enough water out so i could climb back on with assistance. tired i surveyed the damage. one lost rod and reel ( toro 50 / ugly stick) and one broken rod (shimano compre). i used to go out to LJ any time day or night by myself and really never thought anything of it. now i have a different prospective. i will not be going out by myself in the ocean, the bay, maybe? please, if you dont have a hand pump, get one! (a fiftyteen dollar item) it may save your gear, your life or even someone else's. not hugh but good eating __________________ Last edited by roadx; 05-10-2014 at 01:15 PM.

05-10-2014, 09:48 AM	#4
Amish Ed Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Grants Pass, OR Posts: 1,906	Glad you had your buddy with you and that you're ok. I bet you keep those hatches secure now. __________________ Amish Ed You can't catch it again if it's dead!

05-10-2014, 10:39 AM	#5
Cbad Mike Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Carlsbad Ca. Posts: 1,206	Wow.... Glad it all worked out in the end. I always carry my pump.... I ride a Malibu. __________________ [SIGPIC]

05-12-2014, 03:46 PM	#8
WildernessWanker WildernessWanker Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Lancaster, CA Posts: 345	That's a crazy video, one I don't think I've seen before. Seems like he lost a ton of gear but he was lucky he was able to re-enter his kayak. There was a video on here not too long ago of someone who flipped their PA, only to land and empty it then pedal right back out into the chaos. Sent from my SPH-L520 using Tapatalk Last edited by WildernessWanker; 05-12-2014 at 04:52 PM.

05-10-2014, 08:18 AM	#2
WildernessWanker WildernessWanker Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Lancaster, CA Posts: 345	Perfect example of "worse case scenario" and sounds like you handled it well with the help of a friend. On top of the lesson of having a pump is the importance of keeping hatches secured. I went out with a friend who kept the front hatch of his Prowler just loosely sitting there, one day he took a wave over the bow which opened the hatch then another which put gallons into his yak. No pump and it was a horrible ride back in to empty it, he almost rolled countless times and ruined some gear he had stashed inside. Sent from my SPH-L520 using Tapatalk

05-10-2014, 08:19 AM	#3
cell128 lizard king Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Lakewood Posts: 520	I would have shat my pants....I just got one of those pumps too I'm surprised how much water they can pump. My co workers say I should take a gun for shark protection lol Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

05-10-2014, 01:32 PM	#6
Deamon Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 1,972	Nice butt! I helped a buddy pump out his yak after we go it on shore... Took two of us w the hand pumps FOREVER to get it empty. I can't imagine doing it from another yak or God forbid, while in the water alone. Good stuff to share. It'll make me get that bow hatch double strapped from now on...Jim

05-10-2014, 02:14 PM	#7
GregAndrew Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2,384	A great reminder to know your kayak, think about what could happen and plan your actions. Knowing how to approach pumping out your yak from the water, and having the pump accessible from that position is very important. They get a lot more unstable with some water inside,(and a lot more prone to taking on more water) so your best position for pumping one out may be in the water. High profile kayaks like the PAs can present some real difficulty to that. Lots of people still think they can just go under and lift it like a canoe, but it does not work that way. This is every bit as important as knowing how to remount your yak if you are going out alone. In very severe cases (your yak is about to sink) you can try to intentionally turn it upside down. Then breathe deep breaths into a hatch from beneath, or use a hose from your bait tank to help replace water with air inside your yak before trying to turn it over (better too much than too little).