Kayaking offers many distinct advantages over a traditional boat. They’re easier to store, you can navigate smaller more shallow waters easily, and they are of course more affordable. However, the lack of a motor means that you have to be a proactive paddler if you want to do some fishing. On a windy day, your kayak will have a mind of its own so you’ll need to master a few key techniques.
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The one-handed paddle
If you want to be comfortable fishing from a kayak, you’ll need to get comfortable with the one-handed paddle. It simply isn’t efficient to put your rod down every single time you have to reposition and in the wind, this happens often. The secret to the one-handed paddle is that you need to use part of your body as a fulcrum since your other hand is holding the fishing pole. You can use either your chest or even the backside of your other arm. It might not be graceful, but with practice, it can be very effective.
Repositioning with a backward stroke
If the wind is blowing into a bay you want to fish, you’ll have to paddle backward often to maintain an optimum position. If the current isn’t too strong you can do this without bracing the paddle. If the current is strong though, you’ll need to brace the paddle on the backside of your arm so you can generate some power.
Fishing upwindÂ
Fishing upwind is tricky, and if the wind is too strong you might have to drop an anchor. An option that works just as good is to try and find a bed of vegetation that you can back into that will hold the boat while you cast.
