Trip report:Kayaks, TCs and Fish on deck

[Buzzcut1]

It would seem that whenever I get a new toy I go whole hog and jump right into the deep end. A few weeks back I bought a new sit on top Kayak and I have spend most of my free time getting it set up and going fishing at the local lakes just putting it on top of the Volvo. It turns out that it was probably good that I did that as I learned how to really secure it to the cross bars. My friend Pat screwed a deck cleat into the roof of his lance to which he hooked in a bow line, I decided that I do not like the idea of more holes and possible roof leaks so I investigated alternatives on the net.

I hauled the kayak up with a knotted rope ( note always have TC on the truck and the jacks extended and touching the ground for stability while doing this) It only took 10 minutes to get the Kayak lashed down to the Thule cross bars with ratchet straps ( snug not tight) then you take the tails of the straps and drop them through the scupper holes and tie them to the rack cross bar as a back up in case of mechanical failure







I also used one ratchet over the kayaks bow forward of the cross bars to hold the nose down to remove any excess lift stress on the crossbar tower to rail spring loaded interface




The furry kids assumed their usual riding positions



then Kozmo decided to join big brother Jake riding shotgun. Watson stayed in the back snoozing




I stopped at Bass Pro to pick up a set of scupper mounted wheels to haul the kayak to the water. figured $60 was better that throwing my back out carrying it.


Campsite is perfect. in the overflow dirt lot, dry camping no one within 300 yards



Lake is beautiful



Landed 3 of these guys tonight using a #14 woolybugger on a 6x tippet
http://youtu.be/EZ7FoYm52_M


Dinner was good, Cajun spiced Fish and a salad


Good company



Exhausted after two 3 hour fishing/kayaking sessions I passed out at 9pm

At 5:45 am I awoke to a beautiful sunrise over the Sierras while letting the dogs run loose and do their business


camp at sunrise


then it was time to carbo load then go do some more fishing



The Bluegill were biting I got two with the wooly bugger then noticed that something was hitting the yellow foam indicator on the leader so I switched to a small yellow bass popper and caught two more before the wind kicked up something awful and I decided to head for shore and call it a day


morning fishing video
http://youtu.be/MEMDMeeL1pA

I think I tuckerd ol jake out


Last look at the lake


Me, the dogs, a tc, Kayak, fishing, good food and Beer. perfect weekend. And to be perfectly honest I never knew that Bluegill were so dang fun to catch. These were the very first ones I ever caught.

There was a high wind warning on the Altamont Pass of I580 and the message sign said to reduce speed so I stayed in the far right and putted up at 45 and still got buffeted fairly hard

Now did anyone get the number of the truck what hit me? I am totally worked. Still have to take they Yak off the roof and sweep out the tc.

[iwon415]

Great TR, Buzz!

[dakonthemountai]

Yay! What fun!! I love how you grab the fun when you can!..... dogs, TC, fishing, beer, (or a frosty martini in a plastic glass for me! 🙂 )

Dak

[billyray50]

Buzzcut1, Great trip report again!!

[Redsky]

RVkayaks.com makes a couple different kayak racks that hold them behind the truck vertically. DOT regs limit the height of a vehicle to 13'6" so that means a 12' or shorter kayak for the racks to work. I recently bought a Trident 11'5" kayak for fishing. They have a swing away version so you can have a rack with two kayaks and two bicycles and have access to the rear of the camper.

With the drought and so much water shipped from northern CA south to the corporate farmers (aren't government subsidies great) many of the boat launch ramps are closed for the foreseeable future and many reservoirs closed to all boating so I am switching to kayaks and to doing more ocean fishing.

[Buzzcut1]

oy, getting older bites. every muscle in my body had a bit of lactic acid burn going for most of the day.

Couple of things in retrospect. Sunscreen and shorts , if you are out long enough even repeated applications of SPF50 will not keep your legs from a bad sunburn but nice lightweight nylon SPF50 pants and socks over the feet will.

You can never have too much cold beer

Never underestimate the joy of disconnecting yourself from the elctronic tether, turn off the cellphone toss it in the dry bag in the hull for emergencies and leave it that way until you are ready to go home.

After a good day of fishing nothing beats a couple of cold beers while leaned up against a tree with your dogs as your only companions unless of course your wife is with you, but she has to have her own damn beers 🙂

[Bonesquatch]

I have a 16' Tarpon and use it about every weekend. Do you have an anchor trolley set up yet? They make life tons easier when you want to sit for awhile and maybe adjust your position easily. Also a rudder will be the best investment you'll ever make for your yak. Hands free steering and a whole lot better maneuverability. Great rig you've got and it looks like a perfect weekend. Great writeup too.

[Buzzcut1]

dadwolf2 wrote:
Buzz, have you looked at Austin canoe & kayak for hard to find gear? I've had good luck with them in the past.

Oh I have the rigging from my climbing days, stopped at bass pro on the way home for an anchor. Just have to set it up. Used one of my heavy rubber wheel chocks and some nylon cord to improvise on this trip

[dadwolf2]

Buzz, have you looked at Austin canoe & kayak for hard to find gear? I've had good luck with them in the past.

[Buzzcut1]

need to rig up a bow anchor pulley system for the next trip

[Bonesquatch]

Looks like you're living right. Well done!

[Targa]

It doesn't get much better than that !!

[pa_traveler]

One of my favorite types of fishing,is flyfishing with poppers for panfish.

[TucsonJim]

Dang you. Now I have to plan a fishing trip. Nice bluegill. That sure looks like fun.