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Yak Talk

I have been hard at work kitting out the new Malibu X Factor kayaks that have arrived for my Kayak Fishing Spain business. Much to the disgruntlement of the Old Fish Wife I turned our terrace into a kayak workshop and have fitted fish finders, gps mounts, extra rod holders, fly rod attachments, anchor systems and many other little bits and pieces that will make fishing pleasurable as everything will be to hand. It is very important to have everything organised and leashes attached to the paddle, rods and anything else that, if dropped in the water, is likely to sink! My first guests arrive this week and we will be hopefully out doing some serious fishing from the yaks, weather permitting.

Kayak Anchor Systems

Although I have been very busy over the last couple of weeks with shows and freshwater fishing with clients. I have, however, managed some time to get out on the kayak and do some fishing. When visitor James Tomlinson joined me off the coast I  found a prolific fish trap and with the aid of GPS marked the spot. Last week I returned to the exact location and needed to drop anchor. Force four seas were moving me around a little. It is important when anchoring a kayak that the vessel can move around to find the most stable position as the danger is that if held firmly from the side a wave can flood you. My anchoring system is a two pulley system similar to a clothes line set up with a carabineer that can slide up and down the length of the kayak enabling the anchor to be held at either end of the kayak. I deploy the anchor as usual and when it holds, I snap the rope in to the carabineer, making sure the rope can flow through the ring. Using the pulleys I move the carabineer to the front or to the rear of the kayak. When it gets there I attach the rope to the cleat at my side. The kayak will position itself inline with the anchor. To retrieve the anchor I remove the line from the cleat and pull it in while the carabineer is at the end. This uses the length of the boat to bring in the anchor. When the anchor reaches the surface I pull it to the centre and take the line out of the carabineer. All kayak anchors should be rigged so that they will reverse if they get stuck. Most kayak claw anchors have holes at the bottom that allow you to rig them this way. I use a small shackle to attach the rope to the bottom of the anchor and then use a small cable tie to attach the rope to the end of the shaft of the anchor. Regular use will not break the tie. If the anchor is snagged, a good yank and the tie will break and reverse the direction of the anchor. If conditions get bad you can attach a float to the anchor line, dump the anchor, and return when conditions are safer to collect it. My anchoring system works well and the Malibu X Factor was very stable in the conditions.

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