PHOTO BY MATT BALL
Beginning kayak anglers can get into the game relatively inexpensively before they commit to a big-ticket purchase of a fully outfitted kayak .
“ i ’ d have to spend thousands of dollars to get a nice fishing kayak .”
It ’ s true that if you want to go all-out and get the newest top-of-the-line kayak and deck it out with fish finders , motors and all the other bells and whistles , the price tag can climb quite quickly . There are many pre-rigged fishing kayaks on the market that can cost well north of the $ 5,000 mark .
The beauty of kayak fishing , though , is that you don ’ t have to go to that extreme to get a high-quality kayak that will check all the boxes . Buying a used kayak from the online marketplace can save you hundreds . Just be sure to choose one that will handle all the gear that you plan to put on it .
Look for models from major kayak manufacturers like Jackson , Hobie , NuCanoe , Wilderness Systems , Native Kayak , Bonafide , Feel Free , Old Town and Crescent ( among many others in the ever-growing industry ). Each of these companies have kayaks that will handle the load that rigging out a fishing kayak will require .
As for motors , many people have done amazing DIY conversions for regular trolling motors that will get you farther from the ramp on a much tighter budget . YouTube is full of amazing DIY ideas for tackle crates , rod holders , motor modifications and more to make your kayak an amazing fishing machine on a budget . The important thing is to have a safe and stable kayak that enables you to get out and chase fish on whatever water you chose .
There truly is a kayak for every style of fishing . The heart of kayak fishing will always be the simplicity of throwing a kayak in the back of the truck or on top of the car , grabbing a rod and a few baits and getting away from it all . That ’ s what got most of us into kayak fishing in the first place .
Still , if you want to turn your kayak into your own mini bass boat , the technology and resources are available , and with them you can build yourself a kayak that truly has the ability to go where all the bass boats go — and where they can ’ t .
EDITOR ’ S NOTE : Matt Ball is a professional kayak angler from Little Hocking , Ohio . He was the first-ever Kayak Bass Fishing National Champion in 2016 , and has since been ranked among the top kayak anglers across the country while fishing the Kayak Bass Fishing Trail , Hobie Bass Open Series and BASS Nation Kayak Series . Ball supports the local kayak clubs in his home state of West Virginia and Ohio , where in 2020 , he won the first West Virginia State Championship for WV BASS Nation kayak series .
54 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | JUNE-JULY 2021