Summer 2016 | Sea Island Life Magazine Spring/Summer 2016 | Page 15

Sea Island—are easier to catch in a kayak.
When it comes to speed, a kayak is an ideal
option. “A good trolling speed is 2 to 5 miles
per hour, and that’s about how fast you would
go in the kayak anyway,” says Gavin Earl,
water sports manager at Sea Island. There is
also less downtime. “In a boat, you anchor up
and start fishing,” he says. “If the fishing is not
good, you move to another spot and start fishing. In a kayak, you cover 3 to 4 miles of area
but you are fishing 100 percent of the time.”
Kayaks are also easier to transport. A
larger, more expensive boat, for instance,
comes with a higher cost of upkeep, storage,
towing gear, marina fees and fuel, while a
kayak requires less maintenance, can easily
be stored in the garage and strapped to a car
en route to the destination.
When on the water, kayak fishermen can
also navigate natural obstacles more easily. Unlike those casting a line from shore,
Sammons notes that kayakers have the
opportunity to get around rocky cliffs and
sandbars, and they can also access areas
that may be off-limits to larger vessels. For
example, in Belize, Sammons fished the
flats—places that are too shallow for a boat,
but that hold plenty of fish.
Perhaps the most attractive thing about
kayak fishing is the very reason avid anglers
love the sport to begin with—the ability to
commune with nature and connect with our
hunter-gatherer spirit. “You are forced to stop
and smell the roses, if you will,” Sammons
explains. “The [things] you will see kayaking—dolphins, sea turtles [and] whales—is
incredible because it is so noninvasive of
the environment. … The carbon footprint is
pretty small.”

Evolution of the Sport
According to Sammons, kayak fishing has
come a long way during his 28 years in the
sport. The most significant change he has
noticed is in the equipment: While he used
to adapt kayaks for fishing, he says that they
are now built from the ground up with the
activity in mind. For instance, a plethora of
aftermarket accessories—sophisticated rod
holders, fish finders and other gear crafted
specifically for the kayak angler—are readily
available for fishermen today.
“One of the beautiful things about the sport
now is there’s a kayak for everybody and
every style of fishing,” Sammons adds.
Like all types of fishing, there are good days
and bad days on the water. “If you need to catch
fish to have fun kayak fishing, you are going to
be disappointed,” Sammons says. “… The time
on the water is just so enjoyable.” m

Kayak anglers can access Sea Island’s estuaries.

KAYAK FISHING
ON SEA ISLAND

Sea Island offers two options and boasts
some of the most bountiful estuaries on
the East Coast for those looking to give
kayak fishing a try.

INTRO TO KAYAK FISHING
If you’re brand new to kayak fishing, this
two-hour class will give you an overall introduction to the sport. You’ll learn what gear
you’ll need, how to anchor, what fish to look
for and the basics of how to handle a fishing
kayak. “Once we leave the dock, we can start
fishing immediately,” says Gavin Earl,
water sports manager at the resort.
“In this area, we target trout, redfish
and flounder, just to name a few.”
KAYAK FISHING EXCURSION
If you’ve tried kayak fishing before or have
your own gear, opt for the three-hour kayak
fishing trip. “Tidal differences here are 6 to 9
feet,” Earl says.