If you're new to kayak fishing, learning to use your kayak paddle can help you catch more fish. From making subtle adjustments when you're approach prime fishing spots to adjusting your kayak to maximize your casting distance, how you use your kayak paddle can make a huge difference.
Making Subtle Adjustments
Because casting your line and operating your kayak paddle can't be done simultaneously, learning to make subtle adjustments can help you catch more fish.
Squaring Up: Your odds of making an accurate cast improve when you square up your kayak to your fishing target. To account for drift and current, using a reverse paddling motion is almost always the way to go. When adjusting the angle of your kayak in relation to a fishing spot, it's important to remember that you will continue to turn as you approach the spot. For instance, if you're drifting toward a laydown, you will want to decrease your speed so that you'll be square with the laydown as you drift past it. You will also want to time your cast so that retrieving your bait as you drift past your spot. Learning how to make this delicate balancing act work takes time and practice. In most cases, you will find that making subtle, reverse strokes with your kayak paddle will yield the best results.
Utilizing Your Elements
A human-powered kayak can't find the wind and current in the same ways that a motorized boat might. Learning how to use the elements to your advantage can help you get better hook sets and longer casts.
Go With it: Casting with the wind behind your kayak will make your casts longer. On particularly windy days, it can be helpful to paddle into the wind, past your prime fishing locations. Once you paddle upwind, you can drift past the best fishing spots with the wind behind you. When the wind is behind you, you can use your kayak paddle as a rudder. Rather than paddling to cover water, you use the momentum generated by the wind to help you steer your kayak into position.
Staying Hooked: If you've hooked and lost fish on your kayak, there's a likely culprit—slack in your line. This slack can be created by wind, current, and/or poor kayak positioning. You can use your kayak paddle to adjust your kayak after you hook a fish. Begin by reeling into the fish. Once your line is tight, put your rod in your rod holder and use you kayak paddle to help you square up with where the fish is running.