Initial thoughts from my first kayak fishing voyage

[Hatetangles]

So i finally took the plunge after many years of deliberation and got myself a kayak...some of my initial thoughts....

"hope i tied down those roof rack straps tight enough''
''damn the faster i drive the louder that bloody noise is', better slow down a bit''
''hmm the rubbers on the roof racks is all squashed in, don't tie the kayak down too tight next time''
''okay getting the yak down from the roof racks was pretty easy , put the wheels under the yak before landing , geez i'm good'
''now, how should i carry all my gear to the water''?....3 trips back to the car later...
''while paddling off , forgot your life jacket idiot ! back to the car again''
'"Ok and i'm off ! , this is awesome, so stable , how good is this ! ok how to work this peddle drive.."''that wasnt so hard'''steers well''
'good amount of power''
''This peddle drive is smooth as ! nice one, don't go too far on your first trip''
''Time to trawl for some squid !"'Oh snap i'm snagged again...
''Gonna need some much shorter rods i reckon....perhaps some sinkers to weigh my jigs down, mental note for next time''
''SPLASH SPLASH"" WTF was that????....Oh it was just a couple of dolphins, but why are they so close to me , go away !
"1.5 hrs later, ok this was fun better go in now, wind is picking up''probably won't catch anything with those dolphins anyhow.'
"made it back to land nice one , but you forgot to raise the rudder before beaching you idiot!''
''Ok lets get the wheels back on and get this thing back upto the car ......but how am i gonna get the wheels back on with all my gear in there?"'
"don't tell me i'm gonna need to make 3 more trips back to the car? but how T F can i lift the yak up to get the wheels under and in place ?hmmmmm
'''nup, can't be done, need to take all the stuff out and back to the car, come back and turn the kayak on it's side then put wheel cart in, what a PITA !!!, surley has to be an easier way.....mental note research youtube 'how to install cart to kayak''.....
''another mental note, next time when lifting kayak onto roof rack assist bar bring the kayak further forward so the nose of the yak will land on the bar when it's raised in the air''

So yeah was a good first outing,bit of a shame i didnt catch anything, but, certainly given me more things to be aware of which i should be better off for next time hahah

[Sebb]

So i finally took the plunge after many years of deliberation and got myself a kayak...some of my initial thoughts....

"hope i tied down those roof rack straps tight enough''
''damn the faster i drive the louder that bloody noise is', better slow down a bit''
''hmm the rubbers on the roof racks is all squashed in, don't tie the kayak down too tight next time''
''okay getting the yak down from the roof racks was pretty easy , put the wheels under the yak before landing , geez i'm good'
''now, how should i carry all my gear to the water''?....3 trips back to the car later...
''while paddling off , forgot your life jacket idiot ! back to the car again''
'"Ok and i'm off ! , this is awesome, so stable , how good is this ! ok how to work this peddle drive.."''that wasnt so hard'''steers well''
'good amount of power''
''This peddle drive is smooth as ! nice one, don't go too far on your first trip''
''Time to trawl for some squid !"'Oh snap i'm snagged again...
''Gonna need some much shorter rods i reckon....perhaps some sinkers to weigh my jigs down, mental note for next time''
''SPLASH SPLASH"" WTF was that????....Oh it was just a couple of dolphins, but why are they so close to me , go away !
"1.5 hrs later, ok this was fun better go in now, wind is picking up''probably won't catch anything with those dolphins anyhow.'
"made it back to land nice one , but you forgot to raise the rudder before beaching you idiot!''
''Ok lets get the wheels back on and get this thing back upto the car ......but how am i gonna get the wheels back on with all my gear in there?"'
"don't tell me i'm gonna need to make 3 more trips back to the car? but how T F can i lift the yak up to get the wheels under and in place ?hmmmmm
'''nup, can't be done, need to take all the stuff out and back to the car, come back and turn the kayak on it's side then put wheel cart in, what a PITA !!!, surley has to be an easier way.....mental note research youtube 'how to install cart to kayak''.....
''another mental note, next time when lifting kayak onto roof rack assist bar bring the kayak further forward so the nose of the yak will land on the bar when it's raised in the air''

So yeah was a good first outing,bit of a shame i didnt catch anything, but, certainly given me more things to be aware of which i should be better off for next time hahah

Haha, it was pretty similar when I did my first few trips. You've learnt a lesson. Keep trying to find that sweet spot where it's easy enough and yet can still have enough stuff to carey, etc.
Simpler fishing is better on kayak imo.

[Andrews]

You've absolutely reflected many of the thoughts and experiences I have had as a fellow kayak newbie (Hobie Compass picked up late August)!

The first three trips I went with the bare minimum, no rods, no esky, etc and practiced launching, paddling, etc and getting experience with the way the kayak handles into the waves, waves hitting the side, etc. Learning how much the stability can handle, primary, secondary, etc! Then flipping the kayak, re-writing it, re-entering the kayak from the water, etc. Testing anchor points, what floats - what doesn't!

Spot on with the rubber in the roof racks pushing in, and using a kayak assist bar! It's an art figuring how how far past, how close, etc you need to be to get the best motion of action for the lift and then rocking the kayak onto the roof!