TexasKayakFisherman.com

I know this may not be a popular idea, but I love paddling just for fitness on the days I can't fish. Recently I took the Stealth into the bay when winds were howling and the bay waves were big and lined up nicely. The kayak I paddle is capable of surfing the waves if I can just provide enough propulsion, and it sure makes for a fun way to get an elevated heartrate and stronger paddling muscles. On Monday I got up to 13 mph and was having a great time ...and then the wave dropped out in front of me and the nose dug in, nice and deep. That causes a very quick change in speed, direction and tilt of the boat, and can be a bit tricky to ride out. It happens too fast to see my expression on video, but I got a few frame grabs that made me laugh. Thank goodness the boat is stable and I was able to regain balance and ride it out until the boat got off the wave, otherwise I would have gone for a swim (not that it would be a problem, but I prefer to stay on top of the boat and maximize playing time). In the last shot you can see me on the left as the camera is being shoved towards me, and the entire front end of the boat is beneath the wave, lol. Anyway, I just thought I'd put in a plug for using the kayaks to train the muscles we use to play on the water and for heart health.

If you're interested, here's the link to the video:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/TKFishe ... &ref=notif

I love kayaking for an upper body workout with no impact.

After my bypass surgery in Thailand, I'd go down to the local parks, rent one of those funky amusement park style canoes and bring my own kayak paddle for my upper body. For my legs, I bought a 3 wheel tadpole style recumbent bike. (I couldn't afford the risk of falling down or leaning over handlebars while my sternum was mending)

Here in Galveston, I still use both -kayaks and a recumbent- for great workouts with minimal impact for my old knees and hips. I made a couple of extra long kayak paddles (9' and 10') for extra leverage. I learned that paddling a rental canoe with a kayak paddle, where a typical 7'-8' paddle just wasn't long enough for the width of the gunwales.

impulse wrote:I love kayaking for an upper body workout with no impact.

After my bypass surgery in Thailand, I'd go down to the local parks, rent one of those funky amusement park style canoes and bring my own kayak paddle for my upper body. For my legs, I bought a 3 wheel tadpole style recumbent bike. (I couldn't afford the risk of falling down or leaning over handlebars while my sternum was mending)

Here in Galveston, I still use both -kayaks and a recumbent- for great workouts with minimal impact for my old knees and hips. I made a couple of extra long kayak paddles (9' and 10') for extra leverage. I learned that paddling a rental canoe with a kayak paddle, where a typical 7'-8' paddle just wasn't long enough for the width of the gunwales.

Finding a way to make it happen. Love it!

Man Glenn you stay in shape so easily with that fast ass kayak!!! I'm glad you can get out on the water without the damn weather messing it up too bad! Good work staying in shape!

A heart attack at age 63 caused me to rethink how I would spend the rest of my life. I chose fly fishing and kayaking over continuing to work.

The exercise I got from full body kayak paddling, along with the pleasurable effort needed to enjoy all that being close to nature has to offer, kept me in good health up to age eighty-one. The camaraderie, the challenges, both mental as well as physical, and the simple delight of covering distances under your own power can only be experienced by we lucky few.

You are not going to get an argument from me. I have always said that for me it was 75% about the kayaking and 25% the fishing. It’s amazing how even a nice steady paddle stroke using your legs and upper torso how much it increases your speed and gives a full body workout.


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COOL. I have a surf-ski that is made to do exactly what you describe; surf down the waves. I'm still trying to master it on flat water!! It's 20' long and only 17" wide (weighs 25#). It's a blast. Maybe one day I'll have the confidence to try the real surf.
f

I'm probably about 60% interested in fishing and 40% interested in kayaking. I'm an Eagle Scout and our troop did high adventure trips every summer. I've hiked down into the Grand Canyon, done Philmont, canoed in the northern tier of Canada, etc.

I like being out in nature. I enjoy fishing and for my current situation, I don't have the time for a boat. I get to fish, explore, and exercise all at the same time and I love the convience.

I plan on doing the Salty Yak Pack's Matagorda Island trip in a few weeks, which will be the first time I camp out of a kayak.

When I don't catch anything you can guarantee I just went for the exercise! Only when I catch something did I go fishing!

Either way, I love being on the Kayak.

For Prof Salt.
Is your 'Stealth' a Malibu stealth? What length? If you were doing 13mph surfing how fast is your stealth on flat water?
thanx,
fred

fred wrote:For Prof Salt.
Is your 'Stealth' a Malibu stealth? What length? If you were doing 13mph surfing how fast is your stealth on flat water?
thanx,
fred

The kayak is a fiberglass boat from Stealth Kayaks in South Africa (available at Roy's in Corpus Christi). It's 18'2" long, 27" wide and weighs 65lbs empty. On flat water I cruise at 5 mph and can maintain 6 for a mile or two. Surfing the swells it offers quick acceleration and the fiberglass glides on water better than plastic. It doesn't come with a seat (took a little getting used to but now I see no reason for a traditional kayak seat). The downside to fiberglass is that it's more fragile than plastic and I have to be careful bumping the ends into boat ramps or running over rocks or oysters. On the plus side, it has a big livewell, a large dry storage, and a fishbox between my knees that runs over 7' to the nose, so I can fit my fish AND rods in there for a safe passage through the surf.

Awesome looking craft.
thanx for the details,

I have two 'not for fishing' kayaks that I've accumulated. One is my "Sunny Side Up" yak. I have it to enter a race for 16' (or less) SOT kayaks at a local fund raiser. It is 16' by 22" wide and weighs 45#. It's fiberglass. The decal says Ocean Kayak and made in Hawaii. I think it was made for scuba diving; the rear storage compartment is shaped to hold an air tank. I can cruise at 4½ mph and have sprinted at 6+mph. It's a fun kayak just to paddle or for a long trip. My other 'not for fishing' kayak is the "Over Easy" one. It is 20' by 17" and weighs 25#. It is of kevlar. Unfortunately the foot controls are not adjustable (length wise) so I paddle with my legs bent. This kayak is a C-Ski (surf-ski) made by Tom Conner (legendary all time Hawaii waterman). The C-Ski was very popular in the open ocean bump riding unlimited design surfski races that originated in Hawaii and the weapon of choice in Hawaii before the advent of the 6,5m/22 ft class boats. I have no idea of the speed I've gone in it. It requires all my concentration to keep it up-right. Several people have paddled it, including a friend that has and races a surf-ski; all have dumped. It's fun for skill building!!!

Very nice, Fred! I love the idea of being able to have a fun kayak or two. I got lucky that mine works for fun and fishing, but I’m also considering another strictly fun kayak.

Last week after work the winds were sustained at 23 and gusting to 32, and the waves were big (for the bay) and organized well enough to surf. After climbing over a wave, I was able to hit 15 mph on this run

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TKFishe ... &ref=notif

That was CRUSIN. Too cool. What's the lightest wind and smallest wave you've been able to surf?

I was out Sunday in the even skinnier Viking Oxygen (18' x 24") with winds 10-12 and waves running 1 foot at most. I got on a few of them for a max speed of 10mph, but you really have to shove to get up on those waves. Anything consistently over 1 foot will give you the downhill slide and make things much easier to get up to speed. Inside the marina I was able to hold 8 mph for a while on flat water, but it was an arm burner.

Here's last week when winds were really whipping. Despite a rudder problem I got it fixed and got good speeds.