newb-stability-outrigger?
 

I'm 5' 8" and 235 lb(and a replaced hip) and i decided that for some fun and exercise i would try kayaking. got a great deal on a used cobra explorer. took it to the bay and practiced self rescue and paddled my butt off. so why not add fishing! Now i'm hooked. Need to upgrade. After maneuvering my fat ass all over this small yak (11'3"x31") stability is my main concern-can't see hitting la jolla without the full use of the old hip. Was thinking about the fnd but now i see this web site with sort of an outrigger. looks promising. any opinions? http://www.keywestpaddlesports.com/05_Steady-Sport.asp

Just keep paddling more, overtime you will learn secondary stability... similar to learning to ride a bicycle... Welcome to BWE! :cool:

dont get an outrigger.....it will just get in the way. like Mack said, keep paddling, youll be better off

There are several kayaks out there (X factor, Extreme, FnD, others) that will be more than stable enough for someone your size, even in the absence of any real yak skills. As others said, with a little time on the water you'll be fine in any yak.

recently got into yak fishing myself. I also got a cobra explorer. been out to la jolla half a dozen times now and never had trouble with stability. took it easy at first, but now I move around, open the front hatch to stow gear or whatever. just take it slow and get familiar with your yak. good luck

It sure can be done and is being done, but vast majority of kayaks you run into at open waters in La Jolla are longer. There will be days when the wind, swell and the current will make you wish your yak is longer a couple of feet to help you better plow your way through.

Just guessing - that outrigger will likely make your kayak more stable, but it would probably further slow it down. I would worry about my lines getting tangled in that thing... especially in situation when you bring a big fish on the surface... though good problem to have ;)

Good luck and welcome to BWE!

Before you get the out riggers you should get to know your yak better. Or try out other kayaks. There are alot out there that will be better for fishing than a navagator. I noticed the link showed guys standing up on thier yaks. That is not needed. Also for beach launchs and landings it looks like those out riggers would be in the way and hard to handle. Just my thinking. Mike

With my hip the way it is i pretty much need to use my arms to lift that leg over the sides everytime i move around so i went out to la jolla this morn to get some ideas and there was a guy with a cobra triple, tons of gear and really cool outriggers. he told me he added those after he lost about $300 in gear when that big 'ol triple turned over and the cool thing is it's so stable he's never had a problem with a fish getting tangled. so now i figure at least that opens up my choices of kayak to something other than just the FND.-HOLY CRAP! THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS!!!