Deprived of mechanical propulsion, we fishing kayakers often resort to an anchor. This piece of steel, in general, rests on the bottom of the water and thus allows our floating craft to which it is connected to stay in place. In this article, I tell you about my personal experiences. Far be it from me to be an expert in the matter, but with the loss of fishing tackle and anchors still at the bottom of the water. I can give you some good advice so as not to make the same mistakes as I did.
There is a multitude of models and sizes; which one to choose?
In a kayak, simplicity and lightness are essential. This is the model that I have been using from the very beginning; a utility grapple anchor, easily stored by folding back its galvanized legs, it locks in the open or closed position.
What weight to choose?
Our fishing kayaks weigh less than 100lb and have a loading capacity between 200lb to 400lb on average. A 1.5lb or 3lb anchor is sufficient for our needs.
Here are my negative anecdotes with an anchor
My first Pelican Pursuit Angler kayak fishing. Arriving at a small dam, I decided to anchor myself and take advantage of the eddy caused by the water retention to tease the fish there. It a perfect location, only a few cast to catch my first smallmouth bass. I let myself be rocked by the lapping waves. Wow! The following week I go to the same place and anchor in the same way. What was it my surprise to see my kayak sunk underwater? I lost all of my fishing gear. Why? I had not considered the water level, which had risen due to the rain, the current was more substantial, and my 25 ′ rope was not long enough. I managed to retrieve my kayak, but the anchor and the equipment remained at the bottom.
The moral of the story, I always now have a knife with me tethering to my PFD to cut the anchor rope if something goes wrong. Now I use a rope of at least 50 ′ and have great respect for the force of the water flow of a river.
Here’s another kayaking anchoring story. A beautiful day on the St. Lawrence River, I decided to anchor with an anchor of only 1.5lb offshore, in a depth of 35 feet to tease walleye. To my surprise, unable to raise my anchor, it stuck well at the bottom of the water. I asked a boat pass if he could help me. This one, too, could not raise the anchor despite all its strength and better support than a kayak.
The moral of this story never tie an anchor from above. Always preferable to attach an anchor from the bottom and install a small dimension TIE-RAP style tie at the top. If the anchor gets stuck, pulling sharply, the tie breaks, and the anchor turns over and frees the grapples.
Summarize
There are several ways to anchor your fishing kayak. Using an ANCOR TROLLEY is one of them. This is how I will be using my anchor this year on my Old-Town Predator 13.
For more information on how to anchor or install an anchor on your kayak, I invite you to YouTube for several interesting ideas and tips.
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