fisherkid
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is to fill the inside of a SOT with foam pool floats. Even if it floods it still has enough buoyancy.
Are Kayaks Dangerous?
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Yes, I stuffed a tapered bag in the aft section, then I put noodles on either side of the cockpit area and then in the bow forward of the hatch is a second tapered bag. They have these new "Wacky" noodles that you can put a ordinary non -Wacky noodle into which makes for a super semi-Wacky-fat noodle. Just a little kayak noodleology.
Normally I would not do a tank switch at sea but I have and will again stow a second 80 or 72 in the front hatch. In fact, I have a couple of 50s and I may start using them. I am not an air hog and a 50 can last me a really long time in shallow water. They are really light and easy to handle in a yak.
I don't have Johnson Outdoors stock so it matters not to me but any normal size person should seriously consider the Scupper Pro TW. If you do any searching you find this over and over:
""Man, forget the Scrambler. Crapola. Feces barge. Slow boat to China. Best boat for a spearo is the Trident 15, hands down. Room for everything, huge carrying capacity of 550 pounds, and still one of the fastest boats on the market. Rodpod is great for gun and long fins, right in front of you. Fast boat, which will open up new territory to you. ScupperPro is the Gold Standard that all other dive yaks should be compared against. Great yak. You can get a used on on Craig's List for 550 or so. Ocean Kayak reintroduced the ScupperPro this August, back by popular demand, and can be had for $679 at Silent Sports in Nokomis, about and hour south of Tampa, easy drive, close to I-75. Trident 13 is awesome too, and Prowler 13 is good. If you have the dough, go for Trident 15. You can camp, scuba with multiple tanks, store gear with easy access, and has built in hatch for depth finder. Bitchin' boat.
Will in Sarasota ""
I have had people tell me that SOT are slow and heavy and slow and blah, blah, well, some are but that does not apply to the Scupper, it is fast and I have been able to keep pace with real sea kayaks at least for some distance. I can load it myself but I have found that one advantage to getting older (and there are a bunch) is that young people help me. Little do they know, lol,
but I am appreciative of the help. N
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I think there are three distinct skills here 1-the diving 2- the kayaking and 3- the kayak diving. I've been diving for years and took up kayaking with a view to fishing on days when I fancied a change. Lately, I've combined the skills and done quite a bit of diving from the kayak. I'm drysuit clad so I don't venture too far from shore (1km max). I would totally recommend the following safety equipment and yak configuration - waterproof handheld vhf radio, diver down flag on a 5' pole to attach to the yak and whistle or preferable an air horn of some sort to attract attention (inshore flare pack if you are particularly jittery). The kayak should be rigged with an anchor trolley which will allow you to position the yak safely re tide and wind conditions.
I would also consider a paddle leash and an anchor float which will allow you to drop anchor and prevent the pull downwards on the kayak. There are many fishing yak websites which will give you detailed info on the correct rigging, nearly all of which are suitable for yak diving. Pay particular attention to the way fishyakers rig the anchor for easy no snag retrieve. I've seen setups where divers anchor the kayak, use a surface float which is attached to the kayak. Diver holds line, line attached to float, float attached on a 30m line to yak and yak to anchor. If the anchor line fails, the diver is still connected to the yak and can retrieve it when surfacing. You will not catch a kayak being blown by the wind no matter haw fast you are!
I've put a cheap fishfinder on mine (tarpon 120) which has become really handy when diving as it gives me accurate depth an bottom contour info. I tend to anchor up in 15m which makes pulling the anchor back hassle free but also I dive in low vis conditions a lot and its pretty dark below 15m.
Other than that, there is the choice of kayak to consider - stick with sit on top rather than sit in. You have the safety of an inherently better bouyancy if it inverts (it happens to the best of us). depending on the conditions you intend to dive in, you should be able to find a yak that suits. The longer (over 12') yaks tend to paddle faster and will also have bigger tankwells and storage space so if you are heading far out they may be a better choice. Mine is a 12' and works brilliantly for 1km trips.
When you are used to the yak and want to use it as a platform to dive, for your first trip out, I'd recommend not diving but setting up as if you were actually going to dive, bring all your gear etc and paddle around to get used to the balance of the kayak with the equipment - chuck your stuff in the water, don and doff and do it all without the worry of actually having to do a dive while trying out the setup for the first time.
Happy yaking!
I would also consider a paddle leash and an anchor float which will allow you to drop anchor and prevent the pull downwards on the kayak. There are many fishing yak websites which will give you detailed info on the correct rigging, nearly all of which are suitable for yak diving. Pay particular attention to the way fishyakers rig the anchor for easy no snag retrieve. I've seen setups where divers anchor the kayak, use a surface float which is attached to the kayak. Diver holds line, line attached to float, float attached on a 30m line to yak and yak to anchor. If the anchor line fails, the diver is still connected to the yak and can retrieve it when surfacing. You will not catch a kayak being blown by the wind no matter haw fast you are!
I've put a cheap fishfinder on mine (tarpon 120) which has become really handy when diving as it gives me accurate depth an bottom contour info. I tend to anchor up in 15m which makes pulling the anchor back hassle free but also I dive in low vis conditions a lot and its pretty dark below 15m.
Other than that, there is the choice of kayak to consider - stick with sit on top rather than sit in. You have the safety of an inherently better bouyancy if it inverts (it happens to the best of us). depending on the conditions you intend to dive in, you should be able to find a yak that suits. The longer (over 12') yaks tend to paddle faster and will also have bigger tankwells and storage space so if you are heading far out they may be a better choice. Mine is a 12' and works brilliantly for 1km trips.
When you are used to the yak and want to use it as a platform to dive, for your first trip out, I'd recommend not diving but setting up as if you were actually going to dive, bring all your gear etc and paddle around to get used to the balance of the kayak with the equipment - chuck your stuff in the water, don and doff and do it all without the worry of actually having to do a dive while trying out the setup for the first time.
Happy yaking!
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wetbehindthegears
Registered
Kayak diving is great ...especially with a buddy
my friend and I both have the same style of sea kayak, we paddle out, anchor and then join the boats together using using our paddles under the deck gear attachment points ( we built our own boats) the boat end up being like a catamaran with the hulls about 4 feet apart. We use a piece of poly tarp with grommets and bungess to span the 4' X 6' area created by the paddles. ..with the two hull stability it is pretty easy to get in and out of the water, and we can toss gear into the tarped area until we can stow it.
when diving solo I use two " paddle floats" to stabilize the yak while I gear up or down
my friend and I both have the same style of sea kayak, we paddle out, anchor and then join the boats together using using our paddles under the deck gear attachment points ( we built our own boats) the boat end up being like a catamaran with the hulls about 4 feet apart. We use a piece of poly tarp with grommets and bungess to span the 4' X 6' area created by the paddles. ..with the two hull stability it is pretty easy to get in and out of the water, and we can toss gear into the tarped area until we can stow it.
when diving solo I use two " paddle floats" to stabilize the yak while I gear up or down
cmburch
Contributor
I also use a paddle float for stabilizing boarding and sometimes disembarking. It is a small float that goes on the end of the paddle. They are available in the safety section of most kayak sites.
Bulkheads:
I got a large enough scrap marine grade plywood from Pygmy Kayaks. I used a piece of thick art paper (construction paper or thin cardboard, etc) to make a template of opening. I marked the plywood and cut it out with a saw then shape to fit with an electric sander. I used special epoxy for wood boats. I have also used marine grade silicon glue from West Marine.
I have not done my sit-on-top. If a sheet of the same plastic (ABS?) was available, I would put one behind the seat and use the marine grade silicon glue. If enclosing for both front and rear hatches, a bulkhead drain hole with rubber or silicon plug/stopper would be needed to drain water from seating area.
I have also installed bulkhead access ports I got from Chesapeake Light Craft.
CLC has some foam bulkheads and they sell precut bulkheads for their boats. I have a Pygmy Osprey and a CLC 2 seater canoe/kayak.
REI use to have nice yellow kayak flotation bags.
Bulkheads:
I got a large enough scrap marine grade plywood from Pygmy Kayaks. I used a piece of thick art paper (construction paper or thin cardboard, etc) to make a template of opening. I marked the plywood and cut it out with a saw then shape to fit with an electric sander. I used special epoxy for wood boats. I have also used marine grade silicon glue from West Marine.
I have not done my sit-on-top. If a sheet of the same plastic (ABS?) was available, I would put one behind the seat and use the marine grade silicon glue. If enclosing for both front and rear hatches, a bulkhead drain hole with rubber or silicon plug/stopper would be needed to drain water from seating area.
I have also installed bulkhead access ports I got from Chesapeake Light Craft.
CLC has some foam bulkheads and they sell precut bulkheads for their boats. I have a Pygmy Osprey and a CLC 2 seater canoe/kayak.
REI use to have nice yellow kayak flotation bags.
The Kraken
He Who Glows in the Dark Waters (ADVISOR)
ScubaBoard Supporter
Scuba Instructor
Divemaster
"Are Kayaks Dangerous?"
YES !!! They attack without warning and their bites are toxic!!!
Sorry, just one of those moments . . . .
No, they're not . . . just some learning curve issues in handling them and their limitations and capabilities.
the K
YES !!! They attack without warning and their bites are toxic!!!
Sorry, just one of those moments . . . .
No, they're not . . . just some learning curve issues in handling them and their limitations and capabilities.
the K
I did not realize many people were scuba diving from a sit in kayak, yes, I could see the need for a bulkhead, it might be difficult to install then into a sit on kayak especially if you have rudder cables or need access to the interior for repairs and mods and such but maybe it could be done, never thought about that. Thanks for the info on the paddle floats. N
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