I finally hit the saltwater in my kayak! I departed from the Orange Street beach access in Panama City Beach, FL. There are two boardwalks to the beach. One is a ramp and the other one has some stairs. I got there pretty late in the day and had to take the stairs. Getting to the water wasn't so bad but getting back to the car wore me out. After pulling the kayak up some stairs I had to sit down and rest for a full 15 minutes before I could continue. Thankfully, I already built a PVC cart following the instructions from Palmetto Kayak Fishing. That made life a lot easier. A kayak cart of some sort is absolutely essential.

Besides the PVC kayak cart, I'm glad I brought a hat, sunglasses, and a Hoo Rag. They kept my head and neck protected from the sun without having to use sunscreen. Bringing a waterproof phone case was awesome too. I got a few pictures as well as a blurry video of dolphins. 

As for fishing, I ended up taking one fishing pole and using a DOA Shrimp. I've seen the DOA recommended a lot for beginners so I gave it a shot. I also bought some frozen shrimp to fish off the bottom. One problem with that was I left them in the car! Thankfully they weren't stinking when I got back. So I fished the DOA for a bit but had no bites whatsoever. I didn't get fish on my first trip but I did see dolphins and a sea turtle. It was pretty wild to have a pod of dolphins 15 feet away from me. I can't wait to get out there again. I'm working on an anchor trolley, anchor float, and researching saltwater fishing techniques in the meantime.

My first kayak is a Perception Pescador 12 Sport from Academy. It looks like the one pictured with the addition of 2 fishing rod holders behind the seat. It was around $549. Now don't let the Big Box store name fool you because this is one of the best kayaks you can get for the money. There is a cheaper Pescador 12 from Academy for $499. I believe it's the same kayak with only 1 fishing rod holder instead of 2. I will readily admit the only reason I chose the more expensive model was because of the color.

Why The Pescador 12 is the Best Bang for the Buck
The Pescador 12 is a rebranded 2008 Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120. The Tarpon 120 is a popular kayak that costs close to double the Pescador 12. My understanding is that Perception and Wilderness Systems are part of the same company and share kayak molds or Perception has purchased the old molds from Wilderness Systems. Either way you are getting a top of the line 2008 model kayak for around $500.

Big Box vs Local Resellers
Initially, I expected to find a reseller close to the beach to rent or demo a kayak before purchasing. They gave me a lot of misinformation like the Pescadors were "junky" and "Made in China". The Perception brand of kayaks have been made in South Carolina for 25 years according to their website. Also, the cost to rent a kayak for a day was 1/5 the cost of the perception. With all that in mind, I decided to take a chance and buy one from Academy without trying. So far, I do not regret that decision.

How I Made My Choice
Salt Water Fishing
My ultimate goal is to salt water fish. The bigger the kayak the better when going into the ocean. All recommendations I've seen listed 12' as the minimum kayak size for ocean fishing. I will go on lakes as well and maybe even a few river trips but that is all secondary to hitting the salt. A longer kayak may be a bit better but I will also be rolling solo and have to take into account loading and unloading. I've found the Pescador to be almost to big to handle alone and I'm glad I didn't get anything bigger.

Price
I'm a complete newbie and I'm not particularly rich. I understand that there is a minutely remote chance I end up trying kayaking and then giving it up. I also have no idea what I'm doing. With some experience I can make a better, more informed choice on my next kayak purchase. With that in mind I wanted something a little cheaper I wouldn't feel bad abandoning. I'm also in a position where none of my buddies kayak at all. That means when I upgrade to something fancy (Hobie!) I will have a spare, quality kayak to loan to friends and family.

Quality
I don't consider myself a stingy person but I do spend a little extra time trying to find the best deal for big ticket items. With that said, I don't want to rely on a cheap piece of junk when I'm in the ocean. I would gladly spend double the cost of the pescador if I thought it wasn't a quality item.

I took my new kayak out to a local lake to get used to it as I've never been in one. I initially planned on practicing re-entry but it was too late in the day when I arrived. 

I was surprised at how wobbly it was when I first got in. I had to work some some unused stabilizer muscles before I got used to it after a few minutes. I was also surprised at how slow it was to paddle across the lake. I only got to throw the hook in a few times but did end up catching a nice little blue gill. The poor guy swallowed the hook but I think I was able to remove it without causing much damage.  

My biggest take away from the trip was that I need a stake-out pole. I kept getting blown away while fishing the shoreline. If you dont know, a stake-out pole is basically a stick of some sort you can push through your kayak's scupper holes into the ground to stay in place. I'll DIY that somehow. My initial thought was just a piece of PVC cut at 45 degrees but that may not be strong enough. I'll post up some details when I get something worked out.

I ordered all my items from Amazon. What this means is that my Q Towers and Q Clips were ordered separately. They were not one system as shown in the picture above.



Roof Rack Parts Explained
Q Towers
If you have a naked roof then this is a requirement. It is a universal fit so you don't have to worry about getting the right one. These are simply the 4 base units that sit on top of your car. The custom fit is achieved by finding the right Q-Clips for your car using Yakima's Car Fit Guide. The Q-Clips do not come with the Q Towers unless you order the "Q Towers 4 Pack System" pictured above from Yakima. 

Q-Clips
Q-Clips are little pieces of metal that are custom designed for your car body. They insert into the Q-Towers and press against the body of your car. A Vinyl Sticker is included to prevent it from scratching. 

48" Crossbar Pair
These are simply 2 48" round bars that connect into the Q-Towers. Oddly enough they don't come with end caps. The end caps are included in the Q-Towers box.

Hully Rollers
These are a set of 2 rollers that are meant to be installed on the rear bar of your roof rack. They make it easier to load up a kayak by yourself. They also come with a cam strap and stern tie-down.

Mako Saddles
These are a set of 2 saddles that are meant to fit the body of your kayak for a better hold. They come with a cam strap and a bow tie-down. They also come with felt stickers to protect your kayak from scratches and make it a bit easier to slide into place.

I will go over the installation procedure and how to load the kayak in my next post. All in all I'm pretty happy with my purchase and can fully recommend it.

I will be fishing in the hot sun so a quick-drying PFD with some kind of mesh and lots of pockets is a must. I have a young daughter and REI recommended a PFD with a pull handle to pull the child to safety. A padded head support and crotch strap was also recommended. I thought that was interesting and not something I would normally think about. Check out the PFDs for Children section for more information.

A Float Plan
A float plan should be filled out and given to someone dependable in case things dont go as expected. This should have details like your kayak's physical details, where you plan to go and when you plan to return, what type of safety equipment you have, and your personal information. I found this float plan online.

Waterproof First Aid Kit
This is pretty standard fare so there's not much to discuss. I decided to go with an Adventure Medical Kit Ultralight and Watertight .7 from Amazon. 

Signal Mirror
A signal mirror is mandatory to be able to alert people if you are in trouble. I plan on using an old CD initially to see how it holds up. I'll replace it with a proper mirror if I dont think it's up to snuff.

Safety Whistle
It is a requirement to have some sort of audible alarm when out on the water. I decided on this whistle from Amazon. Yes, I pretty much buy everything from Amazon if you haven't noticed.

Bilge Pump
I don't see a Bilge Pump mentioned in a lot of the reading I do. The inside of your kayak is water tight and the top of it will drain through scupper holes. Still, I'd rather be safe instead of sorry. I decided on a Seattle Sports Paddlers Bilge Pump 

Compass
I don't plan on going out so far I cant see the coast, but still, you never know how things will go. A compass is small enough that it's a no-brainer to throw one in your bag. I picked up a small one years ago and plan on making it part of my standard yak kit.

Knife
Who doesn't need a knife? I personally love my Leatherman Skeletool for everyday carry. I did get a giant Bear Grylls knife for Christmas that I haven't used. I guess it will go with me on the yak.

Pool Noodles
I read somewhere that it's a good idea to stick pool noodles inside your kayak in case your boat gets flooded. I'm still not sure if it's necessary or not. I plan on practicing deep-water reentry when I get my yak so I will use that time to try and sink my boat. I may or may not get Pool Noodles depending on how that goes.

Leashes (for everything)
If all my research has taught me anything it's 

1. Always wear your PFD 
2. If you want to keep it then leash it

I found 2 great videos by Glenn Madden on how to make your own leashes. I'm hoping to save a bit of money by going the DIY route. The first video shows how to make it and the 2nd video shows improvements to his technique. I recommend watching them both in full

Bungees, Anchor, Drift Sock
I plan on getting generic bungees initially. I'm not sure about what exactly a quality bungee is so I'm going cheap and learning the hard way. 

An anchor and drift sock will be in my future but I'm waiting to get more experience under my belt before I worry about them.

Kayak Hangers
I need a way to store my kayak at home. I bought Seattle Sports Kayak Cradles from Amazon. They seem to have good reviews. Hopefully they dont suck.

Armed with my new found knowledge, I went to Panama City Beach last Sunday and picked up the following:

• 7' Rod and Reel combo
• 3oz Pyramid Weights
• Frozen Shrimp
• Circle Hook set
• Fishing License

I went down to St. Andrews Park and fished from the shore and pier with no luck. I tried fishing from the Jettys and immediately got stuck in the rocks. The weather has been quite bad and the water was rather dirty so I'll chock my bad luck to that. I was also using size 2 and 3 circle hooks on a double dropper rig and I think they might have been too big.