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3. Rod failure?

I was fishing this evening on the Delaware in my kayak for smallies, casting a popper with my Sage z 5 wt when the rod broke about 8 inches down from the rod tip. Wierd!! Never seen that before , seemingly from casting. Seems like due to rod failure? I’ve had the rod about 5-6 yrs, used it a lot , probably have casted it 10000 times. Is this possible?

Adirman,



In the world of fly fishing anything is possible. How big was the popper? Personally I would never consider throwing a popper larger than a #8 with a #5 line and then only if it was a balsa popper.

Do you ever remember having a bad cast where a streamer, BB, or heavy nymph may have struck the blank in the region it broke? If that happened it might of created a stress riser in the blank that just lay there dormant until you cast the rod another 500, or whatever more casts, and then it broke where the stress crack originated.

"Do you ever remember having a bad cast where a streamer, BB, or heavy nymph may have struck the blank in the region it broke?"

Yep, been there, done that. You hear and feel a sharp "TICK" as the fly ricochets off your rod...and then one hard bend and SNAP! Just like breaking glass tubing for chemistry set-ups - score the glass with a triangular file, put your thumbs on the opposite side and SNAP, break it to whatever length you needed. It works well, if unintentionally, for graphite tubing too...

Jonathon

Nope, no shot on my rig as I was using a Popper on the surface. However, I felt that the cast was bad cuz I was sort of at a bad angle w my kayak on terms of position and casting direction so I was doing 2 things at once which is often not a good thing: casting while righting my kayak w the paddle when it happened. The popper was very wet and had absorbed a bit of water and I feel the weight of the fly when casting plus it got tangled a bit broke the rod. Again, I’ve never seen that before so I don’t know if my theory is correct but if not, I can think of no other explanation at this point 🤔

I'm curious - you drove all the way Monticello to some place on the Delaware to fish for smallmouth. Did you by chance get on 17B and drive south until you came out of NY Route 97? When I lived in NJ a lifetime ago I used to get on Route 97 in Milford and then hook up with 17B north to Monticello and then west on the Quickway (aka Route 17) to Roscoe.

Nope, I turn left past white lake and get on 55 and go to Barryville usually

How do you do there for smallmouth? Are they plentiful? On an average day would you catch a dozen in say four hours? Size? 10" - 14" or larger say 12" - 16"? I over smallmouth after my annual Montana trip. I live eight miles from the Susquehanna and either wade fish or take my jet bass boat out. The surface bit is for some reason just and hour or two in the early morning and after that it is all a streamer or crayfish game. I never fish past 6:00 p.m. so I don't know if the surface bite starts again in the evening. I catch a lot of larger bass, 16" - 19" and at least a dozen 20" from mid July to October. I'll post some pictures on the "Trip" forum as it is easier to put up pictures directly from my folder since Photobucket no longer works.

The smallmouth are abundant there for sure but currently, I’m struggling logistically with fishing for them out of my kayak. Here a few things I’ve encountered and learned about my limitations and issues fishing w the kayak:
1)if you fish alone, you have to stay in the immediAte vicinity of your truck! Initially, my plan was to put in and head upstream then float back to my out in spot and fish. However, that only works if you can paddle through the fast current!! Lol
2)if I just floated downstream from my spot, Same problem arises when trying to head back upstream to my truck
3)because of my limitations in terms of water coverage , I spent more time paddling to reposition and not get too far downstream then I did fishing
4) casting is harder and different in the kayak cuz your sitting lower and closer to the waters surface so double hauling is harder
5) you really need a connector to attach your paddle And rod to the kayak so you don’t lose them in the water if dropped !!
6)you need your flies and equipment easily accessible in the kayak and not down by your feet cuz once your in and floating , they are unreachable if you wanna change flies !!
7)you need a method of casting in which the fly gets down quickly cu your floating downstream; if it takes too long to sink, your never in the strike zone during your drift.

Any advice , input would be great!!

Thanks 😊

"3)because of my limitations in terms of water coverage , I spent more time paddling to reposition and not get too far downstream then I did fishing"

An anchor, my friend!! They make smaller ones for kayaks, but those work best on lakes and ponds. I would go for a light boat anchor if you are dealing with significant currents. It might take some figuring out has to how to deploy, tie off, and store it, but it will save you much paddling time and therefore, you get more fishing time. Just be careful not to get it stuck under a log in fast current! A friend of mine recommends making an anchor out of heavy chain - won't snag on logs.

"1)if you fish alone, you have to stay in the immediAte vicinity of your truck! Initially, my plan was to put in and head upstream then float back to my out in spot and fish. However, that only works if you can paddle through the fast current!! Lol
2)if I just floated downstream from my spot, Same problem arises when trying to head back upstream to my truck"

WHEELS!! They make wheeled carts for kayaks, strap your boat on with bungi cords. Reid Lake is a mile each way in and out, couldn't do it without wheels! Plan right and you will either float down right to your car, or a trail upon which you can pull the kayak back to the car on wheels...again, makes life much easier!

"5) you really need a connector to attach your paddle And rod to the kayak so you don’t lose them in the water if dropped !!"

Um...yes. I realized this before I took my little boat out on Lake Superior, where losing your paddle means DEATH. And fishing over 25 feet of water in Reid Lake. A paddle tether will also allow you to toss the paddle aside and out of the way while you fight a fish. Another thing you DON'T need your line tangling around!

"6)you need your flies and equipment easily accessible in the kayak and not down by your feet cuz once your in and floating , they are unreachable if you wanna change flies !!"

Use your life vest as a fishing vest! Keep the things you use most often - camera, insect repellent, fly floatant, leaders/tippet, nippers/hemos, and favorite flies in the pockets where they are always handy. And ALWAYS WEAR YOUR PFD!!! We don't need any Trounuts drowning on us out there.

"7)you need a method of casting in which the fly gets down quickly cu your floating downstream; if it takes too long to sink, your never in the strike zone during your drift."

Unless I am dry flying, all flies I throw from my kayak are weighted, either with bead chain, dumbells, or wire body weight. If I am using the kayak it is too deep to wade, and if it's too deep to wade, the flies are gonna need weight to get down.

I hope all of this helps! Get the kayak fishing thing down and you will find it is the absolute bomb! I have caught tens of thousands of fish in it since I got it in 2000. Easily transportable (you can get into waters otherwise unavailable) and stealthy. I can't tell you how many times I've had trout smack flies right next to my boat!

Tight lines and get those accessories, you'll have more fun next time.

Jonathon

kayaks, point A to pt. B...

A different take on the 'yak thing but an acquaintance uses his sit-on kayak as river transportation and doesn't fish from it (out of it?) all that often. He's drifted a lot of streams and rivers and when he finds fishy-looking water he'll simply paddle to wading depths, drop anchor or beach it, and fish by wading. Bob can cover a fair amount of water in a day and recently drifted the Hodenpyl stretch between Tippy and Hodenpyl dams on the Big 'Man, something I've always wanted to do but never made the time...a piece of water noted for its impressive Browns and streamer fishing.
side note, I've got 16 months to tough out before being retired enough to fish as much as I want to, and its going by slowly...very, very slowly.

2 hours on the upper Rogue this morning- wading by 6:15 or so; I wanted to beat the heat and had fun with my 4 wt and some tan Caddis' in 16 and 18.

Roguerat

'Less is more...'

Ludwig Mies Vande Rohe

>>An anchor, my friend!! They make smaller ones for kayaks, but those work best on lakes and ponds. I would go for a light boat anchor if you are dealing with significant currents. It might take some figuring out has to how to deploy, tie off, and store it, but it will save you much paddling time and therefore, you get more fishing time. Just be careful not to get it stuck under a log in fast current! A friend of mine recommends making an anchor out of heavy chain - won't snag on logs.>>

I have a 3 lb. folding grappel anchor I use in my NRS inflatable kayak. I got it at Dick's for like 12 bucks. It'll hold me anywhere I really care to anchor and it's light and fits easily into a mesh bag I keep in my milk crate behind my seat in the yak.

I also found a sort of home made system online that keeps me from getting the anchor stuck on the bottom and allows me to use 1/4 inch nylon rope which is a hell of a lot lighter than chain. It's pretty clever and involves reversing the direction you are pulling on the anchor. Rather than explain it, here is a link to the YouTube where I got it.

When I post links here, they are almost never live. I guess I really don't know how to do it right. Anyway, you'll have to copy/paste the url to get it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7_7C1aj92U

RleeP wrote;



I use various lengths of zinc plated 1/4" link chain for drift anchors on my 16' bass boat. I use 2', 3', and 4' depending on the depth and speed of the current and how slowly I want to drift.

If you use a typical boat anchor it is always prudent to bring along a sharp knife in case the anchor gets stuck in deeper water than you care to venture into so you can cut the line. I always bring an extra anchor and 50' of 3/8" anchor line with me in both the drift boat and bass boat.

Anchors are more expensive than I think they are worth. I found a neat alternative to buying a traditional boat anchor. I go to Walmart and buy various sized kettle weights (the kind physical fitness people exercise with) I buy them in weights from 5# to 20#. They cost less than mushroom or cleat anchors and are virtually impossible to get stuck under a rock.

This is GREAT advice Johnathon and Rleep, thanks!! Johnathon: do you have 1 of those carts you mentioned? I’m gonna look into it. I guess I would park then put my kayak in the cart and walk up the road upstream a ways and put in then go back for the cart after right?
So you called it a paddle tether to hold the paddle onto the kayak right? Is there anything to attach the rod also to the craft just in case you drop it?
Ok the anchor I’m gonna have to invest in too so I’m fishing more than I’m repositioning !! What kind do you use ?

Thanks again 😊

David

"So you called it a paddle tether to hold the paddle onto the kayak right? Is there anything to attach the rod also to the craft just in case you drop it?"

I make a tether out of old cord or something to attach my rod to my life vest, so if I do drop it overboard I can retrieve it. You will need a tether for your net too!

More later, eating lunch between classes...

Jonathon

>>Ok the anchor I’m gonna have to invest in too so I’m fishing more than I’m repositioning !! What kind do you use ? >>

David: The anchor I use is branded "Yakgear". It's 3 lb. and looks like this (except this picture is the 1.5 lb, the 3 lb. version is better...):
https://yakgear.com/product/1lb-grapnel-anchor-kit/

If you go this way, you should be able to get it at Dick's or even Wal-Mart for 10-15 bucks. Be sure you get one with a removable clevis pin if you plan to do the zip tie anchor retrieval thing I posted in the you tube yesterday. You'll need to take the pin off the top hole and install it on the bottom. Takes 30 seconds..

David, here's a page full of kayak wheels for you to choose from. Hope you find something that works for you and your budget.

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=kayak+wheels&tag=mh0b-20&index=aps&hvadid=78615134460562&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_4h6ha5yny3_e

Jonathon

P.S. Mine cost $100 - but I got them for free. My boss bought them and let me borrow them, he never used them. I talked him into giving them to me after a particularly productive week at work (employee of the week!) so that was my reward! I will try to send you a pic of my boat mounted on them in a few days so you can see what the whole thing looks like.

P.P.S. I had to figure all of this stuff out too when I first got my kayak. Another thing I always bring is a towel for my lap. Because, I am constantly setting the paddle in the water to be out of my way when casting etc., and then when I pick it up to paddle it drips all over my crotch! A towel also covers your legs when the skeeters start getting thick.

Sounds great , thanks guys 😊

I made Jonathon's link live.

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=kayak+wheels&tag=mh0b-20&index=aps&hvadid=78615134460562&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_4h6ha5yny3_e

Thanks, Matt.

David, I put a couple of pics of my kayak rig on wheels in my latest post.

Jonathon

Great thanks Johnathon 👍