Ocean kayak sea anchor

Author: josh

Category: Gear reviews

Created on Monday, 17 October 2011 17:43

Written by Josh

For quite some time now I have been using a Hobie sea anchor (or drogue, or drift chute or sock as they are otherwise known) whenever I've felt a need to reduce drifting speeds when kayak fishing, which is something I'll often do if I decide to bottom-bash the depths while the wind is blowing. For the most part this hasn't been something I've typically done while using the boat in full trimaran mode (in which case I will usually troll), but more often when using the yak as an outrigger. What I discovered recently while yak fishing from the trimaran in 20+ knot winds was that the Hobie drogue just doesn't have enough stopping power for a boat that size in those conditions... so I started looking around for something that did.

It came as no great surprise to me to learn that the Ocean kayak model was more effective because it is roughly twice the size. It's also more than twice the price (so its all relative) but I was happy to spend extra for a more effective solution. Although I haven't been able to compare in the exact same conditions, I have tried out the larger Ocean kayak model in similar conditions and it was certainly more effective. Supplied in it's own mesh bag for storage, the Ocean kayak drogue uses a sliding bridle to help prevent collpase and like the Hobie one, also incorporates a float to keep it up near the surface. Those of you looking for greater stopping power from a drogue might do well to take a closer look at one of these. Read more about it at Yakattack New Zealand