Berkley yak fishing net

Author: JayPenfold

Category: Gear reviews

Created on Sunday, 04 December 2011 08:30

Written by Jay Penfold

To my mind there is only one kind of landing net for any fisherman to use and that is one with a rubber or silicone bag to land the fish in. There are two good reasons not to use a conventional knotted or woven landing net: one, knots damage the precious mucous layer and scales that keeps the fish hydrated and in good condition when released; two, tangled trebles, jigheads, and dorsal spines, making the job of removing both fish and or lure an absolute chore, sometimes needing the cutting of the net to safely either release a fish or make the kill for the ice box. Berkley have come the aid with a net of yak sized proportions. It's incredibly light. It feels like a carbon fibre weight tennis raquet in the hand, and is furnished with a quick release clip on a decent length of bungy cord. Designed for kayak fishermen, it has a great non slip EVA handle and a wide enough mouth to take Bass, Bream, Jacks, Trevalley and even soapy Jewfish.

My only consideration for this great piece of kit is the depth of the bag. Whilst it may be great for Bream and Bass anglers (and it is an awesome tool for yak tourney breaming/bassing) the bag could be made twice as deep for it to be useful for, lets say, a 50cm+ flathead. I attempted to land a 45cm model (admittedly a little too green but it had inhaled the plastic and was sawing fast through the leader material) and found it jumping out a few times and needing to be recaptured. Having said that, I did manage to very successfully bag a 2.3kg/58cm GT in it without a hitch, a 25cm Jack that just wouldn't let go of the catch and release friendly mesh even when shaken about. I really adore this net. I recently carted my kayak 1.5km to the river and realized I had inadvertently left it home. So I dragged the yak back another 1.5km and back again because I chose not to fish without it.

Pros: Very lightweight and ergonomic. EVA non slip grip. Short kayak friendly handle. Small and easy to stow. Tangle free/fish friendly. Fast clip for leashing. Great build quality. Red anodised aluminium hoop looks smart (and matches my Hibiscus Revo.)

Cons: bag depth

Conclusion: This landing net will suit bream and bass (and most estuary kayak fisherpersons) extremely well. It won't be an option offshore for snapper (there are larger models available for that), but is an excellent lightweight net that I don't think will ever let you down. A deeper bag would give the angler less of a necessity to gaff/lose larger fish and allow much easier catch and release for larger specimens.