Whilst out this week in the Sound, and it being very quiet, it was frustrating to get hit on a few ocasions, for no hook up. It got me thinking about the lessons learnt last year, especially when trolling Hardbody lures.

Most, if not all off the shelf HB's are designed for trolling behind a boat at a fair rate of knots, say between 5-10knots, and usually have standard galvanised or tinned hooks. I find that these hooks aren't that sharp, and have average hook penetration, especially when used out of there designed parameters trolling at super slow speed on kayaks. This is when the not-so-sharp hook points begin to let you down.

On a boat, at a decent trolling speed, the forward momentum contributed greatly to a solid hook up, something lacking at the 1-2knots i usually troll at on the yak. So as a result, last year i went to chemically sharpened hooks, resulting in more strikes converted to solid hook ups, and also if chosen correctly, a much stronger hook, that can withstand the shell crunching vice like jaws of snapper.

 

The timing of Josh's blog on the 'bung to ram' Balls of Steel mounts was quite fortuitous, as i have recently purchased a Hummingbird 798cxi side imaging Sounder for my kayak, and have been looking at a way to mount the Transducer externally, that can be easily moved from yak to yak, ie from my Adventure to my Revolution, and even to the shops Pro Angler when I can pinch that.

When at the ABT event in Walpole, Scott Lovig showed me the RAM Bung Ball they were usng for fitting the SI sounders to their loaner Pro Anglers, and i was sold instantly, and on the phone to him within a few days ordering one. So now i had the sounder, it was time to adapt it to the Adventure and Revolution.

I first used a series of short extenders and mounted the transducer to a standard deck ball mount at the bottom, this worked fine, but presented a few problems, in potentialy a large amount of drag, and being a weed magnet, something that will need to be minimised as will always be a problem on an externally mounted Transducer.

 

Day 1-1.5, Thursday, Friday.

What a day, blinder at work so i could finish in time to get to Sailpower and pick up the ProAngler, and some extra stuff for Grant. He was also busy, and tied up with customer whilst trying to hit the road. I finally get home, packed and on the road by 4.30ish.

The Triton has a PA on the roof, and some weight in the back, yet still manages a decent pace, admittedly sucking fuel like teenage binge drinkers. The drive was awesome once you got past Manjimup! Windy road through incredible forrest, and the rejuvinating smell, clear fresh air! So by the time i hit Walpole, just on 9pm, i was pumped!
Grant, his wife Leanne and their young girls Lucy and Molly had just beaten me and already was at the chalet, overlooking the Walpole Inlet. On arrival i was also greeted by Greg Lewis, who had a few cold beers, and we all got chatting whilst unpacking the car. The other Hobie Team guys had just arrived that evening, with Scott Lovig and Scott Baker driving down from Perth, and Steve Fields flying into Albany.

I have tried to make change and variety an important part of my Kayak Fishing since getting into the sport, trying new things, tactics, spots, even different Kayaks, which i must admit is hard, after falling for the lure of the Dark Side. These days my harem consists of an Adventure, Revolution, Stealth Supalight and most recently, Hobie Adventure Island. In many ways, Josh is responsible for getting me into one of these beasts, reading his posts and stories has really opened my eyes to their capabilities, and potential on the West Coast. As soon as it became financially responsible to do so, i ordered mine, and the rest, as they say, will be history!

Being a West Australian Kayak Fisher, it's hard to be inspired by those over here, as we are so few in number, and are really mostly on the same page as far as abilities, and experience. The sport is really in it's infancy, and i've found myself looking to the East Coast for inspiration, and the challenging push of their spectacular catches and trips. I guess my first insight into this was travelling to Mooloolabah for the ABT competition over there last year, where i was warmly welcomed by fellow blogger Stuart "Dunebuggy" Whitehouse, who picked me up, and accompanied me for my weekend there. I also met Josh on the day, and we had a great chat, and our friendship was born. Seeing how big things were over east really gave me the drive to try to inspire, and drive the guys in the West to the same level, and encourage the growth of the sport through the Yakfishwest Forums, and my Western Angler writings. I guess in a sense, this blog will be my way of bringing the WA community into the Yakass mix, and i thank Josh for the oppurtunity.

So the AI, now i bit my nails for a month waiting for this to arrive, and read and read, watched every video i could on them sailing, and planned how to set her up. An important part of the fitout design, was to be able to use it as a plain Adventure, without having to change anything, or modify the setup. I looked at the different mounting systems available for rods, sounders and cameras, and settled on the RAM mounts, ordering a fortune in different parts, making sure i had all i needed. I also got a truckload of Hobie accesories from my sponsor, which was very generous! This meant by the time the AI arrived, i had the setup fully planned, and all the parts to do so. Still i decided to take her for a shake-down trip, with only the main rod holders fitted, just to make sure it all looked good, and i was certain things were going in the right places. I had sailed AI's a bit before, taking the shop ones for a thrash every now and then, but to own one, was a buzz.