# Short Rodders, and top water freaks



## megayak (Jul 13, 2007)

Hi all, just out of curiosity, can anyone give their opinion about altering your tackle to suit a Yak? Not sure why but short rods are buzzing through my brain - I have actually always preffered them for tight water situations, snags and the such, having always fished from a motor driven tinny. Has anyone found that they have changed their tackle style to suit Yak fishing from boat fishing?
I have always loved pushing ultra light tackle to its limits, just wanting to know how much more i can push it now thinking of moving to a Yak.
Any topwater freaks out there? Its gotta be awesome in a Yak, even with limited line of vision???
Cheers MegaYak


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## justcrusin (Oct 1, 2006)

Gday Mega yak,
I use both a six foot and seven foot rod, I do tend to like the seven foot rod better for working lures and sp's but it really is personal preferance. Tryhard is probably the most experanced top water yak fisho on here every one else who does it was pretty much hook by his posts (like me).

I have found the top water in winter is some very tough fishing. But in summer seeing that bow wave take off and swing around heading for your lure really gets the blodd pumping.

Don't be afraid to go really light from the yak its one of the benefits, when fishing near snags i tend to use 8lb because i'm not paitent enough and snap four all the time, but a lot of the guys use 4lb when bream fishing and some go down to 2 lb.

My favorite set up is 8lb braid with 8lb mono leader, on a pflueger 7 foot one piece fast taper medium action rod with a pflueger president 6730 spin reel.

You will find that get lures to walk the dog requires a changed action to the higher boat position which is much easier to do.

Cheers dave


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## Davey G (Jan 15, 2006)

mega- the only downside to a short rod is that it restricts your ability to fight the fish when the fish swims underneath your yak from side to side. what I mean is that you may not be able to reach a short rod around the nose of your yak when you need to change direction on the fish.

My shortest (6'6") rod only just reaches to the nose of my yak with me stretching forward - sometimes if I hook a bigger fish on the right hand side of my yak and I want to land it on the left hand side, I'll need to get the rod and line around the front of the yak - thats difficult to do with a too-short rod.

My preferred length rod is 7 foot - gives good casting ability, enough power and a light tip. However theres plenty of guys that use shorter (down to 5'6" rods) and have no problems.

Ideally - try a few and see what suits.


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## Jeffo (Sep 10, 2006)

I think you can definately fish light from the yak.

Like the other guys I prefer a slightly longer rod (7 ft) for manouvering fish around the yak & also casting distance. because you sit pretty much on the water the extra length allow me to cast a bit further.

The only really short rod I use is for offshore trolling etc. Ugly stick about 5.5 ft in the ocean I find I rarely anchor & can adjust where the yak is easier

Cheers

Jeffo


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## Astro (Nov 27, 2006)

i use 6 foot rods and find them easy to use, never had a problem with fish getting underneath the yak and not being able to get the rod to the otherside....mirage drive helps 

as for casting distance well yes a 7 ft rod will get you further but i find accuracy more important especially on the snags, my 5.6 ft baitcaster with heavy action allows me to really get in amongst it and excells in getting lures under low branches

for top water i use either4 or 6 kg line and with the graphite rod and get a ton if distance but again lure placement is vital

any my $0.02
worth

cheers


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## Peril (Sep 5, 2005)

I'm using 6 and 7 ft rods, with my most recent purchases all being 6ft. Very little difference in casting distance for me and have not had problems reaching to the bow to get a line around - and I'm shorter than Davey (who isn't). Find the shorter rods much easier to handle when you get the fish in close and offer much less risk of high-sticking damage, which is ever present in the confined space of the yak


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## onemorecast (Apr 17, 2006)

When I fish creeks and small rivers like Cowan Creek, Berowra Creek, I take (2) ultra light 5 foot rods with me when I target bream, EPs, whiting or flatties. I go 4 lb line on them, though when I get the time to get back out, I've got some 2 lb to try. The light line makes casting easy, and I find the feel of the fish much more satisfying through such a light outfit.

I won't say this is best way to fish if you want to go lightweight, it's just I grew up fishing for trout in very small creeks, sometimes only a couple metres wide, with lots of low hanging trees where longer rods weren't practical.


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