How to Plan the Perfect Kayak Fishing Trip: Gear, Safety, and Location Tips

There is nothing quite as great as a well-planned fishing trip. Hours on the water, the tug of the fish, and potentially a great meal afterwards create what might just be the perfect day. But to pull off a successful kayak fishing trip, some preparations need to be made. This starts with getting the right kayak for the trip before you gather the essential equipment, like rods and tackle, to bring on board. From there, and arguably the biggest challenge of them all, you’ll need to find some fish! Stay tuned as we parse the best kayak, the best equipment, and the best ways to find fish to help you plan for successful days on the water.

Selecting the Right Kayak for Your Fishing Trip

While you can fish from all kayaks, kayaks designed for fishing provide much more comfort and accessibility when it comes to getting your line out there. The best fishing kayak is usually designed with some bells and whistles to help manage your equipment and put you in the best place to succeed. Here are some things to keep in mind when looking at fishing kayaks.

Sit On Top vs Sit In Kayaks

A huge demarcation in kayaks comes from how you sit on the boat. The traditional style of kayak is usually a sit-in style where you’re positioned inside the cavity of the kayak, which sits you at about water level. This style can be a bit cramped for casting and often doesn’t give you the best vantage point to see nearby fish in the water. 

Meanwhile, sit-on-top kayaks give enhanced mobility for fishing on them. Being on top of the kayak removes cramping walls that can affect arm mobility and casting potential. Plus, sitting farther above the water provides a much better angle for spotting nearby fish giving you the opportunity to directly cast to them and hoping they take. 

Stability, Comfort, and Storage Considerations

Regular kayaks are great for navigating the water, but they often lack much substance besides cruising through the water. Fishing kayaks understand the experience they are a part of. The best kayaks for fishing will be quiet and stable, allowing you to carefully approach fishy locations without spooking the inhabitants. Fishing kayaks will have more room for comfort aboard; sitting above the water gives you more space to breathe. And arguably the most important piece, fishing kayaks will have designated spaces to hold rods, nets, tackle, and other equipment to keep it secured, but out of the way as you navigate the waters. 

Kayak Modifications for Fishing

What’s more, many fishing kayaks have additional modifications that can be made to further enhance your fishing experience. This includes smaller things like additional rod holders to allow you to carry your entire arsenal on the water. This also includes larger things like attaching a small motor to the back or hooking up/mounting some fancy fish-finding electronics or GPS to further enhance your kayak fishing experience.

Essential Gear for a Successful Kayak Fishing Adventure

Must Have Fishing Equipment

While having the fanciest equipment won’t immediately catch you more fish, having the essential equipment for fishing will definitely enable you to do your best. This starts with the obvious with having an appropriate rod and reel for the occasion. Depending on what fish species you’re targeting, you may want to scale your rod size up or down to fit the setting. Besides a rod/reel combo, having a tackle box is also essential. Within this box, you should have extra of the tackle you use as well as some variety in tackle in case the fish aren’t biting the first thing you throw in. Other equipment that can aid on a fishing trip includes a net and GPS/other electronics to enhance your knowledge of the water around you. And this equipment can just be your phone with the all-inclusive Omnia Pro Fishing app.

Safety Gear You Shouldn’t Forget

While you may have all the fish gear you need for a day on the water, don’t forget about yourself. Things happen on the water and you should always be prepared for the worst case scenario. Life jackets while on a kayak are huge; it’s easy to toss one on early in the day and forget you even have one. This simple action can be the deciding factor on if you get to go home after your trip. Emergency whistles are cheap, light, and easy to bring should you need to draw attention to yourself. What’s more, having a light/emergency flag pole attached to your kayak can do wonders by making your boat more visible for others around you, which can be huge in an emergency or during low visibility conditions

Choosing the Best Fishing Locations

Once prepared with a kayak and the various equipment for yourself and the fish, finding the fish becomes the next challenge. These days, finding fish has likely never been easier thanks to products like the Omnia Pro Fishing app that gives all new insight into rivers and lakes.

Researching Local Lakes, Rivers, and Coasts for Kayak Fishing

Finding the right place to fish takes some research. Omnia Pro is a one-stop-shop for all the information you could need to find a new spot to cast. Most waters have fish, that isn’t necessarily the issue, but finding if you can legally kayak fish certain water, where you can launch your kayak to access certain waters, as well as specific local regulations on what you can fish with/keep are all important information to collect prior to setting out for the day. Omnia Pro consolidates all this information into one platform to streamline your research. 

Targeting Active Fish Species in Your Chosen Location

Part of the joy of fishing is targeting certain species or finding just the right type of fish for the day. Omnia Pro does a great job of collecting information for what species are in the most abundance for any given body of water by collecting user submissions. Omnia Pro doesn’t stop there; the app also goes into the details on what specific lures/approaches are proving to be the most productive on the water by the people that fish there most. Never has it been so easy to know exactly what to tie on to get at the fish below you. 

Using Omnia Pro App for Lake Maps, Depth Charts, and Waypoints

While you may know what fish are in the water and what bait they like to take, that still doesn’t mean you’ll actually catch anything. Within a body of water there are still certain hotspots where fish will tend to congregate. The Omnia Pro app is the premier service at providing these hot spots to you! With their lake maps, depth charts, and waypoints, you can directly go straight to points of high interest for fish and immediately get your bait next to something you want. There is a science to where fish go, where they feel most comfortable feeding. Omnia Pro uses that against them to help you catch more fish!

Final Trip Preparation Tips

Organize Your Gear for Quick Access on the Water

Being organized in your fishing tackle ensures that all rods are ready to go and that the perfect lure is a quick grab away. This gets you on the water faster and provides a far more enjoyable experience over all. 

Testing Your Kayak Setup Before a Trip

What kayak setup might work in your head may not actually be the optimal way for you to go forward. Try setting up your kayak with all the various equipment on board to see if you’re going to be cramped. Can you sit comfortably on the kayak for long periods of time with all your gear? Can you successfully cast? Can you paddle the kayak without bumping on board equipment? These are good things to iron out before your next trip on the water.

Timing and Techniques for Maximizing Your Kayak Fishing Day

For optimizing your kayak fishing day, Omnia Pro is just what you need. From information like the time of day to go to the type of lure being used, Omnia has just the information you need to get your lure in front of more hungry fish, which in turn, will put more fish in your net. Stop aimlessly casting around the water hoping to get lucky and instead narrow your approach to the fishiest spots on the lake. Sooner rather than later you’ll have a big fish hooked up thanks to Omnia Pro.