Shopping for something to fish in ? Lets look at kayaks and Solo Skiffs
The biggest factor in comparing these craft is…you cant ! Its like comparing apples to grapes to raisins – all of them are good, but much different. This makes it difficult yes.. but not really, please read on.
The quick easy description starts like this: Solo is a kayak with a motor, a fishing kayak is a sit down paddle craft, and a SUP is another paddle craft each one with an array of different features, pros, and cons. Solo Skiff is a hybrid design with some very kayak like features, hence why we call it a fishing kayak on steroids. The fishing kayaks (sit on tops) have no skiff like features other than you fish from them. The biggest factor is the power ! The Solo Skiff is a long range fish stalker that you don’t have to paddle (accept when you stalk fish if you prefer) No paddling when the day is finished, or in the wind, current etc… The difference is huge, believe me. Want hands off fishing ?? Put a trolling motor on it and BAM ! You have the ultimate hands off machine. Fish for bass all day on a charge easily, or snook in the mangroves. The cool thing is you can stand AND move since the trolling motor will do all the work ! Another Solo factor is ability to easily stand up in the boat. Look at the deck. Look at the videos- YOU CAN MOVE AROUND! I am not saying you cannot move on a sit on top kayak but there is a big difference here. The ability to position your feet where you want them and not where the design dictates goes a long way towards comfort and being relaxed moving about. With the cutouts, seats, peddles etc, in fishing kayaks its much harder to move… Like I said you really can’t compare a fishing kayak to a Solo Skiff.. Like I said many times I have fished from yaks a lot, and skiffs… Solo is awesome and what I always wanted. And last but not least there is simply no way to compare an SUP to a Solo Skiff as a fishing vessel, an SUP is cool yes, and easily car topped, but that’s about it. It’s a board you stand on – no storage, no nothing…cool but you cannot compare, and wait till you paddle home in a wind with your body acting as a sail wanting to go in the wrong direction. Or wait till ya step on the edge and boom, over you go with all your gear to follow…. Now lets do another simple comparison
Solo Skiff- Lots of storage, Fishing kayaks have storage, and it is configured in many ways. The Solo Skiff has a LARGE very easy to access storage area, that is very quickly accessed since its under your rear/feet and access takes only a couple of seconds,and you only have to kneel down in an area wide open to do so comfortably -it does not get any easier. SUP- No storage… Solo Skiff, very stable, (watch the videos and take note of weight shifts etc…notice in the fishing videos the stability) – much easier to keep dry – in a Solo Skiff, you are situated such that you stay dryer, much more that a kayak or SUP, although I am not saying you cannot stay dry on and SUP or yak, its just well…you know. The differences will affect how you fish, what you can carry, how comfortable you are, distance you can comfortably travel etc. A fishing kayak can like a Solo Skiff go anywhere as can an SUP so long as the fin/ skeg isn’t dragging. The Solo will float in 3″ of water (with you on it) so draft is a non issue, and you can pull it over a sandbar in an inch of water. The gear issue is awesome in a Solo Skiff due to it’s huge amount of storage. Headed out for a long day ? Put whatever gear you need in the hull, fill up the cooler, and go. You have to look at the Solo in person to appreciate just how much gear you can fit in it AND easily get to.
