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Wednesday, 05 December 2007 |
And when one door closes, another one opens
Over the next few days I'll be making some major changes to some of the content in this website - especially in the 'about' and 'FAQ' sections. This is because the coastal kayak fishing journey I set off on several months ago is now officially at an end. There are a few reasons for this, not least of all the fact that I have just recently accepted an offer to take on a position at Hobie Cat Australasia as a customer service and sales representative. It's a job I was more than happy to take on, mainly because I really do have a hell of a lot of faith in the way Hobie kayaks perform (especially as kayak fishing platforms). I don't think this fact has been lost on Hobie Cat (who have obviously been paying some attention) and I guess it makes sense for a company to hire an experienced sales person who truly believes in the product he is selling.
It's early days right now and admittedly, the Hobie factory is a bigger operation than I would have guessed. So for that reason there's a lot for me to get my head around and right now I'm busily learning the ropes in the factory. I figure it'll stay that way until new year at least. Obviously, December is a busy month, so this means I'm helping to load and unload kayaks from containers and trucks quite a bit at the moment. So in some ways, my new favourite Hobie kayaks are actually the smallest and lightest ones. <jedi mind trick>Buy a Lanai, Maui or Sport!</jedi mind trick>
Despite the fact that my journey has come to an end, the yakabout website has not. Things will continue as they have been in some ways. Trip reports will continue to be uploaded frequently, although for the time being at least, will mainly be focused on the NSW south coast region. Of course, I'll still be expressing my views on the subject of the day as well. What will change (aside from the frequency of destination reports and blogs on my travels) will be Hobie product reviews. Although I will still talk about my opinions on Hobie products from time to time, I won't be writing any more reviews on Hobie products. It's just too easy for them to be perceived as being overly biased now and having my integrity questioned is a situation I'd rather avoid.
In the role as a sales rep, I will undoubtedly be traveling around the country from time to time in the future and this will give me the chance to write trip reports on various areas. But for the near future at least, they will be predominantly focused on the NSW south coast region. That's not such a bad thing because it looks oh so fishy around here. And early recon suggests that not only are prize species such as Snapper, Kingies and Tuna well within reach, so to are those illustrious Marlin. And hooking one of those from a kayak has been a fantasy of mine for a year or so. Now it's looking more and more like turning into reality. Marlin by march - yeah baby!  Comments (4) | E-mail | Read more...
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Tuesday, 04 December 2007 |
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Sunstate Hobie honcho and Bass Bash host with the most, Mal Gray, has just uploaded a report on the recent Bass Bash event held at Lake McDonald, which conveniently sits just opposite the Sunstate showroom. His report his heavy on photos (with captions), so if we go along with the notion that a picture tells a 1000 words, this is actually a 24,000 word report! You'll be amazed how quickly you read it! The photo linked below is actually one I snapped off myself, which I took out of both amusement and admiration. Lambs wool comfort, anyone? Speaking of the 2007 Bass bash, I've just updated my previous write up with a rewritten report (my first, longer and more comprehensive draft was lost to a harddrive crash). Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Monday, 03 December 2007 |
Stand up to be countedAs kayakers, there's not a hell of a lot we can do to help save whales from Japanese harpoons. Ramming whaling ships with our humble little kayaks simply isn't an option I guess. But I think I can speak for all kayakers when I say that these glorious creatures deserve a much different fate than out blubber-hungry japanese counterparts seem to be aiming for. No, sadly it seems there isn't a lot that we can do about it, but signing this petition at Whalesrevenge.com is a start.
At the time of writing there are just over 590,000 signatures and the aim is to obtain at least a million. So get on board and add your name to the list. If you ever get a chance to get close enough to one of these magnificent creatures, you'll be glad that you did.
 Tail of a humpback whale Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Thursday, 29 November 2007 |
More like a bass tickle actually... but you get that
After some persistently patchy rain on the Saturday it was a pleasant surprise to wake up to more accommodating sunny skies on the Sunday for the Bass Bash 2007 main events. It's likely that the weather deterred a few people from turning up on Sunday, although there was at least forty participants in attendance. Most of them were there primarily for the fishing competition, others for the afternoon's sailing races and some who participated in both.
Following an early morning briefing session in which tournament rules were explained, a deluge of enthusiastic Hobie kayak fishermen took to the water, peddling in all directions in search of those elusive bass. The tournament rules were designed in such a way to give everyone a chance of winning any one of the available prizes, though in ideal circumstances, anyone who performed well in catching legal sized fish would have a greater chance. Unfortunately circumstances weren't really ideal to facilitate that because unlike the previous year, it appeared as if whatever fish were left in the lake (as in those who didn't swim over the top of the spillway during the recent floods) weren't terribly interested in chomping on lures. In fact, most anglers who participated in last years bass bash managed to catch more fish than everyone put together in the 2007 event.
Intuition told me that this might be the case - I just didn't get that fishy feeling (that I'm learning to put more and more faith in) while I was on the water. Indeed, my intuition served me well because I also got the feeling that if any (2-person) team was going to catch some worthy fish, it would be the dedicated guys Paul and Lee (AKA Nodds and PCsolutionman). Prepared with a suitable assortment of lures and determination to catch fish, they were both among the first to hit the water and were also the last to return. Nodds was actually the only participant to land a legal fish in the form of a 34cm bass, and also caught and released 2 other fish (all fish caught for the day were returned). That being the case, Nodds had twice as much chance in the prize draw. Unfortunately it seemed that his luck had ran out by the time he returned to land because despite the fact that numerous prize winners were drawn, his numbers didn't come up at all.
Despite that ironic turn of events as well as the lack of hungry fish, it's safe to say that fun was had by all. And the lack of hunger presented by fish was made up for the hunger displayed by fishermen. This ravenous appetite was subdued thanks to a BBQ grill courtesy of Trish Gray, who cooked up a storm to greet anglers returning to land. Once the hamburgers were devoured it was then time for the sailing races.
There were two divisions for the sailing events - one for sail equipped kayaks and another for the viagra enhanced Island kayak/catamaran combos. As luck would have it the wind started blowing up just before the races kicked off, although it was fairly erratic in it's direction. This resulted in quite a few laughs for the rest of us spectators, partly because we got to witness a capsize near one of the marker buoys and also because of the method in which the 2nd place getter (Trish) in the Island division managed to cross the finish line, which was backwards. She could have corrected her position to make a more graceful finish although perhaps inspired by the encouragement of the crowd, she instead allowed the wind to push her across the line going backwards. As one of the spectators commented, if not anything else, this proved once and for all that women do indeed know how to go in reverse.
Although it was a little disappointing that the fish didn't come out to play, the frequent cheering and laughing was testimony to the fact that there is a whole lot more to fishing than just catching fish. For me (and for most I suspect) the real highlight of the weekend was just getting together with a bunch of like minded kayak fishermen, sharing stories, strategies and, of course, beers. It was also interesting to note how other anglers had set up their kayaks, which despite all being of the Hobie flavour, demonstrated a lot of unique configurations.
Finally, it also provided me (and any one else curious or adventurous enough) to play around with kayaks they hadn't yet sampled. For me, that was a chance to get busy on the Adventure Island, which proved to be every bit as exhilarating as I anticipated.
This was the first bass bash event that I've had the pleasure of attending and I'll certainly be making every effort to get back for the 2008 event. Hosts Mal and Trish Gray of Sunstate Hobie did a fantastic job of putting this event together and I'm sure everyone who attended would agree. Speaking of the devil (that would be Mal) he's just posted his own brief report on the event, including numerous photos that tell a story all their own. (Click read more to see more images).Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Wednesday, 28 November 2007 |
This looks bad...Just as I was about to click 'save' after completing a full report on the Sunstate Hobie Bass Bash last night the cursor froze momentarily and then the dreaded blue screen 'o death appeared, giving me some uncomprehensible error message that sounded scary. It turned out to be every bit as scary as the message suggested. The computer was unable to reboot and after digging around in the bios I discovered that the hard drive was totally and utterly corrupted. Repairing it is going to be tricky, if not impossible and there's every chance I've lost every piece of data that was stored on it. Fortunately I do back up most of my data regularly, although I did lose the full report and now I have to rewrite it again. Thankfully I uploaded the images first, so they are stored in the database, so I didn't lose any of those.
Currently I'm typing this from an Internet cafe and won't get much chance to do any updates until this notebook is repaired. When I do come back online, however, I will have some interesting news to report, followed by some faily significant changes to both the layout and content of the Yakabout website. Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Saturday, 24 November 2007 |
Ready?
I've made the effort to put in the miles to get back down south to Cooroy for the invitational annual Hobie Bass Bash kayak fishing tournament, which is hosted by Sunstate Hobie. Although I have never caught a bass before and am a little out of practice on my fresh water kayak fishing prowess, I'm hopeful of landing my 1st bass tomorrow. By all accounts they give a mighty account for themselves, so I'm looking forward to it. So to are the particpants that have already rocked up - many of which are currently camping on the other side of the lake.
There's some impressive prizes on offer this year, not least of which is a brand spanking Hobie Adventure kayak. Other prizes include a Navman sounder, a trip for 2 at Teakettle Cottage on tiny Karragarra Island, a bunch of Hobie accessories and more. Aside from the fishing competion there is also going to be a kayak sailing competition, which I reckon will be lots of fun for all who particpate. I think I'll probably sit that one out so I can get a chance to film it (look for that footage tomorrow). Hopefully someone will find a way to tip their yak to give the rest of us a belly full 'o laughs. If the wind tomorrow acts anything like it did today I wont be at all surprised. Especially after a 4 hour fishing session!Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Thursday, 22 November 2007 |
Good advice for Hobie MirageDrive kayak ownersI'd planned on writing up a brief article on basic maintenance for the illustrious MirageDrive for the range of pedal-powered Hobie kayaks but I've just discovered that doing so would be like reinventing the wheel because someone else has already done a pretty good job of it. Copied into the Australian Kayak Fishing Forums wiki by 'Hoit', this information was compiled by US based Hobie affectionardo, 'Roadrunner'. If you are the proud owner of one of the kayaks that use the MirageDrive, you're well advised to read this at least once, if not bookmark it.
It's all about inspection and maintenance and it's pretty much spot on. I'd be inclined to add a few notes on avoiding mishaps, however. A few good pointers to take on board (learned the hard way by yours truly) include taking the drive out for surf landings - especially wherever rocks, reef and rough concrete boat ramps are involved. And although the stainless steel drive chain resists rust extremely well, I'm still pretty vigilant about rinsing it with fresh water after each use and will lubricate it with either WD40 or Innox every couple of weeks (after almost daily use). Other than that, the guide mentioned above pretty much covers it all. Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Sunday, 11 November 2007 |
Sydney to Auckland trans-tasman crossing in a kayak
James Castrission and Justin Jones are a couple of ambitious kayakers that are planning to paddle their custom crafted tandem kayak from Australia to New Zealand in what will be the first ever succesful yak crossing. Providing the weather doesn't present any sudden surprises James and Justin will be launching from Sydney harbour in just a couple of days.
The trip will be journalled at Crossingtheditch.com.au website, which has a lot of interesting information about what they are doing, how they are doing it and the gear they are using to accomplish the journey. It's common knowledge that there's a good reason why a trans-tasman crossing hasn't yet been performed in a kayak: it's a precariously dangerous thing to try and do. Andrew McAuley failed in his bid last year and paid for it with his life. With the advantage of travelling in a pair, it appears as if James and Justin have pretty good credentials as experienced kayakers, however, and their website does demonstrate a high degree of planning and preparation. And the kayak they are using to make the voyage is a pretty impressive looking boat.
I've always harboured dreams of kayaking from the mainland to Tasmania, so I'll be following their adventure closely and paying close attention to any lessons learned. Good luck and godspeed on your adventure guys, my hat goes off to you. Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Friday, 09 November 2007 |
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I just read a fascinating story about a surfer who survived an attack from a great white shark when a pod of dolphins came to his aid and formed a protective perimeter around him. Apparently this isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened either, which I found to be rather intreguing. I find myself wondering why the dolphins would bother trying to save a human, given that dolphin slaughters happen every day. Don't follow that second link unless you have a strong stomach. Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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Friday, 09 November 2007 |
A+ for the Big A Same colour, different yak
It was less than perfect kayaking conditions yesterday at Townsville, which is exactly what I was hoping for to test out the new Hobie Adventure on a maiden voyage. As previously mentioned, my main inspiration for upgrading to the Adventure was it's ability to handle rougher conditions better. So with 15 - 20 knot winds belting in from the south east plus a wishy washy chop caused by a changing tide it was pretty much perfect to see if I'd made a good decision.
Launcing from Palleranda and heading towards middle reef, I was paddling directly into the wind and doing this provided me with my first answer. Without question, the Adventure is less effected by oncoming winds and definitely pushes through with less resistance. I figure this is due to it's slightly narrower and lower profile. There's a green tick right there.
Upon paddling out from the launch spot it took no time at all for me to note that the stability of the Adventure is marginally better than the Revolution. Not so much that it should be a dominating factor in determining which one to buy (it's not like the Revo isn't a stable kayak after all) but the difference is there. Again, the lower profile is likely the reason for this, making for a lower centre of gravity. Tick.
My GPS ran out of batteries only minutes after launching, but that was enough for me to note the extra speed afforded by the Adventure. With the same sort of effort I'd use to reach a cruising speed of about 6 kmph on the Revo, I was able to manage 7 kmph. I put in a quick burst to see how fast I could get it and despite the on coming winds, I hit 10.5 kmph. Later I tried peddaling and paddling at the same time and although my GPS was dead at that point, I know I was travelling rather quickly - probably faster than I'd ever moved in a kayak before. Tick.
 Rod and GPS mounts, well out the way of a broad paddle stroke Comments (1) | E-mail | Read more... |
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Tuesday, 06 November 2007 |
Time to get more adventurous
With today being the most notable exception, it's been fairly windy up here in Townsville over the past week or so and as advertized, the ocean swell has been getting up a bit. It's been a bit like that even since I left Mackay. Rarely has it been the kind of conditions that would prevent me from going kayak fishing, but it has been the kind of conditions that have prevented me from reaching a few of the fishing grounds I've been eyeing off. This has been happening since I reach Hervey Bay and has now started to frustrate me a bit.
More and more recently I've come to learn that just because Google earth says that 10km seperates A from B, that doesn't mean it'll be a 10km paddle to the destination. If the wind is non existant and there is no swell or chop to contend with then sure - as the crow flies won't be much different to how the kayak gets there. But when it is choppy it can be a different story entirely and wind and chop is typically present conditions up here. Shorter kayaks (like the Revolution) are more likely to traverse the rise and fall of the waves where as longer sea-kayak variants are more likely to cut straight over the top of them. It's that difference that has had me thinking twice about which kayak I am better off using.
As I've travelled up the QLD coast I've had to surrender numerous plans to paddle to islands or outer reefs. Not so much because of the distance involved, but more so because of the conditions one has to contend with to reach them. Simply because the Adventure tends to handle wind and choppy conditions better, I've concluded that it's the kayak I really should be using at this point. The extra storage space in the rear well won't go astray either because I'm starting to make plans for several kayak camping trips.
 Hobie Mirage Adventure Comments (2) | E-mail | Read more... |
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Monday, 29 October 2007 |
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It took longer than expected, but I've finally got around to updating the gear list page, which (out of interest) is the second most visited section of this site next to the gallery. It was growing hopelessly out of date and was due for an overhaul and now only includes what I consider to be essential kit. I've included photos of most items as well as links to more info where available. No doubt I've neglected to include a few items that probably should be in there, but I'll add those as I think of them. Be first to comment this article | E-mail | Read more... |
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