I’ve grown up riding a kayak at my local beach break. Punching through waves and riding them in, it’s exhilarating. It wasn’t until I got into Kayak Fishing that I began to give it more thought. I didn’t want to accidentally take a spill and lose all of my expensive gear. So I came up with some tips to ensure I make it out through the surf zone with my gear intact, every time.
- Practice Makes Perfect
- Prep Your Gear
- Observe the Conditions
- Prelaunch Your Kayak
- Commit!!
- Use Your Paddle to Brace Yourself
- Victory!!
Practice Makes Perfect
I know. I know. Practice makes perfect. What a cliche. But it really is key to success. It’s why I never had any real problem getting through the surf with my fishing gear. I have been practicing for this moment my whole life.
Before you launch your fishing kayak in the surf, it would be very wise to practice a couple of times without your gear to get comfortable.
So take the tips that follow and use them to practice launching your kayak in the surf without any extra gear. This will build your confidence and experience launching in the surf, so that when you do bring your gear, you have no doubt that you will be making it through the surf zone in one piece.
Prep Your Gear
Launching in the surf zone is much different than launching off a boat ramp or dock. When launching in flat water, you can have your kayak outfitted exactly how you want it when you’ll be out in the water. When launching from the surf, your gear is mostly stowed away for precaution’s sake, especially if you are new to surf launching.
I carry some light tackle, water and snacks in the milk crate behind the cockpit. Before launching I make sure there is some sort of lid on the milk crate so I don’t lose any of those items if I take a spill. Either a custom made lid for your crate or webbing made out of bungee can work well for this situation.
As an added precaution, I carabiner my water bottle, a small tackle box and a dry bag that holds my snacks to the milk crate so nothing will have the chance to fall out in the event of a wipeout.
I store my rods and reels on my milk crate equipped with rod holders and leashes while launching. They are elevated out of the water a bit more than my flush mount rod holders and are more secure.
In rougher surf, I will store my reels in a dry bag or in a plain old plastic bag to keep the salt water off of them and put them either in the milk crate or the forward storage hatch of my kayak. Once safely past the surf zone, I can begin to gear up for fishing.
If you are bringing other gear such as a net, fish finder or camera, make sure they have secondary leashes in case they come off of their mounts. Better yet, store them in a dry bag inside your front hatch and mount them once past the surf zone.
With your gear safely stored, you are ready to begin your launch, but first, pay attention to the conditions.
Observe the Conditions
How big are the waves today? Are there any spots on the beach where the waves might be smaller? Begin to pay attention to these things while prepping your gear and give it a closer look just before you are ready to paddle out. This can make or break your success with getting through the surf zone, take this part seriously. If it is too big, don’t go out.
The ocean has patterns. Waves come in sets. Sometimes a deep spot in the ocean bottom will allow for a break in the surf. Look for these things and your launch will be much more successful.
When assessing the waves, how many waves are there in a set? How long is it between each set?
I like to be in the water at the prelaunch stage just as the last wave of the set comes through so that I am actually paddling over that set wave as it nears the shore. Usually the wave is much smaller by the time it reaches where I am setting up my prelaunch with my kayak. All I have to do is get over that small section and its clear paddling from there.
Through my initial observations, I may notice an area where the waves are breaking into deeper water or that there might be a rip or a slight bend on the beach where the waves might be smaller. Choose these spots as a place to launch your kayak from. By launching in a riptide, waves are usually smaller and you have the added bonus of the current working with you rather than against you.
Prelaunch Your Kayak
As you are observing the conditions of the ocean, you can begin to wade out into the water. I like to grab the handle at the nose of my kayak and pull it out, perpendicularly to the waves, into knee to thigh high water.
This puts me in a position in the surf zone where I can board my kayak without bottoming out as well as be in an area where the waves are relatively small as I wait for my moment to launch.
Make sure your gear is holding tight and wait for that last wave of the set to begin your approach.
Commit!!!
Last wave just broke and it’s heading towards you. The wave that broke just before has already past. Quickly sit into your kayak, grab your paddle and stroke as hard as you can.
Do not dilly dally with getting your seat perfect or fixing your hat, that can be adjusted later, after you get past the surf zone. Your number one objective here is to paddle as hard and as fast as you can, staying 90 degrees to the surf at all times. This total commitment will give you the drive you need to punch through any waves if they do appear.
If you are faced with a wave coming straight at you as you are paddling you must not back down. Paddle as hard as you can, keep your boat perpendicular to the wave and lean back as the wave approaches and you pass over it. Any hesitation is a recipe for certain disaster.
Use Your Paddle to Brace Yourself
Your paddle is like a crutch when launching through the surf. By keeping it in the water, you can lean on your paddle to help you balance. You may have to quickly switch it from side to side to keep stable, but it could be the difference between successfully breaking through the surf and wiping out. Learn to use it.
As the wave approaches, I usually have my paddle in the water on my right side, just out and to the rear of my body. I probably just favor my right, but it seems to give me the most balance when going over a wall of whitewater.
Once I feel my kayak safely over or through the wave, I begin to paddle as hard as I can once again to not be dragged back to shore and to beat the next wave that’s sure to be coming.
Practicing getting through the surf in your kayak is really the only way to really get the feel and nuance of paddling through a surf zone. Be sure to do it.
Victory!!
Alright!! You’ve made it through the surf. That wasn’t so hard. Before you get too comfortable though, make sure you are well out of the surf zone. A rogue set may break in slightly deeper water so make sure you are far enough out to eliminate any chance of that happening.
Now you can begin to get your gear together and ready for fishing, once you are safely out of the surf zone. Reattach your reels to your poles, rig your line and catch some fish!!
Wait!! How Do I Get Back In?
Oh yeah. You have to get back to the beach after a long day fishing, but how? There are a bunch of waves between you and the sand.
I pretty much follow the same checklist to land as I did to launch. First I will paddle just beyond the surf zone and get my gear properly stored and stowed away to prepare for a wild landing.
Then I wait. Watch the waves again. How many sets? How far apart? Any spot where the waves might be smaller? The tide or conditions may have changed between the time you launched to now. Pay attention!!
Once I have a good read on conditions, I’ll get as close as I can to the surf zone, just beyond where the waves break. Once the last wave of the set comes in, let it pass under you and break, then paddle as hard as you can just behind it towards shore, staying perpendicular to the waves.
Keep looking over your shoulder. Is there another wave coming in? You may have to time it so that you can ride it in, or paddle as hard and fast as you can so that you can get out in front of it. It is a choice that gets easier with experience.
If you do catch a wave, I have noticed that while on the face of a wave, the kayak tends to want to pull out and over the wave, so put your paddle on the shore side of your kayak to keep yourself on the wave. If you are riding the wave straight in with the whitewater, lean back, use your paddle to steer and enjoy the ride in. Once again, practice makes perfect.
I really hope you feel more confident paddling through the surf zone. Kayak fishing from a beach break can be super rewarding. You can place your kayak just beyond the breakers and cast for fish that love to take advantage of the surf zone. Here in Hawai’i that may mean catching a nice Papio or Ulua, a prize catch for any fisherman. Aloha.