Coming Soon! Participate in the YakOffs II

The YakOffs return this fall with a fresh lineup of kayak anglers and tricked-out fishing rigs, all going head-to-head in a bracket-style tournament to crown the coolest kayak on the water. Get ready to cast your vote. New matchups drop weekly starting September 2025.

The new 36-inch shaft Power-Pole Move motor

Total Boat Control With The New Power-Pole Motor Made For Kayaks (Video)

Power-Pole is famous for their anchoring systems and "total boat control" tagline on their trolling motors. They build some of the toughest and most...
Kayak Angler editor Ric Burnley sits on the new Hobie iTrek Angler inflatable fishing kayak

Hobie’s Newest Fishing Kayak Leaves Massive Rigs Behind

When I heard Hobie was releasing a new kayak, I never would have expected the 180 I encountered strolling up to the testing event...
Image of largemouth bass

$6K Reward Offered For Info On Illegal Bass Release On Maine Lake By Wardens

After an apparent illegal release of largemouth bass on West Musquash Lake in Washington County, wardens are now offering monetary rewards totalling $6,000 to...
New York sees a new record brook trout caught on a backcountry canoe trip. Feature Images: Benjamin Ferguson

Record New York Brook Trout Caught From Canoe In Backcountry Pond (Video)

On the weekend of July fourth, 2025, Benjamin Ferguson caught a record-breaking brook trout while fishing a remote pond on a three-day canoe trip....
Kayak Angler editor Ric Burnley stands by the new Native Watercraft Hammer 1210 at ICAST 2025

The Final Day Of ICAST And The Most Anticipated Fishing Gear For 2026

Team Kayak Angler reached the summit of new gear and tackle at the final day of the world’s largest trade show. After a week...
Ric Burnley poses in front of the FluxJet jet-powered kayak at ICAST 2025

ICAST Day Two And Our New Favorite Fishing Gear For 2026

The second day of the three-day-long ICAST sportfishing tradeshow gave Kayak Angler’s team more time to search out great tackle and gear for kayak...
Kayak Angler's Keith Stevenson poses with inaugural YakOff Awards winner Jake Suvak as he receives his championship belt

ICAST Day One And The Most Exciting Fishing Gear For 2026

The first official day of the International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades (ICAST) trade show in Orlando, Florida, brought together 500 vendors to show...
Kayak Angler editor Ric Burnley poses on a kayak equipped with the Garmin Force Current motor at ICAST 2025

The Most Intriguing New Gear From ICAST 2025 Demo Day

The ICAST 2025 On The Water Product Demo Day started off with a zoom. The sound of electric motors powering fishing kayaks created the...
Kayak on water with Garmin Force Current motor we expect to see at ICAST 2025

What We Predict To See At ICAST 2025

Next week, more than 10,000 people will visit over 500 exhibitors at the seventy-second International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades better known as ICAST...
Kayak Angler editor Ric Burnley pilots a fishing kayak outfitted with trolling motor and electric outboard

How Many Motors Does Your Kayak Need?

The first timeI saw a kayak rigged with an electric outboard in the stern and trolling motor in the bow, I immediately imagined the...
Author Kevin Hofer holds up a large lingcod caught while kayak fishing

Cannibal Cod: Killer Tactics For Giant Lingcod

Kevin Hofer is a Wilderness Systems pro staffer from Mendocino County, California. Lingcod are a voracious deep-water fish famous for eating their own species....
gloved hand of angler Chris Funk handles a shoal bass he caught while kayak fishing

Fall In Love With Shoal Bass: Expert Tactics For Shoalie Success

I was hot, worn out and paddling back to the truck after nearly wiping out on a cornering rapid. Recovering from the near-disaster, I...
man fishes from a Bonafide PWR129 fishing kayak decked out with an electronics system

Rig Your Kayak With CHIRP, Side-Scan & Forward Facing Sonar

The saying goes: If a motorboater has it, a kayak angler wants it. Electronics are no exception. To match our gas-powered brothers and sisters,...
Split Shot Rig

How To Rig And Fish The Split Shot Rig

Every year it seems like we are introduced to new bass fishing rigs featuring highly specialized tackle, from ultra-specific hooks to different single-purpose weights....

Reader Favorites

Column Spotlight

Andy Whitcomb is an award-winning outdoor writer and stressed-out dad of two teenagers. Which explains why he spends so much time on the water. Since 2011, he has been a weekly blogger providing tips and tricks for Takemefishing.org and a regular contributor to Kayak Angler magazine.
illustration of a person fishing from a kayak and a large, toothy fish taking the bait

From Wet Socks To Whoppers: Fishing For A Bite

I fish for the bite. I love sensing the initial contact with an unknown water creature. Don’t get me wrong: I like the fight....
illustration of a group of fish watching a puppet master perform with fishing tackle

Puppet Master: Pulling Strings, Twisting Minds, Crushing Fish

A non-fishing friend looked at my tackle box and said, “You have a lot of toys.” His tone suggested I was a grown man...
illustration of two anglers in Christmas gear hooking and reeling in a recycled christmas tree from the water

Recycle Your Christmas Tree Into Festive Fishing Structure

It wasn’t a hard hit. The rod just suddenly loaded and something heavy slid to the left with the brazen confidence of a really...
illustration of an angler who has gone fishing for rocks

Getting Boulder: Losing Lures And Catching Fish On The Rocks

Anglers and fish are attracted to underwater structures. Fish search out aquatic vegetation, wood, rocks, drops, points and hills to hide from predators, avoid...
father and son fish with different lures

Lifelike Lures Letting You Down? Time To Get Weird

My four-year-old son held up a grotesque soft plastic lure he found at the bottom of the tackle box: “I want to fish with...

Editor's Choice

hands holding two bait finesse systems reels in front of a lawn of green grass

The Inside Line On A New Generation Of BFS Rods & Reels

The story starts in Japan with lockjaw largemouth bass. Japan has a lot of fanatical bass anglers, but the country doesn’t have a lot...
person trout fishing from a kayak in the fall somewhere in America

Good Reads: Trout Fishing In America By Richard Brautigan

A fishing book with four million copies sold and you have probably never heard of it. These sales numbers likely put the book in...
woman practices paddling her fishing kayak across current in small rapids

Wrecked Education: Why It Pays To Learn The Hard Way

Even 40 years later, I vividly remember the day my daddy took the training wheels off my bike. A brief run on flat ground...
illustration of a man looking in a hand mirror while casting over his shoulder to some excited fish

When All Else Fails? Try An Unconventional Generator Of Hits

Iam a fisheries scientist so I’m not superstitious. I am also a kayak angler, so I believe a banana isn’t tasty enough to risk...
a pair of sunglasses sit on the beach in front of surf

8 Things You Didn’t Know About Sunglasses

You got your hair slicked back and those Wayfarers on and I wear my sunglasses at night, just don’t get caught without a pair...
man presses a button on a Garmin fish finder while kayak fishing

Best Kayak Fish Finders For 2025

Kayak anglers want to have our cake and eat it, too. We want the convenience of a small, plastic boat and the fishing capability...
Hi-Catch Diamond fishing line

Best Fishing Lines For 2025

With all the excitement about new fishing rods, reels and lures, it’s easy to forget about the most important connection between angler and fish—the...
overhead photo of a kayak angler sitting in boat on greenish water with a cell phone with fishing app held in his gloved hands

The 8 Best Fishing Apps

I’ve been using fishing apps since the first weather and navigation apps became available. Nowadays, fishing apps are just as valuable as my fishing...
man fishes from a kayak with a spinning reel

Baitcasting Vs. Spinning Reels

The debate about fishing with a baitcasting reel versus a spinning reel isn’t really much of a debate. Today’s tackle and tactics are rod...
man carries Norsk batteries and fishing rods to his kayak

Best Kayak Batteries For 2024

Battery power is the only limit to how far you can rig a fishing kayak with electric motors, fish finders, GPS, lights and cameras....
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Congrats to our inaugural YakOff Champion Jake Suvak
icy water on Lake Michigan in front of a lighthouse, where you can catch coho salmon

Catch Coho Salmon By Crankbait On Chilly Lake Michigan

The extreme southern tip of Lake Michigan attracts massive schools of baitfish followed by large numbers of trout and salmon. Coho salmon pilgrimage to...
fishing kayak sits on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay during John Hostalka's birthday tour

Chesapeake Bay Birthday: Angler Celebrates With Trip Of A Lifetime

At 4 a.m., I am jolted awake by the sound of waves crashing close to my head. The tent fly is flapping against the...
Chad Hoover stands and paddles while passing trees on the shore

8 Best Lakes For Kayak Fishing In North Alabama

Throw a line in North Alabama and it’s destined to land in one of the world’s finest bass lakes. The rivers of North Alabama...
three kayak anglers fishing in a clear Texas river flanked by gnarled trees

Road Trip: Kayak Fishing Across Texas From North To South

Dustin Doskocil is a native Texan. Five years ago, the pro photographer moved out of the state. But, each year he returns to explore...
two kayak anglers fishing for bass on Kentucky Lake

Kentucky Lake Bass Fishing: Big Water, Big Challenge

Eric Siddiqi is a pro kayak angler from Cincinnati, Ohio. He’s won events in the Hobie Bass Open Series (BOS), Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF)...