by Moe Zilla

Created on: March 16, 2010

Here's the most important tip about choosing a paddle for kayak fishing: avoid buying a paddle with a rib-backed blade! These are designed to increase the strength of the blade (and for stylistic reasons), but they also create an extra stream of trickling water with every paddle stroke. This extra noise could frighten the fish as you arrive, and it needlessly riles up the water every single time that you try to paddle!

It's always important to get a comfortable paddle for kayaking, but there's specific requirements when the kayak is going to be used for fishing. (For example, I was once advised to use a light-colored paddle, because it would be less visible as it passed through the water.) But first ask yourself if you're interested in speed for your fishing trip - or in long-term endurance. Are you just trying to navigate to a specific fishing spot closer to the shore, or are you planning on longer trips It's an important question, because there's two different styles of paddling, and different paddles to go with them.

For quick bursts of speed, your paddle stroke should be closer to being perpendicular to the water. Because the paddle is passing in a straight line along the side of the kayak, it creates the maximum amount of propulsion forward - but it also required extra exertion. To make it easier, choose the special shorter paddles that make it easier to sustain the high-angle strokes - and a paddle that also has the special wider blades on their ends.

But if you're planning a longer kayak fishing trip where you expect to be paddling continuously, you'll want to consider using a "low-angle" stroke. It's less tiring, so this style of paddling is better suited for long periods. And for this kind of kayak fishing, you'll want a paddle that's longer, giving you the maximum amount of leverage with each stroke. And for low-angle strokes, the paddle should have a narrower blade.

Straight-shaft paddles are considered more ergonomically correct - that is, less likely to cause pain and muscle strain during. But there's also other ways to improve your performance for long kayak fishing trips.  Accent manufactures a two-piece paddle that allows "feathering" - a knob which allows adjusts the angle of the paddle through 24 different positions. There's also bent-shaft paddles with a little bit of flexibility built into the paddle to reduce the stress and distribute the effort a little more. And some manufacturers try to make the lightest possible blades for the ends of their paddles, but remember that the important consideration is the relative weight of the blade to the rest of the paddle.

Part of the fun of kayak fishing is the anticipation, and devoting special attention to choosing your bait, your tackle, and your fishing spot. Just remember that you'll also get one more chance for anticipation, consideration, and exercising your own personal preferences when you're picking your kayak's paddle!

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