Putting a Kid in the Kayak

[Cain]

I'm think about getting a SOT kayak to fish out of, and I've got a 5-year old kid that I may take out on the lake every now and again. If I got a one-person SOT, is it possible to rig up a second seat in the tank well so that he'd have a place to sit? Aside from getting a tandem, any other ideas?

There's a used WS The Ride for sale and it's got a pretty big tank well behind the seat.

Thanks,

Cain

[Mike_P]

One option

http://www.jacksonkayak.com/kayaksrec/p ... daytripper" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Jim Krueger]

Cain,

I'm not the greatest fan of SOT kayaks but after reading your post I took a gander at the WS The Ride. It's not a bad looking boat at all. If
The boat suits you the best for your own desires and uses, I think it could have good potential to rig a little seat in back, actually better than many other SOT designs I've seen. If you do so, just keep the seat back as short as possible, and secure mounting, andwith comfort and safety in mind. Good luck.

Jim

[hellbender]

Cain,Don from OOO would let me take out his OceanKayak Drifter for some fishing from time to time.Sometimes I would take Gordon,then four,out with me on some of those trips.The Drift was a bardge,I could stand and fish,Gordon would cruise up front and sometime nap behind me sitting in the cooler bay.It was fun getting him out there and he enjoyed it too but he's getting to the stage now where he's got to do it himself,got to be part of the action.He gets board sittin in front of a canoe now.So you might be getting him a boat soon too.Demo it with your son if you can,anything can be modified to work. I'm just wondering if this was your spill to your wife as the reason you need a fishing boat?

[Cain]

Thanks for the info guys. I do like the Jackson link - that's definitely a great option. I knew that Jackson made WW boats, but I had not seen that specific line of their boats before.

Regarding the question about justification to the wife - you're damn right.

This ain't my first rodeo with kayaks. In the past, I had both a WW and rec kayak. I got rid of them soon after the kid was born, but I wish now that I had kept the rec yak which was a Dagger Crossover. But, now I believe that a SOT would be great since I'm trying to get back into fishing as well - er I mean my son and I are getting into fishing together.

[bmartin]

We had rec boats, SOTs, canoes, and whitewater yaks and here is how we have used them over the years that might offer a little perspective. I have 3 boys and when they were young, they all preferred to go on a SOT rather than a rec kayak when they were paddling mild white water or flat water. Their friends always went for the SOTs. Kids just seem to like them better.

When I fished by myself, I always took a sit in rec kayak. Too easy to have your fishing gear go kerrr...plunk in a SOT.

If I was hunting or fishing with 2, I took a canoe. Yaks were just too close of quarters when rods, hooks, and lines are whipping around with more than 1 person IMO.

Each type has their advantage. You can probably rig a seat in a large one person SOT, but it will be tight, especially if you are fishing. I might get one reg rec kayak and one SOT if you think your son is or will soon be ready to navigate a boat himself and if you go to the big box stores you could pick up a couple for less than one whitewater boat. The best one boat option seems to be a canoe for what it sounds like you would want to do though.