​Top 5 Reasons to Consider Hunting from a Kayak

Last year during the early teal season here in Maryland, a friend of mine wanted to hunt a small back bay pond only accessible by kayaking. I didn’t own a kayak at the time and was a little concerned about getting my overweight XXL butt into a small piece of plastic. He said, "no worries… I have a kayak you can use and we’ll be fine”.  There’s no doubt we take some aggressive tactics in our pursuit for waterfowl, but one thing I won’t do is risk my life. However, in this instance, it was the September season and the water was less than three feet deep so I figured even if I dumped my kayak, I would survive.
 
So here I am, two seasons later and I have to say, I now own two kayaks. And have pursued ducks in some of the tightest mud-haven, shallow bays that I could never have accessed in the past. Kayak hunting has become a regular part of my Waterfowling Strategy. I wanted to share with you the top 5 reasons you should consider hunting from a kayak.

1. Kayaks are small and light. They can get into tight spots that most boats can’t. You can even pick it up and drag it across land, logs, or other structure as you continue on your way to your honey-hole.
2. When hunting a hole that happens to be a little deeper than the small guts you used to get there, picking up decoys by yourself in a kayak is extremely easy and fast. You have pinpoint accuracy when it comes to boat steering and placement.
3. They are stealthy! I have slipped into a small pocket after making my way through the small meandering guts of the salt marshes without flushing ducks sitting less than 50 yards away!
4. You don’t need a boat ramp. You can put your kayak into any water you can legally access. Here on the Chesapeake Bay, we have salt marshes that might have a landing or two that you can launch a small duck hunting boat. As we've all experienced, most of the public land hunters tend to hunt fairly close to that landing. With my kayak, I can put in as far away from the landing as possible and work ducks that nobody else is trying to work.
5. Most importantly, they are easy to conceal. You can inexpensively cover a kayak and have the ultimate hide no matter where you hunt. Whether you want to stay in the water close to your decoy spread in a layout boat fashion, or put your kayak on land using it like a layout blind, the options are endless. You can really conceal yourself and enjoy the ducks finishing in your face!

 
You should consider adding a kayak to your waterfowling strategy as it might give you access to birds you normally would not be able to pursue. Keep it fun and most importantly, keep it safe!
​
David Fletcher
​VP,  Sales & Marketing

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Author

David Fletcher is responsible for the sales, marketing, and pro staff for Fowl Foolers. An avid waterfowler, David lives in Maryland where he hunts the Chesapeake Bay and it's tributaries with his 2 year old labrador Simon, and his 5 sons. You can reach David at david@fowlfoolers.com