Viking Predator 'Pro-Fish' Kayak

With kayak fishing becoming so popular, Hunting & Fishing New Zealand has been instrumental in putting together a simple range of affordable tackle designed specifically for the specialist requirements of fishing seated from a kayak... But first you must have a kayak and our expert anglers have been looking into the best options for these also. In fact we have begun stocking the best of them in order to be the ultimate one stop shop for kayak anglers. Here's what Rob Williams and the team from our Tauranga store concluded about the Viking Predator Pro-fish.

"Recently I was given the opportunity to test-fish a kayak from Viking Kayak's. Even though given a big choice of vessels, the decision was easy, I wanted to try out the new Predator Pro-fish everyone is talking about, which is made here in New Zealand for our coastal conditions. To gear up for the test-fish I fitted optional extras such as front and rear insulated covers as these protect the fish from sun and help to keep fish cool with the aid of the water around the outside of the hull. The next item was the running rig, to this you can attached either the anchor or the drogue. The drogue (with running rig) is a serious must for a fisherman as it helps to control the way the boat hangs on anchor or the drogue. Another well thought out accessory is the fish stringer, all you have to do with this is slide the stainless rod in through the gills and out through the mouth of the fish. The fish then slides down the string and under the insulated well cover to stay nice and fresh. The Predator features a centre well with cover which is really good because you can keep all of your bits and pieces in it, i.e.: lunch, tackle box, fish finder, bait etc. This ensures you won't lose anything if you ever happened to roll over when coming in through the surf etc. Another and very important feature is the deluxe seat which has a great back support - great for when you only intend going out for a few hours but then decide to stay out for 6 or 7 as the fishing is so fantastic.

Before beginning to sell fishing kayaks and of course embarking on our store kayak fishing expedition I volunteered to learn as much as I could about their construction and operation. First off I needed a safe environment to find out just how stable and how well this kayak could perform. So a friend Trevor took me down to the pools and had me put the Viking Predator through its paces. It proved to be extremely stable, I was able to roll it over a very long way before it would flip. I then learned to roll it back upright from in the water, and climb back on. I found this to be relatively easy even for a beginner. All in all at the end of our session I was feeling very comfortable and confident.

Kayak fishing opens up the surging rocky coastline where it is unsafe to take a conventional fishing craft. So where better to head than the beautiful Coromandel and Kennedy Bay. The expedition included Russell Summers the owner of Tauranga Hunting & Fishing New Zealand, his son Bryce (15), myself and friend John Mason. We headed up late one October Sunday afternoon, and woke up to a beautiful sunny morning so launched from the Tuteauwa boat ramp and headed along the coast. We elected to fish Softbaits, and were soon casting into some likely looking wash areas. Russell, Bryce and I were giving the Viking Predator Pro-fish kayaks a true work-out, all decked up with the necessary equipment. John's kayak is a Viking Pro-fish 2, a 2 person kayak which he has owned for quite a while and which he likes because of its proven stability (stability rating of 10 out of 10), but the downside is that bigger kayaks are more prone to the wind.

Being able to silently sneak up to the guts, nooks and crannies, it wasn't long until we were all catching fish, however on that wonderful Monday, John out fished us all by catching his limit easily and only keeping his best fish, the biggest being 4lbs. Once we got around into Kennedy Bay the wind had picked up to about 15 knots, gusting to 20 knots. I volunteered to paddle back into the head wind and bring the truck around to Kennedy Bay while the others continued to fish. This involved a good test of open water kayaking and although I settled into bit of hard work it was a surprisingly quick and comfortable paddle which the Predator handled well. After picking the others up we headed back to the batch and cleaned the fish and all our kayaking gear. We had worked up a serious appetite and enjoyed a delicious meal of fresh snapper.

Tuesday morning dawned another sunny day, so we headed up the coast towards Little Bay fishing some really good rocky outcrops and reef structure along the way. It was a red letter day where we all caught some beauties. Again we elected to only keep the best of our fish. While two of mine were solid 15lb'ers, Bryce caught the fish of the trip which weighed 15lb gutted. We had to wonder if arriving without the warning buzz of an outboard motor had caught these shallow water moochers unaware!

It was an awesome fishing experience, in some amazing kayaks which were extremely comfortable, stable and very easy to use, even for the novice. 'Thank you' to the team at Viking Kayaks for the opportunity... Kayaks provide the base for a stealthy and effective form of fishing which I would highly recommend trying. And remember that this summer come into participating Hunting & Fishing New Zealand stores for the awesome Predator kayak and your other kayak fishing requirements."