Inflatable boat or kayak for spearfishing?

    Hi all,


    A buddy and I are thinking of getting either a two person inflatable boat or kayak, which is better for spearfishing?


    I am thinking about things like:
    * rowing ease
    * storing spearguns, a bottle of water, masks, fins, etc.
    * getting in and out from in the water


    Thanks!
    Gab

    Kayaks are nice if you have spots further from shore that you want to hit. Inflatables are cool also but are better with a motor. I've never rowed an inflatable an wouldn't want to. Also, it is a lot more work to try and drift/tow a dinghy in comparison to a kayak. Unless you need to get further from shore a beach dive is hard to beat because of the amount of time you spend in the water compared to a boat.


    Just my .02


    Chase :toast:

    Relax & Go Spearfishing

    Some inflatable kayaks are pretty slim. I believe they would be relatively fast?
    Advantages of inflatable kayaks would primarily be storage and transport.
    Disadvantages would be poor tracking, useless in windy conditions and sketchy puncture resistance.

    Rowing an inflatable kayak or boat is going to suck.
    Getting a kayak like an ocean kayak non inflatable will row/paddle ok and store your stuff.
    Getting something like an Avon,zodiac,etc. with an outboard would probably be the best way for you to go.

    Thanks everyone. The reason I am looking for an inflatable is that I am living in a city, in an apartment, and that means that there is no space to store a kayak. It is also more complicated to travel around with it (plane, car, train, etc).


    I do agree a hard kayak would be best but I don't have the possibility to for the reasons described above.


    Thanks

    Quote from grossetti

    Thanks everyone. The reason I am looking for an inflatable is that I am living in a city, in an apartment, and that means that there is no space to store a kayak. It is also more complicated to travel around with it (plane, car, train, etc).


    I do agree a hard kayak would be best but I don't have the possibility to for the reasons described above.


    Thanks


    buy a regular kayak and mount it horizontally in the living room of your apartment. 2. option ceiling mount:thumbsup2: PS:inflatable kayaks do suck and create a lot of drag. A paddle board would be another option.

    I had looked at the 2nd one, it is quite expensive though (not sure I will use it enough to justify the price). I had also wondered how it would be to get in from the water, I think most kayaks people use for spearfishing are the sit on top type?


    Thanks for the links.

    If you're diving calm waters, and swimmable distances, then you could try an intex explorer K2 (inflatable kayak). It's one of the cheaper inflatables out there, and reviews show that it's as good as a sea eagle inflatable kayak (in terms of speed and tracking).

    Thanks, I'll have a look.


    We are actually looking at the Intex Mariner 4 on the inflatable boat side of our search. It has lots of room and we could hook up a small electric motor if we really needed to. Still haven't decided between a kayak or boat...


    The kayak is faster/easier to row but doesn't have much room for our stuff unless you get something like this http://www.gumotexbateaux.fr/kayaks-gonflables-seawave and use only two seats but it is just too expensive (990 euros). The boat is just the opposite...

    Quote from grossetti


    We are actually looking at the Intex Mariner 4 on the inflatable boat side of our search. It has lots of room and we could hook up a small electric motor if we really needed to.


    A friend of mine has the Intex Mariner 4. It's durable, and strong. But it takes a very long time to inflate! And it's super wide, so an electric trolling motor doesn't push it much at all. He just used it once or twice, and now it's back in the box.


    The reason I suggested the Explorer K2 kayak is because I've seen videos where it's fairly fast on the water (by paddling), and reviews state that it takes approximately 7 to 9 minutes to inflate. I think it's perfect if kayaking alone, or if 2 slim adults use it together.
    I'd strongly advise against the Mariner 4 though, unless you want to hook up a small conventional engine (not electric). way too much time to inflate and a lot of drag!


    With any inflatable, you have to make sure to use tip protectors on your speargun, and be super careful with fish spines and other pointy things. I think that goes without saying! :)

    Thanks for the info.


    Yes, that is one of our worries... As for the kayak we may each get a two seater and use only one seat to have some more room.


    Yes, pointy things is a worry too, for the fish we keep them in the water in a net close to the anchor where it is cool (no sharks where we hunt) so it minimizes that a bit since we stick them in a cold bag one we are done. As for the spearpoints, yes, we have tip protectors on always when not hunting as it has happened that we hit our own tips and that isn't cool :) .


    Thanks for all the info!

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