Need kayak advice - another obsession (oysters!)

[FL shaver]

Oysters! I love them! I recently found out that they are fairly plentiful in the waters near my home, and I am going to harvest my own. An old salt shared some of his secrets (and oysters!!) with me. The local oysters are so fresh and sweet that I no longer want to pay for three day old oysters from a truck ride away. I can legally get 10 gallons at a time. I plan to go out in fairly calm waters, but the Sound can get a bit choppy with 20 knot winds sometimes. I probably won't go out on rough days. Anyway, I need a kayak or 2 to put on top of my Jeep rack, paddle out a half mile from shore to an approved sandbar, and step out into the shallows to harvest a couple of buckets worth. I see many kayaks available on craigslist.org. Any recommendations? Would I be sacrificing a lot of paddling efficiency by going with a 10 footer versus a 12 footer? Any help is appreciated!

I picked up 4 vintage silver oyster forks at the antique store today! Something else to try to find in the wild. Going to be grilling oysters and clams New Year's Eve and shucking some raw! Great stuff!

 

[Mike H]

Color me jealous, those look awesome. Hey... congratulations on 3000 post.

 

[FL shaver]

Eh. How about that?! Thanks!

Those are actually store bought today! They are good, though. That is one of the vintage oyster forks I got today, too! It is nice and shiny after a bath with baking soda, hot water, and aluminum foil. That cleans like magic.

 

[doug1066]

I live about an hour away from several oyster farms. You are making me want to get the cooler and head out on a road trip.

 

[FL shaver]

I have been going to the seafood market once or twice a week to pick up a dozen. They are about fifty cents a piece, just under $6 a dozen. But, I want MORE!

Another part of the obsession is the variety in oyster shucking instruments. Today, I applied some tung oil to the wooden handles of my most recent shellfish opening instruments - Lamson oyster and clam knives. Hoping they last many years, and on the lookout for some vintage ones.

 

[JeffM]

I fly fish out of a kayak in saltwater predominately for over a decade. Your requirements should be fairly simple- you need a kayak to get you from point A to point B, a place to hold your gear, and relatively light weight for easy hauling. I would recommend a sit-on-top style for sure, I prefer about 12 feet to get better tracking and more room- narrower gives you more speed, wider gives you more stability for standing. The market has just exploded with quality kayaks now with so many fishermen using them now. You should consider if you plan on trying kayak fishing and purchase accordingly. Most fish worthy kayaks price out at about $1000 new.

 

[_JP_]

A single seat canoe will give you more open space for your gear and oysters. You'll want extra space for at least a couple of 5 buckets. And I prefer to use a kayak paddle fro trips in a one person canoe. You also should check out the Vagabond http://www.pokeboat.com/Vagabond.htm. It is a very stable kayak style boat with a two seat cockpit. A friend that I have canoe tripped has one and she loves it! enough room for her to loid in the dog and a couple packs. She's had it for 20 years now and has used it on some very windy days with no danger of tipping over.

 

[razorrookie]

Love me some Apalachicola oysters. And so nice to have them available fresh here. I'm following along here because I've been tempted more than once to follow the same path but I just can't see having another hobby to deal with for a while.

If you're heading out nearby shoot me a PM and I might be able to let you in on where some kayak redfishing is good/great near Tallahassee/Carabelle.