I hooked up with my friend from work, (who owns a Wilderness Systems "Critter" ) and we hit Dear Creek by around 0700. There were several cars already there but everyone that was fishing was doing it from the banks. We were the only ones on the water. It was awesome.
My initial feeling about my Kayak was that it wasn't stable at all. I guess I expected it to feel more like a Ocean Kayak that is around 34 inches in width. But, after an hour or so on the water, I felt very comfortable in it and found that it was very stable. It allowed me to move up and down the cockpit without any stability problems or even worrying about dumping my son who sat in the back. The scupper plugs that came with the Yak worked beautifully. I wasn't sure what the weather was going to be like, so I ended up weighing down the Yak with all sorts of extra gear that really wasn't needed. Despite all of the extra stuff I had, it tracked very nicely, though there wasn't much wind to push me around. The Ports are great- they seal perfectly and open very wide. I had the entire inside of the boat available for storage. -Not to mention that the poles fit inside of the kayak after we were done. A nice bonus.
The fishing was pretty sparse. It didn't help that I wasn't really prepared to fish, and my son kept asking for stuff that kept me from getting my pole in the water. Maybe next time.
Overall, I am very pleased with the Wilderness Systems Tarpon. It has some great features that I am very pleased with. One of them is the paddle keeper on the side of the Yak. Its a small feature, but it came in so handy, that I really don't think I will ever need to leash it. The Slide Track System is also pretty cool, though I don't have much to put on it, besides a rod holder. Anyway, overall- I would give this company an A+ on their Tarpon series. A lot went into the build of them, and you can tell.
