You’ve Been Warned

Story & Photos by Tony Narcisse

Before introducing your beloved partner to kayak fishing, there a few important points to consider. Both of your lives will be irreversibly transformed by the act. Egos will be threatened, pride will be stirred and big fish will be caught—just not necessarily by you.

I am sharing with you my personal experiences in the hopes that when the fateful day comes—when she smiles radiantly and asks, “Can I come?”—you will be prepared to make the right decision.

My lessons commenced when I took my wife kayak fishing for the first time. Like a sheltered farm girl catching her first taste of big city glitz, my wife was lured in by the adventurous promise of kayak fishing.

It didn’t have to go this way. I could have lied, “Just heading out to the bar with the boys.” I could have stalled, “Yah, not a bad day to enjoy the great outdoors.” Instead I uttered the fateful words, “Babe, I can’t wait to get back on the water. Man, I love kayak fishing!” The hook was set.

If put to paper, the litany of life changing lessons that have resulted would rival the length of War and Peace. The top three are:

1) You’ll Fish More

Remember when you threatened to wake up at 4 a.m. for some pre-dawn fishing only to find yourself firmly planted on the couch at 1 p.m., TV remote and nachos on hand, and the nagging guilt of the missed alarm dissolving like sugar in an intoxicating nectar of beer and televised football?

Yeah, well those days are over. Once your beloved has tasted the forbidden fruit of kayak fishing, she’ll have your gear loaded on the truck before you can get your paw anywhere near a snooze button. “Come on, baby,” she’ll rouse you, “It’ll be light in a couple of hours and we don’t want to miss the topwater bite!”

2) Your Holidays will be Hijacked

No more Thanksgiving with her parents or Christmas at the favorite brother-in-law’s. The days of prodding from her old man—“When are you going to get a real job?” or “Did Jim tell you about the big deal he closed last month?”—while you politely pretend to listen will come to an end.

Instead, those cherished conversations will be replaced with lines like, “Honey, let’s do a roadtrip to the coast for Thanksgiving; we can haul the ‘yaks and fish those spots we’ve read about.” Or, “Sweetie, I’ve booked a week of monster halibut fishing in Alaska for Christmas, just you and me.”

3) She will Out Fish you—Guaranteed

Those days of coming home, puffed up like a peacock and boasting of the day’s catch will be no more. Now you’ll be taking pictures of her grinning with the wily monster that should have been yours. The worst part is, you’ll be smiling right along with her. That’s right. Not only will she trample on your fragile male ego, she’ll make you enjoy it!

Kayak fishing with your sweetie is a life altering experience. Heed my words or you’ll only have yourself to blame.


Tony Narcisse is the owner/operator of KayakFishLanier and proud fishing partner to his wife of 16 years, Ruth Narcisse.