New kayak for person around 115kg

Hi guys..apologies as this question has probably been raised a squillion times but anyway;
Am going to purchase a new kayak and below fundamental facts and requirements as to final decision, assistance appreciated as am getting more confused by the second.
First time kayaker but paddled surf ski's all my life
weigh around 115kgs and 5'10'" height, 55 years old
use in river and maybe lakes not offshore that's what my boat is for
easy to load on car
principally soft plastics but live bait also
hold probably 2 rods and the associated gear
budget $2.5k

Cheers
PP

With that sort of budget you'd be heading straight to the top shelf of the fishing kayak world. Stealth, kaskazi, pope canoes, paddleyak and other South African brands are on that shelf. Some of the better plastic/thermo boats like pelican and ocean kayaks require less care than glass and are still good boats. Your weight isn't an issue for a proper boat. It will be for the shorter generic types though. Hobbies are better for fishing with their pedal propulsion if fishing is the focus as it keeps the hands free to a large degree. Time to start test driving a few and working out what you like.

For fishing i was about to say Dragon Kayaks but then saw your budget and you could get 4 or 5 of them for that money. I love my Dragon. Not a speed machine but very capable fishing platform and light enough for me to hoist solo. On your budget i would go in for a Wilderness Systems.

Cheers

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I've got an Old Town Vapor 12 Angler. I've got a few kilos up on you, but find the Vapor Sit-in very comfortable. It has a bigger cockpit than most which is good for getting in and out, and it's still reasonable easy to load on the car on my own.

If fishing impoundments: Lifetime Angler 3.0 from BCF for about $500+ then spend the rest on a sounder! they are easily upgradable, I made a sounder holder for next to nothing out of PVC I painted black. It isn't a foot pedal kayak but I like paddling, also the money saved can be spent on other gear. Just my two cents!

I'm not a yakker, but saw these on TV yesterday:

Mirage Pro Angler 17T

For rivers & lakes I'd be looking at a yak 4 to 4.5 metres long as these will give you an easier paddle for covering distance.

You also need to decide whether you want to paddle or peddle or even install an electric engine.

You could go for a top model name brand kayak but C-Kayak in Burleigh sell a huge range of kayaks at very reasonable prices. They are more aimed at entry level kayakers and are not name brand like hobies but they are very capable and top value for money, which would leave plenty left for mods. In saying that, I have there 2.8m fishing kayak as a creek basher initially but have added an electric motor for up on the dams and can not fault it, for your weight requirements you'd be better off with slightly larger yak to allow for adding extras like all your gear / food water etc... These things don't seem like much but it all adds up, and even flat water can chop up pretty bad when the wind gets up. Search kayaks on gumtree and you'll find some of there yaks advertised on there. They have stores around Australia too. Depends which way you wanna go but with your budget id be getting a cheaper yak and investing in top quality accessories. Re-sale won't be as good as a name brand but you if haven't outlayed much to begin with you don't have much to lose so I guess it balances out that way. Something to think about, have fun!