Well, lots of advice so I'll add mine. I've gone from paddle to pedal. I can still paddle, but hardly ever have to. Pedal boats will be heavier and a lot more expensive, but they make handsfree fishing a lot more enjoyable. I've had two pedal boats. A Native Watercraft Propel and my latest which is a Perception Pilot 12. The Pilot is less expensive than the Propel, but less refined as well. Most of the bugs are worked out.
People who go to kayaks make several mistakes. The biggest is, they want to take all the crap with them they took when they had a boat!
The second is, while the kayak may say 85 pounds... it's a damned unwieldy 85 pounds due to the length of the things. Add a pedal drive and you are over 100 pounds immediately.
If you are going to car top it... you'll actually come to appreciate your boat! For my kayaks, I had a trailer. Screw car topping a 115 pound kayak/pedal drive... But then, I kept the yak on the trailer year around in the garage so the only loading/unloading was at the lake and with a yak, it's about as simple as it comes. (but then so was a 14 foot jon boat on the same trailer!!!!)
I also have an inflatable. Yesterday, I had my wife and two grand daughters out on it for an hour of paddling. It weighs 40 pounds empty.
If you decide to go kayaking, cut down the gear. I take three poles. A spinner, a bait caster and an ultralight for fun. A smaller compartmented tackle box you can organize. Fewer baits (stick with the ones you regularly use and lose the ones you haven't tied on in years but can't bring yourself to throw away because you may one day need them...)
If you paddle, in addition to the bit paddle, get a smaller one hand paddle for minor position changes while fishing.
Wind!!! You're gonna get blown over the lake. So use the wind... don't fight it. Pick your spot to start fishing so that the wind pushes you along. This may mean paddling the length of the lake, and fishing all the way back home as the wind carries you along. If you try to fish and paddle, you'll hate it after a while (unless you're trolling.)
I love kayak fishing, but I miss my 14 foot jon too! Another option is the square back canoe. I had a nice one with a 2.5 Suzuki and a trolling motor set up. On and off the trailer was a snap and if I wanted a paddle day, I had it. If I wanted a motor day, I had it. Fished the crap out of that boat and miss it too...
Kayaks are a compromise. A darn good one. Fished several hours last night with just the ultralite rod and had several dozen nice bluegill and crappie take the bate. It was a blast. Only needed one bait the whole night.
I live 300 yards from the water. 5 minutes from garage to fishing. Pull it on a cart, slide it into the water, climb on and pedal away...
