Kayak advice needed...

Joel,

We first bought an inflatable, though easy to carry it is not very comfortable and does not track well. We then bought 2 hard plastic kayaks (Prodigy 10) from REI. They weight 39 pounds and are 10 feet long. We carry both on the roof outside of the dingy. We love them and anyone who takes a spin is gone for hours. They are easy to enter and exit from the Alli Cat.

Fred
 
SEA3PO":37k41k4q said:
!. Does any one have experience with Kelpper folding kayaks ? We want single boats... easy to carry.. easy to use ?? as good as plastic kayaks?
Click to expand...

I have owned my Klepper Aerius Expedition w/sail kit for about 15 years, and really love the boat. I don't sail it often because I'm scared of flipping in high winds and it takes a while to set up, so most of my experience is just paddling the boat.

I have taken it on a few cruising boats and checked it as baggage to the Bahamas. It's a very tough little boat, and a joy to paddle. Not quite as fast and efficient as my fastest plastic paddling kayak, but darn close, and really handles waves well. Feeling the hull and frame flex over waves is a really enjoyable sensation.

I have posted a video of me sailing the boat on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2CzTqtO2Hk

And lots of pictures along with a map of where they were taken on picasaweb:

http://picasaweb.google.com/publiusun/Kayaking#

As you can see, I now have a pair of Hobie Adventure Islands. The poor Klepper is getting ignored as I have a blast with my new toys, but I did take it for a paddle down the Peace River recently when a bunch of friends were doing a father/son canoe day. I have no son and didn't want to sit in a canoe when I could be paddling my Klepper, so I brought it along.

The other foldable I seriously considered was the Feathercraft, which has an aluminum frame instead of wood. Also a good boat, but I still prefer my Klepper.

It takes me 20 minutes to be ready to paddle, 45 to be ready to sail, and pretty much all day to get everything clean, free of salt, dry, and put back in the bags when I'm done.
 
Easy Rider Canoe and Kayak Company offers 3 models of small craft that would be suitable for dinghy duty. The Scout 13, The Sweetheart, and the Cub Scout are all versatile craft that can be paddled, rowed, or sailed. The Sweetheart is the lightest boat they build. It is a 12'6" kevlar canoe with a 35" beam and a 400 pound capacity. The weight is a mere 29 pounds! Easy Rider sells factory direct. Peter Kauput, the president of Easy Rider and the designer of these boats is a great guy to work with. www.easyriderkayaks.com

Best Regards,
Leo
 
AstoriaDave":182l9si0 said:
1. Folders: Most folders are impossible to assemble on deck; the beach is best

(snip)

PS: inflatable kayaks are pigs in the wind and slow, slow dogs. Not recommended.
Click to expand...

I agree in both cases. I once assembled my Klepper aboard a 24' deck boat, with great difficulty. I was very impressed that it was even possible.

It needs a space about 16' by 5' to be easily assembled. On the deck boat, I had the 16' but not the 5', so I did parts of the assembly with the boat on its side. It was not easy.
 
Lots of great boats here. I really like the sailing riggs. For the c-dory I would like a small, 10ft, boat to make shore calls in but I find it hard to spend over a grand on 50 lbs of plastic. Many of these boats are well over two grand. I'm sorry but thats just out of wack. a kayak should not be over a few hundred for a basic 10 to 12 foot boat. Hell I can buy a drift boat for under 2 grand. It just seems like a lot for very little. I want two small kayaks for the dory so I'm looking at old used ones.
 
starcrafttom":2f5a9y8v said:
Many of these boats are well over two grand.
Click to expand...
I have almost that much in paddles and two Mirage drives. More if you count the Mirage Drive I lost in the creek. :oops: Over the life of the boats, it's still cheap boating, and just like all boats, you pay more for speed and special features (like being able to put a 16' sailboat in the tiny back seat of my truck).
 
The dollar cost comparison came to me as I was pricing a quality 8-10 foot inflatable with engine for my TomCat. I kept thinking,"All that money and no fun?" That is why I got the Adventure Island Sail Kayak. Less money out, more fun in!

On the Hobie Adventure Island owner's site they have threads about guys routinely going to Catalina Island camping and fishing in these sailing kayaks. Also, racing them around from the East Coast of Florida to Texas, even running at night. How many of you would do that in your dinghy?

John
 
Fred, how do you have your Kayaks mounted? Any pictures?

Tom, the kayaks we got (Ocean Kayak Fenzy, 9 ft) cost $450 each from REI. Not cheap, but not terrible either. We also got scupper plugs for them and seats which cost a little bit more, and paddles are expensive if you don't already have them. If you are an REI member you get 8% back at the end of the year on all purchases too. And like I said before, I don't know how you could break these things unless you tried to burn it. You may be able to find some good deals on Craigslist or check out the kayak rental places at the end of the season when they sell all their gear.
 
Retriever,

Last year (first year with the kayaks) we just used the rubber kayak saddle mounts and tied them down snug over the top and at each end. This was not easy or fast. I will have to look for pics. This year, if it ever gets warm enough, I will install 4 (2 on the port and 2 on the starboard) 12 inch SS rails on the roof. This will let me mount the Yakima J-cradle kayak racks for easy and fast on and off. The only draw back with the kayaks is that we have to take down one kayak in order to reach the dingy and it's straps.

Fred
 
Fred,

I like the idea of using the handrails. I was planning on just through bolting the J racks, but the handrails would be nicer since you can then take the kayak racks off more easily. No I just need to figure out if the 12 inch rail will fit on my 22.

Can anyone near their boat measure the distance from the flat part of the roof just outboard of the factory handrail to the edge? Or tell me if a 12 inch rail would fit there? Thanks!
 
Fred I'm not sure which measurement you want but from the roof rail at the rear it's 15 1/2 inches to the outer edge of the roof. From the center of the roof rail to the outside edge of the cabin it's 14 3/4 inches. toward the front of the cabin roof there's a raised portion on the roof that would not allow for a 12" hand rail.
 
Joel,

I don't know if you remember from Santa Barbara, but I keep a Hobie Revolution on top of my boat. Same kayak Thataway mentioned. I use Yakima roof bars and towers made for rain gutter mounting and they fit the stainless C-Dory rails great. I'll most likely be at Lake Mohave next week and I should have the kayak there.

As mentioned elsewhere, it works best to stand on the bow and pull the kayak up across the railing, then pivot it around to the roof mount. If you have the kayak in the water alongside the C-Dory cockpit, it's easy to get in and out, using the C-Dory gunwhale for support and balance.

I like to paddle the kayak sometimes for arm exercise, but the Mirage pedal drive is faster and keeps your hands free for fishing, eating, photography, whatever. It's really nice to have both options. Hobie sells a self-inflating seat pad which I consider a MUST.

Hopefully you can check out my setup in person next week.

Jeff
 
Professional Hobbyist":c8ixow9s said:
I would not recommend a folding kayak. They are great for their intended uses, but are hard to assemble (relatively speaking) and require a large flat surface so you need them assembled before leaving shore. Once you do that you might as well have hard shell boats.
Click to expand...

True enough, but what if you want to pull ashore and store those hardshells inside your secure boat? Or maybe you're driving a thousand miles and want them out of the way on the road. Kind of tough, ain't it? I like folders -- especially small lightweight ones like the Puffins and XTs:

www.piragis.com/pakcanoe.html

www.pakboats.com/index.php?option=com_c ... Itemid=150

My Puffin II weighs only 30lbs and converts from a double to a single with a full deck, sprayskirt and has an optional skeg that acts like a rudder. The little Puffin Sport -- all ten feet of it -- weighs in at under 20lbs.

Or you could use an old antique folder like the Porta Packet (circa 1950) that opens up like an umbrella and weighs all of 20lbs. It has a seat and rows like a rowboat. Presto!

Got both of those folders on Ebay. I have a 1984 2-man Super Folbot with foot-controlled rudder as well. That pig weighs in at close to 100lbs but is bombproof. And it folds away, too. But the Puffins are lighter and more suited to a C-Dory.

www.folbot.com
 
We were going to carry a 16 ft kayak over to the Bahamas but the fit on the roof was pretty akward. We put it in a 31 foot boat for the ride. A boat to look at is the Old Town Loon - they are wide, very stable and run striaght w/o rudders. It has a big hole that was comfortable for my 6'2" 250 lb build. I spent 13 days on a trip down the Catawba river with 30 lb of geer and beer in a 13'8" model. For paddeling around in reasonable water you can get by with one of the shorter models. See if you can try one - i found it really superior to the long sleek ones.
Hank
 
For a peek at a Puffin 12-foot folder getting assembled and underway have a gander at the "La Cuerda del Pozo (Espana) en piragua" video on the top row of this page:
www.youtube.com/profile?user=margouilla ... s&start=40

The lady and her hubbie -- and their Puffins -- are featured on a number of the videos on their three pages. Look for Kayak trek in Canelles canyon (Spain), Piragua Panta de Canelles, Catalunya etc. They also team the boats up with folding bikes. (Note to Charlie: the Piragua Panta de Canelles video, bottom row, page 2, has some nice music on it :shock: Watch out!)

Try flying that hardshell kayak across the country, Atlantic or Pacific. Another advantage of folders: Storage at home (if you're in a condo or smaller home). Or store them in your boat until the next trip.

Diehard sailor? Where there's a will, there's a way:
http://sailboatstogo.com/v_page.php?content=Pakboat_1
Click on the video link for a Puffin II sail rig in action.
 
Back
Top