User Panel
User Panel
User Panel
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 1:49:40 PM EDT
[#1]
A kayak on a river that is just a little bit tougher than you feel comfortable with is about as much fun as a man can have in this world. However, a true kayak isn't good for much other than (oddly enough) kayaking. Even river tripping is best accomplished in a group that includes on ore more rafts. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 1:58:36 PM EDT
[#2]
Old Town are pretty great for the money.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 1:59:42 PM EDT
[#3]
basically there are 2 types of kayaks. Sea kayaks. Slender and built for speed, long trips. And recreational kayaks. Built wider and more stable. Either should work for you, but typically the sea kayak will be much tippier and take more to master. As for a tandem, they are called divorce boats for good reason. Also harder to paddle solo , if someone else doesn't come along. Alos you can get the boats in poly, fiberglass or kevlar. Poly will be cheaper by far. Model and make are a bit diffrent , but I don't really see that big of diffrence between makers. For lots more info check out
www.paddling.net/ |
|
|
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 2:08:58 PM EDT
[#4]
Paddling a double kayak solo, sucks! Better to get two boats that way you have more options. If you are into wood owrking then Check out CLC Kayaks on the web. I built two, but still have some river boats for when I want to play or let someone new try the sport.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 2:09:35 PM EDT
[#5]
If you want one for fishing,go towww.kayakfishingstuff.com. I've got mine set up for ocean fishing.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 12/31/2005 11:50:07 PM EDT
[#6]
The river kayaks aren't suitable for fishing. They're designed to move in fast-flowing water, not to cruise along on a lake. You'll definitely want a "sea kayak" of some sort. It's an individual thing; you'll need to try a few out in order to see which one works best for you.
The best ones I've ever tried were Lee Moyer's designs. His company, Pacific Water Sports (near Seattle), went out of business a few years ago. If you can find a used one in good shape, try it and buy it. Eskimo makes some ok ones, lots of space and very stable -- good for fishing -- but they don't handle well. You will be forced to use the rudder at all times. The one I had simply would not stay oriented no matter what -- and before someone chimes in with "you just have to learn to paddle right", I had no problem at all in Moyer's yaks. Something to do with the cockpit position, someone told me. As Surf wrote, get two individual kayaks, not a two-holer. If your wife/girlfriend/buddy/dog/whatever(s) wants to go explore some other part of the lake, she/he/it/they can do it without taking you away from the spot you're fishing. You might think about an inflatable or a foldable. They're not as cheap as rotomolded plastic (unless you get an inflatable "pool toy" type  ) , but you won't need to get a cartop rack, and you can take them with you if you decide to go fish in Australia or something. Then again, I paid $500 for my Folbot (an old model with no replacement parts available).You'd be better off asking in a sea kayaking forum, BTW. There are a few of them around. |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 4:21:35 AM EDT
[#7]
Old Town Loon 160T. Get the rudder. Get a set of wheel for hauling the heavy ass thing around when you are worn out at the end of the day. I used to live in a house where we could take a 7+ hour blackwater river trip and never be more than a 1/2 hour from home. There were some small drops and rapids but nothing dangerous. We had the Loon 160Tandem and 2 single seaters.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 4:28:41 AM EDT
[#8]
You live in Texas? Try texaskayakfisherman.com they rock! Lots of info, group fishing get togethers, plus heavy traffic. Just wait till this summer, you'll want to be catching sharks from your kayak!
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 4:33:16 AM EDT
[#9]
Those are beautiful man.. and I don't give a shit about kayaks, Nice work. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:02:22 AM EDT
[#10]
Thanks for the comment about the boats. Let me just said that I had sand paper. As far the the folding/inflatables goes; you pay a serious price in speed and ease of paddling for the convenience of storage. After building the two wooden boats, I got rid of my Folbot Greenland 2.
Wait till spring and go to a demo day at one of the local deals. You may want to look at places that rent them and see if they are getting rid of any used boats. |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:25:43 AM EDT
[#11]
Couple of other points:
#1. Traditional Cockpit kayaks are NOT good to swim from--hard to get back in. Sit-On-Tops are much better designed for that. #2. For a casual kayaker, roto-molded poly. will most likely be your choice. Heavier, but much cheaper. #3. Look at something like the Wilderness System Pungo (I don't know if they make the model anymore, but the design was excellent for beginner-moderate level kayakers--large, open cockpit, stable, tracks well). The only thing it wouldn't be good for is swimming from (see #1). #4. There are kayaks that are outfitted for fishing (rod holders, etc), but if you are a casual fisherman, a regular kayak should do fine. AFARR |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:36:06 AM EDT
[#12]
They should FLOAT.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:43:17 AM EDT
[#13]
yeah
they flip over you drown |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:47:20 AM EDT
[#14]
Aern't those what people ride down the river upside down?
That never looked like fun to me. |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 5:50:06 AM EDT
[#15]
You should ask a few questions here. www.texaskayakfisherman.com/forum/portal.php |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 7:04:04 AM EDT
[#16]
Well, there is more to this than I imagined. Those wood kayaks look too pretty to even get wet...they ought to be in a museum. Sit on top sounds like it might work best for me...function over form. I bought a Boston Whaler Montauk, ugly but functional...it does everything well, nothing great, except clean up easy. Thanks. There is always really good info on this site and I enjoy hearing from prople in the know.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 7:32:36 AM EDT
[#17]
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 8:59:59 AM EDT
[#18]
This is why God created inflatable outriggers.  I vaguely remember some reason not to get a sit-on-top, but am too fried to think of it right now. BTW, you might also pick up a few books on kayaking to learn some of the basics. Dunno about TX, but it was easy to find classes in Seattle teaching basic skills such as self-rescue (climbing back in after flipping over). Even though lakes are usually pretty calm waters, it is still essential to learn and practice this skill, since so many powerboaters and jetskiiers are drunken assholes who think it's great fun to play "chicken" with you. Oh yeah, skip the wetsuit, get a drysuit. Wetsuits start to stink after just a few uses, and it's damn near impossible to de-stink them. They make special enzymatic cleaners to do it, but you can't very well soak 'em after every single session. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/1/2006 9:03:41 AM EDT
[#19]
Thanks for the compliment, however the adventures are worth the scratches. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:14:45 AM EDT
[#20]
Wow, I've cheated death many times in my 'Yak then. Because I sure as hell have flipped it. 
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:25:47 AM EDT
[#21]
A friend and I rented a kayak that we could pedal (with our legs and feet), and also had traditional paddles for our arms. We did it for S&G, but it was stable and had some surprising speed.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:32:34 AM EDT
[#22]
Are you sure you want to go with a kayak? Considering your uses, would a canoe be a better choice?
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:33:44 AM EDT
[#23]
Heck, I do it on purpose. It's a great way to cool off.
|
||
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:47:25 AM EDT
[#24]
I call it "rotary cooling".  BTW, two single kayaks are a lot more fun and versatile than a tandem. And probably better for your marriage. 
|
|||
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:58:39 AM EDT
[#25]
Man would have never invented this ..... had we been intended to paddle around.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 8:05:44 AM EDT
[#26]
Originally posted in rec.boats.paddle in 1995: SIMPLE ANSWERS TO SIMPLE QUESTIONS by Hanz Patler GBCC "Gunpowder Gazette" (newsletter) Q: Dear Hanz, I'm interested in boating but don't know whether I would rather canoe or kayak...what do you think? A: I won't go into all those trite old phrases like "half the man, half the paddle" or "twice the man, twice the paddle". And I won't harp about the weight or unwieldiness of hauling a massive two-ton boat on your roof. And I won't even mention the total disrespect that most open boaters are subject while on river. And, I'll skip completely the number of hobbled open boaters I've seen, half-crawling, half-walking, dragging their monolithic boats feebly behind them at the take-out. No instead, I'll just stick to the facts. I prefer a kayak because I love the feeling of being stuck in a long tight cylinder, upside-down, under cold water, with water gushing up my nose, while I beat my head on rocks. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 9:21:33 AM EDT
[#27]
Paddling.net is a good place to start.
They have lots of product reviews and buyers guides. Also I'd stay away from the two person kayaks. They don't call them "divorce boats" for nothing.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 9:28:30 AM EDT
[#28]
I have the Hobie Outback Mirage. You can pedal it, paddle it, or sail it. It is great if you don't plan on carrying it any distance.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 12:22:52 PM EDT
[#29]
Maybe a canoe is an option to consider. Looks pretty hard to get back into if you go swimming in deep water.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 1:32:56 PM EDT
[#30]
As far a reentry into a kayaks go... there are ways that are easy to learn.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 1:53:53 PM EDT
[#31]
Last count I had four canoes and two kayaks stacked out back. I have two old Town Loons for flat water crusinng, friend got a tandem and calls it the divorce boat. Not a good idea. Took out the front set and bought another one for his wife. A canoe is like a pickup truck, a kayak is a motorcycle. My wife uses a 13', mine is 15', We love them and go out all the time in the backwaters on the Tenn river. I take mine in the summer and go all over the Tenn river. For camping and hunting I use an Old Town Guide canoe with a heavy duty trolling motor. With a marine battery charged up it will take me and about 150lbs of stuff (I take everything) for about six hours of run time.
rk |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 5:56:31 PM EDT
[#32]
Necky are a good brand.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 5:57:29 PM EDT
[#33]
Tag.
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 6:47:31 PM EDT
[#34]
The application for Mrs. Surf process including passing the tandam kayak test. There were many that failed. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 6:48:33 PM EDT
[#35]
Yes they are, but I think they pulled out of the SOT market. |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:01:39 PM EDT
[#36]
AhK-ee-tak-ee-yum-bah, ahk-ee-tak-ee-yum-bah
Hey a little hi a little ho a little hey. a little Eskimo song to paddle a kayak by. |
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:09:39 PM EDT
[#37]
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:11:30 PM EDT
[#38]
Getting back into any boat in deap water isn't easy. I like swimming where I can touch the bottom. It seems like I'm allways selling canoes here, but from what you describe it sounds like a canoe might be more useful. Get well designed canoe and it will be as fast or faster than a shorter two person kayak. My other reason for likeing canoes is the seating position can be changed while on the water, with the kayak you are locked into sitting with you legs out in front of you. ETA: Wenonah Canoes has lots of literature to help with selecting a canoe. Kent |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:14:33 PM EDT
[#39]
No motors allowed here:  Besides it would be a little hard to hump a 300 lb motor over the 1.2 kilometer portage to get here. Kent |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 1/2/2006 7:22:31 PM EDT
[#40]
Damn I would love to canoe & camp in an area like that.
|
|
|
Win a FREE Membership!
Sign up for the ARFCOM weekly newsletter and be entered to win a free ARFCOM membership. One new winner* is announced every week!
You will receive an email every Friday morning featuring the latest chatter from the hottest topics, breaking news surrounding legislation, as well as exclusive deals only available to ARFCOM email subscribers.
AR15.COM is the world's largest firearm community and is a gathering place for firearm enthusiasts of all types.
From hunters and military members, to competition shooters and general firearm enthusiasts, we welcome anyone who values and respects the way of the firearm.
Subscribe to our monthly Newsletter to receive firearm news, product discounts from your favorite Industry Partners, and more.
Copyright © 1996-2024 AR15.COM LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Any use of this content without express written consent is prohibited.
AR15.Com reserves the right to overwrite or replace any affiliate, commercial, or monetizable links, posted by users, with our own.
