Know Anything About Kayaks?

wingnut4772

Now that I have my truck I am looking to get a little something I can take the dogs out on the water with. I would like to go to Key Biscayne and just push off from there. I was looking at pedal boats and kayaks. I would like to have room to put fishing gear (just a little bit) and don't want it to tip in the ocean. Hobi makes a kayak that you can also pedal that looks cool but I like the idea of a pedal boat because it can have a cover. I'm not huge on the sun. Used would be best. Since I am new to this what should I look for?

shack

I'll ask my daughter and her dumbass boy friend. They are big into whitewater kayaking and probably know the best brands. I assume you are looking for an ocean kayak...they won't know anything about them...just maybe what the good brands are.

bruss

shack wrote: »

I'll ask my daughter and her dumbass boy friend.

Man this mad me laugh this morning.. As a Father of a young lady I can see myself saying the same thing when she is older..

mrbigbluelight

Shack, the day will come when you'll be able to say, "My daughter and her Exp dumbass boyfriend".

About kayaks ? Don't know, but "kayaks" and "ocean" don't seem like they would mix very well.

bobman1235

I love when someone lives in Florida and doesn't like the sun

strider

Dogs and boats with bottoms that aren't flat can get pretty interesting. Flat bottom boats are more stable side to side, but due to the smaller keel they are less stable in their straight line tracking. For the ocean you'd definitely want something with a rudder. You don't use it to steer per se, but to maintain a course across a large body of water when there are currents and winds involved. Don't dismiss a canoe, either.

Old Town(e?) makes some good boats.
My wife and I both have Walden Scout kayaks; they're a good mix of manuverability and straight tracking. It's considered a touring kayak, which is a hybrid of a whitewater/river design and a sea kayak. I've fished from it in lakes and the bay, taken it into the ocean, and done up to Class II whitewater with it. Damn if I'd take my dog in it, though.

Check out sierratradingpost.com for deals on boats; they have blemishes and last years models on sale quite often. Try to find someplace that rents boats before you buy, I know REI does up here, as well as some local shops set up on the rivers, etc. Sometimes you can grab deals on demos from them at the end of the season.

shack

Talked to my daughter and she doesn't know anything about Hobie. She thinks you might prefer a "sit on top" as opposed to a sit-inside type. She recommended to look at Ocean Kayak (mainly sit on top styles), Necky (mainly sit insides) or Dagger (both types and her favorite). She said longer kayaks will be faster, shorter will be easier to turn and wider will be more stable. She said it sounds like you are looking for a "touring" kayak.

Airplay355

I've only kayaked in Maine where the ocean is freezing so sit on tops were out of the picture. We ended up with Seaward kayaks because they are just badass. They are the sports cars of the kayak world. We stuck our 90lb golden retriever in one of the larger hatches for short trips. I'm not sure how large your dogs are, but these boats have plenty of storage for stuff or a place to let a dog hang out. The rudders work well too for when it's stormy out, you're fighting a current or just too lazy to steer the old fashioned way.

I would be nervous about putting a paddle boat in the ocean. I've flipped those over in a river before where there are absolutely no waves at all. You also have to peddle very hard to get anywhere. They aren't hydrodynamic and the paddle isn't the most efficient way of getting forward.

Depending on what your needs are I actually have a kayak I'm looking to sell. Here's the link to it. http://www.seawardkayaks.com/products_fibre_quest.php. The color is dark blue faded back to a lighter blue and the accents are yellow. It's long and designed to be in the ocean and since it's a little narrow it's better for a smaller person. My fat **** uncle flipped it in the ocean and couldn't get back in. What's great about fishing in it (I've fished a lot in it) is that you are right on the water as opposed to being up higher in a canoe. So when you catch a big one, you don't have to lean over the edge and drag a 10 lb fish up, you can just lift his head out of the water and dehook him. I don't know where you're from but I'm in NY if you're interested.

If you're looking to get your first kayak and just want it to be stable you're best off with a plastic boat, most likely a double so your dogs can wander around. They are much heavier then fiberglass but you won't feel bad about slamming into rocks or dragging the bottom on the beach. You can also find much wider more stable plastic boats that are slower and heavier while fiberglass ones are light agile speedy but a little more tippy. A fiberglass boat will also be more expensive. We had one like this http://www.cheltenham-canoes.co.uk/products/perception-kayaks/images/vista-s.jpg for a small river. The dog sat in the front and I paddled from behind. It was impossible to flip even if you tried and I did try. Like I said, it's downside was it was really heavy and slow.

Murray1

Hobie pedal kayak is way cool for fishing. As far as dogs go, think you may want to rethink that one. Depending on their size, a boat would be more appropriate. You need to plan on getting wet with a kayak. First thing you want to master is getting back on when (not if) you find yourself in the water. This is another reason NOT to take dogs out since it will be impossible to hoist them back aboard. You will want to launch and return in as small of surf as possible. La Jolla shores in SoCal is very popular since surf tends to be 1-2' in some areas. I own a Hobie Outback and love it for fishing. Both hands are free and legs are stronger than arms. If you have a lot of seaweed, you will need to break out the paddle since pedal system will foul if there is too much weeds. Make sure to demo first before buying. Good luck and have fun.

wingnut4772

Thanks for all the advice. I was thinking of taking the dogs as they are small (Rat Terriers) and giving them little life vests but I can see where it would be difficult to get them back in if I were to flip. Hmmmmmm. Not so good.

Airplay355

You'd have no problem getting rat terriers back in the boat. You would get yourself in first, grab them by their life vest and pull them in while leaning to the opposite side. I've done it with my 90lb golden I'm sure a rat terrier wouldn't be much of a problem. Kayaks are low to the water line so you wouldn't really have to do much lifting. Plus the dogs will want to get back in the boat so they will be kicking and trying to help (all the more reason to get a plastic boat).

I've never had a problem with surf either as long as you launch into the surf and not parallel to the shore. Occasionally you see someone turn their boat parallel to the waves and get dumped. Just make sure you go through the waves

Airplay355

Also if you flip the boat while you have dogs in the storage compartments they will most likely stay inside the boat even while it's flipped. The boat won't fill with water because air will be trapped inside. When you flip it back over you might have to bilge out some water but usually it isn't bad and your doggies would be fine, especially with life vests on.

fatchowmein

Hey Darla,
Did you pick up a Kayak? I've been thinking about getting one to play around for half a day on the weekends so I'm curious if you bought one. Still trying to decide if I want to just get a simple 8' one to make carry and storage easier or a faster 12 footer (not sure I want to invest in a Yakima rack system for the truck).

George Grand

I can't believe nobody from Alaska chimed in.

snow

Some of us have enough sense to stay away from those death traps, and besides I dont fit very well in your average kayak



REGARDS SNOW

George Grand

Questions?