@Overstreet said:
@Chuck von Yamashita said:
Get a folding kayakI can verify the Oru kayaks are light weight, fold up nice, and paddle nice. They also have windage issues when the weather gets rough. You can light up the whole boat at night with a white light in the hull.
I looked at an Oru in REI once. Really flimsy. Would not trust it in anything but a pond
Not sure this guy used a fifth wheel, but he had issues with kayak crunching when he turned with the trailer. His solution, stack 'em in the middle.
I’ve seen vertical load on the back and front bumper rack here in Florida… But havent seen a real sea kayak! The most top out at 14 feet.
@BoozTalkin said:
Not sure this guy used a fifth wheel, but he had issues with kayak crunching when he turned with the trailer. His solution, stack 'em in the middle.
Still got to load and unload those things. I don’t know about y’all but I (wife) have/has to get up in the bed and side step stool to over come the 4x4 suspension and tires. Personally I’m gravity challenged.
Also on my GMC 2500 back of tool box (1ft fwd of gooseneck ball) is 13 ft from the front bumper. Probably similar distance and kayak length. Those kayaks though do look sleek and with possibilities.
@Chuck von Yamashita said:
I looked at an Oru in REI once. Really flimsy. Would not trust it in anything but a pond
That is likely why the guy paddling the Matanzas river / Pellicer Creek paddle looked real nervous. Osyters, wind and washing machine waves plagued the paddle that day.
Nope. You could put the kayak on top of the camper, but you wouldn’t be happy with it. That’s why we stayed with a tow behind trailer. Consider the positive side, you have the bed of the truck available for lots of storage rather than the fifth wheel hitch, and loading kayaks on the roof of the cab is very easy standing in the bed of the truck!
@Overstreet said:
Still got to load and unload those things. I don’t know about y’all but I (wife) have/has to get up in the bed and side step stool to over come the 4x4 suspension and tires. Personally I’m gravity challenged.
I remember talking to the yak stacking, trailer driving, guy. I asked him how he got the boats up there. Sadly, I don’t remember the whole explanation, though he pulled out this roller gizmo he made from stuff he bought at Harbor Freight. He showed me how he mounted it on the hood. Don’t ask me why I can’t remember how he got the boats up there but I remember him stressing “Harbor Freight.” Brains are weird as far as what is remembered and what is not. I’ve got to believe a rope over the rack may have been used to pull the boats into place, but I don’t remember whether he said that or I’m just making it up as plausible.
Note the rollers on his rack are mounted on the front, so he was obviously loading them across the hood.
~~Chip
Sell the hardshell kayak and buy a Pakboat XT-16 or Quest 150 skin on frame folder or a used Feathercraft Wisper, K-1 or Khatsalano (Feathercraft closed the business last Fall but Pakboat is still going strong). Any of them is more seaworthy than an Orukayak and all can be stored in a duffel bag or easily hoisted onto the roof when set up (all weigh 45 lbs or less). I can carry all 3 of my folders in the bathroom storage closet of my small motorhome.
Ref…Quest 150 skin on frame folder
Do you do all that assembly on your knees at the launch?.
Of course if you haul a folding boat packed you have to assemble it at the launch. I have a half ensolite closed cell pad that makes kneeling comfortable – you do a lot of the assembly standing anyway.
But add up how many minutes it takes to load a rigid boat on the roof rack, fasten the straps and tie off the bumper lines and then unfasten and unload it at the launch, then reload it when you are done. I’ve timed that process and it only takes me 10 to 15 minutes more than that overall to grab the bag boat out of the back of the car and set it up and then take it apart (though sometimes I just put it on the rack to drive home if I’m not far away.) It’s a lot less effort than solo loading a 50 or 60 lb RM or fiberglass kayak. And I don’t have the loss of gas mileage efficiency on long trips that you can get with hauling on roof racks.
In nice weather I just always have a folder in a duffel bag in the back of the car. No worries about it being damaged by UV, stolen or vandalized. And if I’m traveling somewhere or just taking a drive and see water that might be fun to paddle, I can stop and be on the water in 30 minutes.
It’s all relative.
That quest 150 looks good and I like the option of using it as a SOT for fishing and casual exploring when visiting different locations around the US. I too have been looking at options for RV travel via class B. The others I have looked at are inflatables. Not to derail thread but, anyone prefer one over the other?
Inflatables are great for situations where a hard shell won’t work. In general, my opinion is that hard shells perform better and are easier to use (they are ready to launch–no need to set them up or take them apart). Many will say the inflatables perform as well, but the ones I have paddled flex more, and flexing hurts performance. I find the cockpit rims and spray skirt connections somewhat squishy. I have had frame tubes come disconnected when doing rescues. If I have two similiar size kayaks available, one inflatable and one hard shell, I will take the hard shell every time. But this thread is about how to transport with a trailer, and as WL points out, she fits three of them in her bathroom. So, from that perspective, inflatables are great. I’d much rather paddle an inflatable than not paddle!
~~Chip
Like any product, there is a wide range of quality and performance. There are pretty lame cheap versions of inflatables and folders (that are flexible and slow) and there are well-designed, more costly, high quality ones that are sleek and fast.
The recently deceased Feathercraft made high-end inflatable and inflatable/folding hybrid touring kayak models like the Aironaut, Java and Gemini which were just as rigid and efficient as most hardshells. There are still manufacturers like Long Haul, Trak and Pakboat that make competent folders, and companies like Sea Eagle, Aire, Innova and Aquaglide make inflatables for everything from white water to touring. Fabric skin-on-frame folders have a paddling feel that is unique – I feel more connected to the water in one than in a hardshell and because the “give” in the hull absorbs rather than fights the force of waves, they are more comfortable and stable in choppy water than hard shells.
If I had to limit myself to only one kayak, it would be a folder, including for reasons beyond the storage and portability advantages.
@willowleaf said:
… And I don’t have the loss of gas mileage efficiency on long trips that you can get with hauling on roof racks.
Aerodynamic , pointy, kayaks on a full sized truck pulling a fifth wheel or travel trailer are not a mileage drainer. It’s the load behind. Gas mileage is same on my truck towing trailer with or without kayaks.
I find loading the hard shell kayaks on the truck is relatively quick. Even with the elevation. Travel trailer bumper hitch allows for a long radius rack spacing limiting the necessary line requirement to just two per kayak. It is the PFD, skirt, tow line, deck bag, cooler, spare paddle, the water bottles, the pump, the cockpit cover, changing shoes, the trip to the restroom, the questions about the wood boat and who built it that take all the time. They would likely be the same either way.
I have observed better gas mileage with two kayaks on the roof hauling my travel trailer than without them. Of course there are so many variables it’s hard to say with complete conviction. After 10 years of long road trips with a travel trailer, I believe the boats on the roof improve gas mileage about 10%. They break the air flow up before hitting the broad forehead of the travel trailer, perhaps lessening the resistance. Is 11.8 MPG better than 10.8? Yup, but it’s still a lot of fuel.
My results on hauling are roof rack only, no trailer, with a high mpg station wagon (i always log mileage efficiency on my road trips). Present vehicle gets around 35 mpg on highway w/o kayaks and around 32-33 with the boats on similar trips. Doubt it has much to do with their weight since my 5 boats range from 22 to 44 pounds. And when I am carrying the folders packed down the weight is the same.
There are other factors that need to be taken into account in comparing gas mileage with and without boats on the roof, or even trailered. In my experience, people tend to drive more slowly and accelerate more gradually when they are hauling stuff on the roof or by trailer. More conservative driving tends to lower gas consumption anyway.
@tjalmy said:
… Yup, but it’s still a lot of fuel.
If fuel economy was the only factor we’d be traveling with a CLC Teardrop pod behind the Honda.
http://www.clcboats.com/shop/boats/recreational-vehicles/clc-teardrop-trailer.html
Yes, Overstreet! We love our cabin on wheels despite the fuel consumption. With the kayaks, bicycles and dogs a teardrop trailer might be a bit tight! LOL! But I do fantasize about building one of those CLC teardrops. It would look awesome on a SportsRig trailer!
