advice requested : kayak for family

Hi,

I am in a market for a family Kayak. Me, my wife and 2 kids (5 and 8) totalling 400lbs… Having read just about every single article on Internet, it is pretty clear either StraitEdge II or AdvancedFrame would be the best choice for us.



Here is the purpose and I would like to hear your opinion.


  1. 90% of time we will be using it to cruise around the lake at National Park such as Glacier National Park)
  2. We will be only using it in a good weather. (sunny 60-80s)
  3. We will be traveling no more than 1 mile from the shore.
  4. Very unlikely used in rivers
  5. May use it in a calm bay around Puget Sound and Baja
  6. Wont use Spray skirt
  7. Won’t carry camping equiptment stuff. possibly one bag w/snack, camera, towel and such.



    With the upcoming REI sales, I would like to hear the expert’s opinion.

    Thanks in advance.




Good luck
no such thing.

Sound more like
big canoe territory than kayak.



Maybe a Kruger Cruiser, but they ain’t cheap.

That’s a lot of peeps

– Last Updated: May-10-10 12:05 PM EST –

. . . especially for a 13' boat!

I think with that many people, I'd be looking at 2 boats. Even if it's canoes. I think anything you got would be a real squeeze at this point, and I'm guessing your kids aren't getting any smaller as time passes.

Two rec doubles might be a good idea. Just keep in mind that even lakes can get rough. I imagine the water can be cold up in the Montana mountains, and Puget sound is definitely cold. A mile is a long way to swim with a 5 year old, so consider how you'd deal with a swamped rec boat out there. Dress appropriately, get proper safety gear, and practice using it.

Sunny and Beautiful
It was a sunny and beautiful day yesterday. I put in at a protected location which leads to a large lake. I was prepared but people who did not listen to local forecast could have been fooled by the nice weather. When I paddled out to the open lake I was hit by 30 mph winds, whitecaps and waves that you could surf on.

Yes there is such a thing.
But you will find it very expensive and may have a wait.



http://www.belcarra.ca/reports/George_Dyson_Story.pdf



http://www.flickr.com/photos/tellytom/galleries/72157622264603473/

My similar experience
When I lived in the Rockies I had a large 17’ aluminum canoe it held the wife, the dog, and two kids, as my older son turned 14 we got into kayaking. We initially purchased a 14’ Tandem Kayak by Hobie called the Odyssey, it is a really good family boat but it will only hold two adults and one smaller paddler comfortably. There are some kayaks like the Cobra triple that will carry your whole tribe but they are quite heavy. I would recommend sticking with a canoe for a while or getting two smaller SOTs like the Ocean Kayak Malibu (heavy and slow) or the Cobra tandems.

Thanks everyone

– Last Updated: May-10-10 2:09 PM EST –

I am open to Canoe also as long as it is high quality inflatable. Can someone please educate me as to why Canoe is more suitable besides it is wider?
Hardshell is no go for me as I plan to drive aroudn the country. Thx.