You are likely on the high side for fit in a standard Explorer but it might work. Weight isn’t really a concern as these are expedition hulls. Key would be your comfort with the deck height & cockpit opening.
For the record I’m 5’ 8" & fit in and own a LV but that only because I have fairly narrow hips and replaced the foot pegs with a couple of inches of foam on the bulkhead.
A great hull & a good price.
The Avocet apparently works for your height. Not sure about the weight. Athough for a “day play boat”, there is leeway to accommodate a heavier than “average” (whatever that means) paddler if you forgo lots of overnight gear:
sing
He won’t sell the Advocet separately. I need to get out and paddle some boats. Hope to try a Capella 166 on Friday, and class on Sunday that will hopefully allow me to paddle some different boats. We’ll see.
Ask to sit in a NDK Explorer if you can:
sing
In BC ocean paddling in canoes is common place. A Clipper Tripper is a good example. Add a spray cover to your existing canoe.
Take the Explorer over an Avocet all day, everyday. However, not a rock play kayak since fiberglass. You will fit it and can use it forever.
Wind and 3-4’ foot ocean swells in one of my canoes, don’t think so (spray cover or not).
Getting rescued in a canoe in those conditions by the sea kayak crowd, also don’t think so. They wouldn’t go out with me in a canoe anyway.
I wouldn’t mind getting an ocean canoe, but they are not easy to find around here, so sea kayak it is. You can do anything in any boat, but in this case it is probably easier to go with the crowd and get a boat better suited for the conditions.
Thanks - would be a nice boat for the Maine Island Trail 
I sent an email.
I can’t read whether the Aquanaut is LV or HV. If HV, you probably would fit. I had one at 6’ and 220 lbs. If anything, it would pefer you to be a bit heavier or be carrying a load.
Yes I understand. It will be a big change for you not just in terms of boat, but in overall paddling skills and also the open water the sea provides.
I assume in WW with your canoe setups you were switching to kneeling for the difficult stuff and in the event of going for a swim you exited the canoe that had full floatation and tried to stay with the boat until you had a chance to right it and reenter. Now I assume you will have a full skirt and will work on a roll technique suitable for both your WW and also sea conditions.
For me at 67 I’m resigned to flat water or very mild WW and I don’t think I any longer have the right stuff or the desire to learn those skills. It is great though that you are up for the challenge. I know I can go for a swim if I have to and can manage reentering a canoe anyplace I paddle.
If you get a chance to paddle a CD Solstice you might like it. Good big guy boat that is very sea worthy. It’s is a little wider in beam than many of the more performance kayaks being discussed here, but I enjoy the stability that it adds as in many conditions I can put the paddle across my lap and let the boat ride over the swells.
There is one for sale near me - 1998 construction used twice - looks like brand-new - $900.
May be I’ll get out and try to paddle it.
Early in my Chesapeake Bay sea kayaking days one Saturday I did a 4 mile Chester River crossing to Eastern Neck Wildlife Refuge in my Solstice. This body of water is near the mouth of the river as it empties into the Bay. We had an easy go of it during the early morning hours of our launch as we paddled across to the refuge. Early morning seas were calm.
Our return in mid afternoon was far more interesting. Numerous power boaters heading to and from the Bay on many different bearings had churned the water into a confusing sea, waves coming from multiple directions. I found the Solstice very reassuring as it moved easily through the difficult seas. I kept up a steady paddle stroke to add some bracing and the hull seemed to respond to what was needed on each wave. I was surprised at how calm and comfortable I felt under those conditions, I think the boat had a lot to do with it.
Solstice is a completely different type of boat than the ones discussed so far: hard tracking and built for carrying a load from A to B. A great boat for sure, but the OP needs to decide what kind of ocean paddling he wants to do.
Yeah, Solstice is a tracker go-straight boat for sure. I fit in the Solstice Titan with so much room to spare that it felt uncomfortably big (the only big guys boat I’ve ever felt that about). I think a used NDK boat might be the ticket, but it would probably have to be the Explorer HV, the Romany S, or the Romany Excel. On a personal note, I do not fit in the Explorer HV or the Valley Aquanaut because of my leg length and thighs. If you’re thinking used classic Brit boats, a Skerray or a Nordkapp Jubilee might work. I still think a used Delphin or Aries (or Zephyr, if around) would come closest to blending the paddling disciplines. Any of these would feel like a feather after lugging around a canoe.
The problem is, I’d like to be able to do it all. Like I own multiple canoes, I’m beginning to realize that if I get serious about this I am going to need multiple kayaks - short plastic boat for rock gardening, expedition boat for camping, maybe a mid size touring boat for bopping around the bay.
Maybe I should do my first trip before I build this huge kayak fleet.
I am going to paddle a plastic Cappella 166 later today. Seems like a relatively versatile boat to start. If I like it I will probably buy it. I like paddling, but this shopping for boats is a real pain.
The 166 plastic Capella is indeed versatile and has a large cockpit for big guys. I don’t now about your leg length, but I’ve had trouble sizing that boat for my longest legged students (inseam over 34”).
The Capella was superseded by the Cetus (composite)/Scorpio (plastic) range. Just FYI, in case you run into one of those. The largest Scorpio would be a very strong candidate for your do-everything boat: more playful than the Capella, but a more capable touring boat than the Delphin.
32", so it sounds like I should be OK. Its also in a boat shop, so there will be someone there to help make sure it fits.
You should start with one kayak, and it should be focused on what you expect to do most with the RICK contingent. Based on my one trip and what I have seen posted on the RICKA board, it’s mostly daytripping and/or with rock and surf play.
If you think about long touring/camping, it’ll likely be one or two trips per year max. The other times are mostly day tripping. So many folks, myself included, end up getting a long boat suited to what we intend do 10-20% of the time, as opposed to what we really do 80-90% of time out there.
My own experience and 2 cents worth (as some one whose gone through more than a few long boats in my paddling pursuit).
sing
Shopping for boats is a pain? I have a completely different perspective.
Getting the wrong boat for your body can be a physical pain. Sitting in them or better yet , paddling them is a pain preventer.
Looks like you are doing it the right way.