bought a 28 ft class c motor home & wonder if anyone knows the best way to carry my 14 ft.kayak when traveling.will the ladder hold it?how about the roof?help!
Class c motorhome
Don’t even think about the ladder. If the wind resistance doestn’t get it the first 13 ft bridge clearance that you go under will. I have seen lots of canoes and kayaks on the roofs of Class C, but it depends on what over stuff is also on the roof, air conditioner, TV antenna, vent pipes and where they are placed. Most have a homemade wooden cradle or minicell cradle attached. Again, it makes a difference on how thick the roof is as to how you are able to attach it. Some new Lance campers have Yakima racks that go all the way across so you are looking at approximately a 9 ft. cross bar and I don’t know where you would find something like that,maybe they are made especially for Lance. The towers are attached to the side of the camper just below the roof line. It is possible. Good luck.
Class C RV & Kayaks
Ditto—no way with the ladder. Whether or not you can carry it on your roof depends on the roof configuration. If it’s a flat roof and IF there is room for a rack, one could be installed. I’ve seen Class C’s with canoes and kayaks loaded on roof racks. Needless to say, getting them up and down will be difficult.
rv setup for kayaks
here is my RV setup for carrying yaks.
http://groups.msn.com/TigerMotorhomeOwners/medicineman.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=36
http://groups.msn.com/TigerMotorhomeOwners/medicineman.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=42
http://groups.msn.com/TigerMotorhomeOwners/medicineman.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=43
The first pic shows the first incarnation of the system…but took two people to load/unload, person closest to RV simply lifts up yak while other person walks the yak forward, yak bow catches the roller, first person then climbs up and rolls the boat onto the Thule bars/Yakima saddles.
Next pic shows next step in my systems evolution…added the collapsible ladder to one side, and then added the pvc outriggers…
Last pic shows my aged mom putting one hand on the yak until i climb down.
Since that pic I’ve added the second collapsible ladder to the other side of the RV so I can get a boat down without moving the ladder, and created a stop system that stops the kayak near the ground keeping it off pavement…when dealing with grass I forgo the stop.
This system has now traveled 15,350 miles without any failure. Havent hit anything on top yet either. I’m sure it affects my gas mileage but on February’s trip I hit 16.2 mpg once (diesel is a good thing)…
The best thing is that I can load/unload by myself now. You’d think 2 boats would be enough but on the last trip I carried a folder inside the Rv.
PS
If you can tow a car behind your motor home, you can carry your kayak on that. That’s what most people do…It’d be a lot easier to get on and off.