So here I am, just after my 60-th BD, having been paddling kayaks for 20 years, and canoes for another 20 before that. My present boat is a fb Lincoln Monhegan, which is over 17 feet long and is a lovely expedition type boat. I love it plenty, but as my most frequent outings now are day trips, I started thinking about getting a light (<40 lbs), fast, fb day tripper. The rub is that I am 5’10” 240 lbs (not all miscle), and so do need some room in the cockpit and at the knees. Does anyone of you good folks have suggestions about and experience with such boats? I would very much appreciate any advice.
Thinking ahead about being able to repair the boat myself easily when need be. Fiberglass is pretty easy to fix. I think as long as the bottom of the boat is glass, it should be fine.
Stellar S14. $3395 Advantage construction. Finding used at $2k is going to be challenging. I’ve got a yellow decked one that’s seen two uses that can use a home.
TY! I think I would want an S16 G2, if I were to go the Stellar sit-inside route. S16S has become a bit of a front-runner, apart from the fact that I would prefer a North American - made boat.
Unfortunately there do not seem to be any to try near Maine.
Some outside the box suggestions from a fellow aging paddler: watch for a used skin on frame (SOF) kayak built for somebody of your proportions. They do turn up and most skin on frames are super light. The skins are very tough, also easily patched and even completely replaceable. I am due to re-skin the 18’ long, 32 pound SOF I have loved and heavily used for 14 years. The boats are not only light, most are built along Greenland lines and quite fast. You can also pay to have one built to your dimensions. There are quite a few builders around the country. Kit built wooden kayaks (strip built or stitch and glue) also tend to be much lighter than plastic or glass boats and are quite strong and able to be patched. I often see used ones of those around and the kit makers have many models scaled for different sized paddlers. Check out Guillemot Kayaks for some examples of their models and kits. Also a link to one of the skin on frame custom builders:
There is (or was, not sure if they are still in business) and skin boat building outfit in western Massachusetts.
You can also buy a 15’ , 31 pound Quest 150 folding skin on frame touring kayak from PakBoat in New Hampshire for $1,795 which they can ship to you. I have the smaller version (the Quest 135) and it’s a terrific boat as well. You can leave it set up for the season. The tough PVC hull bounces off most obstacles and even if you suffer a ding it can be rapidly repaired with a patch kit. In 20 plus years of paddling folding kayaks I have never had a hull rupture. The Quest 150 is very adjustable for different sized people and can be paddled with or without the optional deck. Since they are not all that far from you, you could contact them and see if you could do a test paddle – they used to offer them near the shop.
Here’s my skin on frame, with a comfortably sized coaming (rather than the more traditional small “ocean cockpit”). It has wonderful glide and is effortless to get it moving and keep it going, also terrific in rough water and wind. I’ve owned at least a dozen kayaks over the years but this has been a favorite and now that I am turning 73 in a few weeks, it’s great to have boats I can still easily lift onto the rack or carry myself to the launch. I have a canoe the same weight and 3 folding SOF kayaks from 12’ to 13’ 6" that are even lighter.
