I’m only familiar with the RM Manitou, but I’m fairly certain this will feel like a bathtub for anyone smaller who wants a proper fit with good contact. I’m 6’2", and 225 lbs and I fit just fine find the fit quite roomy in a Manitou. For someone very light, this won’t be floating deep enough in the water and would just blow around over the water’s surface when the wind picks up.
Defend the suggestion if you want, but I think there are much better choices with the information given.
I never imagined that there would be so much to consider in buying a kayak (I do canoes since 1980). The choices are dizzying, but I’m finding it all very interesting.
@Schuylkill Some is similar between canoes and kayaks, for ex whether the hull shape favors tracking (usually a more plumb, longer waterline) or maneuverability (usually a shorter waterline, extreme version being the WW canoes that are very round).
Fit for both includes the issue of volume, that is whether the paddler and normal gear sink the boat to its most effective waterline. You rarely see a kayak manufacturer say where that line is. You usually have to try it out and see if you are giving the wind enough surface above the water to make it a pain. Hence my comment about a small person in a barge above.
Fit in both also includes how well the paddler can get their paddle into the water for an effective stroke . Width and height come into play here. Summarize to say that canoes that properly fit a 5’4" woman are rarer than those that make a good stroke easy for a 5’11" guy. But unless you are doing performance paddling in a canoe, people tend to accept a pretty rough approach to this. Many casual canoeists (like myself) accept dealing with a boat in which someone more performance-oriented would say that they are straining to get around a boat that is wide enough to impact efficiency.
The part of fit that is relatively unique to kayaks is because, with the closed cockpit, the knees/thighs and the feet have to all be in contact with a surface to put it on edge. Since you are sitting on your butt with legs in front, you don’t have the same options for dropping onto a knee in the bilge like you have in a more open canoe to get the boat on edge for turning. And putting the boat on edge is how you maneuver a kayak. You can drop your butt into the bilge of a kayak, but you still want to be able to do something with the boat via those thigh braces. Without going into the details, a rudder is primarily a tracking device more than a turning device.
The other part where this comes into play is rolling, which despite older attitudes is a skill that many of us consider to be fundamental to sea kayaking. Like really in the sea or similar big water like the Great Lakes, with waves etc. It just can’t be reliably done in a poorly fitting overly large boat. WW kayaks have long been tuned to paddler size because it isn’t optional there. 15 to 20 years ago the major sea kayak manufacturers started designing better around ease of rolling as well. Rolling means that thigh braces and pedal position have to create a secure tripod with the seat.
The good news is that there are way, way better options for the average sized and smaller woman than there were when I got my first sea kayak. Before the change manufacturers seemed to think that only average sized and up guys wanted to sea kayak aggressively.
Short yaks are easy to turn but do not track well at all. Longer will track better and will be much better when the seas pick up. I would look for a longer yak with a rudder, it will help you as you learn to handle it. My wife is 5’3” 115 and had a CD Extreme which is 18’+. We paddled out to Dix Island in Maine sea was flat. The headwind and tide created 2’ seas on the way back and she just cut through the waves. Long paddle but we had fun and felt safe. Best way to pick is to try as many as you can.
The Avocet LV is a fantastic boat for the small paddler but as others have mentioned they are hard to find and no longer in production. My first sea kayak was a Valley Anas Acuta which is also a great fit for a small person (I’m 5’7”, used to be about 120 lb, now about 150 but I still fit in all the same kayaks). A Dagger Alchemy 14S would be a good fit also, it is a very small boat that paddles very nicely although it is shorter than what some would consider a sea kayak. FWIW I am selling another kayak that would work for you, a Valley Etain 17.1. It is currently on consignment with Jay Rose at Paddlesports of Naples, another spot besides Sweetwater that you should check out in Florida (I’m in St Pete).
Thanks for all the comments, I am still on the hunt, and will keep checking in. Sweetwater is helping me look too!