Between thunderstorms we got to see a sun on the 4th so I took the wife, son, and oldest daughter to a lake with a canoe, and both kayaks.
I had the son try mine, (old Aquaterra Sea Lion) and he found the foot room very close. I do to but since I dont have any experiance in other boats, and this is what I have, I am pretty much going to live with it unless I hit the lottery. I have a a 10.5 hoof and if I wear crocks or sandles I get hung up on the nuts for the deck rigging. I was running bare foot a good part of the way on the long trip I took this spring. Is this kind of the norm in sea kayaks? Because I think I like the style for what I want to do, camp and cruise, but I would prefer to have shoes on in case I have to get out in a hurry.
Upside, the wife liked it in the sons 14.5 Carolina, the daughter liked my Sea Lion better. Because it is 22in wide she felt like she was paddling better. She is under a buck and a half, 5’ 7" ish and in decent shape. She defenitely looked better in the thinner boat and she had no issue on the lake with stability.
The son and I still work well together in a canoe, but he has become a kayaker and says he just doesnt care for the canoe as much.
foot room
I have size 11’s. In my valley aquanaut i would hit the bottom of the deck just enough to limit my position to splayed out legs only. This gets " old " after a while.
I eventually ground down enough of my toe ans heel aspects of my sandals to allow me to use different leg positions.
Reverse the bolts for the deck rigging.
Put the bolt head on the inside and you’ll gain 1/4" or more room inside and the bolt head is rounded, so your booty is much less likely to snag on it.
I’ve done this on a couple boats and it helps with the foot room.
The main down side to this mod, is that now you have the nut and possibly some bolt exposed for your paddle or other gear to bump on where the lower profile bolt head used to be.
Good luck.
You Might Rethink
your footwear choices. I know some people love Crocs, but I think they’re too big & clunky. I wear wet shoes (NRS Kickers) which take up less room & give me a better feel on the pegs than Crocs or sandals. They still have a sole for coming ashore. A pair of NB trail runners are in a hatch for hiking. BTW, my feet are size 12 and I paddle a Nordlow.
I dont
care much for Smurf Booties (Crocs) however I have found that they were about the best thing in a canoe.
I tried wet shoes and they are ok for a hour or two IMHO. They tore me up pretty badly on a trip though so I am trying to avoid them.
The sandals seem to be pretty close to what I am looking for in the boat and around it. Off the water I go for socks and the Danner hikers.
I am liking the idea of reversing the bolts. There still isnt a ton of room but not getting hung up will help with the warm fuzzy feelings.
Concur
Crocs are, in my opinion, the worst. I've seen people wear them in sea kayaks, but they tend to have smaller feet. Those of us with bigger hoofs (size 12 myself) usually need something less bulky. I use the NRS Kickers as well, and they work just fine in all the boats that fit my other dimensions.
By the way, if you think sea kayaks are bad, try shoving yourself into a WW playboat sometime. You will get a new appreciation for the relatively spacious dimensions of sea kayaks.