I am looking to purchase my first touring kayak & I want get some advice from experienced paddlers here. I have done some research but I am still a bit unsure about what features to prioritize and what might suit my needs best.
I plan to use the kayak for day trips and occasional weekend outings on lakes and calm rivers. I am not looking for something too specialized or extreme at this point.
I am around 6 feet tall and weigh about 200 pounds. I am considering a kayak with a length of around 12 to 15 feet. I would like to know if this size is suitable and if it will offer enough space for comfortable paddling.
I have seen kayaks made from various materials like polyethylene, fiberglass & composites. What are the pros and cons of each, especially in terms of durability & weight?
What conditions, distances, loads, bodies of water. What are your skills? Are you interested in a playful boat, speed, load capacity, comfort, primary stability?
You’ll probably get lots of good advice here. I’ll offer three suggestions, all unrelated to specific boat selection:
Look at the used market. Depending on your location, you should find a decent variety of quality boats in very good shape in your price range.
Try before you buy if at all possible, or at least sit in those you’re interested in. No two people experience the same boat in exactly the same way.
How will you get your boat to the launch site? Unless you’re in excellent shape, you won’t get out as often if getting the boat on your car or carrying it to the water is a struggle.
Agree with all but especially emphasize #3.
Unless you store the boat at the water, ensuring it is as easy as possible to get to the water is of paramount importance. Everything else is secondary. If there is an obstacle to getting it in the water, then you will likely do it less and less over time. So if you are not storing at the water’s edge, then consider cartop or trailer, then you can decide on how to weigh your decision for boat weight considerations.
Hatches and bulkheads are a plus, especially a day hatch.
A cockpit that is long enough for you to sit butt first and then straighten your legs is a huge plus. It’s a lot harder when you have to slide your legs in first.
I’m not going to go into Layup, vs Rotomolded, etc. The first thing you want to do is Paddle one, find an outfitter who will let you demo a kayak even if you have to rent one.
then paddle for a few hours, and see if the seat is comfortable, if you can’t be in the boat for 3+ hours straight or need to modify the seat or add padding then it’s not going to be the right boat for you.
I’ve been paddling for 40+ years and pretty much can tell within the first 15 minutes if the seat might be a problem for me. that’s the first hurdle you need to account for because touring you’re going to be in the drivers seat for a bit.
After that you need to look at where you are going to be paddling. if there’s alot of rocks that you could bang off of then you might not want a Layup boat, damage that gelcoat and you’ll be crying.
If you struggle with boat weight then you might want a layup boat.
The main hatches and bulkheads in front and back of the boat should be requirements. Kayak company marketing may call these storage, but you want them even if you never se them as storage, as the are inherent flotation. Without this flotation, were you to capsize in deep water, you would not be able to get back in and drain the boat out. To safely use boat without flotation means staying close enough to shore than you can swim back should you flip. If you plan to do other than this, you want flotation fore and aft.
An extra/separate hatch either right behind the cockpit (day hatch) or between your legs on front deck is a nice to have.
Plenty of people, myself included, have toured with boats with no bulkheads using float bags and dry bags, but they are a pita compared to hatches. I don’t recall seeing boats with hatches until the late eighties, tho I’m sure they were available before then. Pics here bring back memories; I might have one of the boats in this shop pic in my garage: https://paddlingmag.com/stories/features/history-of-sea-kayaking/
I would ask will you ever be on tight rivers or creeks, doing Class III whitewater. If so, a shorter boat that is also more nimble will allow that (12-14’ IMHO). But of you’re sticking to wide rivers, bays, estuaries, coastlines, then longer boat gives you speed, usually, so less tiring. Don’t forget how bulky or vertical hull will be: affects wind resistance.
I like composite/fiberglass over plastics. They are lighter, durable, and more easily repaired. That is not to say that plastic is a bad choice, and in the case of WW the preferred choice. Just stating my choice. All the kayaks and canoes I now paddle are composites. They generally do cost more when new. However, on the used market you can find some good deals. All my boats where bought used except for my first canoe and the kayak I built. Of the 7 used composite boats I have owned the most I paid was $850. I paddle boats 16 to 17 feet long in all kinds of water from swamps, twisty rivers to ocean surf. I am 5’11" and 185 pounds. I think 14 to 15 is fine for what you want it depends on the design more than length
I suggest when you find something you are interested in you post to get feedback on them. There are many models that would work for what you want to do.
The advantages of plastic boats is durability and cost. They are almost indestructible and generally cost quite a bit less than composite boats.
The primary advantage of composite boats is weight. Why is weight important? It makes it easier the get the boat on and off of your car and to and from the water.
Performance? Little difference once you get the boats moving on the water. A lighter composite boat will have slightly better acceleration and probably have a slight advantage in maneuverability. However, I don’t know of any competent paddler that will have difficulty in keeping up in a group that has composite boats in it.
If paddling shallow rocky rivers or frequently landing on rocky shores, plastic is the way to go. If often portaging between lakes or launching where it is a long carry to the water, a lighter composite boat is usually the way to go.
In either case, especially with a first boat, used is the way to go. It will often cost half of what a new boat will cost and after you know the pluses and minuses of the boat and want to move on to a more suitable boat, you can usually sell a used boat for about what you paid for it. Kayaks, with minimal care will last for decades and they don’t change much from year to year.
