After a very enjoyable day at the riverfest we have made up our minds on the boats we are going to get. The wife and I are going with a Wilderness Systems Pungo, 120 for her and 140 for myself. Loose britches will probably get to paddle around a Wilderness Systems Pamlico 100.
Now I need some help picking out the accessories. The wife used a womens PFD, but she didn’t get the manufacture of it before we left. I just wore a big bulky generic PFD, I would like something a little less bulky that would work good for recreation and fishing. Anyone had any experiences with inflatables? Also if you could throw in a some suggestions for paddles, not looking to break the bank on any gear but would like to get stuff worth having. Thanks for any input you may have!
Look here
Under guidelines on this site -
http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/
And here -
http://www.atlantickayaktours.com/pages/expertcenter/main-expert-center.shtml
Boy oh boy
You’ll get a lot of mixed reviews on gear. The bottom line is there is no replacement for simply trying things on. This goes for clothing, PFDs, and paddles. You need to buy what’s right for you. As in most things, you get what you pay for, but that doesn’t mean you have to “break the bank.”
This is a good time of year to buy as many stores are having end of the season sales. You can get some great buys on slightly used and/or demo gear. Don’t get too hung up on the new and shiny stuff; chances are your gear will look like the demo stuff after a couple of paddles.
With that said, buy reasonably good equipment. Chances are your preferences will change in the next year or so, which is another reason to buy slightly used, but you still want to have good, reliable equipment.
Don’t forget to check the message boards at your local shops, too!
Welcome to PNet!
Yes, you’ll get mixed reviews on gear here but check out the product reviews and if you have specific questions about a piece of equipment I think you’ll get some good advice here on the boards. There’s bound to be someone here who has tried or owned about everything imaginable!
product reviews
I’ve found that the reviews on kayaks here are overwhelmingly positive. Everyone is happy to be paddling.
Gotta read through most of the reviews to find the one who’s owned a billion boats and found a few things wrong.