And perhaps use some 303 aviation “sunscreen” on your yak.
Rookie, if you don’t mind disclosing - are you male or female? I do remember talking to a couple of folks as we were paddling back to our rental that day And that will let me remember which person you were.
We couldn’t go this year because of a conflict. We signed up to go to PAKS a shorter symposium on the tip of Michigan’s thumb - but that was cancelled due to Covid. We went to Port Austin that long weekend anyway and did some paddling in Lake Huron and cycling in the area as well (since we already had the small cottage lodging arranged and could easily socially distance.
Never mind - I looked at your profile. I do remember Linda and I talking with you that day. We hope that you’re doing well and have had a good paddling season so far this year!
Nice to “see” you again! Perhaps we’ll again meet on the water next summer!
Yes, nice to “see” you again too. We’d like to go to the 21’ symposium. What color was the boat that you had there (deck color (if a composite boat))?
Grey. One of several there. Almost paddled someone else’s boat because it was the same brand, model, deck and seam color.
BTW, I demoed a North Shore Atlantic LV at PAKS 2016. I liked it very much then and would probably enjoy it even more now that I’ve had some seat time.
If you’re near RKC, you could probably arrange a demo.
We are familiar with RKC (mainly Tiffany and Laura] as we bought our North Shore Atlantic II demo from them just about a year ago. I messaged them a few days ago - relative to the Atlantic RM and the Valley Etain RM LV model.
I asked about your boat color because I was thinking that you had a cool-looking grey deck.
We also messaged Trey at TPOW about the P&H Scorpio LV RM.
I was on the road when I responded earlier (touting P & H’s Venture models as a good budget option for well-designed RM boats.) Finally home and had a chance to look at their current offerings and the Jura MV might be one to consider – seems to fit all your parameters. Currently $1,375 new.
Are the venture boats made by P&H? …in the UK? If not, who are they made by and where are they made, if you know… If made by P&H, and made in the UK what attributes of these boats let them sell at lower price points than the P&H branded boats?
I know one brand of tandem that we were interested in had a North American made boat and also offered a different model, made in Asia, that was significantly less expensive.
Any info is sure appreciated.
Thanks,
Steve
I think that the three boats that we are interested in (at present] are:
P&H Scorpio LV RM
Valley Etain 17.5 & 17.7 RM
North Shore Atlantic LV RM
If anyone can share any thoughts of the stronger and weaker points of these three - and what each may be better suited for, etc. that will sure be appreciated.
Thanks for all of the replies to this point. We sure appreciate the advice and experience.
Here is the link to P & H’s UK home page. Scroll down to the bottom (dark grey) information area and you will see they have links to their two other marques: Pyranha and Venture. The Venture line also makes canoes. All are fabricated in the UK.
P & H is mainly performance and expedition grade composite and plastic boats whereas the Venture line includes recreational and “day touring” models – Venture used to make a 16’ Capella sea kayak but now their model in that category is the two sizes of the Jura. The Jura is slightly different – the Capella 160 and 166 were more Greenland profile, as were the Easky models that were replaced by the current Islays.
They use the same triple layer material (Corelite) as the P & H models but have slightly less sleek hull profiles (an inch narrower beam on average for the P & H’s) and a few less little features. But my Venture Easky has very nice outfitting and at 15’ with 21.5" beam and hard chines with a low volume Greenland style hull (and a manageable weight of 45 pounds), It performs very well in a range of conditions and I have had it in class 2 whitewater and coastal clapotis and felt completely solid and in control in all of it. It feels like a sports car compared to the clunky Tsunamis and heavy Lookshas that most of my friends have (I cringe when they want to switch boats with me because I have trouble getting them to switch back.)
Great seat, with a low profile backband arrangement that can be folded up or down, good thigh braces and solid foot pegs. I like the little touches like the paddle stash bungee and hook arrangement along the starboard foredeck and the steel bar embedded in the stern deck that allows me to secure the boat to my roof rack or other point with a cable lock. Mine does not have a skeg or rudder (it does have the connection points for a rudder and the cables) but I have never felt like the kayak needed any help with tracking.
I think any of the 14 to 17 foot Venture kayaks, both current and prior models, are a great bang for the buck if you can’t afford their pricier cousins from P & H.
Photo below of my Easky, “Snow Pea” (being paddled by a friend) – gives a good view of the boat’s profile.
Thanks for all of the info willowleaf. I did look at the Venture website - and saw the common parent of Venture, P&H and Piranha. Your Easky is a nice-looking boat. The P&H dealer that we’ve contacted is also a Venture dealer and we are planning to head up there before too long and hopefully look at both. I know that they have a Scorpio LV in stock and I’ll check whether they have any Ventures in the model we’re interested in.
Thanks again,
Steve
Watch out for Willow… She talked me into getting a Easky LV for my daughter. My kid has a lot less time on the water than I do and that danged little boat keeps passing me.
It is a really nice kayak. I get a good look at it gliding through the water… as it goes past… I dont think you would go wrong
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Thanks for another data-point V - we appreciate the input.
Steve
We ended up getting a P&H Scorpio MkII LV RM - from Trey at The Power of Water. I test-paddled it in a small lake near the dealer. My wife sat in it and, with just hip-pad removal, it seemed to fit either of us with very little change between paddlers (just foot-peg position and the hip-pad removal).
Because it is an LV - I’ll need to wear different water shoes than my 5mm neoprene diving boots - which have really thick heels Leading to a tight heel-to-heel foot fit in the cockpit. When I used thinner-soled shoes the fit was fine.
Hope to get some more water time in the boat soon.
Thanks to all the folks who provided the opinions and experiences - that we’ve come to rely on here.
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