Hello to everyone. This if my first time on paddling.net.
I had a question about some boats for the paddlers on here.
My wish list, for my upcoming new kayak is as follows:
NDK Romany
Current Designs Andromeda
P&H Sirius
Boreal Design Ellesmere
Can any of you help me out with some input on these boats.
I have paddled the romany out of this list and that is all. There are plently of NDK boats around here. The boat is mainly onmy list because i will use it as a comparision for the other boats.
Thank you, and I look forward to getting to know some paddlers on this planet.
Demo! Go to a kayak event which advertises demos or go to a kayak shop that allows you to demo and carries many of the brands you are interested in.
I was lost until I went to the International Kayak Symposium and a wonderful volunteer named Bob and his wife showed me around, suggested
models and introduced me to the reps. It is best to have the models you are interested in demo-ed at the same time so you can accurately assess fit and the way they perform.
My choices after trying several were the Romany, the P&H Capella 166( the smaller Capella) and the Current Designs Slipstream. I bought the Slipstream because the following week I found a good deal on a used one… otherwise I believe the Capella would be my first choice…a real nice boat…(all of these were glass although I know the Capella comes in plastic also.) Iam 5’6" so I was looking for a smaller volume kayak.
Hope this helps you. Don’t buy one that does not fit, there ARE differences and too big will feel like you are paddling a tank…especially just starting out…(I am too)
Other people on this site have been a real great help to me now that I am searching for a Surfski.
I am the P&H Rep For the midwest and would be glad to answer any questions you have about our boats. As for the other boats listed, I have worked for all of the companies in question and I can tell you that you are not making a wrong choice either way you go. I do think that you are looking some very different boats and it might be good to figure out what you will do with the boat most (i.e. Expedition, day paddling, rough water, etc.).
I live to serve! Email me if I can help.
I am not here to sell you anything, just to provide some techincal info as needed.
So, having said all that, here is the rundown;
Andromeda and Sirius are both old-school expedition boats. They both won’t impress anyone on a day paddle but when you load them down they are rock solid in tough sea’s and pretty fast. The slipstream is a better day paddling boat, rough water boat, and small persons boat. Very turny and quick. The Romany (and I don’t know if you are thinking the 16’ or the 18’) is very stable in the rough stuff and easy to edge. Only downside is that if a little slower than the other boats you have mentioned. Good paddling, however, can fix that problem.
As someone else mentioned, paddling the boats first will give you the best information you can gather. Ultimately you know what you are looking for better then anyone else. And, as I said before, all the boats you are looking at are excellent.
Well, Ideally I would be using for day tripping, maybe 3three to four nights out? Rough water is not on the plan, but I’d like to be able to handle conditions that I may come across. I dont plan on spening alot of time in surf, unless I have no other choice.
a boat that feels lively would also be on that list. One that does not feel heavy or seem to fight when turning. Manouverability.
Thanks for the help. I did try out a romany, I liked it too. But something about it seemed to be missing. It felt comfortable, light on the water. Keep on looking!!
If you want a playful boat The Romany 16, the Slipstream, and the new P&H Capella 163 would be on my short list along with an Impex Montuak. Clearly I like the P&H boats but I am a sales rep and can’t be trusted:)
Try them all and go with your gut. With the boats listed, you can’t go wrong. All of them will handle the gear you need (maybe not the kitchen sink)and perform great.
Capella 163 I think that may be the one I tried instead of 166( I wasn’t sure of the number)…yes, an awesome boat…Back to back…the Romany may turn a little easier but I felt the Capella tracked better…and felt faster…
The Romany would have been my second choice…however, I took my Slipstream out today and it was great…not disappointed at all…
Playful The VCP Avocet loves to go out and play! The tracking is a bit too loose for some folks, but she’s a lot of fun, and I think a bit faster than the Romany 16.
Of the boats on your list, I’ve paddled(briefly) the Romany 16 and the Ellesmere. The Romany seemed to match the standard line: great in rough water but not speedy. The Ellesmere seemed like a bigger person’s boat. As I remember, it wasn’t impressively good or bad at anything – the kind of boat I’d be perfectly happy with as a rental but wouldn’t buy for myself.
You might want to look at the Wilderness Systems Tempest 165. I demoed one last summer and was impressed.
hello who are you are you 100 120 160 or 180 pounds. Weight is important to stability. Lots of upper body strength and can already effortlessly do a paddle float rescue or something else?
The ellesmere is a much more maneuverable, and stable boat than the Andromeda or sirius. The sirius is so different from the romany that the fact that both are on you list means you have some work to do. Sirius; fast straight tracking and not so maneuverable. the romany is very maneuverable and not as fast. The ellesmere is like the romany but the secondary somes on like gangbusters.
Any of thes boats can take a 180 pound backpacker out for four days.
Who will you be paddling with? In addition to the real important issue of size and weight - the boats you mention have some real diffs in where they get a waterline - will you be paddling with a group? If so what will they be paddling?
Playfulness is great, but some of the boats mentioned in posts above are so playful that you’d have to develop a terribly good forward stroke to keep up with a faster group without killing yourself.
As to the size issue - if you are my size or smaller at least one could have a pretty deep cockpit for you. That’d make getting a good hit on the thigh braces tougher. They are still mostly making expedition boats for small guys, not average sized women. Could you give height as well as weight? Thanks!