Have an 03 odyssey van. It already has luggage racks, ok for one canoe or kayak. Who makes an economical rack attachment that is wide enough to accommodate one canoe
and one kayak?. It would need to be over 60 " wide I suppose. Any thoughts on commercial racks or homemade varieties is appreciated.
thanks. elypaddler.
Redneck rack
I have from time to time used 2x4 attached to the factory cross bars to hold two boats. Either a canoe and tandem kayak or two kayaks. Of course you should use bow and stern lines on both, and only tie to the factory rack. And be extremely careful how you attach everything to your roof. For what it’s worth, a trailer is a much better option.
Yakima and Thule
– Last Updated: Dec-10-14 11:05 AM EST –
Yakima and Thule have adapters for attaching their racks to most kinds of factory roof racks. Some here knew the p-netter named DuluthMoose. He carried one or two canoes on the roof of a Honda Odyssey for a number of years, using one of the aftermarket setups like Yakima or Thule (I can't remember for sure which brand it was), and with him being the sensible sort of guy that he was, I have no doubt that his roof rack was very secure.
Regarding the comment that trailers are better, that will depend on the situation. Also, the OP is looking for an economical solution, and unless one is a good do-it-yourselfer, a trailer is anything but economical in comparison to a roof rack. I have a lot of experience with trailers and in a lot of cases don't mind dealing with one, but I still greatly prefer roof-topping my boats. That loading-height issue need not be a problem, especially on something with a snub rear end like a van or minivan.
since its a van
A friend of mine uses a van, different make than yours but he uses a load lift bar to help get the kayak up onto his tall van. I would recommend something like that, here is a youtube video of what Iam talking about. Both Yakima and Thule offer these. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsBJdEocuJ4
roof rack for odyssey
thanks for all the help.I’ll look into the
Yakima and Thule ideas.
Yakima
Yakima makes luggage rack mounts, which you can mount with any length bar. The '03s, if I recall, need a min 48" bar, but of course could go longer.
Agreed…
I have and use a trailer quite a bit but prefer the simplicity of a good roof rack. And there are numerous places I simply cannot access with a trailer.
I have Thule with 50" square bars
on existing roof rails - a canoe and kayak will fit easily
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eckilson/13959925714/in/set-72157644183858202
Multiple kayaks if you turn them on edge
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eckilson/13571997684/in/set-72157643285685855
roof rack for 03 odyssey
wow. those pics show how to get them on there for sure!
I have an 18’6" wenonah and a 10 ft. old town kayak.
and … its gotta be interstate capable.
Thanks to everyone for their input.
much appreciated.
are the factory crossbars too narrow?
Probably, but if two boats will fit on them side-by-side, I’d consider just using the factory crossbars.
Recently fitted Yakima cross bars on
our 2014 Odessy with roof rails only. Checked the Yak site for appropriate part numbers and and got some pieces from eBay at about 1/2 retail or less and rest from Yak. The 58" bars fit our Odessy well without much overhang and space to carry two solo canoes (29" beam). Can always extend the Yak bars for special wide loads with 9"-18" 1/2" galvanized pipe nipples that fit nicely inside the Yak bars. Have extended the Yak bars on my raised pickup up to 8’ with such extensions to carry two solos and a tandem for many miles without problems. Just make sure they are very well secured to the bars, and the bars to the vehicle, and tied fore and aft to solid points on the front and rear of the vehicle. Just thoughts, R
For Your Canoe: The Thule Portage 819
I have numerous rack systems including Yakima and Thule, and I can recommend them all; but, since you mentioned carrying a canoe I would have to recommend you go with Thule.
Thule has a canoe carrier attachment called the Portage 819. It’s $119.95 and comes with four padded gunwale guides that clamp to your bars, two of Thule’s 12’ load straps and two Thule Quick Draw ratcheting tie-downs for the bow and stern. The guides alone hold a canoe securely in place. The two load straps and the bow and stern straps make it bombproof on any roads and in any whether conditions. I’ve taken my canoe off-roading many times with the Portage 819. I no longer constantly watch and worry about my canoe while driving since I got the Thule Portage 819.
As for your Kayaks, Thule makes three kayak racks that will hold a kayak on its side allowing you to squeeze both a canoe and a kayak on a single roof rack: The Hull-A-Port 834 & 835Pro can hold a single Kayak, and the Stacker 830 can hold a pair of Kayaks.
Portage 819
http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/products/carriers-and-racks/water-sport-carriers/kayak-and-canoe-carriers/thule-portage-819--1683513
Hull-A-Port 834
http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/products/carriers-and-racks/water-sport-carriers/kayak-and-canoe-carriers/thule-hull-a-port-834--1636655
Hull-A-Port 835Pro
http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/products/carriers-and-racks/water-sport-carriers/kayak-and-canoe-carriers/thule-hull-a-port-pro-835pro--31306
Stacker 830
http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/products/carriers-and-racks/water-sport-carriers/kayak-and-canoe-carriers/thule-the-stacker-830--13694
YAKIMA & THULE BOTH
Both Thule Crossroads and Yakima Railgrabbers are those manufacturers’ respective equipment that grasp your raised roof rails, to/through which the crossbars are attached. We’ve used similar equipment from Yakima on our previous vehicle, and currently use the Thule Crossroads on our ‘06 Mazda6 Wagon.
We’ve had the Thule’s for 9 years, and they’re still in great shape, and haul our 2 primary boats -17’7" Valley Aquanaut & 16’6" Hurricane Tracer, and intermittently, a 14’9" OK Scupper Pro as well, solidly at interstate speeds. We run 58" crossbars, and carry one boat in cradles on one side, the other in Js on the other, and run the third boat on edge in-between when carrying all three.
This system is easily mounted and dismounted from our car -I simply loosed the rubber-enclosed steel strand straps, and remove each of the two entire assemblies -one front, one rear -from the roof rails and stow them when not carrying boats.
They also have performed well as heavy-duty lumber carriers, toting 2- & 4-bys, on many occasions. Just sayin’…
Either system will provide you with excellent service and peace of mind to get your boats to and from wherever it is you wish to
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami