Seeking Advice - Should I do this?

LOL!
Very true.



From the prospective of canoeist, the tippiest kayak is as stable as an easy chair anyway.



And from the prospective of (even a class III) WW boater, wind chop and rollers are just… ripples! :o)

More info
I’m 5’11" 250. I am reasonably skilled with a canoe paddle - I work instinctively and have forgotten most of the technical names for the braces etc. I am not a hair boater. I will paddle white water and enjoy it at a certain level but the main reason I go these days is to get away from it all and see wildlife and natural settings without much human impact. Hence my thinking that on a windy lake or salt water environment I might do well with a closed boat that will duck under the wind a bit and keep me safe when the weather kicks up. I don’t need or want high performance. Stable and well built and something that fits me comfortably is #1 - high performance number 2. I’m not getting any younger. If I’m lucky I’ll have 10-15 years of paddling left. I’m seeing prices in the $3k range for new boats - that is a bit steep for me. I’m thinking a used boat in the $1500 range would work best financially and also in light of the fact I may well re-sell. Ayornamut - very helpful post and it all makes a lot of sense. Did you ever sit in a P&H Capella 173?

I am glad to have brought up
some of those considerations then. It is difficult to assess what actually works for a larger paddler unless you are one.



We have a couple of Capella 166RMs in our group. I can just barely fit in them, the deck height is too low. I had a chance to demo a 173 last year and thought it a passingly acceptable fit. The cockpit is a little larger but still required me slide over the rear deck since the keyhole is narrower than the NH175. I can just plop down into it and pull my legs in or pull them out first and straddle it to exit, even with football player type thighs. My NH175 cockpit actually feels a little large even to me sometimes, but it is a welcome relief on longer paddles to be able to move around some and to move your legs from fixed straight out to bring your knees up a bit to contact the thigh braces. And, I have never found it to be an issue in some pretty exciting seakayaking conditions either. The Capella 173 may work quite well for you with a bit shorter inseam depending on thigh fit, which is more a consideration factor in deck height.

abc means “rocker”, not “rockers” nm