Inflatable kayaks

[Ranga]

Having a Trayon camper means a conventional kayak would be difficult to carry. My 6yo daughter has a great time on a friend's rigid kayak, and we've considered getting her one for her birthday.

Anyone know if any of the inflatable jobs are worth bothering with? They seem much lighter than the rigid type, which would also be good for the wife when I'm not around.

I thought these looked interesting Multimedia - QuickPak (http://www.sevylor.com/quickpak.aspx).

[DEF-090]

Hi Ranga,
Something else to throw into the mix may be the Alpacka pack rafts.
https://www.alpackaraft.com/index.cfm/store.catalog/Packrafts/

I don't have one (would like one though :p), however from what I have read and seen they are a strong, compact raft. Unfortunately though they are not cheap.

This forum also seems pretty good and there is an Australian section there too. Packrafting.org • Index page (http://packrafting.org/forums/)

Hope this helps.
Cheers, Sam :D

[Yorkie]

Having a Trayon camper means a conventional kayak would be difficult to carry. My 6yo daughter has a great time on a friend's rigid kayak, and we've considered getting her one for her birthday.

Anyone know if any of the inflatable jobs are worth bothering with? They seem much lighter than the rigid type, which would also be good for the wife when I'm not around.

I thought these looked interesting Multimedia - QuickPak (http://www.sevylor.com/quickpak.aspx).

thanks for finding this, that K1 model looks perfect for our needs, might need to go shopping. :)

[Barefoot Dave]

G'Day Ranga.
Make sure the yak is almost as stiff as a solid one.
The ones you are looking at seem to have a number of stiffeners so should be ok.
To anyone looking at inflatable kayaks or canoes.: don't go cheap. You will rue the decision as you waste 70% of your energy fighting the flex, twist and lack of directional stability.
As they are lighter, you need some form of chine or strakes to assist with direction or you will be constantly correcting your direction, the opposite of a relaxing paddle.
With all of these type of craft, the greater the 'rocker' the more easily they change direction.
Rocker is the distance off straight from bow to stern along the keel.
IE: the flatter the keel the straighter it tracks.
If you want something to go hard and fast in, fine. but if you want ease of paddling to match ease of transport, take heed.
With a flexy inflatable, when you sit in it you greatly increase the rocker and thus its' propensity to turn or pivot aound your axis.

[Avion8]

If you want a proper sea kayak that will fit in a station wagon or Land Rover then you can't go past the Australian made Iguana.

Iguana Sea Kayak | 4.9m Modular sea kayak | Made by Australia | Australis | Sea Kayak Sales | Retail | Wholesale | Hire | Sea Kayaking (http://www.australiscanoes.com.au/australis-plastic-sea-kayak-iguana.php)

I can vouch for their stability as on a pleasant cruise down the Swan river last year with the spray skirt at home, the South Westerly blew up & the ensuing 3 ft waves filled the middle portion up to the top. Quite refreshing and although a little slower than normal seemed to make no difference to the handling. Must have been 100 ltrs of water with me:angel:. Trouble is it seems expensive now - I got mine on special back in 2008!

Cheers Nigel

[vnx205]

I believe that I saw two of those K5s on Wamberal Lagoon last Sunday.

Two young teenagers paddled around in them for a while and then their parents had a go.

I can't tell you much about how long they took to set up or how well they handled because my daughter and my three and a half year old granddaughter and I were too busy paddling our own kayaks. (Photographic evidence attached)

I have my own preferences or prejudices when it comes to kayaks. I like light and efficient. A lot of people don't realise how little stability a small child needs to be safe in a kayak. Because they are so light and their CG is so low, they can feel quite comfortable in a kayak that an adult would find terrifying

People usually say they want want something the kids can use to have fun on the water and I agree that is a good enough reason to get then in a kayak. However a child can have a lot of fun and be quite safe in a kayak the right size for them. They can be quite frustrated and it can have its own dangers if they are in a very stable adult sized kayak.

A stable adult kayak will normally be so wide that they have difficulty reaching out to paddle it, it will be dreadfully slow and more importantly it can become dangerous if there is anything more than just a breath of wind. With so much kayak above the water and so little kayak in the water, it can become impossible to control and even impossible to make it back to safety. Even in a light wind, a big, stable kayak can be dangerous in the hands of a tiny child.

My attitude is that they should be put in a child size kayak with a suitable PFD. My three and a half year old and eighteen month old granddaughters wear a brand called Oceantot, which I know from using them in the swimming pool will keep them afloat with their faces out of the water.

As with so many things, there are trade-offs and compromises when it comes to kayak selection. The more you try to maximise one feature, the more you diminish another. My argument is that an oversize kayak can be frustrating for a small child and you need to be just as vigilant in supervising a big stable kayak as a less stable child sized kayak.

Unfortunately often people have to select something that will be acceptable for a range of uses and for different size people.

There seem to be quite a few inflatable kayaks available. If I had known you were interested, I would have paid more attention last Sunday. :D

[Ranga]

I was hoping you would respond Alan, and you raise some very valid points :)

I wish I had the skills or resources to acquire one of your marvels - they are truly something to behold! :D

Anyway, after Amelie paddling around on an adult surf-ski (not kayak) recently, I saw how much she enjoyed it, and would love to encourage her in a great, healthy outdoor past-time. Heck, it might even get me doing a bit more exercise (even though my current tempo job has me doing more physical labour than I have for years... :eek:)

So, given we can't fit a regular kayak conveniently, an inflatable seems the go. I always insist the kids wear appropriate life-jackets when on the water, but you've given a great heads-up about ensuring she doesn't go too far out to not be able to make it back to shore. I'm not a bad swimmer, but shudder at the thought of not being able to make it to a kayak that is being blown away! :eek:

It would be good to be able to try these inflatables before buying...

[isuzurover]

We have one of these (with hatch) Wanderer 4.5m tandem kayak by Q-Kayaks | Kayaks Australia - Sydney | Kayak Sales | Kayaking (http://www.kayaksoz.com.au/kayak-q-kayaks-wanderer.php).

We have done overnight trips with 2 people and a dog, and think we could manage the same with 2 people and a small child.

The places we go often have plenty of rocks and branches (need to portage occasionally). Our kayak has plenty of minor scratches on the hull.

I checked out a couple of (quality) inflatables the other week. I think we would constantly be repairing holes if we owned one...

[Ranga]

We have one of these (with hatch) Wanderer 4.5m tandem kayak by Q-Kayaks | Kayaks Australia - Sydney | Kayak Sales | Kayaking (http://www.kayaksoz.com.au/kayak-q-kayaks-wanderer.php).

We have done overnight trips with 2 people and a dog, and think we could manage the same with 2 people and a small child.

The places we go often have plenty of rocks and branches (need to portage occasionally). Our kayak has plenty of minor scratches on the hull.

I checked out a couple of (quality) inflatables the other week. I think we would constantly be repairing holes if we owned one...
Thanks, but I've mentioned that carrying a full length kayak is not an option. Naturally, we wouldn't take an inflatable where scratches are an obvious issue. This is more intended as an entry level for calm water without obvious hazards.

[danialan]

Hi Ranga

How about using fold over roof bars, that drop the kayak to one side before you open the Trayon. Someone on here posted this photo of their Trayon with Kayaks. Might work for you. I would have thought there is enough room over the cab of a dual cab for a kids kayak? They seem pretty short. They did in comparison to our 7.3m long Mirage double anyway.

I have seen a canoe that split in two pieces that bolted together. This was overseas and I'm not sure if it was even a commercially available one. When we had our Trayon. I was planning on getting a fibre glass canoe, sawing it in the middle, and sealing the open ends. It could then be used as two short square backed canoes or bolt them together and use normally.

[vnx205]

Carrying a full length kayak on the Trayon isn't impossible, but it is a bit inconvenient.

This is how I took my 5.2 metre K1 down to Geelong for the AMG. The kayak sat on a removable wooden frame, so both the frame and the kayak were removed each night and replaced each morning.
http://www.aulro.com/afvb/attachment.php?attachmentid=68013&d=1383424819
The inconvenience was tolerable for a one week trip, but when I took a 3.7 metre child's kayak down to the Australian Wooden Boat Festival in Hobart, I left the kayak with Justin Cooper for a couple of weeks while I toured the east coast of Tasmania.

As I said, not impossible, just inconvenient.

I have seen photos elsewhere of kayaks on roof bars on dual cabs. A frame extending up from the bullbar combined with the roof bars gives good support.

[PTC]

I've got a point 65 martini, Its a modular kayak and goes great.

http://www.point65.com/kategori/5050/modular.html

Not really built for the size of kids. Though you are able to keep adding the middle section into them. So an adult can be at the back of the kayak controlling the rudder and add kids into the other sections. Which is what i do when out with the scouts.

Four Person Martini Roll

[dogdude3]

Hey, any updates? I to am in the same situation as the op. I think an inflatable is just what I need as I do not feel like dragging a regular one all over the place. I'm thinking about getting the solstice flash (http://inflatablekayakreviews.org/). Does anybody have any experience with this one?

Thanks is advance for any updates or advice on what inflatable kayak I just should get would be greatly appreciated.

[Ranga]

We ended up finding a Inflatable Kayak Reviews » Blog Archive Sevylor QuikPak K5 Inflatable Kayak Review (http://inflatablekayakreviews.org/sevylor-quikpak-k5-inflatable-kayak-2/) second hand. Much better quality than I thought. Might not be top of the range, but certainly keeps us happy. Very light and packs up to about the size of 2 beer cartons. I'd be keen on finding another one to allow 2 of us to go for a paddle.