Perception Search 15' Review

As the owner of a Tarpon 160, I have not been happy with the  the way it pearls in bigger waves. I'm 210 and frequently load it with camping/fishing gear and when the whitecaps start, the 160 really nose dives which makes for a very wet ride due to the bow getting buried in the wave. My last trip I ended up with a good amount of water that came in from the front hatch which is poorly sealed with a rather loose fit (2008 model and changed for 2009 on up).
Anyway, I  paddled a Search 13' and was impressed enough to buy the 15'. This kayak really surprised me as it's as fast as the Tarpon 160, absolutely tracks straight, and with its V bow/hull, is silent without wave slap, no pearling, can be leaned/edged way over and turns much better than the 160. Fit, finish, build quality is excellent...but the negative is that it's OMG heavy! That's probably a reason for the excellent tracking though. It even came with 2 rod holders that was not in the description..cool.  The Search 15' is not that common, but after paddling it for 8 hours on two trips, it's my hands down favorite for speed, dry/comfortable ride, very good deck layout, tight hatches, ease of turning, and silent paddling. Perception did an excellent job on this one. Photos coming soon.

That was my first kayak. It was very sea worthy. The flared out bow made it float over waves instead of punching through.

I really like the looks of those boats. the hull design looks similar to the wilderness t140 but better.

That front hatch looks way too small to get rods or spearguns in.  Looks cool otherwise.

Have had no problems getting rods in the front hatch as I use 2 piece kind, not sure about a spear gun. I really like the TIGHT seal on the front hatch as I was practicing some re-entry techniques in preperation for a trip to Van Damme this weekend. This yak combines the speed of the Tarpon 160 and the "almost" stability of the Prowler 15 (my all time favorite of which I should have never sold). Re: Tarpon's..their new hatch system is much better than the previous style that was anything but a good/tight seal. Tried loading some pics, but need to resize first. Hoping to land a fat ling this weekend!

Is that a 2010 or 2009 model, and where did you purchase it.Sounds good especially if the tarpon guys are interested.
                                          thanx tiny

Hey Tiny, sorry I missed your post: got mine here:http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/2247,1437T_Perception-Search-15-Touring-Kayak-Solo.html
Perception is part of the WS family, but damned hard to find the Search 15 locally. IMO, one of the best kayak designs on the water. Paddled back to launch site on Loon Lake and BIG whitecaps and this yak came through like a champ. Stability is good in big water.