Rookie review of the Hobie Adventure/Adventure Island

Thought I would offer an early review of the 2011 model that I've had since late last fall. Getting close to 15 trips on the boat so far and I'm getting more impressed each time out.

Sail mode - The Adventure Island is a blast to sail. I spent nearly all my early trips with the sail and outriggers deployed. My fishing poles looked cool in the rod holders but were hardly ever used. Had never really sailed before and I wanted to get at least a functional skill set before hitting the big water (ocean). The learning curve is not steep, but the finer details do take time. And those finer details are critical for safety, navigation and efficiency. I'm not there yet. Anyone can sail - few can sail well. I went into this thinking you can never have too much sail out. Wrong. It can actually slow you down when the sail overpowers the boat and water conditions. Reef it in high/gusty winds. Controls - you only have two ropes and a rudder to worry about when you're underway. Sounds easy. It's not. At speed you're doing several things at once. It takes concentration. And those ropes are sitting in the mirage drive well or next to you on the seat with waves splashing and the boat heaving. You make just a microscopic change in your rudder setting and all of a sudden the sail makes that filling snap/pop sound and the boat takes off on you like a rocket sled. Your head is constantly looking up at the tell tale ribbon to determine the best sail curvature. If you get into trouble at speed - turn into the wind. In lighter winds, the challenge is harnessing/maximizing the wind. Easier to get the settings dialed in correctly. And this boat trolls exceptionally well. You can get that perfect speed for your lures. It's a silent killer. You just have to take the wind direction into account when determining the correct trolling pass. Rudder - I'm not really impressed with the Hobie rudder. It's functional and does the job but I worry about it all the time. For sailing, you really need to tie it down with the bungee cord lock or it will lift up when you start going fast. Not a good feeling when that happens. Your rudder simply does not work and you feel like you're on a runaway train. The down side to strapping the rudder in place is that you can't lift it out of the water by the cockpit controls. You have to get out and remove it by hand. Not a problem at a deeper water dock because you don't worry about depth and that big, beefy sailing rudder hanging down. It is a problem everywhere else though. Shallow water, beaching the boat etc. That grinding sound of the rudder making contact with bottom is horrible when you forget about that locked rudder in the back. And you will forget. You have the mirage drive turbo fins hanging down. You can have the dagger board hanging down. It can get expensive if you daydream or space out for a moment in shallow water. By the way, in sail mode this boat moves easily with just the pedals. Just roll up the sail. Or use the pedals to help change your tack. Tracks perfectly. If you get stuck a few miles out when the wind dies, not a problem at all. The Adventure Island feels totally at home way out there in rough/big water. You just have to learn the ropes. It is VERY stable with the outriggers deployed. You will be impressed at how seaworthy this rig really is.

Adventure Island in kayak mode - My last several trips have been without the sail/outriggers and I can see why you Adventure kayak owners love this boat. It's fast! And easy to operate. Turns well even though it's a big craft. It can almost oversteer with that big sailing rudder if you're on the handle too hard. Still need the paddle at times for close in navigation/positioning. This thing feels/acts like a big battleship. You don't want it to get boxed into enclosed areas. It needs open water to roam. One thing I REALLY like is the low wind profile. You get very little bow steering effect in the headwind gusts. And it works equally well downwind. I worked a couple miles of shoreline yesterday at Lake Natoma drifting parallel with the wind and the boat just behaved  perfectly with minor rudder corrections along the way. Worked the shore like a damn bass boat! And even though it was windy, I trolled up wind for at least two miles and was hardly breathing while working the pedals. The other kayaks were hugging the shore while this boat was way out into it with its nose pointed into the wind and trolling, trolling, trolling. Amazing. The mirage drive is like having a trolling motor on board without the noise and smell of gas. I'm going to really enjoy this boat.

Adventure Island using one outrigger - I wanted to try this mode on Lake Natoma yesterday, but I found out that they (the outriggers) are not interchangeable. I brought the wrong side  .... Sure, I could have switched out, but the wind conditions/dock orientation would not really allow it. This mode would appear to offer the best of both worlds. Adding major stability to the kayak while increasing the storage component. Even though I haven't purchased the mesh trampoline covers yet, I can see the utility of having rods, fish bag etc. strapped to the trampoline on the one side. Easy access for your stuff and just more room to operate. The tramps can hold 200 pounds, so you can stretch out and kick back if you want to change short term seating etc. This mode might be perfect for rockfish/lingcod jigging. I just don't know about a surf launch... Could be a major yard sale/crash and burn.

For anyone considering the Adventure Island or the conversion from the Adventure, hope this helps a little.

                   

         

WOW, what a great review.

How do you load and haul it?  esp with the outriggers?

Pics of your rig??

Thanks

Thanks for sharing your review of the AI.  I took my new AI out for it's maiden voyage at the SL Marina yesterday.  Took sailing lessons from a close family friend named Mike who is a sailing fanatic.  He loved it and was impressed with how easy it was to sail and go fast.  At first, I let him take it out and tried to follow him in my Hobie Adventure.  It was impossible to catch up to him, so I grabbed onto one of the amas and went for a tow while he explained the basics of sailing.  I learned to how "tack", "gybe", and read the tell-tales on the sail.

Mike said it's an ideal sailing rig for a sailing newbie (very hard to make mistakes).... but more importantly.... he kept saying how perfect it was for fishing.  It's so simple to transport and set up too.  It is a wet ride in the chop, but most AI owners are adding simple homemade splash guards or trampolines to deal with it.

I can't remember being so excited about a fishing craft.  I can envision future fishing trips starting at the SL Marina and fishing Oyster Point and the Alameda Rockwall and Berkeley Flats in the same day.  I'm also excited about trolling for salmon in Monterey Bay which should be getting hot shortly.  Someday, I wanna hook up with other AI owners in SoCal and make the sailing/fishing/camping trip from the coast to Catalina Islands.

For me personally, the Hobie Adventure Island is going to be game changer!!!

WOW, what a great review.

How do you load and haul it?  esp with the outriggers?

Pics of your rig??

Thanks

Transporting and setting up the AI is much easier than I thought.  I really don't see the need for a trailer even though I have one.  I plan on strapping the two amas (pontoons) side-by-side to my rack along with the kayak and sail rolled up in it's own sleeve.  I run my strap through the holes in the amas to make sure they're securely attached to the bars.  The 4 akas (outrigger bars) and dagger board come stored in it's own little carry bag which rides in the vehicle with my paddle, pedal drive, and seat.  It's that simple.  I'm pretty sure I can set it up or break it down just as fast... or even faster than some of my buddies with their kayaks.

I'm kicking myself for not taking pics yesterday.  Sorry, I was just too busy having fun taking it out for the first time.

Great Review on the AI! I sailed the Pro Angler for the first time on Saturday. There was very little wind but every now and then a little gust would fill the sail...the mast would load up and away we went....what a thrill. My next kayak will be the Adventure Island.

WOW, what a great review.

How do you load and haul it?  esp with the outriggers?

Pics of your rig??

Thanks

Transporting and setting up the AI is much easier than I thought.  I really don't see the need for a trailer even though I have one.  I plan on strapping the two amas (pontoons) side-by-side to my rack along with the kayak and sail rolled up in it's own sleeve.  I run my strap through the holes in the amas and to make sure it's secure to the bar.  The 4 akas (outrigger bars) and dagger board come stored in it's own little carry bag which rides in the vehicle with my paddle, pedal drive, and seat.  It's that simple.  I'm pretty sure I can set it up or break it down just as fast... or even faster than some of my buddies with their kayaks.

I'm kicking myself for not taking pics yesterday.  Sorry, I was just too busy having fun taking it out for the first time.

Love it. I need to get my hands on some amas for the revo. Do they make a kit? Also need to fab up a dagger board. the dive fins are OK but a dagger board would be awesome.

I also got to try one this weekend, at Clear Lake.

My next kayak will be the Adventure Island.

"Me, too", is my two-word review.  I'm seriously impressed.

I foresee a regata/fishing hook up coming soon!

Judge Smails can be the MC!

Everyone without a sail will be wanting to hitch a ride on the outriggers.  I think I set a Drifter speed record on Sunday.

If I can loose some weight, and keep my job, i'll probably get one next year 

Great review!  I may have to order the sail and amas for my Adventure soon.  I think sailing would be a blast, especially when you need to cover some ground...or rather water.  I love my adventure in kayak mode, but the stability and storage on the tramps/amas would be sweet.

the sail is a bit pricey but it really is fun. I am ordering the amas tomorrow. it really is fun (and simple to learn) and I'm using it on a revo. If you have a adventure a sail should be required!

Hi guys,

Rockfish - I have a small pickup truck so I bought an aluminum Trailex trailer that is made for the Hobie Adventure Island. It has carpeted cradles designed specifically for the hull and outrigger pontoons. Very easy on and off the trailer. Just drop it in the water and open up the folding outriggers and you're ready to go.

ChuckE - Yep. The AI is just so versatile. The problem with it is that the sailing is too much fun! Hard core fishermen can be ruined. They will make excuses for the fish not biting. It does make for a nice day to at least get in some good sailing though.         

In my review I didn't really want to imply that sailing is difficult on the Adventure Island. It's not. There are things you need to do though to keep it top side up. War story follows....

I had one bad experience awhile back on Lake Natoma. Came around a headland on a very windy day with full sail out and caught a cross wind gust from hell. The boat immediately listed about 45 degrees and I was hanging on for dear life. I was caught completely off guard. My own stupidity caused the problem in the first place. WAY too much sail out in those challenging conditions. Live and learn. The beauty of the boat was that at the critical angle, the wind load came off the sail and she righted herself. Allowed me to regain control and time to reef in the sail before I went flying across the lake. An Adventure Island sailor who happened to be on shore watched the whole thing and came up to me at the dock and pretty much just said "damn".  Offered me some advice but the situation happened so quick that there really wasn't much that could be done. And it was a good lesson to be learned. By the way, Lake Natoma is a tricky place to sail in high (northerly) winds. There are spots on that lake where the wind seems to almost come at you from many directions at once. You can get going really fast near those high banks and impress the joggers etc. You make several fast runs with a big grin on your face and then you try to get out of those same spots and you can't really escape. They're like black holes sucking in the wind. The only way out is to reel in the sail and get on the pedals. Fun, but probably better for a more experienced sailor. The lake is perfect for a beginner when it's not so windy though. 

       

         

There are spots on that lake where the wind seems to almost come at you from many directions at once.         

Same with Union Valley. Great place to sail but you really have to be careful.

Great Review Mistralwind!  Glad to hear more NCKA fishermen are getting one or looking to get one.  Can't wait till we all go out at the same time out there.  ChuckE glad to hear you got yours already.  Let me know when you guys want to hookup.  Although I've got mine a while back I'm still quite a rookie with the sailing part.  But thank goodness for the pedal I'm able to still move the boat when I don't tack just right.

Rey