Looking for a new Kayak

Hi All,

I purchased my first kayak in January of 2010, it is an OK trident angler 13 which has served me well on well over 100 trips over the last 4 years.  I have enjoyed paddling and catching fish from it.  The one thing that I have wished for over the years is that it was lighter.  Weighing in at around 70 pounds it is a bit of a bear to maneuver on land and up onto the top of my car.  Due to this, I do not get out as often as I would like.

I am now looking for something lighter that is more easily portable (in terms of weight).  My current choices are:

- Eddyline Caribbean 12 or 14
- Hurricane Skimmer 128
- Viking Profish 400 Lite

There is quite a bit of information on the board about the Caribbean, but not much about either of the other two kayaks.   I'm going to see if I can try out the Eddyline and the Viking at Headwaters Kayak in Lodi and the Hurricane at California Canoe and Kayaks in Oakland.

Anyone have any other suggestions of kayaks that I should look at (need to be near 50 pounds or lighter) or opinions about any of the kayaks listed?  Thanks!

Michael

Stealth Kayaks, also available at Headwaters Kayak.

Thanks!  I was looking at the stealths at the shorter end of the range since I have storage issues if much longer than 14'.  At the shorter end of the range the recommended paddler weight is less than 200 lbs.  I'm 185 lbs so at the upper end of the range.  Not sure whether that would be a good combination or not.

Michael

I demoed the Stealth Evolution at Paddlefest, and was very impressed with its lightness and speed. I too have problems storing kayaks longer than 14', so that limited my search to the Stealth Evolution 430, the shortest kayak in the Profisha and Evolution lines. I also weigh 185, but that was not an issue with the Evolution 430's 200 pound kayaker weight limit and 400 pound carrying capacity, unless I pack on 15 more pounds, and bring a ton of fishing gear aboard. Definitely demo it while you are at Headwaters Kayak.

Thanks for the info!  I'll definitely give it a try too.

Michael

Scupper Pro is pretty light, but you'll have to rig it yourself. They're quite bare.

So, my take on the eddyline 12 or 14 caribbean... I stole one from dan at headwaters and rigged it all up and at 250lbs and 6' tall, gorilla arms, and shoulders. Absolutely loved it. couldn't polish it enough. paddled like a dream... sat just looking at the thing unable to even work When it came to paddling, Wished I was under 200lbs and built lower ballast wise. Found it to be a little tippy for me. Never tipped over but,  I didn't feel comfortable. I've found that the same applies to the trident 15 I just bought. Might have been me... Paddle it, and the others. But as for me... I wish it was still on my car and under my butt. Haven't paddled the others but want to play with the Viking.

Try out one of the Stealths

Pretty sure their recommended paddler weights are on the conservative side

Very light and fast, initially feel is different but you grow into it and will appreciate the extra speed especially if wind kicks up or whatever

I have a 12 and 14 Caribbean if you would like to try one. I haven't felt unstable on either kayak and I am well over 200 lbs. I believe the headwaters has all three kayak brands,  so it may be best to go there.

You might be able to find a good deal on a Tarpon 120 Ultralite since they stopped producing them. I know they had a demo on sale @ MBK recently...it was a smokin deal, but I'm not sure if they sold it yet.

Thanks for the heads up.  I was just down at MBK today, I did a cursory look at the kayaks, but since I wasn't looking at any Wilderness yaks, I don't know whether it was still there or not. 

Regardless, I just made an appointment to try the eddyline, stealth and viking this Saturday out in Lodi.  A long trek, but at least I'll be able to try most of the kayaks I 'm interested in.

Thanks all for your help with my search!

Michael

I think Clavey is having their Garage sale on Oct 4th (I got an email). They list some of the demo kayaks that will be available, and it includes a Carribbean.

Well, Headwaters Kayak is having a swap meet the same weekend.  They have two caribbeans for sale.  They are also marking down all 2014 kayaks by 15 to 20%.  I'm also going to try and sell my trident 13 there.  Have you used them to do so before or would it be better for me to sell it on the board?

Michael

Well, Headwaters Kayak is having a swap meet the same weekend.  They have two caribbeans for sale.  They are also marking down all 2014 kayaks by 15 to 20%.  I'm also going to try and sell my trident 13 there.  Have you used them to do so before or would it be better for me to sell it on the board?

Michael

Why not sell it on NCKA first? If no one bites, then give the swap meet a shot.

I guess mostly for convenience sake, one stop selling and shopping.

Michael