Beginner

[texron]

So if one wanted to start to kayak lakes and slow moving rivers, what type and/or brand kayak would be good for a beginner? Let's stay under $600-$800.
there are some HUGE lakes here in Tx and some great rivers that don't run too fast. Might as well start spending money on another hobby
Oh, I'm 5'11 about 220#.
I did a lot of canoeing back in the day and really liked enjoyed it.
Just have to fight off the alligators here in the TX lakes.
Thanks for the help!!!!

[realityguy]

Sounds like you should get one of those big inflatable "pool" alligators..and use that... Daren's the main active "kayaker guru" around here..and he probably just left for the weekend..You might have to wait until monday or tuesday for an answer to your question......

[DarenN]

south Texas has some great open ocean kayaking oppertunities. i know a kayak builder down around Galveston. haven't talked to him in years.........
anyway........
check out your local buy-and-sell/classifieds/craigslist. look for a kayak 16 to 18 feet long, 20 to 24 inches wide. your price range suggests a plastic rotomolded boat. i had one for two years and just recently bought another one. they're almost indestructable, but store it out of the sun, or UV will fade the color.
about performance:
a longer waterline will be faster.
a narrower beam will be faster.
both of these combine to make a boat that is easier to propel to hull speed; therefore, more efficient. but all things are trade-offs. a long narrow kayak with a round hull shape will be a bear to keep upright. it'll be fast, but tippy. i like it that way, but many don't, prefering boats that have some inherent stabilty.
about comfort:
a kayak is not a canoe. it is a watercraft that was invented thousands of years ago by peoples that needed an efficient method of travel on water for the purpose of hunting for their survival. Aluets and Greenlanders predominantly, but peoples all over the Arctic built variations on the theme. production kayaks of today are mostly based on the Greenland style of boat. sort of. we have seats to sit in, and braces to put our feet on, and backbands to hold our lower back, and thigh hooks to lock us in the cockpit. all these things are adjustable. in essense, we wear our kayaks. it's a nice feeling to have a properly fitting kayak perform for you with the slightest shift of weight.
when you first start out, even a 24" wide barge of a kayak is going to feel tippy. it won't for long. you'll very quickly learn how to use your new "feet". do you remember how it felt to learn to ride a bike? (i do. my Pa holding the back of the seat of that old green coaster-brake bike, running along beside me. ) learning to kayak is easier.

check around your area, and see if you can rent a kayak. it might be tough if you are too far inland. hey! i just had an idea!! move to the PNW where it never gets over 90* and it almost never snows ('cept for last winter )

if you have more questions, i'm happy to answer them. in spite of what RG says, i'll be around till sunday afternoon.

Daren........

[texron]

south Texas has some great open ocean kayaking oppertunities. i know a kayak builder down around Galveston. haven't talked to him in years.........
anyway........
check out your local buy-and-sell/classifieds/craigslist. look for a kayak 16 to 18 feet long, 20 to 24 inches wide. your price range suggests a plastic rotomolded boat. i had one for two years and just recently bought another one. they're almost indestructable, but store it out of the sun, or UV will fade the color.
about performance:
a longer waterline will be faster.
a narrower beam will be faster.
both of these combine to make a boat that is easier to propel to hull speed; therefore, more efficient. but all things are trade-offs. a long narrow kayak with a round hull shape will be a bear to keep upright. it'll be fast, but tippy. i like it that way, but many don't, prefering boats that have some inherent stabilty.
about comfort:
a kayak is not a canoe. it is a watercraft that was invented thousands of years ago by peoples that needed an efficient method of travel on water for the purpose of hunting for their survival. Aluets and Greenlanders predominantly, but peoples all over the Arctic built variations on the theme. production kayaks of today are mostly based on the Greenland style of boat. sort of. we have seats to sit in, and braces to put our feet on, and backbands to hold our lower back, and thigh hooks to lock us in the cockpit. all these things are adjustable. in essense, we wear our kayaks. it's a nice feeling to have a properly fitting kayak perform for you with the slightest shift of weight.
when you first start out, even a 24" wide barge of a kayak is going to feel tippy. it won't for long. you'll very quickly learn how to use your new "feet". do you remember how it felt to learn to ride a bike? (i do. my Pa holding the back of the seat of that old green coaster-brake bike, running along beside me. ) learning to kayak is easier.

check around your area, and see if you can rent a kayak. it might be tough if you are too far inland. hey! i just had an idea!! move to the PNW where it never gets over 90* and it almost never snows ('cept for last winter )

if you have more questions, i'm happy to answer them. in spite of what RG says, i'll be around till sunday afternoon.

Daren........

Thanks for the great answer, I would LOVE to move back to Oregon, maybe someday. Is there a particular brand that I should look for? Will I be able to find a kayak with all the features you mentioned above? it's been a LONG time since I looked at them. I don't remember "thigh hooks". What are they?
Thanks for all your help, I need it.

[zelph]

it'll be fast, but tippy. i like it that way, but many don't, prefering boats that have some inherent stabilty.
about comfort:

Does this mean you can't stand up in them to take a break when nature calls( for those that dont use the condom catheter)

Hmmmm!!! I never think of Texas as having alligators. Snakes yes

[DarenN]

it'll be fast, but tippy. i like it that way, but many don't, prefering boats that have some inherent stabilty.
about comfort:

Does this mean you can't stand up in them to take a break when nature calls( for those that dont use the condom catheter)

Hmmmm!!! I never think of Texas as having alligators. Snakes yes

there are a few people on the planet that can stand up in a kayak, but they are girl types.

Freya Hoffmiester does a hand stand in her kayak.

[zelph]

[quote="DarenN[/quote]

there are a few people on the planet that can stand up in a kayak, but they are girl types.

Freya Hoffmiester does a hand stand in her kayak.[/quote]

Probably the "Inuits" also

[DarenN]

Thanks for the great answer, I would LOVE to move back to Oregon, maybe someday. Is there a particular brand that I should look for? Will I be able to find a kayak with all the features you mentioned above? it's been a LONG time since I looked at them. I don't remember "thigh hooks". What are they?
Thanks for all your help, I need it.

i don't know what brands you're going to find in your area. one highly thought of plastic kayak is the Current Designs Sirocco:

http://www.cdkayak.com/products/templat ... 8305515ed4

if you look at the pics in the link you will see the thigh hooks protruding into the cockpit openning towards the forward end. this kayak also has a deployable skeg. with the actuater on the side of the deck beside you, you can deploy the skeg to aid in tracking. helpful in quartering seas.

[realityguy]

I think also "surfer" types should be able to stand up in kayaks also..Hell..I stand up in rubber rafts also for flyfishing..it's called having a good sense of balance..No,I'm not a "gurly" type...
Hey Daren..thought you'd be gone!A week or so ago..someone advertised a "pygmy" kayak that they said was on the "smaller side" but he had taken it on a trip to alaska..$800 on craigs("new coat of varnish")...I wasn't ready to buy one..but was wondering about that "smaller"..I'm 5-7 and 180lbs,mostly shoulders rather than gut,and as I said,have good balance because of ten years surfing,boating,rowing..What size of a kayak would I need to buy or build to do some touring,mostly in the sound here?You would have a better idea of conditions than most because you are in a similar environment,same waters.I don't have fear of salt water,having lived in all my life and will probably die in it also.
Also If I build one..it would probably be a hard-chined stitch-n-glue model.What's the handling difference between that and a strip-built one?

[DarenN]

that Pygmy was probably an Arctic Tern 14. i've paddled one. not bad, but too small/slow for touring. once you drop below 16 feet you lose the waterline length that you need for touring.

hard chine, soft chine, shallow arch, shallow v, flat bottom, rockered, no rocker, rocker forward, rocker aft......... AAARRRGGGHHH!! it's endless!!
for touring i like a medium-hard chine and a shallow v, with a bit of rocker and a retractable skeg. for play i like a hard chined boat with a shallow v and lots of rocker. no skeg. rudders belong on sailboats. there's a lot of Pygmy hard chined boats on this coast being used for touring. Pygmy is in Port Townsend, WA. i've never built one of their kits but i watched a freind build one in my shop. the kit is high quality plywood with all the parts cut by CNC router. they go together relatively easy, with no surprises, but the instruction manual can be a bit vague. lots of help online to get you through the tough spots.
hard chine boats can "catch an edge" in the snotty stuff. it's not a problem once you're used to it, and that edge can be helpful once you've learned to use it.