10 FT vs 12 or 14 foot Kayak

[chiefbigeasy]

A friend wants to get into kayak fishing but also wants to travel light and pack easy at home, For these reasons, he's considering a 10ft kayak. I'm trying to suggest at least a 12. From our experience, what are the pros and cons here?

[yak-aholic]

I would think his size would play a big role in that selection. Also, the longer the kayak, the better it will track. I have thought about the 10 foot models for my boys, but just don't really think that's enough yak for an adult male anywhere over about 180#. The only way I would see going with the smaller yak would be for portability if you're planning to change spots alot. I know for Fall-N-Tide I wished Ijustwannafish didn't have that OK Prowler 15. That was alot of boat to try to load and un-load 5 times throughout that day. That day 2 10' yaks would have been great.

[ijuswannafish]

Yeah you are right about that. We got a good workout that day.

[revredfish]

I own two manta ray 11's they are great little boats very movable, track incredibly well for their size, I'm a big dude so I have to allow for getting very wet (they do not handle weather very well). I like small boats for quick trips, etc. Course now that I have the trailer the prowler big game is much easier to handle....

[GreenWave]

Unless his storage space dictates otherwise, I'd advise strongly against the 10' yak. He can count on it being relatively slow, but more importantly, it will track poorly. No fun in crosswinds. Also, as Revredfish states, he will be afflicted with CWBS (Chronic Wet Butt Syndrome). I agree with you Chief, in recommending at least 12' for an adult. 14' would be optimum.

There are some clever strategies to help normal sized people load larger kayaks. I think Rev posted pics of his loading bar a while back. Before he got the trailer, he had no trouble loading his Big Game on top of his taller vehicle (Xterra?) by himself. That boat is as heavy as almost any 14 footer.

[revredfish]

I just slid the thing up on the roof rack of the Xterra (I made it look easy because I'm so strong (snort))- loading two yaks was interesting (we called it the pyramid of doom). The Manta Ray 12 is a nice boat too but the 11 is only 55lbs - that's hard to beat from a high end kayak.

[GreenWave]

I just slid the thing up on the roof rack of the Xterra (I made it look easy because I'm so strong (snort))- loading two yaks was interesting (we called it the pyramid of doom). The Manta Ray 12 is a nice boat too but the 11 is only 55lbs - that's hard to beat from a high end kayak.

Whoops. Another "more brawn than brains" guy like me! I do remember one of our more industrious regulars posting photos of a homemade loading bar. Psycho Joe, maybe?

[Psycho Joe]

Whoops. Another "more brawn than brains" guy like me! I do remember one of our more industrious regulars posting photos of a homemade loading bar. Psycho Joe, maybe?

My ideas are only any good if I have a photo to study first. Otherwise I can't think clearly enough to help.

[GreenWave]

My ideas are only any good if I have a photo to study first. Otherwise I can't think clearly enough to help.

Sorry. I thought you might have made one of those already. I know Cantseethetrees did, but he hasn't taken any pictures. Here's one I found online: 1338

Just slide the bar out, put one end of the kayak up on it, pick up the other end and put it on top of the vehicle. Then slide the first end of the kayak onto the car and slide the bar back in.

With a setup like that, most people should be able to put just about any kayak on any vehicle.