My experience with boat choices

Choosing a Kayak... I'll let you in on my experience and you can do what you want with it.

Before my Mother died, I lived in Lower Michigan between Ann Arbor and Battle Creek. We had numerous lakes to fish and have fun in, so I owned a 12ft Old Towne canoe. I would take my dog with me fishing, sometimes would spend an entire day from sunrise past sunset in it. But when my Mother died, I found I could not seem to lift my 55lb canoe, and remembering my childhood, drove to Ann Arbor to try out some kayaks.

It was late in the season and really the only suitable one I could find was a [I think Perception] Caspia. about 10ft [+or- a little] long with about a 30 inch beam. At about 40 lbs, it was much less effort to get on and off my truck, and was easier to paddle also. I took it on the Grand River [a very small river, slow and shallow] and also on some of the local lakes. Caught a 30in. Pike on the river in it...

But I couldn't bring my dog.

Next I purchased an Olde Towne Loon. It was something like 13 1/2ft. with the same beam and it had a huge cockpit! Enough to allow my dog to accompany me. I needed a rack on my truck for it, but instead made an "extender" for my bed in my truck.

Not knowing any better I thought the Loon was capable of handling any of the GREAT LAKES-and that could have been a terrible mistake indeed! A local Dr. was also into kayaking, and LAUGHED AT ME... That laughing was far better than a Coast Guard rescue-and got me to look for a "genuine" Sea Kayak... True: the Loon served my fishing purposes nicely [at least in the local small lakes] but the Great Lakes? I have my doubts...

In the middle of a snowstorm while comming home from college, I saw a Necky plastic boat outside the kayak shop. I can't for the life of me remember it's name as I write this. It was something like 16 ft long, had a 24 or 25 in. beam, two hatches... a nice boat... It was that boat I took with me when I had a class with Nigel Foster. Being plastic, the skirt came off relatively easily-and THAT was important!

You see, the class with Nigel was out here in the Pacific North West. I had befriended a gal out here, and moved to the Seattle area. The class was held near the Tacoma Narrows bridge [If I remember correctly].

Due to my move, and new relationship with a gal who had children, I was suddenly "shy a boat..." <g> And about that time I heard about "Deep Trouble" and decided I needed a copy so...

I went out looking for it...at a Kayak shop of course...

To learn about my present boat click here.