Junbug1970:
SNIP...How tough are these material? I'm afraid it may puncture quite easily. I live in Chicago and do alot of shore diving. Is $400 reasonable? I also would like to know if getting back onto it is as easy as getting off?
Very tough but although you couldn't easily cut it with a sharp dive knife you COULD do it. It's like the durable Codura (sp?) they use for back packs... seems quite a bit thicker though. I don't like sharp objects on mine for obvious reasons, but I don't worry either. There are two tubes inside, though it obviously handles best with both fully inflated.
Yes, $400 is what I paid for my tandem.
Getting on is very easy, and nobody I've taken out has had trouble. You first remove your gear (even your wetsuit), strap everything but your tank/bc down well, and then kick up (with or without fins) while pulling. It's easier than a "real" kayak becuase it's much more stable and SOFTER lol.
I load the tanks onboard IN the water. That means I'm wearing my bc when I pull it in (always pull from the stern - it's easier). Depending on the surf you may have to hurry to get it on board and strapped in. LOAD it with your back to the surf and the bow to the shore. You do NOT want to spend any time in the surf zone, so don't dawdle even on a calm day. Just get the heck out past any surf as quickly as possible.
I put my gear on (including wetsuit) in the water at the site, but I'm a polar bear.
The hard work begins when you haul your tank up... think this through first so you know what you're going to do. It's best to keep the bc inflated (especially with steel tanks lol), and clip it to the back of the diveyak while you're getting on board. Then crawl back (it's stable), unclip it and muscle it up. If you are not strong this may be a problem at first but you'll find a way to get it a little way and then a little farther until it's up. This is not a problem if you have any upper body strength.
Coming in, concentrate on keeping the bow forward - you do not want to spill! If the surf is not bad, get off waste-deep and put your bc on, then hurry forward to pull the diveyak up to shore by the bow. If there is surf, the diveyak can goose you and knock you down, so don't dawdle. Get it as far as you can, letting the surf help you.
When you're as far as it's likely to pull, have somebody watch it while you head up to drop your tank (out of the sand of course). Then hurry back to relieve the watcher who ideally will carry a lot of gear up with them.
You have to raise the bow of the diveyak until it's verticle because it will have a ton of water inside the fabric... just slowly raise the bow and you will eventually get it upright and know it's "empty". AGain, dragging the 'Yak up the beach is best done from the stern.
