Dryglove
Contributor
I just purchased one of these from my LDS a few days ago.He had three of them in stock and looked like something i could really use.This will give me a chance to go farther out without an exhausting swim from the beach.Best of all it deflates so i can put it in the trunk of my small car.I would love to have a full sized kayak but have no way to haul the darn thing and dont want to buy trailer to haul it.
I took it out for a test run at Montana de oro.The conditions were less than desirable as there was 3-5 ft swells with the occasional whitecaps not to far from shore.I decided against diving there but took the kayak out.I got out past the surf pretty easily and paddled out a few hundred yards.It was pretty rough and decided to paddle back in.Being a sit on top kayak its not the most stable thing in the world but i managed to keep my balnce and make it to shore.
From here i packed it up and went to morro bay.I launched where the kayaks usually launch right off of the sandy beach area.I went out about 100 yds and dropped anchor.Getting off the kayak was easy as well as getting my gear off.I donned my bc in the water and down i went.I must admit it is a rather boring dive around there with not much to see.The rocks offer much better scenery.
Once i surfaced i took off my bc and hooked it to the supplied line on the kayak so it wouldnt float off.I manged to get back on fairly easily and turned around and pulled my gear up.That was a bit of a struggle. Next time ill take my weight pockets out first and strap them to the kayak to make it easier to pully my rig up.Once i strapped it all down i paddled around for a while then went back to shore.I must admit that it did paddle fairly easy even with all my gear strapped to it.
I definitely wouldnt use this thing in anything to rough.I still need lots of practice with balance but managed not to tip over.It will be perfect for my use around morro bay,montana de oro,and monterey on calmer days.This thing definitely beats a long shore swim and gives me access to further sites that are to far to swim.
The kayak is very well built with a tough outer cover and removable inner bladder.It has plenty of places to tie things down with lots of d-rings and supplied straps.There are some things that i can see for improvement like on the paddle holder that will make it easier to use with gloves.
Overall im fairly happy with it(especially since it fits in the trunk of my car).I do wish it was a little more stable but hopefully that will come with practice.This should work great for my needs for diving around Morro Bay,Montana de oro and Monterey.
I took it out for a test run at Montana de oro.The conditions were less than desirable as there was 3-5 ft swells with the occasional whitecaps not to far from shore.I decided against diving there but took the kayak out.I got out past the surf pretty easily and paddled out a few hundred yards.It was pretty rough and decided to paddle back in.Being a sit on top kayak its not the most stable thing in the world but i managed to keep my balnce and make it to shore.
From here i packed it up and went to morro bay.I launched where the kayaks usually launch right off of the sandy beach area.I went out about 100 yds and dropped anchor.Getting off the kayak was easy as well as getting my gear off.I donned my bc in the water and down i went.I must admit it is a rather boring dive around there with not much to see.The rocks offer much better scenery.
Once i surfaced i took off my bc and hooked it to the supplied line on the kayak so it wouldnt float off.I manged to get back on fairly easily and turned around and pulled my gear up.That was a bit of a struggle. Next time ill take my weight pockets out first and strap them to the kayak to make it easier to pully my rig up.Once i strapped it all down i paddled around for a while then went back to shore.I must admit that it did paddle fairly easy even with all my gear strapped to it.
I definitely wouldnt use this thing in anything to rough.I still need lots of practice with balance but managed not to tip over.It will be perfect for my use around morro bay,montana de oro,and monterey on calmer days.This thing definitely beats a long shore swim and gives me access to further sites that are to far to swim.
The kayak is very well built with a tough outer cover and removable inner bladder.It has plenty of places to tie things down with lots of d-rings and supplied straps.There are some things that i can see for improvement like on the paddle holder that will make it easier to use with gloves.
Overall im fairly happy with it(especially since it fits in the trunk of my car).I do wish it was a little more stable but hopefully that will come with practice.This should work great for my needs for diving around Morro Bay,Montana de oro and Monterey.
