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Best kayaks for cruising, and sailing dinghies

sgwright67

Member III
While I await the right boat to present itself, I am trying to think about other things I can do to be productive, and also enjoy the water. I see many boats around here sporting one or two kayaks, usually kept alongside the decks between the cabin top and lifelines, which I know isn't ideal for foredeck access, especially on a smaller boat.

Anyway, I'm curious if anyone has experience with kayaks that are well suited to coastal cruising use (for two people), which means lightweight, and easy to store aboard a 28-35' boat. I don't expect they would entirely replace a dinghy, but in many cases I can imagine them being the preferred choice for going ashore, and just exploring around anchorages. Plus the added benefit of allowing use separately from sailing, of course.

Secondly, I am also curious about sailing dinghies and how practical they are. I'm leaning toward a rigid dinghy, and I've seen several with sail options. Are they a decent solution, or just too much bother for coastal cruising?
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
My sit-on-top kayaks were hard to board from the boat. I carry a sailing pram, but that means rudder, daggerboard, sail, oars.

We have a paddleboard, which works best all around for exploring or guest entertainment.

We don't used any of it enough to justify the clutter, but the value of such toys no doubt varies greatly depending on local environment, age of children and on. I always try to leave it all home.
 

nquigley

Sustaining Member
There was a discussion on these forums about this topic last year, and there's tons of similar discussion on various sailing forums (via Google).
Whenever there is a wide range of pros and cons on a particular topic (like this one), it usually means that everything is a compromise, and that some solutions are just a bit better for certain circumstances than others.
- like the endless 'which anchor/rode combo is best?' debate.

But, the most common tender solution that most cruisers come up with (if they only have one tender) is ... as large an inflatable as you can fit on your foredeck, and the biggest engine that the dinghy is rated to carry (and that you can lift comfortably).
If you go the 'inflatable' route instead of a hard dinghy or kayak, you then have to decide on the type of inflatable (tons of choice). But, this decision seems to be decided mostly on just 2 main issues:
- price (the bees-knees inflatable is probably a RIB with hypalon tubes and a sturdy aluminum hull with very strong transom-hull bracing), and
- stowability (cheapest inflatables have PVC tubes with inflatable floors, and can be rolled up small for stowing below).

What's most important in your setting?
Good luck!
 

cagarren

Member I
Kayaks

Back in 05/06 I was able to do an extended cruise down the East Coast and through the Bahamas on a Cal 36. We had two semi-cheap 9ft plastic kayaks that we lashed to the outside of the lifelines. I fashion four J shaped clips out of stainless flat bar to secure them. Kinda like a big gun rack. Having those slick little boats was awesome. They were just so much faster and easier to row than our dingy. My main attraction then was salt water fly fishing and I would head out every day with my little kayak and fishing pole to just explore. Good times that I will never forget and hope to do again someday....


Curt
 
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bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
I don't know anything about sailing dinghies.

My primary dinghy is an inflatable 8-footer from West Marine, with segmented wood floorboards. More than enough to get me and one other person to shore from a mooring, which is about all I need. Weighs about 50lbs, fits easily onto foredeck when inflated, folds up nice and small when deflated, etc. They periodically go on sale at West for ~600 bucks and, as Christian says, at that price it's more of a consumable than an investment.

I did spend some time last year pondering fun ways to get out and about on the water. Some of the things I considered were

-- just use existing inflatable
(PLUS: I already have it. MINUS: it's no fun to go exploring while rowing backwards)
-- put a gas outboard on the inflatable
(PLUS: more fun to get around. MINUS: need a place to keep the outboard, plus gas, plus maintenance, plus...)
-- put an electric (Torqueedo) outboard on the inflatable
(PLUS: no gas, relatively easy to store. MINUS: no easy way to "refuel" while out and about, and extra batteries aren't cheap)
-- get a rigid kayak (either sit-on or sit-in)
(PLUS: I really like kayaking. MINUS: hard to find a place to keep it on the boat, and in the garage over the winter)
-- get a collapsible or a multi-piece kayak
(PLUS: easier to store. MINUS: none of the ones I tried were all that "rigid")

I didn't end up loving any of those options. What I did end up getting is an "ORU" kayak - basically an origami-kayak made out of rigid plastic sheeting. It's very clever (I'm told it was the brainchild of an engineering student at Berkeley). When "assembled", it is very rigid and comfortable to paddle. When folded up, it is about the size of a large suitcase, which means it can be stored in quarterberth while cruising.

https://www.orukayak.com/

I ended up getting the "Bay" model, which is a 12-foot-long 1-person sit-in kayak. Weighs something like 26 lbs. Loooove it. Used it about a dozen times last summer, and can't wait to drag it out this year. The only thing that took a little getting used to is that, because it is so light, it doesn't "feel" stable when you're first learning it - it gives signals as if it is about to roll, which can be a little disconcerting, but in fact the way the bottom is designed it has more stability than you'd first think.

REI stocks them, so if you want to take a look it might be worth a trek to your nearest REI store. Between light-weight, easy to use and easy to stow, I'm super happy with it. They also make a 1-person "open" model, a 1-person "expedition" model, and are taking pre-orders for the new 2-person model.

The one big thing I can't address is.... getting into it from the boat. I haven't tried. No problem launching from a beach, and launching from a dock has proven to be doable, but I suspect the first few times I try to get into it from the swim-ladder I'm going to end up swimming. We'll see.

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kayak.jpg

Bruce


Edited to add: I *do* know something about "sailing dinghies", but... Lasers, Finns, 420s, 5o5s, 49rs, etc. Not the kind suitable for cruising...
 
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Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
I don't know anything about sailing dinghies.
I know the pics are to showcase the kayak set-up and transport but I couldn't help clicking through and thinking, "Man, Makana is a nice boat!" :egrin:

My shitty inherited Coleman Costco dinghy is in the water, slowly taking on water, and slightly deflating. I don't think I care enough about it to try and save it, but what with cruising plans this summer, I will need a dinghy of some sort. Probably going to go the same direction w/ the "cheapo" WM brand (I know $600 is cheap for a dinghy, but it ain't CHEAP!)

I really like the look of the "Porta-Botes" but the price point is pretty high up there, considering projects I care much more about.
 

toddster

Curator of Broken Parts
Blogs Author
For a 30 footer, it’s just hard to store anything on deck. When you start getting up toward 35-feet, more options probably open up. For now, I’m resigned to inflatables. I have an inflatable 14-foot kayak that can be set up tandem or single, that... does what it’s supposed to but just isn’t rigid. I also carry a “high-pressure” (drop-stitched) inflatable SUP, which seems pretty amazingly rigid to me. In fact, I’ve hardly even inflated the kayak since I bought the SUPs. (Had two but sold one because nobody ever wanted to paddle with me.) I generally take it out for a couple of hours any evening the wind isn’t blowing. Now, inflatable kayaks are starting to come out with the drop-stitched HP technology, which seems promising. I’d really like to test-paddle the Advanced Elements kayak with the high-pressure floor.

I have a set of L-shaped brackets to carry a yak or a couple of boards outside the stanchions. It’s doable, but I don’t really like sailing with them out there. There’s always some interference with the jib sheets and/or the preventer line. My SUP got rope burns during a mini-cruise last summer. Mostly I store them in the brackets in the marina and take them out if there isn’t enough wind to sail. If taking the boat out, I usually leave the toys on the dock.

I do have an 11-foot powered zodiac “dinghy” with an early HP floor, but the only options for that are to tow it or deflate and bundle it into the back of the cockpit. For me, that’s sort of the minimum size to support SCUBA missions and ferry bicycles to shore. Although there are young and ambitious people who do that with sit-on-top kayaks.
 

sgwright67

Member III
Thanks Bruce, this is great info. I had forgotten about these folding kayaks - I have seen the canoe version, but not the kayak. Looks very interesting indeed, and the light weight is a bonus.

There's probably a 50/50 chance the boat we get will come with a dinghy, and if it's serviceable, we'll go with it. As for the kayaks, since we are a stone's throw from a large lake, and a few minutes from the ocean, they will also be used for day trips without the sailboat. My thought is that if we keep them small and light enough, we can also take them on shorter cruising trips where storing them on deck or outside the lifelines won't be too much of a pain. Of course the folding kayak could allow for storage below when cruising.

As far as dinghies, I detest outboards, so will be leaning toward something I can row reasonably well, and possibly sail. If I have to go inflatable, I'd try to get an aluminum hull unit; my parents have one on their power boat and it is pretty nice.
 

sgwright67

Member III
SUPs

Several of you mentioned SUPs, a category I completely forgot about. I was not aware they had inflatable units, so I will have to look into this. The idea of standing is appealing, as even the best kayaks seem to mess with my back after a while.

Thanks as always for the great info!

ps: I recall someone posting photos of their new boat recently, which I think was a 35-2 with a add-on fridge in a cabinet ahead of the galley stove, sitting on the settee. It looked a lot like a boat I saw listed in Bellingham, so I'm curious if it is. Does anyone recall this post? I can't seem to find it...
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
‘Sup with SUPs

I have a mixed inflatable inventory.

The Jimmy Stix paddle board that I found on EBay fits in the large compartment under the v-berth and the Achilles (barely) fits on the foredeck inflated (extra fun picking up a mooring or anchoring) or under the boom deflated. I went for the one with no transom thinking it would be more portable. Don’t know if it’s true but that was my rationale. Torqueedi gets stuffed in the lazarette in pieces and recharges when we are motoring.

Paddle board is great for towing kids if you have the patience to circle back and pick them up when they “accidentally” fall off.

Much of what works depends on what kind of shore you’re going to be landing on. Lake Champlain is mostly pretty forgiving that way.

Oh, and snow tubes don’t take up much space and are great for jumping in with.
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Any of y'all have inflatable SUP recommendations? Been doing a lot of googling today, and I'm lucky it's not payday, or I'd have impulse purchased one by now. Unfortunately there are a myriad of other BOAT things I could justify $700 besides a one-person paddleboard........like a damn dinghy........
 

toddster

Curator of Broken Parts
Blogs Author
I am under the impression that the drop-stitched high-pressure inflatable technology all comes from a single manufacturer. Different "brands" might have different skins, fins, and deck fittings, and they might come with different paddles, pumps, etc., but inside they're all about the same.
That said, I've been very happy with my "Slingshot" brand SUPs.
Be sure to get a two-speed pump with a gauge and reverse (deflate) action.
And of course, this year, the kids have to have hydrofoils on everything, including SUPs. Not sure if there are any inflatable SUPs that fit foils? Or is it vice verse?

Edit: Never mind. A bit of googling informs me that everything I know about SUPs is SO 2016. Doncha hate it when you look away for a few minutes and everything changes? I was just tooling around the "Starboard" web site, for one, and everything is blowing my mind.
 
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sgwright67

Member III
Got a Pelican 10'

I found a used Pelican 10' kayak with paddle and spray skirt for $300, so we'll see how it works on the yet to be found boat. My first outing across Cowichan Bay to Genoa Bay and back proved it is a solid boat, as I was paddling across 15kn winds and 2' chop on the way back, and the boat was surprisingly stable and easy to keep straight. Now I just need to find another one... :)
 

bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
Suggest experimenting with boarding a kayak from the topsides of a sailboat, to see if it works for you.

100% agree.

I've boarded my kayak from a beach (easy), and from a dock (doable, but requires some choreography). I have NOT yet tried boarding it from my swim-step.... and I can only imagine boarding from topsides would be a challenge.

What that means for me is that the kayak is a nice "toy" to play with if staying in a marina, but (so far) the inflatable is still by far the right tool if I'm staying on an anchor or mooring, and/or if I need to get people or things between boat and shore.

Bruce
 

sgwright67

Member III
Boarding a kayak...

I agree that boarding from a boat is a challenge, but these will be to supplement a dinghy, not replace one. I got a fair bit of practice with kayak boarding last summer, as my brother uses one of his old whitewater kayaks (not very stable!) as a tender to reach his aluminum powerboat which is moored in the bay outside his cabin. The boat has a lot of freeboard, similar to a sailboat, so getting in/out of the kayak required some practice, and the occasional swim... Often, I just opted to skip the kayak and just swim to the boat...

That said, the kayak I bought has a very large cockpit opening making it easier than most to board, so I think it will be manageable from the boarding ladder. If not, we'll just row them to shore first. We enjoy exploring by kayak, so I think for local cruising they'll be worth the effort of bringing along, since we won't have an outboard for the dinghy, limiting its range. If not, we'll still use them for day trips around here. I can even fit the entire kayak inside our Westy, which is a nice bonus for quick trips to the beach. :)
 
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