Kayak/Canoe recommendations

[PLJ]

We are in the market for a Kayak and/or a Canoe. We'd love to take a trip up to the boundary waters in a year or two, plus we always end up renting canoes from state parks etc when we camp. Therefore makes sense to invest in one of are own.

We are a family of 5. Kids currently are 11, 8 and 5. They will grow  :yikes:

We are not looking to spend an arm and a leg on these purchases, but also appreciate we need to be weight conscious with a BWCA trip in the future. Less weight usually means more money. We are comfortable paddling a canoe, Kayaks would be new experience. A Kayak would be cool if it could handle 2 people. Basically looking for something to paddle around lakes, quiet rivers. Some of the lakes may get a bit choppy, but we don't have white water rapids on the wish list to navigate :p

Any recommendations from the boat folks on the this forum for a good canoe, kayak. Where are the best places to purchase. We have a Gander mountain, Cabellas close by. Internet resources?

thanks

[wavery]

We are brand new to kayaking but I started a similar thread a few weeks back. It might be worthwhile to check out this thread:

http://www.arveeclub.com/showthread.php?t=57688&highlight=kayak

[abbear]

I would try the following link and then go to message boards.  They also have many reviews. This covers both canoe and kayak.

http://www.paddling.net

[dthurk]

Sounds to me like you might want to mix and match.  I would think you'd want to handle your family with 2 boats, so that you could have an adult in each boat.  We have an 11 year old also, and I wouldn't trust her in her own boat yet, let alone an 8 and 5 year old.  To get your family in 2 boats, you might want to consider a tandem kayak and a large-ish canoe, something with a middle seat.  As the kids grow and learn effective paddling techniques, you could add more boats to your list.  A single kayak might be nice eventually.  We own 2 kayaks for our 3 person family.  We have a Walden Spirit tandem and a Clearwater Design Inuvik single kayak.  Our 11 year old is always in the front seat of our tandem.  DW and I swap out in the single.

Here's a link for Clearwater:  http://www.clearwaterdesignboats.com/.  I can't find a Walden link.  We like both boats.

[CajunCamper]

A few years ago we were in the same "boat", Ha, or should I say the same "canoe". We were not sure how much use we would get out of a canoe so I didn't want to spend $1800 on a new canoe constructed of Kevlar, so I waited till the end of the summer and I purchased a rental canoe from my local outdoor store. They had a fleet of "Old Towne" rental canoes of which some needed to be replaced. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the canoe, they just had an agreement with Old Towne that they would change out their fleet every three years to keep the newer models in front of the public. I paid $200 for a canoe that would normally have sold for $1200 brand new. Also you may check with any of the folks running kids summer camps in your area or your local YMCA. I also bought an inflatable kayak for playing around in the surf when we make trips to Florida. It has held up for 7 years so far. One last piece of info. I like the inflatables, they're easy to store and they don't take up as much room when packing for a trip. Take a look at what SOAR has to offer. SOAR stands for Somewhere On A River and they make really quality inflatable canoes and kayaks as well as dive platforms, check them out at //www.soar1.com

That's my two cents

CajunCamper

[PITPOP27]

We've got 6, love them.  www.malibukayaks.com we own two for fishing in the ocean (they can be utilized for different things but they are sturdier - you can actually stand up one them) then we  have the Protandem 2, it's a two seater and you don't actually need the person in front to paddle at all if you have little ones. then we have 3 of their surfliner ones for our children.  Our daughter is 7 and handles herself just fine in lakes and the backbay.  we really love our kayaks, your in them 5 minutes and have it down, much easier than canoeing, or even rafting.  Very easy control.  You can see some pictures on our webshots in my sig.  or at malibu kayak forum under family shots.

Good luck in your shopping adventure!