"Dave Van" wrote in
:


"Blankibr" wrote in message
...
The Chesapeake Paddlers Association usually run a couple trips there
each year, one before the bugs, one afterwards. Of course the
original post was about the boat, not the destination.


That's why threads are called threads!

As far as the boat goes, the one firm conclusion that I have come to is
that there are far too many boats for me to choose from and far to few
available to try in my part of the world. AT 6'2" and 208lbs (still
decreasing from 220!) and a 35" inseam, just sitting in the darn things
first is important to me. The thing is, while there are great paddling
locations in the Chicago area, there are really only 2 true kayak shops
to choose from. And one of them is a 3 hour drive into Wisconsin.

A lot of people are in the same, uh, boat. That's why I recommend going to
kayaking symposiums to people interested in buying a boat. Sure, you'll
likely have to travel a bit to go to one (make a short vacation out of it)
but you'll be able to paddle and compare kayaks from lots of different
vendors. It might be worth looking into the Great Lakes Sea Kayaking
symposium in Grand Marias, MI.

The
Assateague sounds like a good one to try out but the likelyhood of that
happening is pretty slim, unless someone can let me in on an Impex
dealer with demo boats that's within a half day's drive of Chicago that
is also on or near water. I'd also like to try the Currituk since my
height/weight can be right on the border line between one manufacturers
flagship kayak and their big person version. Kind of hoping I feel
good in the Currituk so I don't have to live with the other name on my
boat.

The Currituck might be a tight fit but it seems rather silly to avoid buying
a particular model because you don't like the name. Those that have been to
Assateague know that it's a really nice place.

Kayaking can be soooo frustrating!!! Cycling was so much more straight
forward as far as equipment. You chose Shimano or Campagnolo and
bought the top end components!

I'm sure that like cycling that equipment choices become much easier once
you gain a bit of experience in different kayaks.