I would recommend buying a fiberglass touring boat and an inexpensive, used,
plastic white water boat. The added $100-$300 for the WW boat would be worth
not risking your touring boat...or your life.

Brian Blankinship

On 5-Aug-2003, (Chuck Darney) wrote:

I don't own a kayak yet but was wondering if there's a rule of thumb
regarding the length of kayak you would want to have on a river as
opposed to lakes/coastal waters/etc.?

Coastal areas can have tidal currents that are tougher to deal with than
some rivers.

I wouldn't want to do any real
white water, but slower rivers with somefaster moving water that may
require some manuverability.

Length is a poor indicator of maneuverability. A long kayak with good
rocker can out-handle a shorter kayak with no rocker. A long kayak
in the hands of someone who knows how to edge and sweep is more
maneuverable than a shorter one in the hands of someone who doesn't.
You'd have to learn how to handle a kayak first and then learn which kayaks
respond the way you want and how this matches the conditions on the
rivers you want to run. No set answers available here.

I'd like to get a boat that would be able to do this without losing
the benefits of a longer boat on open water. Would 17' be too long or
would something shorter do better?

If you're not going into WW, but just dealing with a current and needing
to stay in line with the flow, many sea kayaks would be ok, as long as
it's not so long that it bridges the river from bank to bank (or shallow
to shallow for that matter).

You'll find that sea kayaks will tend to track funny on rivers, especially
when you get near a bend in the river where the bow and stern are in
water that's moving at different speeds.

The key is to recognize when the water is too tough to handle. At that
point you could line the kayak through or portage.

If the rivers are shallow and rocky, you'll want plastic, otherwise composite
is fine. I often take my kayaks down a river that's usually calm as a lake.
After a rain, however, the current can be,... interesting...

Mike

"Chuck Darney" wrote in message
om...
I don't own a kayak yet but was wondering if there's a rule of thumb
regarding the length of kayak you would want to have on a river as
opposed to lakes/coastal waters/etc.? I wouldn't want to do any real
white water, but slower rivers with somefaster moving water that may
require some manuverability.

I'd like to get a boat that would be able to do this without losing
the benefits of a longer boat on open water. Would 17' be too long or
would something shorter do better? I've been looking at boats in the
15' to 17' range. Primary use would be open water but there are some
nice slow but smaller rivers in the area that would be nice to use.

Thanks for any suggestions.


This depends upon a lot of factors. I have just taken (for the 2nd time) a
4-day trip down the Sacramento River with a group of boy scouts. I used a
17' 1" Sea Lion on both trips (plastic touring boat). The scouts all used
canoes. The first trip ran from Redding to Red Bluff (45-50 miles), the
second from Red Bluff to Willows (50-55 miles). The conditions were
generally as you describe above and were. On the first trip, there was some
class II (perhaps III at one point) whitewater. The boat performed admirably
in these conditions. The eddys were challenging at times, but manageable.
The whitewater was surprisingly easy to handle and only required some stern
rudders and low braces to manage. All things considered, I don't think boat
length was as much as a factor as paddling skill. The canoes all were loaded
with gear and scouts (2 per boat, 3 in one of same) and were much less
capable on the water than the kayak. It was faster, easier to turn, and
generally more fun.

Other boats may perform differently. As John F. points out, different hull
designs and different cargo loads/distribution can greatly affect
performance.

Rick

Would 17' be too long or
would something shorter do better? I've been looking at boats in the
15' to 17' range. Primary use would be open water but there are some
nice slow but smaller rivers in the area that would be nice to use.

WRT New Jersey Rivers, including the Delaware which is quite wide,
most people I know here who began with longer touring boats ultimately
bought boats no more than 14 ft long. Maneuverability was paramount and
with a moving current the longer boats became a liability. It's not just
the ability to turn the boat readily. Pine Barrens rivers, for example, are
often narrow and some of these longer boats simply could not go around some
of the bends easily, especially in the hands of a novice paddler.
Overhanging trees or other strainers are also difficult to deal with in a
long boat.

JP