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How/Where to transport a kayak.


olddog22202

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Have bought a '92 Seabreeze and would like to be able to bring a 12', 70# kayak with me on adventures.

At 70 don't think I will climbing on roof or tossing the kayak by self. Any ideas if such a craft can be transported?

Thanks

Mike Mc

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was looking at this also with two single man kayaks on my sunrader. ended up strapping them to roof using two people;

step 1 lean kayak up against side of RV (making SURE to open that sides truck door first in case it falls so you don't lose your mirrors)

step 2 climb up on roof.

step 3 pull it up while person on ground helps shove it up.

step 4 get it into position and start ratchet strapping it down.

I wasn't a huge fan of this setup though and in retrospect if I were going to do this again on a longer trip I would go for an ultra light canoe trailer.

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I carry my 21ft. kayak on a rack (two bars) on the roof of my 91 Dolphin. I've been transporting kayaks and canoes this way since I've owned my m.h. and leaning them against the side of the m.h. then climbing up to load on the rack. I use the reverse order to unload. A friend of mine carried his 12' kayak vertically on the rear bumper of his Vixen motor home. He had someone weld him a rack to fit his receiver hitch. Here's a commercially vertical rack you could check out ......

http://www.rvkayakrack.com

Good Luck,

Bob

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I carry mine in the passenger seat. It's a Grabner Explorer I:

http://www.grabner-sports.at/General-info.1800.0.html?&L=2

Have bought a '92 Seabreeze and would like to be able to bring a 12', 70# kayak with me on adventures.

At 70 don't think I will climbing on roof or tossing the kayak by self. Any ideas if such a craft can be transported?

Thanks

Mike Mc

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Yeow! Dunno if I can clamber to the roof and my ride is a NU Canoe not a whitewater yak. Big $$ for that vertical rack altho might work better than towing a lite trailer.

I know some do haul a trailer in spite of the NO-NO. I wonder if hauling a 475# scoot and 70# yak on a trailer would be a deal breaker with my Toy ( could cut down weight wise to whatever a Trail Honda CT 90 weighs + yak)

Anybody doing it?

Mike Mc

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I've been wondering how to haul 17' wood strip kayak 45# on 18' sunrader don't have problem with climbing, length just sticks out so far over sloaping front roof seams unsafe. I should get shorter kayak I guess, just spent so much time building it and it handles so nice I do not have heart to change wondered about trailer I think I will just keep thinking keep the ideas coming.

thanks

Rich

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I have a 17 foot canoe that I easily put up and take off by myself. The roof rack that

I build is a big rectangle and its sides are about 6 inches above the roof. All I have to

do is raise the canoe on one end and lean it one the rack side bar, get up on the roof

and push the top end of the canoe down which is pretty effortless since it is about

balanced on the pipe. While pushing down on it, I swing it on the rear cross bar, then

walk to the front of the roof and slide it on top of the front cross bar. There is no

lifting involved at all, just me putting about 30lbs of my weight down on it. Just reverse

the process to remove it. The hardest part of the whole process is raising the canoe

up on one end, and that is pretty easy.

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I think you could add in a strut support to the front of the cab over bed wall. You would need to put in reinforcing extra fiberblass and a metal plate to bolt through inside the rig. The support pole would have a V or T at the top. You would want it to be removable for times when you are not taking the boat with you. Most of the weight would be behind that area, it would just serve more as an anti vibration cushion.

Yes I have thought about doing something like that just being lazy I guess. I also tried a "sea eagle inflatable just not the same. It would be interesting to hear what "Sea Kayaker" has to say. Thanks for input.

Rich

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I have a trailer that came with a couple of used kayaks that I bought. It is a Harbour Freight trailer with 12" tires, and a very long tongue, and Yakima racks. The guy had 60 lbs of pressure in the tires and it pulled with alot of bouncing. I dropped the pressure to 25 psi and it rides alot better now.

I got a 17' Valley Skeray, a 17' 8" Skeray Excel, the trailer, and a Yakima bar and cradle set-up in my purchase (no paddles.) Everything was in very good condition. The seller would not sell just one kayak so I bought both for a great price. I did not need two sea kayaks because I already had a river boat, and a rec boat so I sold the 17'. I offered either of the boats on Craigslist on a Sunday morning and within minutes got a call from a guy that wanted the 17'. I sold that boat and ended up owning the 17' 8" boat and trailer for under $500. Not a bad day of horse trading. You just have to hold out a couple thousand dollars in cash and you would be surprised what you can buy.

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Just like everyone said. Lean kayak against ladder, climb to the roof & pull it up. Reverse the order going down. It's not bad at all. I do this every 3-4 days with several of my whitewater kayaks. I've put up to 7 kayaks on my roof at one time, and this is definitely the best method. I've found that mounting a ladder on the side of your RV makes it much easier for loading/tying boats down.

Timmy

www.timmystoyota.blogspot.com

post-6327-0-72128500-1342469360_thumb.jp

post-6327-0-72128500-1342469360_thumb.jp

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Like most things, you get what you pay for. I bought a $199 Sea Eagle kayak first just to see how an inflatable worked. I was ok for a small lake or pond. Hard to paddle through wind or waves; high profile. Then got the Grabner which is a high pressure vulcanized inflatable, hard as a basketball when inflated, with a rudder, foot pedals & even a wooden backrest. I've crossed the Mississippi, gone on the Arkansas River, Lake Ontario and many other lakes and rivers. It's pretty robust.

Inflatable, now that is a good idea since I might be able to lift it. i will have to ask the next door neighbors which inflatable they think is best. My next door neighbor is Sea Kayaker Magazine. They test the boats here, just carry them across the parking lot and launch them off the beach.

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  • 1 month later...

post-4814-0-52857800-1352741307_thumb.jppost-4814-0-48677600-1352741326_thumb.jp

I carry my 21ft. kayak on a rack (two bars) on the roof of my 91 Dolphin. I've been transporting kayaks and canoes this way since I've owned my m.h. and leaning them against the side of the m.h. then climbing up to load on the rack. I use the reverse order to unload. A friend of mine carried his 12' kayak vertically on the rear bumper of his Vixen motor home. He had someone weld him a rack to fit his receiver hitch. Here's a commercially vertical rack you could check out ......

http://www.rvkayakrack.com

Good Luck,

Bob

or.. make your own for 78 bucks like i just did yesterday :) see my pics.

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I have a mini-x kayak. 9' 6" and I can slide it into my 92 winnebago L shaped couch.

then it goes on the floor. A little bit of a hassle but works well.

I have put them on a yakima rack I have on the roof too. works well.

Recently tried to mount it like the previous picture but on my ladder. It sticks out to far in to the road, it is wide.

I Used to carry an inflatable in a yakima roof box but found I didn't use it. May try diagonally across the back next.

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  • 9 months later...

That would be nice for me. I bought a canoe, since I wanted simple, but big enough for at least me and the dog and some gear, but hopefully also one other person. The canoe is great, but after my first trip with it last weekend, I notice it definitely makes a huge difference to how the Chinook drives. Plus, getting it on & off the roof by myself is pretty sketchy...

I had help getting it on the roof, but took it off myself. Definitely a real risk of hurting the canoe and myself. Inflatable would be pretty nice!

But I have to say, I love the canoe.

I just bought a Thule rack with artificial rain gutters. Works for me, and the canoe and Chinook look like they were meant for each other.

post-6535-0-06584400-1378260280_thumb.jp

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No rollers, but its something I've talked about with friends. We'll figure something out. Great! Everything is very low here right now, but the lakes have enough water in them. Not much river canoeing to be had right now though, except on the Missouri.

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Ah...that's a good idea.

We were starting to talk about something that came off the back like a hitch, and stuck straight up with a roller on in. Then I just need a come along on the front! Which would be nice anyways, in case I got stuck...

But that's quite a bit more elaborate than your boyfriends method...and simple is usually best.

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