AdvancedElements.com

[stevew]

I own an AF 10.5 footer and would be interested to hear from anyone with any experiance using this boat in the sea, especially in more challenging conditions.
I'm hoping to use mine around the coast of the UK, mainly in the south, so as you well know the weather here can be a little unpredictable to say the least !!

[stevew]

Mmm, am I to assume that nobody uses their AF in the sea?

[lee johnson]

Steve,

I'll rise to the bait about the Advanced Frame 10'5" on the sea (you ol' harbour seal, you). I have often taken my AF 1 out on English Bay here in Vancouver, Canada, and out beyond Point Grey and have ventured several miles out on the sea. One time, well away from land in large waves, I met a chap in his new kevlar Nordkapp sea kayak (about 17'-18' long). He said this was his eighth kayak and that he thought he had finally found the perfect one. We were shouting to each other over the wind and waves, and we were certainly doing much greater distances vertically than we were horizontally! Waves were washing over the deck of his $8,000.00 hard-shell (that is what he told me it cost), and he would have swamped without his spray skirt. I was bobbing about happily in my AF 1 ($399.99 CAD when I bought it) and was high and dry without a spray skirt. Yes, he could go faster; but I was drier. What I am getting at is that the seaworthiness of the Advanced Frame 10'5" is reassuring. When conditions are more demanding, I use my 13' Expedition, which is predictably stable in all the conditions I have encountered, so far! Of course, with both the AF 1 and the EXP, I install a BackBone for better longitudinal stability and tracking - with that device added, I think one has fairly impressive sea kayaks, especially for their lengths and thanks to their stable beam-widths. I feel as safe in them as I do in my much narrower 17'6" hard-shell.

[stevew]

Thanks LJ,

It's reassuring to hear your story. I feel happy that the AF 10.5 will cope. Mind you, I'm only going out when I know the tides and the wind is on shore! I have a feeling the sea is an altogether different animal.
Any more anecdotes would be welcomed!! So please keep those "sea experiences" coming.

[lee johnson]

Yup, you'll be safe and have a lot of fun in your 10'5" so long as you remember that "The Sea Is Not To Be Trusted." I could even regale you with scary stories of being caught in a sea-storm in my Lagoon (8'4") and trying to keep up with a guy in his 18' sea kayak as we struggled to shore. The point is that even the little Lagoon is remarkably seaworthy (if you know how to paddle), although its short length means getting tossed around from crest to crest of the waves - or so it seems, at times. My 17'6" sea kayak is made for rough stuff, but I almost feel safer in my 13' Expedition. Yes, knowing what the tides are doing and how fast they flow is necessary; even at that, problems can arise. Last autumn, I was rolled by a rogue wave coming in from the Pacific Ocean when I was still in a river estuary, looking for rare shore plovers after having paddled down the river in my 10'5". The roller funneled into the river, its great height flipped the stern up while the bow was sucked in at the bottom of the roller, and over I went, upside down, helpless in the face of such a force. Mind you, my "180-degree Eskimo Roll" (joke) was mainly embarrassing because the water's depth at the river's outlet was only about 6' and I could stand up on my toes, with only my wet pride hurting. Perhaps, in a long sea kayak, I might have made it over the top of the roller - but I suspect not, as it would have pushed me sideways. Again, the sea does what it wants to do, not what you want it to do; but being able to predict its moves via tides and winds gives you a fighting chance to enjoy Nature at its grandest. And sometimes, the sea can be as calm as a mountain lake - until breezes build up during the day. And sometimes, a rogue roller comes along to remind you of your place in the greater scheme of things.

[PJohanson]

I use an older model of the Lagoon, and have had it out in the wind and waves a couple of times. Some people like short little rec boats for playing in rough surf -- that's a pretty darned big physical challenge! As Lee says, don't trust the sea to be calm and quiet all of the time. Do safety practise with friends and you'll feel ready to face some challenges.

[SJack]

Steve, where do you paddle in the south of England?

[stevew]

All plans at the moment !!
Been spending most of my time ATM on the non tidal part of the Medway but I'd like to try the sea, maybe the tidal bit of the Medway near the Strand at Gillingham. Used to sail there many years ago! Where abouts are you?

[SJack]

Chichester. We have the Arun, the Chichester canal, the Harbour and the Solent as playgrounds for kayaks. these AF are just fab for all of these.
Hope you get out on the water soon.