# Canoe/Kayak on the roof?



## brockley (Mar 6, 2009)

We went canoeing on the Dordogne river in September and found the experience very much to our liking  . We also have roof bars which would lend themselves very nicely to an upturned Canoe/Kayak of our own.

Can anyone recommend a two person one (don't actually know the difference between them?) and are the inflatable ones any use?


----------



## dereversken (Feb 22, 2006)

There`s an agent at radstock for sea eagle boats that are very robust to use and they have several types and sizes. I`ve had two of them the 380 explorer, and now use the smaller of the paddleski type which Is pretty versatile. Have a look on their website Spindrift.co.uk.Another very robust make is those built by "Aire", American but you can get them over here. Infact I have the sea tiger which is quite large but very safe and stable. Then another range is that from a german manufacture called Grabner... these are quite expensive though.....Ken


----------



## WildThingsKev (Dec 29, 2009)

You have four choices:

Inflatable; popular with many on here because they can be packed in the garage, are available in several cheap brands and are stable and easy to use. However they are the least efficient to paddle, especially if it is windy or you have a long way to go. You would not want to travel far with an inflated one on the roof.

Conventional kayak; huge range of styles and prices but the cheaper single large tandem cockpit models cost about £600, are the fastest, are stable and will go on your roof fairly easily.

Sit on kayak: most are fairly similar in size and price, easy to use, reasonably fast and easy to use. Very safe on the sea. same roofability.

Open (Canadian) Canoe: a bit more expensive than the last 2, more skill needed to paddle well (using single bladed paddle), bit slower than a double sit on but has a purist "back to nature" feel about them and a huge carrying capacity. Great for rivers but not for the sea. Will slide up onto most roof very well.

You may well have paddled a typical French hire canoe which is a open canoe with a full cockpit moulding, and you may have been given kayak (2 bladed) or canoe (single bladed) paddles.


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

I have used and enjoyed all of those. What a excellent concise summary for the OP Kev. Thanks


----------



## dereversken (Feb 22, 2006)

I should have added in my earlier post that all the kayaks I mentioned are inflatables...Ken


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

Hi Ken I have been impressed with the Sea Eagle range too as I prefer their single skin rather than the double skinned Seveylor which take ages to dry out with all the water trapped between. I have used an Old Town Canadian for years but have no room to put it on the roof of the MH.


----------



## geraldandannie (Jun 4, 2006)

I'd personally get an inflatable. My sea kayak is quite heavy, and getting it on the roof of the van would be very difficult. You can get special racks which allow you to do this with ease, but you have to work out how much kayaking you'll be doing, and whether it's worth the investment.

Gerald


----------



## Ian_n_Suzy (Feb 15, 2009)

Can I ask, when you go Kayaking using your own Kayak, how do you get back to your Van? I mean in the hired one's you are driven xx amount of Kilometres upstream and dropped in the River, and you get out where your have travelled xx amount of Kilometres back to the hire place.

I'm interested in the logistics of doing it yourself.


----------



## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Ian_n_Suzy said:


> Can I ask, when you go Kayaking using your own Kayak, how do you get back to your Van? I mean in the hired one's you are driven xx amount of Kilometres upstream and dropped in the River, and you get out where your have travelled xx amount of Kilometres back to the hire place.
> 
> I'm interested in the logistics of doing it yourself.


Just don't use them for fast flowing rivers, we tend to use ours on lakes, slow flowing rivers and calm seas.

Pete


----------



## dereversken (Feb 22, 2006)

I must say we`re not exactly serious kayakers, and use electric motor or outboard as well sometimes depending on which boat we`re using at the time, but as the previous poster has pointed out you are better out of fast flowing rivers. We do find however that a lot of the rivers are such that there`s likely to be a rocky type barrage every kilometre or so creating a kind of lake between it and the previous one. we`ve mostly found these rocky barrages to be easily got through or round. but of course there is always the coastal areas too.we took it up quite late in life and love it!....Ken


----------



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Im no expert on Kayaks but since we did a trip on the Ardeche this summer Im hooked. What a laugh, especially the rapids and all the nutters getting stuck or falling in. The abuse those boats get is incredible.

I looked at the link provided earlier for Spindrift and unless I have got it wrong there is another choice. They do one thats in sections

http://shop.spindriftltd.com/point-65-8-c.asp

So would this just bolt together and store in a luton or Garage?

We have a ten foot kids dinghy that was £50 of amazon. Had loads of fun all over Europe in it and its great for lounging about in or getting to islands and stuff but I would really like an indestructible sit on job like they gave us on L'Ardeche.

If you have a scooter or toad you can drop it off at one end of the river, take the van up to the start point and go back on that. You then have to pick up the boat although ours straps on the back of the scooter.


----------



## Jezport (Jun 19, 2008)

I used to take Scouts out canoeing and found singles better than doubles. If I was you I would get 2 singles rather than a double. If you have roof bars go for solid boats as they are a lot more versatile.

My Scout group still has boats and paddles and may be interested in selling them if anyone is interested I will find out.


----------



## Senator (Apr 24, 2008)

Having been a keen canoeist now for many many years I would love to be able to take my boats away with us on the motorhome roof.

I have an 18ft racing/sprint boat that ideally requires a 'V' bar, but when I put this up on the roof of my previous van (Autosleeper Pollensa) the rear overhang was too much due to the luton dictating the boats position.

So, I then looked at our 16ft Old Town Pnobscot Canadian. This presented more problems due to the gunnel shape raising at the bow and stern. It seems to me that the roof bars would need to be very high to allow the boat to travel upside down without hitting the roof. Obviously on the car roof the bow and stern are either over the bonnet or rear overhang so don't create a problem.

Also getting a Canadian up and onto the roof is a job in itself!

I now have a van without a luton, but no rear ladder or roof rails and I am resigned to the fact that my boats have to stay at home.  

Would be interested to hear how others have managed.

Mark


----------



## peejay (May 10, 2005)

You could always get a >Kanlolo<

8)

Pete


----------



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

peejay said:


> You could always get a >Kanlolo<
> 
> 8)
> 
> Pete


ISnt that similar to the one I posted earlier. Are these boats in two or three pieces any good? Seems the way to go to me.


----------



## peejay (May 10, 2005)

I dunno if the split ones in the links are any good Barry, but I suppose the purists will say not as they do about inflatables.

I suppose it all depends on what your storage possibilities are, for us its gotta be inflatable so we can bung it (deflated) in the double floor or in the garage.
If we had a full size conventional one it would have to go on the roof with the extra expense of a roofrack and if we had a split one on the back it would need the extra expense of a towbar and carrier.

We're happy with our blow up 'doll'. :lol: 

Pete


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

I love using a Canadian on UK rivers but in France I have forgone transporting one the MH one in favour of hiring locally on the rivers that drain the massive central for reason mentioned.

They launch and recover and bring you back and have local knowledge of the weirs. I also wouldn't want to use my own canoe on the Ardeche which is great fun. If I was camping by a lake for a longer period I would go for an inflatable instead for stowage.

However, if I wanted to explore coastlines in France or the UK then I would want something more seaworthy and a 5hp+ motor. I did see an Avon RIB at the Soton boat show a few years back that folded down into its own shell like a tortoise. I think it may have been one like this http://www.ronhalemarine.co.uk/superbasket/product/133/Avon_RIB_260_Compact. Check the stowed dimensions.

This could be mounted vertically on the back of a MH like the split canoes shown earlier and would be good for serious exploring/fishing. Just a thought.


----------



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

andrewball1000 said:


> I love using a Canadian on UK rivers but in France I have forgone transporting one the MH one in favour of hiring locally on the rivers that drain the massive central for reason mentioned.
> 
> They launch and recover and bring you back and have local knowledge of the weirs. I also wouldn't want to use my own canoe on the Ardeche which is great fun. If I was camping by a lake for a longer period I would go for an inflatable instead for stowage.
> 
> ...


I think it all comes down to compromise really. When we first got the van I had a Quicksilver 3.1m boat and 8HP Yamaha Outboard










It was just way too much hassle and too heavy. Stored the boat in the Luton but it was 38KG and the engine about the same, could never find any easy way of storing the engine. Went like the clappers but Mrs D didnt like it so we got rid.


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

Was it a RIB Barry? The one I saw folded very easily, unlike the normal Avon inflatables.


----------



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

andrewball1000 said:


> Was it a RIB Barry? The one I saw folded very easily, unlike the normal Avon inflatables.


No it was an air deck roll up. Rolled up small enough to fit up in the luton but still big and heavy. The engine was the pain in the neck though. So awkward to man handle in the van and the only place it would go was on its side between the two front seats. Pity as it would have been superb on our trip this year.

Having said that I lost three and a half stone this summer rowing this stupid thing around europe


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

Yes I agree that weight is a major issue on any craft. If its too heavy you don't bother to use it.

If you want lightweight craft have a look at Tom Hills book. http://www.thomasjhillboatdesigns.com/book.html

This is what got me interested in canoes a number of years ago. A great book if you are interested in making your own. His Charlotte here weighs only 27lbs!
http://www.thomasjhillboatdesigns.com/charlotte.html

Beautiful craftsmanship in wood.


----------



## andrewball1000 (Oct 16, 2009)

Another one to consider is the Folding boat such as this one http://www.porta-bote.com/rv-mounting.php Ugly thing but very quick to assemble and can be strapped to the side or on top of the MH.


----------



## ptmike (Apr 25, 2010)

remember to check that the roof bars are not just for show as on a bolero


----------



## Hezbez (Feb 7, 2009)

We have a Sea Eagle inflatable - fits under the seat in our motorhome. Quick to inflate/deflate and seems decent quality.

Got it from Spindrift, nice guys to deal with. This one:
http://shop.spindriftltd.com/sea-eagle-se-370-pro-package-31-p.asp


----------



## brockley (Mar 6, 2009)

Ian_n_Suzy said:


> Can I ask, when you go Kayaking using your own Kayak, how do you get back to your Van? I mean in the hired one's you are driven xx amount of Kilometres upstream and dropped in the River, and you get out where your have travelled xx amount of Kilometres back to the hire place.
> 
> I'm interested in the logistics of doing it yourself.


We gave this some thought and the best we could come up with for rivers was to check the route first for weirs, then when finished, one of us hops the bus back to get the van. I wonder if they would let both of us on the bus carrying a bagged up inflatable?


----------



## WildThingsKev (Dec 29, 2009)

I don't think the take-apart kayaks are going to prove very popular. They are expensive (you can buy a single and a double for the same price), a compromise on performance and the component bits are too big to fit inside most vehicles anyway. They look good in an advert though!

Mark (Senator), I use a lightweight extending loft ladder to get on the roof rather than fitting a fixed one, it lives in the top of the garage. There have been other threads on here about making custom roofracks, briefly you can get a pair of custom alloy bars made up with large footpads which can sikaflexed/screwed to the roofs same as satdomes and solar panels.

Kev


----------



## 5bells (Feb 4, 2009)

We also have a sea eagle after a thumbs up from someone on mhf.

Very pleased, only used it a couple of times but was impressed when out in the estuary near pembroke dock in windy conditions. it seemed to track quite well. Did have OH astern for ballast though :lol: 

Ray


----------



## SNandJA (Aug 22, 2008)

I bought a Sevylor Tahiti Plus (had a third seat to give the grandchildren a ride!) via a cheap "Show Offer" at the NEC. used it on the Ardeche and a couple of the large lakes in France. Also down the River Trent near where I live and on the Trent and Mersey canal. From memory about 13kg in weight and it folds up into a back pack. I bought a skeg (detachable rudder/keel) for it and this improves the handling especially if you are on your own. Fits in the garage of the M/H and is easily inflated/deflated with their own brand stirrup pump. The more expensive ones have an extra skin which may make them survive a rocky rapid. I worry more abut submerged branches than the rocks which tend to be worn smooth and have plant growth to make them less likely to puncture.
I didn't consider the navigation of the Ardeche Gorge because for a reasonably price you can hire a canoe and be transported back to the starting place.....
Repair kits available although as yet I haven't needed one.

Quick link to some examples

If we are still talking to JohnCross M/H they sell the brand and may give a discount. Sevylor bound to be on eBay and Amazon as well. I reckon you could set up for around £120 with one similar to mine and then if it worked go for the more expensive versions.

Steve


----------



## BHappy (Mar 23, 2008)

brockley said:


> We went canoeing on the Dordogne river in September and found the experience very much to our liking  . We also have roof bars which would lend themselves very nicely to an upturned Canoe/Kayak of our own.
> 
> Can anyone recommend a two person one (don't actually know the difference between them?) and are the inflatable ones any use?


Have a look on the internet at Hobie Mirage i14T. Looks wonderful


----------



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

The kayak we hired on the Ardeche was built like a tank. It had to be as it got completely battered. They all did. You couldn't avoid massive mash ups and rocks and we frequently got stuck. The rapids were the best fun and if we get a kayak we will want to use it on bigger and better rapids.

I'm no expert but I reckon an inflatable would have lasted 5 min tops. As you say though they are cheap enough to hire and you get a lift back.


----------



## baz3000 (Sep 7, 2009)

We use a sevylor pointer 2 inflatable. can be used as one man or two man and can be used with spray decks to keep you dry and warm (handy in scotland...)

Have used it a lot on loch lomond, The Lake District, the sea at Arisaig, and the Italian Lakes.

Great fun would definitely recommend one, only downside is they can take a while to dry but can be packed away wet. We store ours in the garage and sit the bag in a large tray and dry it out when I get the chance.
We got ours at Brookbank Canoes and found them to be very helpful

www.brookbankcanoes.co.uk/

Happy paddling.


----------

