Inflatable Kayak Blog

We’re staying with my wife’s sister and husband during the portion of our trip in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It had rained quite hard overnight and we wondered if we were going to get in any paddling Saturday since there was rain in the forecast. About noon we decided that since the rain had held off, we’d brave the wind and clouds and head out. Their house is about a block and a half from a boat launch in Torch Lake, so we drove over, pumped up the inflatable kayak and started paddling. Mainly we just wanted to get in the water and get a little exercise. The water alternated between almost calm and choppy due to the wind which also varied considerably. It was a cloudy day, so the scenery wasn’t that terrific, but the paddling was fun, as usual.

We have arrived in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to visit family. After a long drive to get here we spent some time visiting and just before dark we decided to head out to our families cottage on Portage lake. The sun had already set but there was still enough light to get a short paddling trip in. We pumped up our inflatable kayak. It only takes about 8 to 10 minutes with our foot pump. My sister, Sue, has a hard shell kayak and she joined us on our ride. The evening was still quite warm which is surprising for an evening in the UP. The lake was as calm as I have ever seen it and the boats seemed cut through it without any effort. As we paddled along there were people sitting along the shore enjoying the evening around campfires and the setting sun cast a beautiful red reflection along the water in front of us. My sister headed back to shore ahead of us when some bats came swooping along the water. I need to mention she is deathly afraid of bats! So that ended the time out on the water for her. We weren’t ready to go back yet so we headed along the shore a little bit further. However, as we were headed back, it had gotten quite dark and I was getting concerned that we had stayed out too long. This will serve as a reminder that we need to be more aware of the time of day we set out to paddle and be more aware of what time the sun sets and when it will be dark, so we will not be out on the water after dark.

Fall is a great time to do some paddling. The changing colors make for some beautiful scenery and the cooler temperatures keep the sweating level down. We’re headed up to Michigan for a few days and we’re looking forward to a few paddling adventures, enjoying the fall weather and color in our Sea Eagle 330 Inflatable Kayak. It’s a little different than our previous trips to Florida and Tennessee in warmer weather. We’re going to have to wear our clothing in layers, since the temperature can vary with the amount of paddling activity, time of day, and if a piece of clothing gets wet (as if that’s ever happened!). If anyone has any additional ‘tips’ for fall paddling, drop us a note.

We’ll post a few blogs along the way. There’s lots of water in Michigan and we plan to enjoy some of it.

My sister and her husband stopped by our house for a visit over the weekend. They had heard me talk about our new Sea Eagle inflatable kayak and they thought it might be fun to try it our while they were here. We started out mid morning while it was still cool outside.

As we started getting things ready we answered their questions about price and they were interested to learn that our SE330 package came with the boat, inflatable seats, foot pump and two kayak paddles for under $300.00. They were also impressed that it inflated so quickly and was ready to put in the water in no time at all.

My sister and I went out first for a paddle around the little lake. She thought it felt very stable. No fear of tipping over at all. She noticed that it rode higher in the water than a hard shell. She found a grip on the paddle with her thumbs on top rather than wrapped totally around the shaft of the paddle worked best for her. She has very long legs, so her only complaint was that she kept hitting her knees when she was paddling. The 330 is a fun boat but the space is a bit liming for two people to stretch out while paddling.

Over all she enjoyed our time out on the peaceful water. In fact we ended our fun morning with one final trip around the lake before packing everything up and heading home.

My brother-in-law and his wife joined my wife and I on a recent paddling outing. We drove up to a local lake to paddle a few laps and have a mini-picnic. My brother-in-law is a big man. With a weight of over 300 pounds, he was curious as to how our inflatable kayak would perform for him. We have a Sea Eagle 330 and since it’s maximum weight capacity is 500 pounds, we decided it might be best for him to use it as a solo kayak. The boat handled very well for him. His first comment after coming ashore after his paddle was that “it could turn on a dime!”

The trickiest part was finding a location for the seat, how far forward or back to sit. Although seating position is crucial for anyone in an inflatable kayak, it may be the most crucial component when a ‘heavier’ person is paddling. Luckily, the seats in the Sea Eagle 330 can be easily taken out or adjusted to any position. Since all the weight is centered in one area, there was a little ‘bend’ to the boat, but not as much as you might expect.

We came to the conclusion that heavier people can enjoy an inflatable kayak and although the slightly larger SE370 inflatable kayak might be a better fit, the 330 is still fun and functional.