WAVEWALK KAYAKS

This review is specific for how I feel about the kayak after my first trip in it.
Please take note that I have no experience at all with a mono hull/regular kayaks. Also please note that I weigh 72kg (160 lbs) and I was with my daughter who weighs 16kg (35 lbs). She was sitting in the front, facing me.
The bay (Ashbridge Bay – Toronto, Ontario) did not had big waves, but there was high traffic, big sailing boats and ski jets.
The w500 kayak was very easy to launch, no wet feet.
First minutes in the kayak I felt weird about its buoyancy effect; When I leaned in one direction (any, front, side, back) the kayak bounced back. This is weird initially, but after few minutes the feeling passed. It’s like starting to learn to ride a bike. The beginning of the ride is hesitant in balancing the direction, same here.
After the first minutes you learn how to sit steadily – the trick is to stay firm on saddle.

Paddling was easy, with no big effort; I paddled for almost two hours continuously with small breaks to watch the birds and fish, without feeling pain or tired.
Based on the bay size I think I put somewhere between 3-4km. Next time I will take the GPS to track the distance.
To change direction by 90 degrees it took only one backwards stroke.
I did not splash any water inside. For a newbie like me I think this is also good.

The paddle bought with the kayak is good, does the job well. I dropped it in the water; It floats and does not retain any water.

The lower part of the legs is well protected by the cockpit.

I did not have any problem in keeping direction while paddling. I found that it is easier and faster to paddle sitting at the rear, and not in the middle of the kayak, but please note that my daughter who weighs 16kg (35 lbs) was sitting on the front.
The kayak absorbs impact, and I think this is good, and at same time it feels rigid enough.
The tips of the kayak are great and very handy for storing stuff, plenty of open storage.

I found the eyelets mounted on the body useful for rigging various stuff.

Now, after the trip, strapping it to my minivan looks easy, using only 6 straps. No additional device to rig on the car, no foam, no special rack.

In my opinion the kayak delivers the features that are posted on the manufacturer’s website. For me, it met all the aspects that I was looking for. I don’t see now major changes needed to the design or rigging. I will mount maximum four RAM 119 rod holders, nothing more. I have a portable fish finder. I don’t think that the kayak needs more rigging or holes.

Overall I am happy with my purchase, and I am looking to have good time with my family using the kayak for fishing and just touring.
As a veteran Wavewalk kayak angler (Rox) said  – Life is good.
Regards and safe paddling from Ashbridge bay, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
29 August 2010

Petru Rotariu

A little modification to my boat. “Irish Wake” name incorporating the W logo, and a removable deck I use when fishing. Note the rod holders and the fish finder. I simply toss the transducer over the side. It’s on a small float collar. I used a scrap piece of melamine and attached a 1 ft wood strip that fits in the grooves. It lifts out with a twisting motion. I hang a can holder underneath, which I made from a plastic liter bottle. I cut that in two, the bottom half being the holder and the top half making a very nice little funnel. Most of the things I attach are tied with a small line to the bungees. I never saw a need to make a paddle holder when simply tying a line will do. Simplicity.

Mike

Mike’s ‘Irish Wake’ fishing kayak

Mike lives in Rochester, NY, and he’s a Wavewalk Fishing Kayaks dealer

Since 2004 we’ve been selling our W kayaks directly to clients in the US and abroad.
However, many people have been complaining that we don’t have local dealers where they could see and even test one of our kayaks before buying.

How Mike Ratigan, from Rochester, NY became our first dealer -

Mike loves paddling, and he’s been doing it for many years, until he had reached a point where paddling his common sit-in kayak was no longer a possibility, because it was just too uncomfortable, and too difficult to get into and out of – Read Mike’s kayak review >>
Being a former boat dealer, Mike was a bit skeptical about buying a kayak without first testing it, so he drove all the way from Rochester, NY to Sharon, MA, where he met with us and took a W500 for test drive.
He liked the boat, took one back home, and became a fan of W kayak concept, to a point where he offered to be a local dealer for Wavewalk.
Knowing Mike, we decided it was a good opportunity to start expanding our distribution, and Mike became our first dealer.

Mike’s kayak business is called New York Yaks. Mike is waiting for you to call, or email him, and set an appointment with him. Mike will also advise you on outfitting and rigging your new W kayak for fishing.

Yoav

Kevin Eastman, a kayak fly angler from Florida, already contributed the story about the wooden Greenland-Aleutian paddle he made, and a suspended storage solution for his W500 fly fishing kayak.
Since then, Kevin has introduced some improvements to his W500:

-”I snapped a couple of photos of the mounting I did for the bilge pump and the plastic clamps I used under the screws. I also have a simple PVC rod rack that some might be interested in looking at. It’s similar to one that I saw on pictures of Jeff’s before the short rods, but more slender. The pieces on the seat can be added to the ends for more rod storage or positioned for trolling. The two holders on top are cut out for holding fly rod set ups and work well.
Kevin”

In my never ending quest to make my W kayak as perfect as possible, I cut to fit some plastic trellis material I got at Lowe’s to create shelving across both front and rear hulls and attached them with loop bungee cords, thereby providing surfaces for attaching a host of goodies. The front shelf contains my compass, anchor and glued on ruler (for easily measuring and taking pictures of fish prior to release, which comes in really handy in tournament fishing). I’ve also shown a life vest and a mesh carrying bag (which could double as a cooler bag) tied down on the front shelf. My fillet board will fit here also.

On the rear shelf, I installed a 3-rod holder assembly which allows me to carry 5 rods placed within easy reach behind me. The rod holder is secured with the loop bungee cords and, if you look closely, includes a sliding mechanism which can lock the rods in place so they won’t slip out in rough weather.

The sky is the limit as to what can be fastened down onto these lightweight shelves which never need be removed. Their only downside is restricting access into the W from the rear which, while handy, is no biggee to me. I don’t think increased wind resistance will be a problem.

Gary

We live on a small lake in northern Wisconsin.
My brother, Gary Rankel, just gave me a Wavewalk for my birthday and I’m really enjoying it so far.
I still haven’t figured anything out that’s any better than this setup…my pup sits a bit high, but luckily she’s stayed calm while we’re out there (I haven’t been capsized yet!). So far she’s been great, despite distractions like other boats/waverunners/dogs…
It’s not pretty, but it works for now!

I’ll keep you posted if we rig something up that’s better/prettier.

Thanks for a great product!!!
Kay Rankel

The W300 first appeared in April of 2004, and it was called ‘W boat’. Later, its name was changed to W-Kayak, and in May 2009, when we launched the new W500 series, we renamed the early series W300.

The W300 represented a breakthrough in paddling and fishing, from every aspect:

It introduced stand up paddling into the kayak world, as well as stand up fishing. To this date, no other kayak has shown such performance, except the W500.
The W300 also introduced the W saddle, and the Riding position, as well as the freedom to switch between a variety of comfortable positions – none of which is the infamous L kayaking position.
The W300 broke the records in kayak mobility and versatility, and was the first kayak to enable its operator to move fore and aft along the saddle, thus enabling to change the boat’s center of gravity (CG), and thereby gain the best control in strong wind, breaking waves, and fast current.
This was also the first kayak to offer leaning into the turn as means to facilitate turning – a feature that some kayak designers had argued was a fiction, until we proved it to be real in online demo videos

The W300 gained fans in 4 continents, among kayakers and canoeists as well and anglers, who outfitted it with electric motors, outboard gas engines, and sails.

The W300 made people happy, whether they were 80 years old, or 5 years old. It was used for both solo and tandem paddling, and I loved playing with it in the ocean surf.

The W300 enabled people with sore backs and other health issues to paddle and fish again – Without it they would have had to stay at home, or go in a motorboat.

The W300 took 3 years to design and build. Jo Mares, a boat builder and offshore kayak fisherman from Key West, Florida, said about his 2006 W300: -”…still thrilled with the W and not have been able to improve the basic concept without detracting from it in some other way. The W really is the best”
This was an important sentence for me, since it forced me to work harder in designing the next generation of W kayak – the W500 series. The challenge we took upon ourselves was to improve everything… and today, one year after we launched the W500, it’s possible to say we succeeded:

1. The W500 weighs just a little more than the W300, yet it’s much bigger and roomier.
2. The W500 is just 12″ longer than the W300, yet its redesigned hulls make it go much faster.
3. The W500 is just 3.5″ wider than the W300, yet it’s much more stable, without being harder to paddle.
4. The W500 is a true tandem kayak, yet small children and elderly people can control it very easily.

Customers who already owned a W300 and tried the W500 unanimously said that the W500 was much better. Some of them sold their old W300, and some kept them as ‘guest’ boats

New customers kept ordering the W500, and praising it, and the W300 became so much less popular in comparison to the new, bright star, that we finally decided to discontinue it. However, we’ve kept all the customer reviews on it on our website – for sentimental reasons  – We simply love this boat

Starting today, Wavewalk will be offering 3 new kayak models in the W500 series:

The W500 S model is a bare bones, economic kayak for paddling in very shallow water – less than 1 ft deep.

We do not recommend using it in deeper water, since it’s the only W kayak model that comes with no flotation at all – not even internal, cast urethane foam in its hull tips. This means that in case of a bad capsize, it could be lost.

However, outfitting the S model with side flotation modules is very easy, even for inexperienced owners.

As for casting urethane foam flotation in its hull tips, it is possible too, although we recommend that only experienced outfitters carry out such a messy project.

The W500 S model is good news for shallow water fly anglers, who sight fish in skinny water and require no rod holders in their kayaks. These hunter-anglers will find in it a a low-cost, super-stable, stand up fly fishing kayak, offering more storage than any other kayak on the planet, and best of all: 100% free from back pain, leg numbness, leg pain and other ailments typical of all sit-in and SOT kayaks that force their operators into infamous the L position.

The W500 GF2e H and GF4e H are the top of the line in saltwater kayak fishing today:

The two models feature only high, deck mounted rod holders (2 and 4, respectively), that put your precious tackle further away from the salt’s corrosive action, thus offering you to fish in choppy saltwater with much splashing and spray around.

No other fishing kayak in the world comes close to putting such a distance between your fishing tackle and the water.

You are free to choose any combination of tall RAM deck mounted rod holders from the following selection:

RAM-119 and RAM-301 tube rod holders, and RAM-114 and RAM-117 rod holders that are equipped with a safety latch.

More info on these deck mounted rod holders >>

I finally received the notched rod holder pieces and fitted them into my holder. I’ll field test it a few times before deciding exactly how long I want each of the 4 notched pieces to be and gluing everything together. It sure is going to be nice having 4 rigged outfits ready to pick from rather than two. Now, all I need is for a few fish to show up.

Here’s Alfred’s simple and effective solution for storing his W500 fishing kayak suspended in his patio:

Says Alfred: -”I hung it up as shown to check the weight. It’s 62 lbs. If you look closely you can see the kayak is hanging from 2 small scales”

This measurement makes sense, considering Alfred’s W500 features a preparation for a cockpit cover, two side flotation modules, an anchor trolley, a steel ring for attaching an anchor, and there’s also the weight of the ropes and steel rings by which the kayak is attached to the scales.

And this is Alfred posing with a 12 lbs lobster he caught before he got his W500:

-”Too big, didn’t taste good.” Comments Alfred.