Tandem kayaking isn’t easy, especially when you have to do some portaging as you move from one body of water to another.
This movie shows how much easier everything is with the Wavewalk 500 kayak:
You can launch it practically anywhere, paddle and pole anywhere, and beach it anywhere, and you get to keep your feet dry – always.
Portaging is a breeze – just attach a strap or a leash to this kayak, and pull. It’s light weight and flat hulls allow you to carry it in rough terrain and across long distances.
This is the world’s stablest kayak, and its passengers can paddle it standing or in the comfortable and powerful Riding position.
It’s the ideal kayak for both Touring and Fishing, as it offers unrivaled mobility and more storage space than any other kayak.
This video was shot in Borderland State Park, in Massachusetts.
My wife and I love Borderland State Park, and this time of year is perfect for paddling there since there’s enough water, and no ice.
I’ve planned to make such a ‘Pond Hopping’ movie for a couple of years.
Yoav
Hey Yoav, no windshield? 😀
Marco
Nah, we would have gained nothing by using it in this trip. It’s just for motorizing at high speed or in the surf.
Didn’t you guys hear about wheels?
Nice video Yoav. 🙂
No mercy on this blog, fellow W’s poking fun. 🙂
I keep meaning to try and make light weight wheels that would flip up and on the pontoons rest in place.
Then flips right back into place for moving the W from one body of water to the next, or back to the car/truck for those off the beaten path ponds I go to.
Tight lines and MoPaddle Safe All.
Rox
Good point Pete, and it’s certainly worth discussing it –
This movie shows real-life pond hopping, which involves a lot of portaging (carrying). We show how it can be done without wheels, providing the kayak isn’t loaded, of course. When it’s empty, it’s lightweight and very easy to drag on the ground, even over rough terrain as the movie shows. Note that dragging it with a strap (‘leash’) maximizes the size of the hulls’ surface that’s in contact with the ground, which makes the kayak slide with little scratching. If you drag the kayak by its front handles, you increase friction and make it harder for it to slide forward.
Many people wouldn’t even consider dragging their kayak on the ground, although it’s quite easy and the resulting scratches are meaningless unless you drag the kayak over asphalt or concrete pavement. The problem with wheels is that they can’t help you when you launch the kayak and beach it, so the bottom of its hulls will get scratched anyways. Wheels for your kayak can also be useless in some wood trails due to the presence of roots, and they might prevent you from going over rocks.
Besides, a pair of wheels is something you need to carry on board, and that might not always be convenient.
🙂 I’m laughing 🙂 at the end of this video, you remind me of how I pull
my yak, hooked to my waist and walking back to, or from the truck. 🙂
Those are the times I think about………….wheels………….. 🙂
Rox
Thanks Rox,
I think that in your case wheels are a must because of the weight of the fishing gear you carry on your trips, and maybe the motor too.
Yoav
😀
I was so tired at the end of this trip that I couldn’t think about anything 🙂
Yoav
With me, Yoav, it’s portaging over oyster bars to the next fishing hole using some of the same sit and shuffle techniques you display. And now, after watching your video, I don’t feel so bad about dragging my W over rocks and oyster bars.
It’s funny – one of my neighbors with a fancy SOT that he polishes after each use and keeps looking like it just came off the showroom floor, went fishing with me once, but after seeing that he had to follow me over the rocks and oyster bars, has never chosen to join me again. I guess I’ll just have to keep company with a few other guys in their scratched up, beat up, Wavewalks.
Exactly. You’ve had your W500 for years, and judging from the pictures you send it looks in good working condition.
If you ever feel like smoothing the scratches on the bottom of its hulls, just grab a hand-held blow torch and ‘heal’ them, as explained in this article: https://wavewalk.com/blog/2008/03/23/how-to-avoid-and-repair-scratches-in-your-kayak/
Yep, it runs well, despite two hull bottoms that look a little like long bowls of spaghetti. That neighbor I mentioned is full of hot air – maybe if I can get him to blow on the hulls, I can get them smoothed out without using a blow torch.
Art, Dick and I plan on hitting Ozello again tomorrow – maybe we’ll have some pictures for the blog.
Gary, longitudinal scratches have very little effect on speed – no need for you to ask your neighbor for help 🙂
Yoav