Touring Inflatable Kayaks

CALL - 925.820.2628 IInnova Helios Tandem Innova Sunny innova Solar Helios I IBC Mississippi Innova Traveler Innova Seaker I Coming Soon- the BIC Yakkair's Incept Pacific and Tasman Trinity New! Trinity II AIRE AIRE SuperLynx Tributary Sawtooth AIRE Traveler AIRE Sea Tiger- back again!

Touring inflatable kayaks & canoes like the Tributary Sawtooth, Trinity and new Trinity II, AIRE SuperLynx, AIRE Traveler; BIC Yakkair's, Innova Helios, Solar, Sunny, & Seaker, and Incept Pacific & Tasman, along with other models in the Touring section are intended for paddling oceans, bays, lakes, and flat rivers.

The designation "touring" doesn't mean these boats cannot be used in milder whitewater. Some models below will work better than others in the rapids because they are wider and more stable, or incorportate self bailing floors. AIRE's SuperLynx and Traveler are both fine whitewater craft as long as you are not consistantly running shallow, boulder filled streams where you will need to pivot sharply every few seconds. Small-tubed models like the Innova Solars and Sunny will fill quickly with water since they are not self-bailers, but if you don't mind emptying them often, they could be used on easier class I & II rivers. We've used the Mississippi inflatable canoes on runs even at fairly high flows but they could hardly be called a whitewater boat either. Helios's and Trinitys aren't bad in the rapids, whereas the Trinity II, Sawtooth, BicSport, and Seaker models should only be used in the ocean or on relatively flat deep rivers.

A good touring inflatable should have as little resistance to the wind & water as possible, yet it should not always feel on the verge of tipping over. How fast do these boats go? It depends on the hull design of each model. The Sawtooths, new Trinity II's, and Seakers go very fast. They're comparable in every way to plastic bodied sit-in kayaks. The best of the rest here will be about as zippy as a decent folding frame boat, and a bit faster than a sit-on-top (with the exception of the AIRE Traveler).

Under many conditions, a well designed inflatable has advantages over it's plastic and fibreglass cousins. If a hard boat is being paddled through medium height waves, each time a wave face collapses onto the front deck the hardshell will come to a near-dead stop. Sit-on-tops are really bad this way. Most inflatables will tend to ride up over these same waves, slowing somewhat but not halting. There is also the additional safety factor you gain with an inflatable in turbulent seas, or big fresh water bodies like the Great Lakes where wind storms often begin with little warning.

Performance is not the only positive issue with regard to inflatables. Maybe the idea of flying with your boat and avoiding huge cargo fees appeals to you, or perhaps you would simply like more stability, safety, floatation, and easier re-entry than rigid boats offer. If so an inflatable is a great way to go. Some paddlers just want to be able to throw the boat in their trunk and not worry about a hardshell being stolen off a roof rack, which has actually happened to several of our customers. .

For information about multiple boat discounts, and discounts on accessories that are purchased with your boat, please see the F.A.Q. page of our website. Basically all kayak and all raft accessories (except rowing frames) are priced at 10% off if purchased with the boat. This can even include high-ticket items like drysuits. If you buy two or three boats at the same time, we will also work with you on the numbers. Incept brand boats, however, cannot be discounted due to very low margins.

Innova's boats have increased in price several times in the last five years, something they and we have no control over since the jumps are due to the Eurodollar still being relatively strong against the dollar. The Czech monetary unit has fallen in the last few months which will help the 2009 Innova pricing somewhat, but the wages at the Czech Republic factory where the kayaks are made are still increasing. We do sell the Innovas at five percent off of the list price, but when the actual 2009 models arrive there may be a price increase again.

We are actively pursuing a new source for touring boats with the owners of Innova, but no particular product will come to fruition until we can find a supplier willing to build boats with urethane material rather than pvc. Most Asian builders - on order of 98% of them - do not work with urethane and lack the training to properly weld this material. We want to eventually offer a small inflatable kayak similiar to, but 6" longer than, the discontinued Innova Junior. Something that would be very light, backpack-able, and quick, but this project will have to wait until 2010.
We do have one new model from AIRE / Tributary shown below for (the Sawtooth), and a second boat that only we are distributing called the Trinity II, not to be confused with the original Trinity. This boat is down below between the original Trinity and the AIRE boats.
The new Sawtooth is unbelievably fast for an inflatable of modest length. Greg Ramp at AIRE really outdid himself with this one. He's been perfecting it for almost two years through no less than half a dozen trial & error prototypes, and it really shows. Our Trinity II is modeled after the Sawtooth but is even quicker.
We also want to eventually source a small custom kayak similiar to, but 6" longer than, the discontinued Innova Junior (see just below). Something that would be very backpack-able and quick, but this project will have to wait until 2010.

For information on other brands not shown here, please see our FAQ page. We would ask that you do not send emails with a vague inquiry as to "what do you Boat People think of such-and-such a kayak". We're happy to answer questions, but please let us know what you will be using the boat for, how far you might be paddling, if you will be flying on airplanes with it, whether you want to carry camp gear, etc. The more you tell us the better we can dial in the advice.

Always bear in mind that if you can pay with a cashier's check we will generally discount the Innovas & AIRE's by another 5% below our website figures. The Sunny for example would be $899 if you pay this way.

This page was updated in March of 2009.

Innova Junior

As of mid-June 2008, we sold our last Innova Junior. If you are really jonesing for one, there's a small chance you may be able to find one on Ebay or Craigslist if you're willing to do enough hunting.
We always loved this simple, quick little boat but the investment group that bought Gumotex's (the company that makes the Innovas) boat and air bed division in 2006 deemed it not worthy of keeping in the line-up. We're guessing that there was not enough profit in it. In any case, we are continuing the search for a manufacturer with the capability of welding urethane boat fabric, similiar to the construction of the solo & tandem NRS Bandits found on our Whitewater I.K. pages.
A company known as Oilfence in Korea had looked promising a few years back, but it seems they have shut down their inflatable division. Another one of Seoul's large boat factories can make what we want, but it looks unlikely that we could bring in a urethane Junior copy from them at a reasonable price. If it works out we will be doing a slightly longer hull than the original Junior so as to accommodate taller paddlers.

Innova Helios II

The Helios II (12'6"; $949), which replaces the Helios 380, does not have any kick on the ends, so there is plenty of room for two adults. Quite speedy on flat water, these can also be used for easier rivers. Helios kayaks are a good choice for people who paddle cold waters such as the Great Lakes or Alaskan waters because you sit down deep in them, and the bow dodger minimizes the amount of splash that will hit your lower body. Folks who feel they cannot do without a rudder will also have to chose between a Helios or the more expensive AIRE Sea Tigers and Innova Seakers. The 1200 denier polyester base fabric is as bombproof as you could want on this type of boat and it inflates very firm.
The revamped Helios II had an improvement to the forward backrest in 2007 in that it's now built just like the comfortable fold-down rear seat. This was actually how the boats made back in the late 70's and early 80's looked seat-wise.

New Innova touring models (both Helios's, the Solar, and Sunny) are not coated with rubber on the 50% of the boat that faces up and inward. Specifically, the tops of the inflatable floors, and the half of the side tubes facing toward your legs are only coated on the inner surface, along with the spray decks and some of the accessory pieces. What this means is that salt crust will tend to absorb into the uncoated parts, so those of you who paddle in the ocean and choppy bays should spray that portion of the boat with exterior grade Scotchguard before you use the boat. We also recommend thoroughly hosing the boat after salt water use.
"Can I do an overnight trip with my wife out of a Helios or Sunny?"
We get asked this question quite often. No doubt some people have stuffed gear into a 380 and on top of the decks and made it work, but the honest answer is that no, this is wholely unsuitable for camping if two adults are on board, as is the Sunny. You really need the extra length of an AIRE SuperLynx or Trinity II if you both want to be in the same boat with sleeping bags, tents, food, clothes, cook gear, etc.
The tandem Helios is not great as a solo boat. If you are going to use your boat alone much of the time you should really be looking at the Innova Sunny or Sawtooth instead. The Helios II comes in green/grey or red/grey. Drybag & footrests included.

Both the Helios solo and tandem models can be equipped with a foot-operated Rudder ($119). This rudder is a bit Flintstone-ish; it screws to the back of the Helios with stainless bolts, and then small cords lead up to stirrups that you slip over your shoes, which means there is no way to really lock the rudder straight. Despite this, any rudder is helpful - especially if you are looking to cover many miles in a more-or-less straight line - and this one packs down to a very tiny size. Tim from Innova wanted something that would fit into the boat's drybag/carry bag and it does, easily. There is another image of this rudder with the Solo Helios description.

Innova's Vagabond, which is sort of a "touring" boat, is more often marketed as a river craft and therefore you will find it with our Tandem (whitewater) inflatable kayaks. The Vagabond is a good choice for hunters and fishermen - or fisherladies - who float sections like the North Fork Flathead in Montana and want a big gear carrier and don't mind slower hull speed.

Innova Sunny

Our favorite tandem kayak from Innova! The symmetrical Sunny is far more versatile than the "cockpitted" Helios models because if you want to use it solo, you can turn the "front" seat around or re-position the rear one, leaving you perfectly centered instead of having to choose between sitting way aft or way forward as you do in the Helios. Along with the Sawtooth and Trinity II, this is one of the three fastest touring inflatables under $2,000.
We like the fact the Sunny does not have inflatable dodgers like the Helios, since they are more vulnerable to damage from the sun being way up out of the water. In other words this is a simple boat with very little to go wrong. The Sunny seats were improved in 2008 and no longer have the obnoxious sub-lumbar bulge of the older model. You should still inflate these seats tight though for maximum comfort.
Unlike the Helios & Junior models, the Sunnys and Solar series use single side tubes (rather than a stacked "double tube") like most other boats on this page, increasing stability somewhat and making this boat far easier to re-enter from the water. This makes it ideal for swimming, snokeling, and for scuba divers.
Sunnys and Innova Solars come with a removable aluminum fin to keep the boat tracking. Without the fin the Sunny in particular is very squirrely, so only leave it off if you are paddling very shallow water. Some of our customers have used the stock aluminum one as a hole pattern to cut out a smaller or different shaped fin from something like 1/4" polyethylene or plexiglass. You might desire a longer, more shallow skeg for low-flow streams.
These are not self-bailing but for class I & easy class II rivers they'll work just dandy. More solid class II's are a bit tricky in a Sunny. A high quality drybag and patch kit are included. The second photo shows a Sunny being used in the "surf zone". Although the price has increased from what it was in 2007, this boat is still a good value. Anything equivalent made in West Europe or the States would be $1800 or more.
The Sunny is still the unvanquished leader for air travel. No other tandem packs as small or weighs so little, and really no other one can be stuffed into an overhead luggage area.

Innova Sunny / Helios II Package Deal:

Our Sunny (or Innova Helios tandem if you prefer) Package includes two 230cm fiberglass shaft Clear Blue Hawaii take-apart paddles, a Bravo footpump, and your choice of either a kayak bilge pump or a 12 volt Dyna inflator to get you started. The price for the package is $1,099 plus shipping and this deal will run until both we & Innova both run out of the current Sunny models. We prefer not to do substitutions on package deals other than the choices given, though if you wanted something like a Cascade kid's paddle swapped for one of the Clear Blue paddles, that would not be a problem.

Innova Solar

Two years back the Solar has a nice seat redesign so it has better back support like the Helios models. On the downside all the inner facing part of the hull is made with material coated only on one side. This cut the boat's weight down a tad but also means the boat is more prone to staining. We strongly suggest using outdoor grade Scotchguard spray on all the uncoated (grey) parts of the new Innovas, and doing so before it is used the first time, especially if it will be paddled in salt water. This will make it far more stain resistant and it will dry faster too. Whether or not you use Scotchguard, you should always hose the Innovas down after salt water use.
This model has been discontinued by the Czech factory, and it's a pity. We hate to see this one go since it is so nice as a dive and solo fishing kayak. The Helios solo just isn't as easy to climb into as the Solar, and it does not have the Solar's removable skeg. And neither the solo Helios or the Innova Safari (found in our solo Whitewater IK section) hold as much weigh or are as stable. The Solar is a great design and for us it still sells better than the other two solo Innovas.
The post-2007 Solars now have a second set of lift handles near the seat which are easily visible in the picture. These are quite helpful for re-boarding the boat if you happen to be swimming and want a handhold. These hadnles are also in the perfect place for carrying the Solar on your shoulder. The newer Solar also has a different footrest set-up and weighs about 2-1/2 pounds less than the older versions.
Solars are a good choice for those who would like to carry a reasonable amount of camping, fishing, or diving gear behind the seat. There is also space for a smaller drybag in front if you leave the footrest deflated. This boat could very easily be used for a week-long expedition. It is basically a wider, more stable, non-self bailing version of the Safari model that still has excellent hull speed for a ten foot long boat. It outperforms several similar sized sit-on top brands, and packs so tiny that it even works for cyclers who use trailers. Solars come with the same tracking fin as the Innova Sunny, and it is very effective for holding a straight line. If you want to surf on ocean waves or use it in milder rivers that happen to be shallow, just leave the fin off.
The Solar can also be used a little class II whitewater if you don't mind emptying the boat out after sets of rapids. It works fairly well if you are dealing with a pool-drop river with lots of recovery space between rapids. It can handle large bodies without much trouble, up to about 280 pounds, but will perform far better with people under 225. The 220 pound limit given in Innova's brochure & website is reasonable but not the upper limit, in other words. Shoulder strap drybag standard, and all Innovas come with a minimal patch kit. The teal color shown above is not available now, only red.

Helios I solo model

This model, which came out in 2007 with the other revamped Innova models, looks more sleek than we would expect from a boat that is just a shortened version of the Helios tandems. Maybe that's due to the ends being tapered more gradually. For that matter the new Helios II tandem also looks more pointy than the older "380" edition.
Along with the Solar, this is Innova's other solo non-selfbailing model. Unlike the Solar though this one won't be disappearing from the line-up. The current ones, which do not have exterior-coated fabric on the parts of the hull that face your body, will stay at the $809 price until they are gone. There are not many left at this March update. The actual 2009 model will return to being a fully coated boat. In other words the parts in the photo below that are grey bare fabric on the exterior will once again be covered with nitryl rubber as Innova's boats were before 2007.
We don't know what the price on the all-nitryl versions will be yet. That figure is effected by the U.S. dollar, the Eurodollar, and the Czech unit, so it's all very confusing and hard to predict. Back in the Summer of '08 it looked like the price increase would be almost untenable, but a lot has changed since then - specifically the Czech koruna (their dollar - sort of) has taken a major dump. We'll know what the new ones will run about a week before we have them!
If you use the current Helios model in salt water, it's a good idea to thoroughly wash it off with fresh water after each use. Better yet, spray the entire gray part of the boat with exterior grade Scotchguard, and use the whole can. If you live on a sailboat and cannot wash your boat this becomes mandatory. Also, remember that the Safari (found in our Solo Whitewater Kayak section) is fully coated and only runs $30 more than the Helios price.

Like the tandem Helios, this one does not come with a fin. Reports from about 3/4 of the buyers are that it tracks quite well once they got used to it; about a quarter of them did not care for it's tracking characteristics. We've yet to paddle this one though we have spent a ton of time in the 340 Helios, which is only 13" longer, and we feel that it tracks well on it's own sans fin. The accessory rudder kit for the tandem Helios model will fit this, but the runner cords need to be lengthened by a few inches. The back deck is longer on the Solo therefore the cords have to span a bigger distance.
One thing we like about this new model is that unlike the tandem Helios, which is useless for couples trying to do overnight trips in terms of gear space, the solo model easily allows multi-day trips with ample room under the rear deck and in front, with bungie cord for flatter, lightweight items on top of the decks. The same situation holds for the solo Innova Seaker. It can run two weeks worth of gear no problem but the tandem Seaker is challenged to hold much more than overnight goodies assuming two adults are using it.
A common question is "should I get a Solar or Helios I"? Well, the Helios is a slightly drier, warmer boat with it's dodgers, which deflect some smaller chop. And it is arguably more attractive, but beyond this there isn't any huge difference in hull speed. Paddlers in the 160 to 200 pound range will go slightly faster in the Solar; a very petite pilot may do as well or better in the Helios I. The Solar does come with a fin, and the Helios doesn't, but as we said most reports indicate you won't need it. One big difference is that the Solar is quite a bit easier to re-board, so if you swim or dive keep that detail in mind.
The specs shown in the block above are accurate even if they differ slightly from that given on Innova's site. The weight looks low but we confirmed it with a very accurate 0 to 30 pound scale.

IBC Mississippi

The IBC Mississippi is an unusual design that actually looks like a short, wide canoe when inflated. We have a very limited supply of these discontinued boats, and when they're gone, they're gone. The entire boat, top and bottom, is made of high grade 80% hypalon material, in a strange light orange color. These were produced quite a few years back at the Riken raft factory in Japan, and would cost easily twice this price to make today. Mississippi's are only 12' 6" long, but very wide in the middle. They have the same "double" side tube design as the Innova, and with the thick inflatable floor there is lots of gear storage space and a high payload capacity to match. These are fairly low speed boats and were intended for use on lakes, bays, and very flat rivers only. There was/is a tendancy for the tall double side tubes to tilt left or right sideways, "trapezoiding" the hull when you sit on the bench seats. We have made stiff, lightweight, closed-cell ethafoam braces that slip tightly underneath the seats to alleviate this annoyance. The only thing is, when you use the foam braces they make the Mississippi feel a bit less stable - though they do increase the hull speed. We recommend padding the wood seats. With three military valves, and a 1-year guarantee on seams and material (I-beam blowouts are not covered).

Innova Traveler

Please note that there is also an inflatable canoe from AIRE near the bottom of this page with the same name! We don't know yet what the 2009 price will be on the Innova Traveler yet, but we should in the next few weeks. We expect it to go up to maybe $1200 so it may be disappearing from this section soon. We have only sold two or three of these in ten years so if it gets deleted don't be surprised.
We've resisted listing this model on our website from the day it became available, because we know there are people who will insist on using it in whitewater. Even the photo below is from a river but it is no mistake we list it on our Touring page rather than with the solo whitewater models. Neither we nor Tim from Innova want to market this as a river boat. More about that below.
The Traveler is essentially a decked version of the Innova Safari (which is listed with our whitewater one person models) with three differences. First, the seat back is lower to accomodate the deck. Second, there are no bail holes because the boat is completely enclosed. Since it doesn't have to bail, the third difference is that the floor thickness can be reduced from the Safari's 5" down to just 3". This allows space for your legs inside, which you would not have if the floor was two inches thicker.
Just as importantly, the thinner floor chamber also lowers your gravity center enough to make this model quite a bit more stable than the tippy Safari.
Even with the increased stability and the Traveler's fairly large cockpit opening, only paddlers with short legs who have a bomb proof roll on both sides should even think about using this in whitewater. The problem is that your legs can be entrapped easily in a broach or wrap as the boat folds up. Even older polyethylene hulled kayaks used to bend so fast under the force of a wrap that paddlers who lacked adequate pillars (vertical bracing inside the hull between their legs) often ended up drowning. And this boat will collapse even faster than the worst plastic kayak. So, despite the fact that some paddlers in Europe may paddle these on class III and IV runs, we would suggest this is not the best use for the Traveler. There is a new decked model from Incept in New Zealand called the Sally that has an even larger cockpit opening, and it would be a safer bet if you really want an enclosed river inflatable. The Sally also inflates more rigidly than the Traveler.
Now that we've scared some of you, let's talk about more appropriate uses for this kayak.
The Traveler's strength is that it is arguably the warmest model under $1700 since half your body is protected from the elements. As long as you use the included sprayskirt the Traveler makes a great and zippy craft for cold water like Alaska, Canada, Maine, and the great Lakes region. This includes both milder conditions and the open ocean, where you don't have the worry of being held between or against a rock like you might in whtiewater rivers.
If you are thinking about those $400 and $500 decked big box store kayaks, and the fact that they too can be sprayskirt-equipped, let's get one thing very clear. In most cases it would be very rare for the Traveler to pop it's skirt in the face of a huge wave, either via that wave crashing onto the top deck or by bending the boat into a taco. Conversely, for those Chinese big-box kayaks, it would be very rare for a huge wave not to rip the sprayskirt from it's wimpy non-rigid rim. There is no comparison whatsoever in the quality of the Asian products to the Traveler.
It's pretty hard to stow a sleeping bag inside this one though, unless yours compresses awfully small. We do not inventory this model, but delivery times are still roughly the same as with others that we do stock - 2 to 6 business days depending how far east you are. If you are afraid to put on a sprayskirt, we would humbly suggest you may be better off with the solo Helios I above, which is still a bit drier than some of the more "open" models. But if you are looking for a fast, sporty kayak that offers good protection from the elements, the Traveler is worth looking into. We know it is a fair bit more expensive that the Safari or Helios I, but the inflatable deck adds a lot of labor to the process. And this model remains fully coated with nitryl on both sides of the fabric throughout the boat, so it's less of a concern in salt water - though still a major pain to clean the interior.

Innova Seaker 1

Innova's high end Seakers compete with the technical folding skin boats from companies like Feathercraft, Klepper, Nautiraid, Pouch, and others. They are not marketed to have a big advantage over "folders" when it comes to the packed size. In other words, dragging one along on a plane will be just as big of a pain as two-bag folding model. However, folding kayak makers, be they French, German, Canadian, Russian, or otherwise universally underestimate set-up times for their rigs in sales literature and on websites. The easiest solo folders take no less than 45 minutes, and many tandems run double that. A solo Seaker, by compare, will have you on the water in about ten minutes.
Seakers have cargo hatches fore and aft, and a full Seal Line rudder system that your feet slip right into. The ultra rigid double side tubes prevent any sagging and the sleek, long hull can make in excess of 6 m.p.h. in the solo model. At 64 pounds, it's not lightweight, but it's still comparable to many skin boats in the same size range. In terms of folded size, It is about the same as some of the bulkiest Kleppers. The cargo hatch rims and especially the large cockpit rim are rigid, i.e. they do not bend when you roll the Seakers, so this prevents the Seaker from rolling as small as the other boats in our Touring IK section. The two rubber cargo hatch lids are tough to get on, especially the larger rear oval shaped one, so it's best to use a bit of 303 Protectant (remind us and we'll throw in some 303 wipes). The large interior of the Seaker should be able to handle enough supplies for a week or more depending how bulky your gear is. There is also the usual bungie lacing on top of the deck that you will find on most plastic sea kayaks, which can be used for the smaller items you will need during the day.
The inflatable floor and partially inflatable top decking are grey nitrylon, the same 1200 denier fabric used for all the other Innova boats above on this page. The afforementioned side tubes inflate stiff at 3.3 p.s.i. because they are made with the a less stretchy pvc coated polyester, which as also used in Innova's K2 & K1 whitewater kayaks. Overall, it is a very labor intensive design for the factory to build, and it has more man hours than many full size whitewater rafts. Other than fiberglass or kevlar kayaks of equal length, there aren't many other boats that will beat these in performance - and none of those others roll up. Our new Trinity II will keep up with a solo Seaker though.
One thing that is not included, since they come in different waist sizes, is a spray skirt. For most of you, an economical medium-rim nylon skirt should be all you will need. Neoprene skirts tend to be about twice the price and are more appropriate for whitewater kayaks.
One thing to note is a small area, about ten to twelve square inches, on the front underside of the inflatable floor right near the end that seems highly susceptible to abrasion. We would suggest either gluing an extra layer over it with a small round patch, or painting some Aquaseal on it, which has super high abrasion resistance.

We can special order the seventeen foot tandem Innova Seaker II, which comes in the green shown. It is 76 pounds without the bag and is currently running $3.039, and has the same specs otherwise as the solo Seaker.
This model is even faster than the solo Seaker or our Trinity II, assuming two competent paddlers are on board. It has been clocked at a stunning 7.5 miles per hour, which was a new record for inflatables. Set-up times on the Seaker II will be a bit more than the solo model but not much, maybe 13 to 15 minutes.
Remember a tandem boat of this style has far less area for camp gear than two solo models would, but you will have double the space requirement. If your camp gear is on the bulky side, you might not get everything in this model. Of course, the same is true even moreso of most tandem hardshells.
The biggest drawbacks of the Seakers are their price point, which is hardly what we'd call a great value, and their rolled size & weight, which makes air travel with them costly or outright impossible. The rolled size of the tandem is monstrous - as large as a Tributary 13' self bailing whitewater raft. The Incept sea kayaks in this section represent a slightly better value in our mind, and they are both able to travel on planes without going over the 50 pound limit. The pvc portion of the Seakers are also glued rather than being welded like the Incept's, so this will limit the Seaker's lifespan somewhat.

BIC Yakkair I & Yakkair II

The solo and tandem Yakkair's should be available around the beginning of May, but we will dial that date in when we know they are on the way.
Heavens knows the Yakkairs are not the first "skin covered" inflatables, and their appearance not only isn't unique, it looks pretty derivative of similar models form Advanced Elements, Coleman/Sevylor, and Stearns. There are some major things that set them apart from these other three brands though.
First, unlike all the others, the side tube bladders will be made from urethane like the American AIRE products, not vinyl. This reduces weight and dramatically increases the bladder's lifespan. Second, the floor bladder is a high-pressure drop-stitch mat with a quality valve, not the toy unreinforced vinyl air mattress found on the others. This reduces sagging, a particular problem with heavier paddlers in the other three brands. Third, there is an inflatable keel like what you find on most transom sportboats. The final difference is that all this pricey material comes at a cost, so the Yakkair's will be far more expensive than the equivalent solo models from Advanced Elements or Sevylor. The projected retail on the solo model is somewhere between $949 and $999, and the tandem looks like it will come in around $1,329.
Even though the Yakkairs may look like me-too's BIC really does put thought into their products. Although we are not a purveyor of hard hulled boats of any type, if we were BIC certainly has some unique models that we would carry. So with that in mind, we have high hopes for the Yakkairs.
Both models will come with belt-mount seats, a "wonder" (cylinder) pump of as-yet unknown quality with a pressure gauge, a carry bag, patch kit, and footrests. Paddles are not included.
Like the pricing, the specs are also "projected" based on the prototypes and not yet carved in stone.
There is an area under the floor mat next to the inflatable keel that allows some amount of water to collect without soaking your butt, but it remains to be seen how much water this "pocket" can actually hold. For anyone going out in the ocean or large choppy bodies of water, a bilge pump would still be wise. Even if you use a spray skirt, this type of boat can bend enough in big waves or swells for that skirt to pop. You should not count on it entirely to keep you dry. A bilge pump is just $17 if you buy it with the boat, and it only weighs 14 ounces.
The solo Yakkair I is allegedly 10'9" long, 35-1/2" wide, and can hold about 240 pounds. The projected weight - and this is a figure we will take with a big grain of salt since BIC is notorious for understating boat weights - is 22 pounds. If you figure 25 - 27 it should be safe. Again, we expect the price to be around 4949 to $999.
Spec's as estimated on the Yakkair II tandem, based on the prototypes, are 38" wide, 13'5" long, and 33 pounds (again if you figure more like 37 that is probably realistic). The payload given for this model of 550 pounds is obviously way, way off based on what BIC claims for the solo model. 350 to 400 pounds would seem reasonable. We expect to sell these for about $1,329, plus or minus thirty bucks.
There are paddle attachments (so you can free up your hands for fishing, or stow the paddle for diving) on both the solo and tandem models, lift handles, and bungie tie-down areas fore and aft.
We will update this information and add a spec block when we know more.

Incept Tasman & Pacific

These two relatively new models from Incept in New Zealand seem to be the best deal going right now in higher-end ocean worthy inflatables, though they are still pretty pricey due to the high labor costs in thier production. The hull speeds are excellent due to both their narrow underside shape and the rigid inflation level they attain, and they will even beat some of slower plastic sea kayaks. A gentleman named Steve Gurney recently used one of the (solo) Tasman's to retrace a 1898 New Zealand exploratory expedition. His path included a coast to coast crossing through the appropriately named Tasman Sea to the Pacific from the South Island, a long mountain pass portage, and even some intermediate whitewater on the Hurunui River. All done with 1890 vintage clothing & gear too - well, except the boat!
Incept even includes a very heavy duty wheeled carry-on bag for this travel purposes. The stowed size and weight of these two kayaks makes them much more portable than the Innova Seakers in this section, and their pricing and performance are better than Grabner's Explorer series, which we do not carry. The stowed size is so small in fact that you can get the solo model into most overhead airline hatches, and on some planes the tandem might also fit with a little effort.and proper folding, sans carry bag. The Pacific's suitcase bag is too big in at least two dimensions (and maybe all three) for what most U.S. airlines mandate as maximum carry-on sizing. With the tandem Pacific you should probably plan on it being checked rather than carry-on, and use the bag provided. The Pacific bag is 14" X 15" X 29" to 30" long, with nothing in the side pockets.
Along with their ease of transport, another very strong selling point for these Incepts is the ability to open the decking via xippers for camp gear storage. This makes them easier to load by far than either the Seakers or the Grabner Explorers.
The solo Tasman model is running $2,065, and the tandem Pacific is $2,569. Please note that these prices include the suitcase bag mentioned above, the full rudder system, patch kit, bowed fiberglass supports for the spray decks, drybag (or a footpump on the solo model), inflatable seats & footrests, and spray deck covers/skirts. Also note that there is a chance these prices may be adjusted upward a bit during this season due to a continuing weak American dollar. In most cases you will not see boat pricing change in the middle of the year but Incept USA did not raise them at the beginning of 2008 as they probably should have, and instead the price went up in the Fall last year. There is also a very small chance that the pricing could go down a tad, but we would not advise holding your breath for that to happen. The suitcase bag alone is at least a $100 variety, and the rudder system would be $200 or more. Considering the complexity, workmanship, and shear volume of material in the Incepts they are still a good deal.
Set-up times for both Incepts are better than the Seakers and about the same as the Grabner Explorers. The tandem Pacific takes a full ten minutes and the Tasman about eight. This can drag out longer with any inflatable if you are using an under-qualified pump of course.
The foot controlled rudder and linkage are both removable, and there may be times you don't want this hardware in or on the boat. Personally we would take it out before putting these on a plane, and also if we were playing in the surf - though any boat this long and skinny is hardly an ideal surf toy.
Some people may paddle these occasionally without the sprayskirt covers, but assuming they are in place and you capsize, there are three ways to get out of the Tasman & Paciifc: Loosen the waist drawcord on the skirt portion, pull the edge velcro up, and/or undo the zipper that runs down the center. This makes these safer than the Innova Seakers, which are still pretty good with their large cockpit openings. But it makes them waaaay safer than any hardshell.
One annoying detail on both models is the use of the "twistee" stem-mounted float bag valves on the inflatable seats. AIRE used to use these when their kayaks still had inflatable seats. The actual valves work fine, but there seems to be no glue made that will adhere them to the vinyl stem compound for more than a few years. Once they come unglued, it is difficult to re-glue them back into the stem permanently.
Another point that buyers of all Incept products should be aware of is that on every model boat they make, there is some glue holding a few items down. On the Incept whitewater rafts, there are a lot of glued attachments, reinforcing, and D-rings. On the whitewater kayaks there are some backrest & dodger attachments, but on the sea kayak models there is very little that is not welded. About half a square foot's worth in total. We mention this though because anything that is glued onto pvc boat material will eventually come unglued, but the chemicals that attack the glue are minimized by Incept's use of a urethane and pvc blend. Urethane is flexible without adding softening chemicals, and when you mix it with pvc the total softeners that must be added drops by about 2/3. So it may take a very long time for the glue to fail, but when it does there will be some labor involved to remove the old glue. And you cannot repair the area in question until the surface is clean. On the Pacific and Tasman kayaks all seams, internal tube & floor I-beams, floor edges, and most D-rings & attachments are welded. Incept only uses glue where welders won't really work.
The blended Incept kayak material has higher abrasion resistance and lower weight than straight pvc, along with excellent salt and UV resistance. Color fastness in any pvc, pvc blend, nitryl, or neoprene will not be quite as good as true hypalon, so a red Grabner Explorer (which has a hypalon exterior) than is exposed to a lot of sun over 20 years will hold it's color somewhat better than any red boat made with a different fabric. Wash your boat after salt water paddling whenever possible, and keep it covered if it will be on the deck of your yacht.
Grey colored Tasmans & Pacifics are available by special order with a deposit. The solo model has two dozen D-rings and the tandem 31.

Trinity

Our Trinity tandem is a 14'6" long, double-tube inflatable kayak that came on the drawing board when Semperit (now Grabner) Explorer/Dolphin boats were unavailable. It might have stayed on the drawing board, too, if we knew that the these other boats would resurface.. The Trinity was designed by us to be as multipurpose as possible, with an emphasis on touring. Using tough, American-made urethane coated fabric and a flat drop-stitch floor, we ended up with a fast, stiff, sleek nflatable kayak that had only mediocre tracking, but turned out to be a more interesting river boat than expected. The hull speed is better than a SuperLynx and comparable to an Innova Sunny. With the addition of one of our new Boat People Fin Kits, the tracking would be better. We'll assist you with this if you are interested. There is a continuous grommet strip running along both sides of the tops of the tubes, for securing seat backs, gear tie-down, and to lace homemade decks to should you wish to make one. We have plenty of boat material and heavy nylon packcloth here that a deck could be made from. There are just a few left, including prototypes, priced from $1,250 to $1,795, in blue and yellow, so call for more details if you are interested. Photo does not show backrests. Made in USA.

New for 2009! The Trinity II

The Trinity II price is $959 and they are now in stock.
For a long time we've been trying to bring out a reasonably priced tandem touring inflatable that also has room for camping gear, or a child or large dog. None of the existing models that are under 14' really have the space, and the AIRE SuperLynx is pricey and still a bit tight if the two paddlers are tall or have a lot of camp gear & food. For those who have considered the 17' Sevylor "sea kayak-ish" product, please read all the way to the end of this section.
With the Trinity II we were definitely not trying for a design worthy of any real whitewater, though the Trinity II can blast through straight-ahead waves and will work fine on deep rivers with moderate currents. If you want a more whitewater-apt craft the SuperLynx is a much better bet.
We wanted something stable enough to climb back into from the water without undue strain, but not something so wide that it would be a pig. Customers like removable tracking fins, and the T-II has one, along with forty cargo tie down loops. People like self bailing floors too, but they don't want to get soaked, so the bail holes are designed to be pinched off a bit by the inflatable floor to avoid those annoying little geysers. Note this also means the T-II takes a while to empty if you go through a huge wave and manage to completely swamp it.
Hull speed is one of the most major considerations, especially when you find yourself paddling into a headwind. And with the Trinity II, we have a model that isn't just good in this regard, it is in fact superb. About six m.p.h. or more in calm water. The only inflatable kayak noticeably quicker is the tandem Innova Seaker, but that model is way over $3,000, weighs far more, and is a full 2-1/2 times the rolled size. The tandem Seaker is simply not an airline worthy boat. And while we could wish for a lower weight on the Trinity II as well, with the seats & fin in a separate suitcase, the boat in a heavy duty canvas or cordura duffel is still a pound or two under the 50 lb airline limit (please note that the AIRE brand Kayak Bag is a bit too heavy and will put the bare bones Trinity II slightly over 50 pounds).
The Trinity comes standard with two seats, and if you want a third one it's $45 with the boat. If you happen to own a camp chair, that can also be used and secured in the boat with one 3' camlock strap. Cam straps are in our Raft Accessory section. The T-II seats are removable and infinitely adjustable. The removable aluminum fin needs to be installed as you unroll the boat, but does not require any hardware or tools.
On the subject of the fin, this kayak has just about the perfect degree of tracking with it on. It will turn when you need to, but it does not spin out when you stop paddling, something many other touring inflatables tend to do. It glides quite a distance, and does so in a near-straight line. We have also paddled it without the fin, and had little trouble with lower speeds but found some minor arcing at full speed, moreso when we were paddling than when were just gliding.
We will add a spec block soon, but for now here are the basics: the side tubes are 9", and with two average size adults you will have about 7" of freeboard above the water surface. The inflatable floor is a full 7" thick and is keel shaped at each end. There are two comfortable lift handles, and each seat has a large cargo pocket on the back. The exterior measurements are 15'3" X 32" wide. The interior is a fairly tight 14", so those with really large hips may need to stay with the SuperLynx, which is slightly more roomy. Please understand that if we increase the width of the Trinity II, the hull speed decreases and that was not acceptable to us. This boat is exactly the length and width we wanted it and designed it to be, no more, no less, and we will never increase the width one centimeter beyond 32".
The boat with two seats and heavy duty fin weighs in at 51.5 pounds, and the bare boat minus seats folds to 11" X 18" X 22" if you take your time folding it. Each closed cell foam seat is 2" thick folded and the rough size of an XL pizza.
The exact upper weight capacity for the T-II has not quite been nailed since we haven't tried piling camp gear in just yet. It handles 400 to 425 pounds without much trouble. When you get up around 450 to 475, there is a small amount of water around the left and right side of the floor, though your butt is still dry. The floor sort of rolls off at the edges and so is lower there. Extra closed cell foam can also be added to the buttrest portion of the seats to elevate you and your partner up a bit. And if you want to temporarily seal off the bail holes with duct tape (how well this works depends largely on the quality of the tape and how smoothly you apply it) the Trinity can hold above 500 pounds.
Last, we know some of you may have run across and pondered buying one of Sevylor's extra long SVX500DS sea kayak models, which is a stretched and slightly flattened version of their tandem river model. First, the good news is that the Sevy boat is light, and may be less hassle to fly with that a Trinity II. Oh, and it has pretty graphics silk screened on the tubes if that sort of thing impresses you. Beyond that, buying this model for paddling any serious distance would be a big mistake.
We thought very hard about carrying it last year until we talked with a few owners of them, and then later had an opportunity to paddle one in some very un-challenging conditions ourselves. The seats were rather lame, but that was not a make or break issue. It was the performance that killed it for us. Hull speed is about equal to some of the better tandem whitewater inflatables, but that's about it. It is far slower than any of the Innova tandem models or just about anything else in our selection of touring inflatables, a major disappointment considering it's length. Tracking was so-so, and the toughness of the Sevytex skin is not comparable to any boat shown in this section. The price isn't all that low either, so with better options available this sluggish excuse for a sea kayak shouldn't really be on anyone's list for consideration. And if you've read any remotely positive reviews on it, let's assume the obvious: either the author of that review has never owned any other boat beyond maybe one of Sevy's low-end all vinyl toy kayaks, or they are simply not paddling more than half a mile with it and had low expectations to begin with.
The bottom line is that if you want a functional touring inflatable of better quality, you need to stick with AIRE/Tributary, Grabner (which we don't carry but can order), Innova, or the Trinity line. The $959 price includes two seats (add $45 for a third), the fin, and a basic patch kit with valve wrench.

Trinity II Package Deal:
The T-II package comes with two fiberglass shaft take-apart paddles in your choice of 230cm or 240cm (or one of each if you like), an electric 12 volt inflator to get the boat started, and a dual chamber Bravo 9 footpump that will get your Trinity II a bit firmer than a normal foot bellows.
To use the electric pump, which will save you several minutes each time you blow the boat up, you leave the valves in the "open" or deflate position, then quickly close each valve with your fingers when no more air will go in. Then finish each of the three chambers with your footpump. For the side tubes, use the B-9's top-off feature to get your boat a bit more rigid.
Package deal price: $1,125

The AIRE kayaks in this section include the SuperLynx and the Sea Tiger, which has returned to the regular AIRE line-up, and the brand new Tributary Sawtooth, along with the Traveler inflatable canoe - not to be confused with the decked solo inflatable kayak with the same name from Innova. The AIRE Sea Tiger was only available sporadically in 2008, but AIRE will try to keep them on the shelf in 2009.
The Traveler, Sea Tiger, and SuperLynx are high quality American-made products with the best warranty in the industry -- 10 full years that even includes damage you do to your boat. We like to carry certain brands due to reliability and ease of repair, and others because of the strong, friendly, manufacturer support. AIRE offers the best of both worlds. The owners are nice people and good personal friends and the benefit for you, our customers, is a boat that will be serviceable for a very long time without any hassles. AIRE boats use the air-cell system: inner bladders that can be accessed through full-length zippers along the hull. This means they are easier to repair than any other brand. All American made AIRE's have Leafield valves and the kayaks use tough high-denier pvc fabrics with a hard, shiny finish. The backrests (and seats in the Traveler) are repositionable, and the SuperLynx seats can be removed and used like a Crazy Creek-type camp chair. These are the best seats of any kayak made though they can still be improved with the addition (or substitution) of some stiffer Walmart sleeping pad foam - call us for details. For more info on AIRE and their warranties see the top part of the Whitewater Raft section or write us for a catalog.

AIRE Pricing-

Traditionally, ever since our website has been operational, we've had AIRE kayaks, rafts, and cataraft tubes priced at about 5% off the retail. AIRE had requested quite a while ago that all dealers list their products at the regular retail (with the exception of Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada, where dealers incure high incoming freight fees and must sell above U.S. retail) to "level;" the playing field - though we've been successfully resisting for a couple years now. Due to crabbing from a certain dealer the issue has been more or less forced, and being friends with the good folks at AIRE we don't want to create headaches for them.
The AIRE and Tributary pricing below is at retail, however in most cases you will not pay any more than you would have before we made the change. What we are doing is to give you 5% of the boats price, rounded up to the nearest dollar, toward UPS fees or any accessories you may get with the boat now or later. If you need no accessories and your UPS is less than 5% of the boat's cost - which is often the case with the more pricey U.S.-made AIRE's - we will work something out for you that's agreeable. Additionally, if you want to pay with a cashier's check, you will save even more. This can be substantial on rafts in particular, though less significant on something like an import kayak (please note that we cannot do much on Incept kayaks because of very minimal dealer discounts). Email us for a quote. There is no obligation, and we will not spam you with follow-up emails beyond the initial quote.
As an example for the SuperLynx below, if your UPS fee would be $50, that will be included in the $1,499 price, and you will still get another $25 toward any pump, thighstraps, pfd, helmet, throwbag, footbrace kit, clothing, or paddle you might want. If all you needed was the boat and a set of curved Boat People thighstraps, you would pay a grand total of $1,509 (plus tax if you are in CA). The thighstraps are $39 less 10% with your accessory discount, making them about $35. If the UPS was $50 and we applied the remainder ($25) of the 5% credit toward the thighstraps, that would leave you owing $10 for them. That plus $1,499 would equal $1,509.
Please note that Package Deals do not include the 5% shipping/gear allowance.
The last point we want to state is this: if you have a nearby dealer who has been helpful and seems the type who will take care of any problems after the sale, it may be best to make your boat purchase through them. As much as we want your business, it is not worth selling out someone who has done their best to work with you for a few dollars. We don't appreciate it when it's done to us after spending considerable amounts of time talking or composing lengthy emails, so if you buy from us we prefer it's because you want to, not due to us beating another dealer by ten or twenty dollars.

AIRE SuperLynx

* Pricing includes a $75 allowance toward UPS and/or accessories. See above AIRE information in italics.
AIRE's SuperLynx was built to fill the gap between the regular Lynx K2 whitewater inflatable kayak. and the longer, ruddered Sea Tiger below. The SuperLynx meets the demand for a touring boat that can run moderate rivers yet also holds multi-day camp gear, a child, or a big dog - something the shorter whitewater models are hard pressed to do. The SuperLynx is one of our best selling AIRE boats and was redesigned a few years back. Instead of the left and right tube being separate entities like before, they are now one continuous hull like the main section of a raft. The tubes still taper at the ends, but they no longer diminish to a point. Instead, the left bladder runs through the front and one third of the way back along the right side, and vice-versa for the right bladder. This helps float the boat in a more paddle-able shape should you puncture one area. It also gave the boat a much more sexy look, and it means that the front end will have higher rigidity for punching big ocean (or river) waves.

The floor is very thick from top to bottom, so SuperLynx's have phenomenal weight capacities for self-bailers. The first customer ever to buy a SuperLynx from us back in the early 90's put four adults (whom he estimated totaled 600 lbs.) in one without swamping -- pretty amazing, considering some small self-bailing rafts with much larger tubes can barely do this. The current model probably should not be loaded with more than 525 pounds, which is still plenty of payload.
The sleek, low-slung ends have very little wind resistance, and because AIRE seats are repositionable you can use the Superlynx solo or tandem with equal ease, and you can even purchase a third seat for a child if you wish. Since this boat was designed to be multi-purpose, there is no rudder like the Sea Tiger, but the tracking is decent for something that's river-worthy and the hull speed is at least as good as the Sea Tiger, if not better. A few other inflatables in the fourteen foot range, like the Soar canoes and Incept's C42 tend to be much wider, slower, and heavier than the SuperLynx.
If you like AIRE's products but feel the SuperLynx is priced a bit high, it's worth looking into the Strike 2 in our Tandem IK section. The Strike is fairly quick too and seems to track about as well as the SuperLynx, though it won't hold overnight gear with two people on board. On the subject of tracking, it is best to be a bit patient with this kayak, and give it a few weekends. At first you will have some trouble getting it to go in a straight line, but for most people 5 to 8 days of usage brings them to a point where zig-zaging is not a problem. If you still have trouble after that, we would humbly suggest trading the kayak paddles in for two little 3-1/2' single blade wood paddles, which you will tend to draw close to the hull, thus decreasing the arc of the longer kayak paddle that makes you veer left & right in the first place. In red, yellow, purple, green, and blue. We stock the last two, and sometimes yellow. We don't stock red and rarely have purple, but if you want those it only takes an extra day or three.

New! AIRE Tributary Sawtooth

We're extremely excited about this affordable, high performance touring kayak and we're also proud to say that we were one of the main instigators of this model. As prices have risen on the European brands like Innova, we wanted something that would be more affordable and competitive with boats in the $600 to $800 range. It would be a serious understatement to say that the Sawtooth is merely "competitive" with the lower end econo-buy brands though.
The genesis of the Sawtooth involved five prototypes and a final factory sample that were sized closely to the Gumotex (Innova) Solar tandems we used to import a couple years back. We wanted something a bit over 13 feet in length, and between 31" and 32" wide, with smaller tubes than existing AIRE models to keep freeboard minimal. Apparently the two or three other dealers that had a strong interest in a touring model from AIRE agreed with these specs.
The size of the final prototype, which the production boats were patterned from, was 31.5" wide with 9" tubes, by 13'3" long. However, the one specification that is way off on AIRE's website is the weight. It shows 54 pounds, but with a single seat as shown it is in fact only 42.5 pounds. With two seats it's 46 pounds. We would also say that the weight capacity of 400 pounds might be a bit optimistic; 370 to 380 will work better.
The Sawtooth has a removable fin, shown below, and if your paddling skill is fairly high you may be able to handle it without the fin if you wish. We were able to keep the prototype tracking fine without it.
The unique aspect of this model compared to most any other inflatable kayak, including the other AIRE boats, is that it has a keel shaped floor that protrudes about 2-1/2" below the main tubes. This is what helps the tracking, but it has a more important purpose in that it floats the boat in a way that keeps the draft of the main tubes shallow - especially with only one paddler on board. The net result of this odd floor is very high hull speed from a relatively short boat. The only other kayaks that ever had protruding floors from AIRE were the older SuperLynx models from the 1990's, and the Sea Tiger, but their floors were / are bulgy at the front and back, whereas the Sawtooth floor tapers to a slightly lifted point at each end. This allows the boat to slice through the water like no inflable has before. We really never thought anything under maybe 14' or 15' would go faster than the Innova Sunny, which has an excellent hull design, but the Sawtooth is faster by at least half a knot in solo mode, and glides quite a bit further after you stop paddling. In tandem mode with two average 170 pounders in the boat, it's about the same as the Sunny yet it still glides better. You cannot buy a faster boat under $1800 or under 15'.
We tried to order 30 of these in the same light blue as the Strike kayaks on our Solo and Tandem River IK pages, but the factory decided they wanted a minimum order of 50, which was a bit too much for the storage space we have available. Yellow does show every little mark moresp than other colors, and in most parts of the world it also attracts flying insects, which is why we wanted some in blue. If we can find another dealer to split these with on the blue color next year then we will go ahead, but for now it will just be yellow.
There are 32 cargo/seat loops for tying gear in the boat, and via these loops the seat or seats can also be positioned anywhere or removed. There is a comfortable lift handle at the bow and stern, and the Sawtooth comes with a basic patch kit & valve wrench.
With the Sawtooth now available there is really no reason to look at the other brands in the lower end of the price range, unless you feel you just have to have a covered deck model - and many paddlers buy this type of boat for the wrong reasons altogether. None of them will paddle as fast or with as little effort as the Sawtooth, even if they may look more "sleek" in the advertisements.
$749 with one seat, $799 with two; these prices include a $40 UPS / accessory allowance. If your UPS, for example, was $45 and you wanted your Sawtooth with two seats, your total price would be $804 (plus tax if you live in CA).

Sawtooth Package Deals

The Solo Package includes one seat, the patch kit with valve wrench & adaptor, your choice of a 230cm or 240cm take-apart CBH fiberglass shaft paddle, and a Bravo 9 footpump. Your cost is $809 plus UPS (package deals do not include the freight allowance).
The Tandem Package includes two seats, the patch kit, wrench, & valve adaptor, two glass shaft 2-piece paddles (your choice of sizes), our Bravo 9 foot pump with top-off chamber, and an electric pump to get the Sawtooth started with. The Tandem Package is only $929.

AIRE Traveler

* Pricing includes a $108 allowance toward UPS and/or accessories.
Not to be confused with Innova's product of the same name, AIRE's canoe style model competes with boats like like the Soar's, Grabner Outsides, and Innova Vagabonds. With it's very large 14" tubes and 15' length the Traveler could also be looked upon as a super narrow narrow two, three, or even four person whitewater raft. It has an extremely high payload of over 750 pounds, something most of the other inflatable canoes can't match. And if you want it to hold more than that and are running mild water, you can temporarily defeat the bailing by covering the holes with duct tape. Our friend Tracey Harmon, from Anchorage, AK has used it with very high payloads with excellent success. The 7" thick floor helps a lot in this regard. If you have bail holes punched in the Soar 14, Soar 12, or the Innova Vagabond and load anywhere near this kind of weight in them you will have one to three inches of water in the bottom all the time since the inflatable floor top will be lower than the exterior water level. Even the Soar 16 and New Zealand made 17' Incept C52 (no longer listed in our Touring IK section) won't match the Traveler.
Like the Innova Vagabond (found in our Tandem Whitewater Kayak section), the Traveler has lace-down seats and can be paddled seated or kneeling. Unlike the Vagabond though, the seats can be moved around, and if you take them out the 70 pound weight drops to about 59 pounds. The Traveler is intended to be paddled with single blade canoe/raft paddles, not extra long kayak paddles. Unless you are an experienced whitewater canoeist this is probably way too much boat to paddle solo. Our friend Tracey in Anchorage is very experienced and he told us it took some time to find the "sweet spot" for solo use, though he eventually did. Tracey is also a hunter, and he said that the Traveler is so stable that he can actually use a shotgun standing up in the boat without losing his balance. For most folks that might want to use the traveler solo, the best bet is to order the optional rowing frame ($375 w/oars, or $339 if you order it with the Traveler).
How fast is it? Big wide flat bottomed boats tend not to be rocket ships on flat water but the feedback from Tracey and others regarding the hull speed of the Traveler has been good. Not great, but plenty adequate. A SuperLynx with competent paddlers will make about four miles per hour on flat water. The Traveler will do about 3 mph, but it is more subject to getting blown around by the wind than most of the boats on this page. The Traveler is about a foot wider than boats like the Trinity II and Innova Sunny in this section, so you should not expect to keep up with these models. If your expectations are realistic you should not be disappointed.
AIRE's website gives the width for the Traveler as 47", but all the ones we've checked were between 44" and 45".
As a three person raft, it's possible to mount footcones in the Traveler, and have a paddle captain at one end and a paddler on each side - sort of ideal for those really narrow, technical low water runs!
Available in four colors (blue, green, red, and purple; yellow is no longer available). Green and blue tend to be the most common colors and are usually available even if we don't have them in stock when you call.

Motor Mounts are not yet available for the Traveler but hopefully will be soon. Soar's Larry Laba does sell an excellent heavy duty aluminum motor mount, which we can recommend. With a bit of strapping it's fairly adaptable to the Traveler even though it was meant to rest on slightly smaller tubes.

AIRE Sea Tiger

Back from near-extinction, AIRE's 18' tandem Sea Tiger is back. After poor sales on this model for most of it's existance, AIRE took it out of their catalog in January of 2008. Of course, as soon as they did it, everybody wanted one. We have seen this cycle with certain AIRE cats and kayaks before, and if it doesn't move well in '09 it will likely disappear again and AIRE won't bring it back a third time.
The Sea Tiger remains the only model from AIRE that has a foot rudder, and their system works very well. This boat is really too big and heavy for air travel unless you don't mind paying overweight baggage fees, and it's performance is mediocre considering it has an 18' hull. What keeps the forward speed somewhat limited is the width (37" although specs usually show 35 or 36") and the bulbous floor, which unlike the sleek Sawtooth model isn't really tapered at the front. It is uniquely V-shaped on the bottom though when inflated, providing for excellent tracking even without the rudder. Where this boat shines is in it's high weight capacity, allowing two adults to carry another 200 pounds or so of camp gear. Space wise, it really doesn't have that much more room than the AIRE SuperLynx even though it is four feet longer. Since it is not intended for whitewater or shallow rivers where you might hang up on rocks & tip, you don't need to worry about your center of gravity. You can pack your drybags standing up which helps. The bow cover does unzip (with some difficulty) but the bow area is fairly narrow, so you won't be putting any wide drybags up there.
The footpegs for the rudder adjust along the rail, but you cannot change the position of the actual rail without modifying the connecting cables. AIRE has a kit to extend them forward a ways for those who will only use the boat solo. If for some reason you wanted to move them rearward the cables would need to be cut and re-terminated, and you need the right cutting tool for steel cable or it's easy to make a mess of things. We mention all this because a) it makes putting a third person in the boat more difficult than with the SuperLynx, and b) it limits the placement of large drybags to some degree.
The seats, as with any AIRE or Tributary kayak, are infinitely adjustable and removable so the front paddler has more latitude regarding where they can sit. The rear paddler is somewhat limited by the virtue of needing their feet on the rudder pegs. This model is very popular with scuba enthusiasts, and the 40 tie-down points & dozen D-rings offer many places to carabiner an anchor to.
The Sea Tiger will only be available in red and yellow from now on. We will bring the specification block back soon. The Sea Tiger weighs 62 pounds with the seat & rudder fin, is 18' long, has 10-1/2" tubes, holds 700 pounds before swamping, and like all AIRE products is self bailing. The dozen D-rings are spaced along the sides and bow of this model. The $2,375 price includes a $120 allowance toward UPS and accessories. If you need nothing else with the boat, we will work something out with you. If ordered before June 30th and paid with a cashier's check, we can save you a substantial amount of money. Our extra pre-season discount with AIRE ends on July 1st, and our wholesale price on this particular boat increases by a whopping $119. That's why we encourage buyers of any AIRE model to buy before then, rather than after.