Types of Kayak

Kayaks were first made and used by a number of peoples, including the Eskimo, predominantly from northeast Asia, north America and Greenland as far back as 4000 years ago. The kayak was a hunting craft and hunters would use an array of weapons, including harpoons, to kill seals, whales and fish. The kayak is still used in much the same way today in these areas. The kayak was originally made from animal skins stretched over wooden or whalebone frames and some of the larger kayaks, particularly those used to hunt whales, could be 30 feet long.

Things have come on a bit since then and whilst I have seen a few old wooden and fabric kayaks on eBay from time to time, I have to admit, I've never seen a whalebone and sealskin kayak running my local river!

There are literally millions (maybe that's a slight exaggeration) of types of kayaks out there and just as many advocates for each type. I'm not sure what the kayak world equivalent of petrol-head is (maybe it's paddle-head or splash-cat or something?) but take a look at the information available from some of these egg-heads and all of a sudden we're talking primary and secondary stability, beam profile, hull surface profile, paddling ergonomics, fish-face logistics (okay, I made that last one up) and that's before we move on to the actual types. There's sit in, sit on top, stand-up, sit under, sea, recreational, surf, whitewater, creekboat, surfboat, playboat, gravyboat, racing, surf ski, slalom, pedal, inflatable, fishing.......is anyone out there still awake?

Needless to say, I'm not even going to try and go there. I'm just going to assume that most people who read this blog just want the basics because, like me, they're new to kayaking. I'm going to assume that you may want to mess about on your local river, maybe even splash about a bit on the sea - on inland waters - that maybe the thought of taking the kayak away on a camping trip appeals - you get where I'm coming from?

So, I'm going to keep it simple - I'm going to divide the 'types' of kayak into two main groups - Sit in kayaks (Sink's) and Sit on top kayaks (Sot's). As far as sub-groups go, I'll look at recreational, sea and touring - that's about it. If you want to specialise in something else - sorry - whilst I may touch on it, you may need to do some independent research.

Sit on top kayaks

Eskimos and Inuits certainly didn't have this dilemma - Sots haven't really been around that long and are a fairly modern addition to the kayak family. Nevertheless, they are proving to be extremely popular with recreational kayakers and particularly for those who wish to mess about in the surf or go fishing, because they are easy to get in and out of (as you can imagine - you just climb on top) even from the water, and some, you can even stand up on.

As with every type of kayak, there's always a compromise, and the compromise for the Sots stability means that they are generally shorter and wider, which, of course, makes them slower and less efficient at travelling longer distances - the paddler would certainly get more fatigued taking a Sot on tour. Any water in your Sot simply drains out of holes called scupper holes, which means you can't get swamped and so no need to bail.

Here's a few pro's and con's for the Sot:

Pro's:

• Often much more stable than a Sink
• Relatively easy to get in and out (on and off) even from the water
• More freedom of movement than a Sink
• Easily accessible on deck storage
• Great for surfing and fishing

Con's:

• The paddler is more exposed to the elements (sun, wind, cold and water)
• Exposed to wave splash (particularly at sea) and paddle drip
• Generally slower to paddle
• Paddler exposed to increased fatigue on longer trips
• You'll probably get wetter - often sat in a small puddle!

I'm sure some experienced paddlers may disagree with some of the pro's and con's listed, and believe me, I'm not trying to make a case for one or the other, but these seem to be the general things people talk about on the forums, in books etc.

Of course, Sots also come in different sizes and tandem, even 3 person Sots are a regular sight at the beach.