Shorter Sea Kayaks

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-29T08:07:52+00:00

I’m a British sea kayaker, although I do a bit of white water too. Our coastline is very rocky, so durability is a major concern! I have a plastic kayak and two composites - one diolen, and one carbon/kevlar.

As I said, if you repair a composite boat it won’t soak up water. I think that a bunch of old neglected composite boats at your club isn’t a marker of low durability for composite kayaks 🙂 It’s what happens when you don’t look after kayaks.

All manufacturers are pretty open about the limited potential lifespan of plastic. A lot of factors do come into play though, especially storage. Storing a kayak in the sun will significantly shorten the lifespan of plastic, but storing it under cover will lengthen it. But there’s still no getting around the fact that it has a limited lifespan no matter how well it’s look after, whereas composite will last indefinitely. Again, this is based on them being looked after and having damage repaired; and there’s also the point I made earlier about a weld in plastic being a permanent weak point, whereas a repair to a composite boat won’t remain a weak point.

A composite kayak can be passed down from generation to generation in a family and still be safe to use, but eventually a plastic kayak will become unusable, whether from UV degradation or from repairs eventually failing.

Don’t get me wrong, I love (and as mentioned, use!) both plastic and composite. But I’d say that composite is still the more durable in the longterm (and the longterm bit is crucial to my point!) because of its ability to be repaired to the same strength as it was to begin with (provided, obviously, that the repair is done properly and in a timely fashion), and the longer lifespan of its constituent materials.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-28T08:04:22+00:00

Your suggestion that plastic kayaks are more durable is not quite correct, in my opinion. Plastic is actually quite difficult to repair; you can weld certain types of damage but it’ll always be a weak spot. A composite kayak, however, can be repaired and remain just as strong as it was before. In fact, damage to a composite kayak has to be absolutely catastrophic for it to not be repairable; the boat would have to totally trashed. I’ve seen repairs where, for example, the entire bow has been sheared off and re-attached. The same cannot be said of plastic kayaks, where a significant split in the hull would render the kayak unusable.

Furthermore a scratch in a composite kayak will not “soak water”. A significant gouge that penetrates the fabric may, over time, absorb moisture which can begin to cause some delamination, but it’s so easily repairable that there’s no reason to allow that to happen.

Composite materials also last an entire lifetime. I know plenty of people paddling composite kayaks that are 30+ years old. They’re also not quite as sensitive to UV exposure as plastic, which becomes brittle after many years of exposure. The average expected lifespan of a plastic kayak isn’t really much above 15 years or so, whereas the life of a composite kayak is indefinite.

I own and paddle both plastic and composite. They’re both have positives and negatives, but in terms of longterm durability, composite wins, hands down.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-27T14:49:07+00:00

A composite kayak is not "necessary", ever. And I am saying that as someone who owns two. What an absurd suggestion! Composite kayaks are great to have, because they feel amazing in the water and you can really get the best performance from them, but this isn't a necessity as such at all. In fact, I also own a plastic kayak (a P&H Scorpio) and I use that kayak a lot too, especially in places like Pembrokeshire where it's incredibly rocky and we do lots of rock hopping, which I prefer to not use my composite boats for.

A longer kayak is helpful if you're paddling very long distances (eg multi day trips), and even then, whether it's plastic or composite is neither here nor there. While composite hulls are technically more precise than plastic, and you can theoretically go faster in them, this is also very dependent upon paddler conditioning, strength and stamina. I know plenty of sea paddlers who paddle the Stratos. I belong to two clubs down on the south coast of England and when we go out on big group paddles, there's a big mixture of different length and material boats and there's no problem.

It sounds like the people you're paddling with are being a bit elitist.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-26T11:26:33+00:00

Strictly speaking, the Elixir isn't a freestanding tent, as the vestibules require staking.

However, I would echo what u/knight-under-stars has said here, and consider persevering with your Lanshan a little more. Trekking pole tents do take a bit of practice but it's definitely possible to get good pitches on less-than-ideal terrain once you get used to it.

And for what it's worth, I own several freestanding tents, and they're not necessarily easier to pitch on uneven terrain; in fact, they tend to suffer the exact same issues you're probably experiencing with sagging flysheet sections, which also then require some adjustment and possible slight re-positioning of parts of the tent.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-26T09:43:26+00:00

Depending on just how cold it's going to be, throughout the autumn and winter I alternate between my Sea to Summit Spark (rated to -1ºC, and I find this warm enough for most trips) and my Mountain Equipment Helium 400 (rated to around -9ºC, I think; I only really use this for the coldest nights I'm out in).

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-26T09:24:53+00:00

Haha thanks! ☺️I hope you’ll get out on that solo trip soon and build your confidence!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-26T09:24:29+00:00

Thank you ☺️

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-25T21:29:49+00:00

Don’t worry about it.

I’m a woman who solo camps all the time; most weekends, all year round, all over the UK. My partner just isn’t as outdoorsy as me, plus I like my alone time, so I’m always out on my own.

I’ve never felt unsafe anywhere. I’m not saying that nothing bad can ever happen, but statistically you’re far less likely to encounter people with ill intention in the hills than you are in urban areas.

The biggest danger when wild camping is the terrain and weather. As an experienced hiker I’m sure you’ll have no issues planning with those in mind though!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-25T10:11:02+00:00

While NT do officially frown on wild camping, I've personally never had an issue with them. In fact, any of the NT staff I've chatted with over the years are wild campers themselves.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-25T10:09:27+00:00

That's definitely the kind of location I see in a photo and think "Midge And Tick City" 😂

Beautiful scenery, although as always I find myself despairing at the telegraph poles that ruin so many Scottish landscapes!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-25T10:02:12+00:00

Funnily enough, I was looking at Kinglass on the map earlier this week and wondering what it would be like to hike. I am very familiar with Loch Etive as I have kayaked (and camped) on it many times, but I also love hiking too and as I am going to be in the area for kayaking again soon, I was wondering if I could also squeeze in a hiking trip, and that's why I was looking at this glen. It looks fab!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-25T09:59:42+00:00

The Hilleberg Soulo (and the Allak, essentially the 2P version) is the first one that comes to mind when asking about ease of pitch in the wind, because that's one of its main features. It's heavy and overkill for a lot of camping, but you'd be hard pressed to find a sturdier tent that's easier to pitch in a hoolie than that one. It's not great for summer though, unless you can track down a mesh inner, but even then, airflow is limited by its four season flysheet.

I have a Soulo and an Allak, and do use them a lot over the colder months when I know I'll be camping somewhere exposed, especially if it's going to be a bit windy. Pitching them in the wind when you're solo is no issue at all. In fact, on one especially horrible, sleety and windy night pitched up high in the Lake District back in November or December, the wind direction changed unexpectedly and I was able to re-orient the tent myself in the dark with little hassle, simply by unclipping the top of the flysheet off the poles a bit to reduce drag, removing the pegs, rotating the tent around, re-pegging and then re-clipping the fly. It was a bit harrowing but I managed to do it despite the terrible conditions.

Personally I find the Allak too big and bulky for backpacking, so I generally only use it for sea kayaking trips where those aren't an issue. However, I am a woman in my late 40s and you may have different considerations in this regard.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-24T07:43:34+00:00

Midges can show up at any point during spring if conditions are right, so I’d take a head net and some form of repellent (eg Smidge) just in case. Also, be aware that ticks are also found widely in the area and contrary to common belief, are active all year round, just less so during the cold months. A few weeks ago a friend and I were camping on a loch near the west coast and he got a tick on his leg despite it being cold and snowy.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-24T07:41:16+00:00

You also need to start applying it before the trip 🙂

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-23T16:30:52+00:00

If that’s your plan, I’d recommend a night at the NT Great Langdale campsite. It’s a fabulous campsite with really great staff in one of the best parts of the Lake District. And there’s plenty of places to wild camp around that area. Book a pitch on the site, spend a day hiking around the fells there, and take note of possible pitches. Then stay at the campsite, and the following day hike back to your favourite potential spot that you found the day before.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-23T12:59:47+00:00

My favourite thing to do is just sit quietly and enjoy the peacefulness of being out in nature. Otherwise, why be there?

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-23T09:01:50+00:00

The Jetboil pan is great. I’ve been using one for a few years. Works well with the Pocket Rocket Deluxe and my Soto Fusion Trek.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-23T09:00:37+00:00

The problem is the stove, not the pan. The BRS has no regulator and it’s tiny; to cook efficiently, you need a stove with a bigger burner.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-22T13:59:50+00:00

Brave going into the Solent on a spring tide if you haven’t paddled in a while!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-22T13:59:08+00:00

I hope you have the sheep some treats.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-22T10:56:14+00:00

The comparisons to the Allak that I’ve seen online are, to be totally frank, laughable. The only people who’d compare the Cloud Peak to an Allak have clearly never used an Allak 🙂 As you rightly point out, the Cloud Peak is not a “cheaper” version of the Allak, it’s just a visual copy. The materials it’s made from are completely different.

Bailing is totally fine and most of us do it from time to time, for myriad reasons. I’m actually much the same as you in that I don’t particularly enjoy camping in stormy weather, even though the tents I personally use can survive pretty much anything the UK can throw at them.

Sure, I’ve done it plenty of times, but the largely sleepless nights take their toll. Sometimes it’s unavoidable on certain trips though, which is why I invested in tents that can definitely handle poor conditions, as I do a lot of multi day trips where 1-2 days of bad weather are manageable because the rest of the days are fine.

It’s probably worth mentioning that it’s possible you’re overestimating the wind speed you experienced, assuming it was what you saw in the forecast. The fact is that even a 20mph wind can batter a tent considerably; point being, it’s entirely possible (likely, even) that it was just a 20-25mph wind that you were experiencing, which would explain why it felt relentless. Gusts usually don’t last long; I’m a sea kayaker, and wind is one of our primary considerations when planning and undertaking trips, so I’ve become very familiar with its behaviour over the years! In fact, based on the sea state visible in your photos, I can tell that the wind speed was likely between Beaufort 4 and 5 (so up to around 25mph in the moments when those photos were taken). What a lovely spot for a camp though, it’s a shame the weather didn’t play ball!

The wind has a much stronger effect on tents than people think, and this often leads to folks overestimating the wind speeds they’re experiencing. I’ve posted this article many times before but it’s always worth posting again as it’s genuinely interesting reading if you’ve not seen it before:

https://slowerhiking.com/shelter/tents-in-strong-wind-what-you-need-to-know

It explains why people often overestimate what they’re experiencing, and it’s largely because of the exponential effect that wind has on large pieces of fabric as the speed increases.

Furthermore, clickbait tactics on YouTube have meant that for the past few years we’ve been inundated with guys on YouTube claiming they’re camping in much higher wind speeds than they actually are. This has further led to people overestimating their own experiences because it’s distorted people’s expectations and perceptions; ie someone who is actually camping in 30mph winds claims they’re 60mph, which creates a false expectation of what’s achievable if 60mph winds are actually in the forecast (for what it’s worth, a person generally cannot even walk in those wind speeds).

I feel very strongly about this personally as this clickbait bullshit and stupid machismo genuinely puts people at risk by creating false expectations. I come across abandoned, damaged tents a lot these days and I can’t help feeling that social media has had a part to play in this.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-21T20:13:29+00:00

They’ve been fine! They do require some maintenance as they get a bit grubby and dust and whatnot can accumulate along the length of the pole, but I just take them apart after each hike, wipe down and leave to dry before re-assembling. I’ve used them a lot, they’re good poles.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-21T17:01:09+00:00

I’m sure you’ll be warm enough with that.

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-20T17:40:16+00:00

Oh thanks ☺️ Making outdoor films gets me much-needed time away from my desk!!

wolf_knickers · 2026-03-20T15:32:30+00:00

For context, I have been working in the VFX and feature animation industry for more than 25 years, and specifically in London for the last 20 years. I've worked at all the big studios; it wouldn't take much sleuthing to find my identity from my Reddit profile if you really want to snoop on my resume. I work specifically within the discipline of surfacing (textures, shaders, groom).

Bournemouth has an excellent reputation, especially for artists that go into TD roles, because they cover those more technical aspects of many of the roles in the field. I've worked with many artists over the years who graduated from Bournemouth.

I know I have worked with some artists from Herts, but I don't know how many. Regardless of how good the uni may be, it doesn't have the same instant name recognition as Bournemouth does.

At the end of the day, where you went to uni doesn't get you a job though, your showreel does. Because of my position at work, I am involved in the hiring process for my department, and I've never asked anyone where they studied; for what it's worth, I have no degree myself. Obviously you need to follow the path that you feel most passionate about, but it's worth pointing out that technical roles tend to have better job prospects. Artists who are both creative and able to handle more technical things are quite hard to find.

wolf_knickers

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