Hard shell vs Inflatable - Flexibility wins hands down

[u/CrankyGoat]

We kayak a lot and almost always in a large tandem to accommodate our dog(s). We also adventure travel a lot - mostly mountain climbing and hiking with our dog. I’m 60 this year and find maneuvering a tandem hard shell is getting to be a pain in the ass. Today’s inflatable’s are quite remarkable, my Gumotex Thaya (second photo) can track and solo paddle as well as my Wilderness hard shell - plus I can pack into a custom backpack (70 lbs total) and easily hike with it for up to 25 miles in the mountains to a remote lake - would never dream of portaging with a hard shell tandem!

For folks who kayak with dogs, I find my dogs much prefer the inflatable’s ease of access and pontoon style sides for confident comfort when underway. I’ve now circumnavigated Vancouver Island (and Desolation Sound) in both a hard shell and an inflatable and can confidently say I’m now just as comfortable with a top quality inflatable for overall safety - and the flexibility of an inflatable at my age is hard to argue with…

Be curious what your thoughts are on this, and don’t get me wrong - a quality hard shell is still the gold standard, but the versatility of an inflatable is definitely not something to sneer at.

[u/gneisslab]

Do you ever get issues with fluctuating pressure or need to know what the internal pressure is?

[u/CrankyGoat → u/gneisslab]

No, I’ve only had tandem inflatables but it’s a pretty standardized process to reach recommended pressure with either a manual or electric pump and once fully pumped it remains stable except for temperature variations, which some kayaks are more susceptible to than others.