My first foray into the world of inflatable kayaks came a number of years ago with the bargain that is the Crivit Inflatable Kayak from LIDL. Having sold my old one when I moved to a flat in Edinburgh, I had been on the look out for one for some time and recently came across The Sevylor Adventure Kit which I obtained for a bargain price. With the weather looking good I decided to hit the water and see how it fared – and first impressions are really pleasing.
As its name suggests, this is a kit, so everything that you need to get on the water is contained in one box. The box contains the kayak and transit bag, a foot-pump, a paddle which can form one single paddle or two small paddles with the addition of short handles, a small fin which is fitted prior to inflation to improve stability, and finally a manometer (for determining chamber pressure).
The outer kayak is constructed from tough and durable polyester, and this provides protection and rigidity for the main three inflatable chambers; those being two sidewalls and the floor. There are two more inflatable chambers, which form the seats, which attach using a combination of velcro and webbing straps/QR buckles. There is a carrying handle at either end and elasticated bungee straps to attach equipment such as dry bag.
The chambers can be removed for repair if necessary, and a kit is supplied to carry this out. With such a robust outer punctures are less likely than a single skin inflatable. The pump which was provided was a footpump rather than the hand pump which was shown on the box as part of the contents, but it was very efficient and I was able to pump up the kayak to the required pressure in less than 10 minutes. The Manometer which was supplied was an excellent part of the kit. As I was inflating my kayak a group next to me were inflating their paddle boards and kayaks and were having to rely on guesswork. Another good point was that the required pressure limits for each chamber are published on a panel on the inside of the kayak, meaning that there’s no need to panic when the instruction manual gets soaked or left at home.
One thing I have done is to store the manometer in a small rigid container as it is fairly fragile and could quite easily be damaged if it was just put in the bag with the rest of the kayak.
Handles at either end give good lifting points to carry it in and out of the water, and so having inflated it, how did it handle? Pretty well. Loaded with my grandson and me it maintained its shape and sat well in the water. The heavy duty outer provides a greater level of rigidity than a single skin inflatable and this meant no “folding”. It was fairly comfortable to sit in, and easy enough to get in and out of. The paddle was efficient and could be changed from a flat blade set up to a 90 degree set up, and I was happy with either. Having not paddled for a while it was fairly draining, but we managed to cross Loch Lubnaig in less than 10 minutes, before paddling along the lochside, checking out the scenery as we went.
Packing up the kayak is simple, just a reversal of the inflation procedure. Open up the valves, expel the air and pack away. One word of warning though, because of the polyester outer some water will get trapped inside and it does take longer to dry off than a single skin kayak, which can be pretty much wiped dry with a towel. Often I find that storage bags only hold the contents in the shop and seldom hold what was in them in field conditions. This storage bag is spacious and even though you are unlikely to get it back to the “factory settings” when folding you won’t struggle to get it in.
As a package this is is really good. It has everything required to get on the water, barring safety equipment, and it can be bought for anywhere between £235 and £350, depending on where you shop. If you are looking for a reasonably priced, durable inflatable, from a well established manufacturer for inland water use then this would not be a bad place to start.
The Airdrie Rambler 