Transporting 2 yaks

Hello everyone!

I have a little bit of a 'good' problem.

I was all set to purchase an Adventure kayak, when my wife expressed intrest in her own Hobie. So, it looks like a purchase of an Adventure and an Outback is in future (when the ice melts here in Minnesota). My issue will be transporting the 2 vessels. I was already a little concerned on rigging the Adventure on top of my Toyota 4Runner, due to the length and weight. But now I will have 2 vessels to transport at a time. That will increase the roof weight to over 120 lbs, plus the rack. Driving down the road, stability has become a concern (For both the kayaks, and making sure they won't rip off my roof.) Is this a valid concern?

If you believe that roof mounting is not a problem, any recommendations?

So, my other option is a trailer. Know of any good trailer options for 2 kayaks?

I have seen in another post that some of you have trailers. Are those custom?

Anyways, Thank-You in advance to anyone that will be of assistance.

Welcome spinn555

I carry an Hobie Adventure and a perception Caster on top of my Explorer Sport and have had no problems.

The Caster 12.5 ft has been on my Honda Civic 2 door also with no problems.

A trailer would be good if you have trouble getting your yak on top of the 4Runner.

Lots of options. I think I would try on top first.

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See ya on the water,
OffRoad

Thanks for the response, Offroad.

What type of roof rack do you have? (Thule-Yakima-etc).

I use the Yakima on the Explorer and Civic. On the jeep I use the roll bars.

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See ya on the water,
OffRoad

We recently transported an Adventure (my brother's) and my Outback on his Jeep Cherokee using Thule rack with the "saddles" that cradle the bottom of the boats.

He also has the hitch extender which helped with stability on his battleship.

Lifting them up top was not too bad...but if you can find an affordable trailer, even if you have to modify it, you may be better off. I'm not sure my wife would be able to lift "half" of either yak to the roof top rack.

Good luck!

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"If I'm not at work, I'm Outback"

i have a trailer i can recommend. bought it about a year ago and it works great for my 2 outbacks. they're also a hobie dealer.
http://www.sportsrig.com/choose.html

Yakima low rider bars work great with Quest and Outback on Jeep Grand Cherokee. Just got back from a 2500 mile trip with both yaks on top. Yaks mounted side by side with bottoms up.

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.... Steve

I notice that with long kayaks and short racks, it's common to to also secure the forward overhang to the front bumper for additional stability. I'm not too familiar with the specifics since I use a lumber rack.

Spinn555,
That is my Trailex trailer at GAFFE II at Mosquito Lagoon in the background.



Here is the link to one of my posts on the Trailex kayak trailer:

http://kfs.infopop.cc/groupee/forums/a/ ... 030751/p/1

You can carry two yaks hull up or hull down, or four on their sides. Very nice and very light-weight trailer. Tows beautifully. Hope this helps.
Best,
Dick

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I have two hobies, an Outback and a Sport. After a lot of research, I ended up buying a SNOWBEAR trailer from Home Depot. Seems much sturdier than a lot of others. Has a lot of nice features, including changeable axle and tongue length and with the kyaks loaded I still have room for my bikes. You can also use it to load a lot of junk (rated at 2000 lbs), when you are not moving the kayaks. I just put my yakima towers and 58 inch bars and they seem to fit fine--I crimped them on the welded handles on the sides. Tomorrow, I will try to put the yaks on. I will let you know how it goes. The other thing I liked was the price--699. I got 10% off for military--(Memorial Day) and when I finally walked out with the guy, I noticed that one of the fenders was a bit bent and rusted, so, he gave me another 50 bucks off.
I think I will need a can of rustoleum, but, all trailers rust.