Should I buy or should I pocket my money?

Hi team,

There is a great amount of discussion about fishing from a Hobie kayak but not much about general "cruising". I'm not a fisherman - and never have been - but I do like to spend a lot of time on the water. In Australia, there are many inland places, all of these are sensational photographic destinations, still only accessible on the waterways, even in the "Outback". (Search Google Images for Lawn Hill Gorge as just one example)

We are also blessed where I am - Brisbane, Australia - to have such an accessible and fun river but also a reservoir that has recently opened up for kayaking in the suburb of The Gap, only 10klm (6 mi) from the CBD. Also, over the hill are Wivenhoe and Somerset Dams for water sports of varying kinds.

Not to mention beautiful Moreton Bay and snorkelling off Moreton Island.

Also within easy drive are the Noosa Everglades, that can be explored & camped along by kayak/canoe, and the Maroochy River to the north and the Gold Coast Broadwater (near Surfers Paradise) just over an hour south. Sometimes we count our lucky stars and thank my uncle and aunt for having a little farm on the far upper reaches of the Brisbane River with a scenic little camp spot for us family and a little rapids run between two bridges.

We also do a fair amount of outback adventuring (thus mentioning of the hidden gems accessible by waterway) with the four wheel drive and our camper trailer.

I am out and about, doing a lot of geocaching and there are more and more 'hides' being located near the water's edge (and some on islands within these watery locations).

An ordinary kayak won't cut it because I've had a shoulder reconstruction and have lost power and stamina in my right shoulder, so paddling will be an extraordinary rare event. (Hence a peddle powered kayak)

Because I'm a big bloke, 1.85 m (6' 1") tall and around 135 kgs (300lbs), I've kind of narrowed it down to two hulls, the 2017 Camo Outback or the Revo 13, but I'm not sure either of these are well suited to the rare times I'm going to be allowed go - although, She Who Must Be Obeyed is forcing me out of the house to do much more 4wding and camping than she has been in the past…

I'm leaning towards the Camo Outback because of the load capacity (I seem to take a lot of junk with me camping....) but again, is this just overkill for these "once in a lifetime" events? Am I dragging around too much weight with the Outback hull every day when I could just take less stuff? (like, leave my stove top espresso machine at home for one night?)

Am I even on the right track with a Hobie or should I just stick with a blow up mattress tied to the bank with a beer in my hand in the local creek or favourite waterhole?

I need some convincing myself and I'm needing your assistance in giving the Minister for War and Finance some added incentive to fork out AU$4,000 for boat and accessories to get me started.

I'd like your advice and I'd love to see some of your "non-fishing" videos posted to YouTube so that I can show the boss what I plan to do with my craft.

Really loading things onto or off the Prado isn't a problem, nor is any sharp lift, it's more about continual movement, and the roof bars are already fitted.

I saw somewhere on the SL Hobie website a neat little gadget he's made up with a piece of rhino roof bars, some suction cups and some cradles. I'd likely replace the cradles with rollers (&, perhaps, guides on either side) and it looks easy peasy. Even for an injured bloke like me.

The sail kit is definitely on the Wish List (aka "to buy at a later stage" list) as I learnt to sail on a Hobie 14, and ended up sailing Nacra's with my university sailing club, but you always go back to an original, hence the decision to continue to support Hobie. There's always a nostalgia hit and brand recognition. I'd look forward to being under sail again, even if it's an assist rather than primary propulsion. I'm almost wondering why Hobie haven't made a longer dagger board to go in where the Mirage drive fits, providing more stability for higher wind sailing.

I think I am leaning towards a hard shell one because I want to mount GPS receivers and other gear where I can easily access it and I'm not sure how that could/would be achieved with an inflatable. And, besides, if it's out of sight, it's out of mind here at our house and my wife wouldn't nag me enough to go out and use it. (Nagging is her way of telling me it's ok I do things. If I'd have asked to do something, she asked me why I'd want to do that for. The usual story.)

I probably do more cruising than fishing and have covered a lot of ground in my various Hobie kayaks over many years now. If you can't get to a demo day then I would think you might be better to go for the Outback unless I can persuade you to consider the Adventure/Revo 16 for its extra length (=speed) and its daggerboard (which makes cruising under sail a much more viable proposition). As to carrying the extra weight - personally I find that I can travel more or less at the same speed with a heavily laden boat as with a lighter one: I believe that I because once you have got the extra weight up to speed you have more inertia and that will carry the boat through waves better than a more lightly loaded boat... so you can definitely take your stovetop with you.

I have posted a few videos of some of my trips in NI NZ on youtube (my channel is Stobb0 - with a zero at the end - I believe) but I am not 100% sure if all of them are public.

Finally as to justifying the extra cost - I guess most people who have a Hobie MD kayak have been through that internal debate; I certainly did, yet the numbers of people who buy and then rave abut the boats keeps increasing. If you want a more scientific argument the I would offer 2 suggestions: 1. you buy the boat to have fun; paddling 100m out from the shore and then back (which is what most people in kayaks seem to do) would bore me pretty quickly. On a Hobie MD kayak you can really eat up the miles compared with a normal kayak, especially with a damaged shoulder. If you break down the cost per sea mile covered I reckon I have had far more fun and covered far more sea miles than I ever did, could have, would have in my paddle kayaks, so the cost per mile equation comes down dramatically in favour of the Hobie in my book. 2. These boats have such good warranty and after-sales service that they hold their value very well so if you buy it and only end up using it for a short while you will still probably recover a lot of the cost when you sell it on the second hand market... but I think that is not a particularly likely outcome: most people who get them seem to love them.

Hope this helps and we look forward to welcoming you on board!

Hey PeterMiddo,

I live in Victoria, AUS and enjoy fishing but the main use of my Hobie is multi day river based camping. I also enjoy geocaching.

We have a group of 6 or so mates who all have Hobies and camping for 2 or 3 nights at various places around Victoria. Simple trips, all you are concerned about is getting from point A to B and setting up camp every day. We travel upto 20kms each day. We do around 4 trips a year of these type of trips and they have become the highlight of my year.

We take hiking gear(hiking tents, stoves, tables, sleeping bags etc) and eskys for food and drinks. I find my revo 13 has plenty of space for several days gear. If you take the right gear you can be very comfortable.

I could not recommend a Hobie enough for these sort of trips, trips can be very easy peddling vs paddling, plus you can be eating snacks and have a cold drink with you free hands

For Hobie options, we have a mix of revo 11, revo 13's, revo 16's and outback. Some have just bought sails. I have just upgraded form a revo 11 to to 13. We also have mates who are similiar height and weight to yourself who have pre 2015 revo 13s and 16s.
I reckon for these type of trips, the revo 13 is the best compromise, revo 13 has plenty of storage. It tracks better through the water than the 11 or the outback and will handle chop much better. In rough weather I was surprised how the revo 13 cut through waves, the revo 11 was described a cork bobbing around in water. The outback has a little more storage than the revo 13, sits higher in the water and a set of turbo fins on the pre 2017 models dramatically increases stoke by stroke performance.

I am not sold as of yet on the hobie sails for multi day trips, there is a fair bit of rigging involved as well increased chance of tripping with a full load.

Here is a trip to Tassie someone else has posted, we hope to do something similar to this trip next summer in our Hobies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUQMSCa ... ature=plcp

That is a fair call daft,

in Kilograms, the outback takes 181kg va the 159kg for the revo 13, so the extra 22kg capacity1 on the outback may be a better option for PeterMiddo.

I weigh 75kgs, so I have plenty of free capacity on a revo 13.

I think the 2015 onwards vantage seat has a limitation of 125kg too, so that might be a discussion to be had with a dealer too.

Have you considered one of the Islands? We've got a TI and that sail is a lot of fun and can open up the horizon. (Some of us have put outboards on them, too.)

I am hoping against hope that, with all the kayaking I plan on doing in the future, I will be able to shed some of those kilograms (pounds) and that will take me under the seat's weight limit.

Mind you, this also makes the Revo 13 a greater option, which is why I'm a bit torn.

Provided I do lose a bit of weight, other things may become more likely to occur, like riding my bike, etc, but my brother-in-law is always looking for someone to have an hour or two's paddle with during the week (as he also works from home) and he plans on keeping me honest.

I actually had the Island in mind when I first came to look at the Hobie Mirage Drive kayaks thinking I'd be getting a sail boat that occasionally can be used as a kayak. Then I thought more about it, other people around me started buying paddle kayaks (instead of sail boats) and my focus has changed. Now it's more likely that I want a kayak and occasionally have the sail help carry me forward.

And, wow! Aren't the Evolve motors expensive!?!?!?!? Wow! I would have seen myself getting one of those but short of winning the lottery (I never put a ticket in....), I can't see myself getting one of those! (or, more correctly, I can't see myself being allowed to buy one of those!)

You are on the right track. A Hobie Miragedrive is perfect for touring around on our beautiful waterways.
Maclean Outdoors on the Clarence River NSW is a Hobie dealer and have demo boats available. Give them a call and arrange a test in both the Revolution 13 and the Outback. Phone 02 6645 1120.

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