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New Tandem Kayak - The Old Town Twin Otter
Written on Monday, July 03, 2006 by That's Camping
Article Categories: Equipment
After so many days of searching and researching, we finally found a good price on a tandem kayak in stock! I figured I would post some of my notes to help anyone else looking.
Web Sites
- paddling.net offers information and also a place to read and post kayak and canoe reviews from regular people.
- Old Town - these seem to be very popular kayaks.
- Wilderness Systems
- Pelican
Stores to check out when looking for a kayak:
- Decathlon Sports is where we purchased our Old Town Twin Otter. The sale price of $545 was excellent. After sales tax, the total was around $570. They were having a 20% off all Kayaks sale. After searching high and low for a low priced kayak, and finding most stores were out of the Twin Otter, we we jumped on the deal.
- Eastern Mountain Sports was also having an awesome deal - 20% off everything. They had Wilderness System Pamlico 145 kayaks in stock, and after the discount, the price was $640, which was very good. We were very close to purchasing the 145T, but the weight capacity was 400 lbs. If they stocked the Wilderness Systems Pamlico 135, we would have probably purchased that one. If you run across a similar sale, definitely check them out. One note, the online store doesn’t seem to allow in store pick-up for kayak purchases, but a phone call to the toll-free number or specific store will tell you what is in stock.
- Dicks Sporting Goods - they had a monster deal on the Old Town Twin Otter for a mere $500, but no one had them in stock. They did offer the Wilderness Systems Pamlico 135 for $729. We were “this” close to buying the #135, but we decided to wait.
- Target is an option if you have some time to wait before delivery. They offer (online only) the Pelican Pursuit 14 ft kayak for only $500. Choice of yellow or blue colors.
- LL Bean - They offered a pretty good deal on the Old Town Twin Otter for $680, they also offered the Old Town Loon T160 for $700. The T160 is a sweet kayak, very long! We probably would have jumped on the T160 deal, but none of the LL Bean outlets nearby had them in stock. They were also out of the Twin Otters too.
- Costco offers the Pelican Pursuit 140T DLX with paddles for $650. It costs $50 to join Costco.
- Canoe King in West Ossipee, NH - they have both the Old Town Twin Otter ($665) and the Old Town Loon 160T ($950)
- Kittery Trading Post in Kittery, Maine offered the Old Town Twin Otter for $689, and no sales tax if you live outside Maine. She also mentioned a 150T, but I didn’t see anything in the Old Town brochure on that particular model number.
- REI seemed a little expensive, compared to other sales. They do have a good selection of kayaks, and if you join their co-op club, they will discount the kayaks 10%.
Tips:
- Do you want single kayaks or a tandem. We rented a tandem while camping, and found we worked well together. It is nice to sit back and let the other person paddle, and vice verse. With a single, I don’t think I would enjoy it as much, since I would constantly be trying to keep up with Mike. It is also nice to be together in the same boat. We considered two singles, but decided the tandem is best for our needs.
- Check the total weight the kayak can carry and make sure the numbers will work for all passengers and your gear. The reason we ultimately were leaning toward the Old Town Twin Otter and Loon vs the Wilderness Systems kayaks is the extra weight capacity.
- Check the kayak’s width, length, and cockpit dimensions. The wider the kayak the more stable it is. The longer the kayak, the faster it will be, but longer kayaks are harder to navigate around curves.
- If you are purchasing a tandem with the intention of also occasionally paddling solo, make sure that the seats are adjustable.
- Is storage important to you? Some offer a hatch to access the storage area in the bow or stern. Even if a hatch is not offered, it is still possible to store items behind the seat. Some expensive models offer a “dry hatch” for small items like cell phones.
- When choosing a paddle, you might prefer a longer paddle if the boat is wider. Mike is looking for paddles with a slight curve or “scoop” - I am looking for comfort, but I might just chose to wear sports gloves; I don’t want to get calluses.
- When looking for a good deal, check everywhere and compare prices. Kayaks don’t come cheap, especially the tandems, and the prices are all over the place from highest to lowest for the same models.
- Consider a used kayak. Craig’s List, the Want Ad magazine, Ebay all offer used kayaks and accessories.
- In the peak season, you might have to be flexible with a choice of color for your kayak. If you find a good deal, don’t worry about the color. We ended up with the “sunrise” color, which wasn’t our first choice, but we accepted it.
Well, if anyone is searching for a kayak, good luck. If you already have a kayak or canoe, leave a comment on which model you have. We’ll leave the comments open on this article for 60 days.
Have a great summer of kayaking fun! We can’t wait to try ours, but we need paddles first! 
Article Categories: Equipment
Comments
The comment area is open for approximately one year after the article date.
Congrats on your new kayak, TC! Sounds like you guys will have a great time with it once you aren’t “up a creek without a paddle”!
Posted by Karen on 07/04/06hehe! We did go out last night to buy paddles! So, we hopefully will not be “up a creek without a paddle”
Thanks Karen!
Posted by That's Camping on 07/04/06You are going to have so much fun with that! My twin and I rented one on the Charles River last year for our birthday. I loved it! Now, where are the pictures?????
Posted by Twinnish on 07/04/06Oh there will be photos, don’t you worry!!!
Posted by That's Camping on 07/04/06Did you enjoy your first outing in your new kayak? Did you get over the color.
One thing about the tandem kayak is that it might not work out well with small children. I took my 6 year old daughter out last year and we could not coordinate appropriately. Because of the closeness our paddles kept getting in the way. Something to keep in mind.
Posted by Bob on 07/11/06To quote John Lennon “I GOT BLISTERS ON MY FINGERS!”
Heehee..
Actually, the inside of my my thumb/pointer fingers got bad blisters. eek. I think I will need wimpy gloves next time! But we had fun.
We hit oars sometimes, but it isn’t so bad.
Posted by That's Camping on 07/12/06Did you know that was actually Ringo who said that? I just read the Beatles biography and was surprised because I always thought it was John, too!
Sorry, just had to insert that bit of Beatles trivia....
Posted by Twinnish on 07/14/06haha, Twinnish. You caught me! I googled it, and you are soo right! Isn’t that a riot! I always thought it was John Lennon! I would have bet $$ on it!
Thanks for the new Beatles knowledge. I thought I was up on all their trivia!
Posted by That's Camping on 07/15/06We just got our Old town otter tandem on Wednesday It came with paddles. We picked up our PFDs and we are going on our madien trip just as soon as it quits raining.
good luck
Posted by Edward Bohren on 08/19/06Good for you Edward! Have fun! I think you will enjoy the Otter!
Posted by That's Camping in the Northeast on 08/19/06I JUST PURCHASED A TANDEM KAYAK FROM BJ’S WHOLESALE CLUB TODAY. THEY HAD A 50.00 COUPON FOR A PELICAN 14FT KAYAK. ORIGINAL PRICE WAS 459.00 MINUS 50.00. INCLUDES CARTOP CARRIER AND 2 PADDLES. SALE ENDS 5/30/07
Posted by NINO on 05/28/07Great deal, Nino. We originally searched at BJs and they only had ocean kayaks. I am sure these will sell out fast, so grab ‘em while you can!
Posted by That's Camping in the Northeast on 05/28/07
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