Re: Mill Creek for Mom

Posted by Mark Camp on Aug 13, 2004

To put my yak on a Honda CRV rooftop, I never pick up more than half the weight of the yak.

My mom's 77 and she could do it with one hand tied behind her back. And this is a roto-molded yak that weighs twice what a S and G would, I guess.

The kayak starts on a two wheel cart behind the car. I pick up the bow and rest it on the aft roofrack pad (foam rubber kayak pad.) I walk back to the stern, keeping a hand on the yak as I walk back to ensure it doesn't slide off. Then I lift the stern to rooftop level and give it a series of little shoves forward till its in place, then cinch it down. The whole process including tying takes only a few minutes. I usually just leave the two wheel cart on, hanging over the end of the car.

Note: for quick loading, I have four permanently attached short ropes on the boat, with a pre-tied loop on each at exactly the right place for a truckers hitch to the roofrack, so to tie knot I just grab the rope, cinch it up not too snug, and finish with two quick half hitches. The ropes were permanently attached to the boat so that each one provides some down-force, some left or right force, and some fore or aft force. So except for long interstate trips, that is all the tying needed. For the interstate, I add a bow line for safety.

Note also that two (i think) of the ropes are attached to the yak by reeving it thru a reinforced hole (grey plastic electrical fitting, the kind with threads and a plastic nut that is on the underside of the deck and holds the fitting in place. I think they are both secured by tying them to an aluminum tube that is part of the seat, but at one point I think I may have simply tied a big knot to keep them from coming out. If I want to make the boat neater in the water, I can hide the ropes by letting them back into the hole. Usually I just toss the bitter ends into the yak behind a seat.

In Response to: Re: Mill Creek for Mom by Josh on Aug 13, 2004

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