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Intex Challenger K1 mini-review/first impressions.
After sitting in the living room for a few weeks I finally found the time to test my inflateable kayak a bit.
Feels high quality - especially considering the price. Naturally it won't fare well compared to a 'real' kayak but for ~1/5th of the price that is to be expected.
It is quite stable actually. When I tried tilting from side to side I was more worried about me falling out than the kayak flipping over. Being a pussy I deflated the bottom of the seat to sit a bit further down in the kayak which solved my anxiety. Probably just gotta get used to it and test it some more to see how big a risk falling out/tipping over actually is.
Also quite rigid. Getting in and out was no problem and the kayak did not sag as you would think an inflateable would.
Also steered pretty well. Again, this is an inflateable. It won't ever track completely straight. Some of the not-tracking-straight is most likely down to me being a lousy rower. It was also pretty easy to driver forward and went a lot faster than I expected.
The only bad thing I noticed was how water seemed to accumulate in the front due to the water from the paddles going there. With too much water there it ended up in the bottom/sitting area leading to a wet ass. Not an issue for the keeping afloat aspect but a slight annoyance.
Thinking about doing the following modifications to it to make it more suitable for fishing:
A sail/cover to avoid getting wet. Some sort of tent-like contraption guiding paddle-splashed water over the sides rather than in the kayak.
Rod holder - as any fishing kayak needs.
Stabiliser/outriggers/pontoons to improve stability and maybe even give the opportunity to stand up while fishing.
Final verdict: 5/5 stars. At this price point I doubt it gets any better.
