Island Expedition

In keeping with the traditional roots of modern sea kayaking, we present the Island Expedition. This boat will look familiar to fans of traditional kayak designs -- the hull profile is closely based on that of a kayak from the Uummannaq Fjord area of West Greenland. However, the keel line has been subtly modified to move the pivot point forward.

The moderately vee'd cross section makes for a sea-kindly hull and the slightly fuller lines fore and aft combine increased carrying loads with a more comfortable ride compared to excessive plunging associated with very fine entries and exits. The Expedition was designed by Donacha Drew, a paddler with over fifty years experience designing and paddling kayaks at sea and includes innovations that experienced paddlers will appreciate.

For instance, the kayak features finger grips molded into the glass at the bow and stern. These help ensure the boat stays in your hands and can give you more control in rough seas than traditional toggles, particularly in rescue situations. The kayaks also features carrying straps, which are fit to a recessed stainless steel fitting at bow and stern. You can read two reviews of the Expedition kayak, here.

Standard Specification and Features:

• Large KS oval hatches ford and aft.
• KS day hatch.
• Molded handgrips in bow and stern.
• KS Ergo toggles in bow and stern.
• Recessed stainless steel U bolt for securing.
• Webbing carrying straps.
• 19 recessed nylon deck fittings with 6mm deck lines and 5mm shock cord.
• Molded recess for Henderson Compact 50 pump and handle.
• Molded recess for Silva 70 P compass.
• 6mm PVC offset skeg to allow for easy storage aft of skeg box.
• Hand deck control for skeg running on a stainless steel bar.
• Adjustable aluminum Yakima footrests.
• Glassfibre seat forming the bulkhead at rear of cockpit.
• Additional bulkhead to rear of day hatch.
• Adjustable Island Kayaks backrest.
• Zippered nylon kayak transporting bag plus accessory pack of wet bag and cockpit cover.

Dimensions

Length 550cm (18 feet ½ inch)
Width 57cm (22.5 inches)

Cockpit Dimensions Length x Width: 76cm (2 feet 6 inches) x 45cm (17 .75 inches)

Weight

The complete boat without hatch covers weighs 22.5 kg (49.6 lbs)

Volume:
Bow: 82 litres (21.66 gal)
Cockpit: 155 litres (40.95 gal)
Day Hatch: 50 litres (13.21 gal)
Stern: 80 litres (21.13 gal)
Totals: 367 litres (96.95 gal)

Lay-up:
Glassfibre and Diolen Hull
Glassfibre deck
Isothelic Resin throughout

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Expedition LV

This boat features a revolutionary new skeg, which operates on a 1.5mm cable, pull/pull system. It has a built-in adjustable tensioning unit. This system was unveiled to universal approval at Birmingham in March 2005. We couldn’t help but notice all the other boat builders having a good look. Remember where you saw it first!

The Expedition LV has taken this new concept a stage further and is fitted in an open skeg box, which passes up through the deck of the boat making accidental jamming a thing of the past. Try one. There really is nothing else like it on the market yet. Carbon fibre skegs (300g) are fitted as standard.

The carrying-strap retaining bars are now load bearing and look much better than before. There is a stainless steel security bar riveted into the deck to allow the boat to be locked securely. The cockpit width has been reduced by almost 50mm from that of the Expedition, in anticipation of the smaller paddler we expect to favour the Expedition LV.
Keel strips now come as standard.

Overall dimensions, other than the height, remain unchanged from the Expedition.