Surprised not to see any reviews yet on this fantastic canoe/kayak hybrid. I've been an avid paddler for 30+ years, canoes, river kayaks, sea kayaks, whitewater rafts, you name it. I recently bought my Easy Rider Scout 13 at an estate sale, and all I can say is "Wow!" I wish I'd bought one years ago.....
13' long, 32" wide, carrying capacity of 450 lbs, and my kevlar version weighs only 32 lbs.! Super lightweight, very easy to load/unload, portage, etc. I paddle it with a 240cm Aqua-bound Manta Ray full carbon kayak paddle, and I'm constantly amazed at how well the Scout paddles and tracks. Super fast, very nimble, and yet very stable. The wide curved gunwhales make getting in an out super easy, and I'm happily surprised with how stable it is. It comes with bow and stern floatation bags, and a very comfortable cane/ash seat that is not attached to the hull. I must admit I thought the seat would slide all over the place, but I can paddle the Scout HARD and fast and the seat stays in one place. I'm still learning where to place the seat (and thus myself) for maximum speed and tracking.
There are a few small issues: 1. I just now figuring out how to load the Scout to get a good straight glide, it wants to turn to weather when gliding. When paddling, it goes straight as an arrow--it tracks better than some of my larger canoes. Just today I found a good position/placement for the seat and was gliding nice and straight, so I may have this problem solved.
The second small issue is while the wide/curved/molded gunwhales are nice and sturdy, they make bailing out any water difficult--you can't just turn it on its side to empty the water you need a sponge or a bailer. Not a real big deal, but it is very different than any other boat I've owned.
When you compare the price and specs of the Scout 13 to ANY of the top-rated solo canoes out there today, you really get a LOT of bang for your buck with the Easy Rider Scout. I've owned at least 14+ paddle boats over the years, and without a doubt this is the best canoe/kayak type boat I've ever owned!
