Lotus

I bought two of these a couple of years ago, thinking my son and I would use them to go out to the local pond and enjoy cruising around. Now I am looking to purchase a new kayak for myself, as these are really just lake toys. Don't get me wrong - they are VERY stable and slow. You can EASILY stand on these and fish, if that's what you want to do. It's not that comfortable though, so sitting on it for a long time wasn't fun. So now we are going to let these be lake toys for the kids (we have 3 kids, all very physically fit and they LOVE the lake). I will get a new kayak (probably an Aspire 105) and then we can go back out and splash around/explore the local fishing hole.

The Lotus is a 8 foot sit on top style of kayak. Relatively light weight. I bought 3 for the family, as an introductory to kayaking. On the water they are stable and easy to handle, but not very fast. They seem very durable and should last a long time. The seat rides a little low and may be uncomfortable on long rides but as a recreational kayak the seats are fine.

The Lotus has areas for attaching a rod holder or even a sail. With plenty of storage behind the seat. For the price and size, I believe the Lotus to be a good introductory model.