Castine 140

intermediate paddler 6 foot 180lbs, bulletproof tank of a kayak, excellent old town quality, very high initial stability, even in the most confused water this kayak refuses to flip, only once with 3 foot following waves did it come close to flipping - but didn t. tracks like a train on rails, turns are ok on edge, meh if not on edge, speed is decent, both manouverability and speed suffer if you load up the front and rear hatches, i added a rudder (oem aluminum) and pivot type pedal controls (sealect) and a sail (falcon), sails beautifully with that bow to stern keel but without a daggerboard zero upwind capacity, i now prefer a simple back band and basic seat over the elaborate high back super comfy seat the castine comes with so it only gets used by guests now - i m confident anyone can safely paddle this kayak well with zero previous kayaking experience

The Castine 140 has been a good weekend tourer. It has a good gear capacity and is a stable boat that tracks well. I'm 6'3" tall and around 205 lbs and it fits me well for a 14 foot hull. Loaded with 60 pounds of gear it maintains good trim and still moves through the water easily. I have not taken it on any river trips yet so I can't speak to how it does in easy rapids. I got the boat because I happened to be driving past the Old Town factory store in Old Town, Maine-and who wouldn't stop to look around, right? I'd been looking at kayaks in this general size/class and this one had a good price, so I gave in. I also sat in, but haven't paddled, a Castine 145. It felt huge compared to the 140 with much greater volume due to the higher deck. Even with my height, the 145 felt too big so I opted for the 140. I've been happy with the choice. As noted the boat has good storage in the fore and aft hatches, has bulkheads to seal off the areas, has good deck rigging, and a pretty good amount of space behind the seat. The seat itself is comfortable although I get the spray skirt caught on the higher back fairly often and have to adjust to get it onto the coaming. Foot pegs adjust easily as does the seat back and bottom. I haven't done anything to test how waterproof the hatch covers are, but they seem to seal well. The slide-out storage box under the fore deck seems kind of cheap and hokey. It has an o-ring seal on the lid, but I sure wouldn't trust it with keeping a phone dry if you flipped. The latch also pops open too easily as noted by another reviewer. Overall the Castine 140 is a good, steady boat that will do well on day trips and has the capability to take on longer adventures on lakes and should be OK with class I-II rivers.

I recently purchased the Castine 140 as an up-grade from a Wilderness Pungo 120 ( old style). The C-140 is sleek and has great features: large foot pegs, adjustable thigh braces and a comfortable seat. I fit perfectly (5'11" and 180 lbs.). I paddle on lakes and the Potomac River and its tributaries. It turns sharply and tracks nicely. I highly recommend this yak!!!! Robert T. "Bo" Myers

This is the first touring /sea kayak I have bought and hopefully it will continue to perform year after year. The tracking is awesome and very responsive so need need for the rudder. The 2 hatches aft and stern seal quite well and easily enough even though I feel Old Town could have done a better job. The slide out day hatch is abit of a toss up, on mine the latch to seal the compartment is not very strong and could open easily ( Hopefully Old Town will fix this). It is easily removed but at this point I would trust any valuable in it. The phone hold down could be better as well as the straps do not hold a phone very well. The foot pegs are easy to adjust so thats always a plus. The seat tilt adjustment should go back to the old style as it was easy to raise and lower and could not be lowered by an errant push of a button. Overall I really do like this kayak and would recommend as a first kayak for touring on a budget