Otter XT

Nice little boat. Great for the flat water. Very stable.

I have taken my Otter XT thru all types of water and it has never failed me. Creeks, inlets, strong currents, waves, choppy water, calm water, salt water, freshwater.

Despite having no hatches, the cockpit is huge and there is plenty of storage space between and in front of your legs. I added bungees about 15 years ago and have never had a leak.

The durability of the hull is incredible as I have beached the kayak on every surface imaginable (rocks, sand, shells, seaweed) and have never had an issue. I can just about stand up in the cockpit if I wanted to and I would still have a hard time capsizing due to the extra width and almost flat bottom.

Although it is on the heavy side due to the strong construction, it's easy to portage with two people with the carrying handles or solo via the cockpit-shoulder method. The handles also allow for tie d own straps when transported on the roof of my vehicle.

I have paddled short and long distances. This includes two 20-mile circumnavigations of an island off the East End of Long Island. I have set small blue claw crab pots via my kayak, left the pots to fish for striped bass, come back to get the crabs, and paddled over to my favorite clamming spot - all due to the maneuverability and adaptability of my Otter XT.

I am never going to get rid of my Otter XT as it's always there for me when I need it.

This boat is all bass, no treble. Wide load. 28.5 inches of junk-in-the-trunk. (Xtra Turgid!) So it takes a deliberate act of violence to tip her on calm water, but every single power boat wake is cause for concern. She also tracks like a tilt-a-whirl and moves the water like an ox plow. And despite what the spec sheet says, she's more than a few donuts over 40lbs. This is likely due to her nuclear blast shield of a hull, which can withstand the abuse of even the klutziest tween. (Xtra Tuff!)

This freshwater gunboat is still being made under the Dimension label (see the "Escapade"), which is apparently the black sheep of the Johnson Outdoors clan as its 1990s-era web site (Xtra Tacky!) isn't even mentioned on the mother company's site.

One time we went to a tiny lake in central Saskatchewan (Damour Lake). It was very windy and the water was really choppy. I started to go towards the middle of the lake until the wind caught my rented 16' high end kayak and sent me back to shore. After that I could not get off the shore. My son on the other hand was able to (with hard work) go where I could not. He went around a point and out of my sight which worried me. I dragged my boat along the shore until I was sheltered from the wind. When I finally caught up to him he had a big smile on his face. He loved it. I think this is a great starter boat!

While I love my sea yak, I wanted a rec boat that would get me back to being able to toss a small boat in the SUV and grab the paddle and go without too much work or prep or fuss. Sort of an extension of the ever increasing role of kayaking in my life. *I also wanted a boat that could handle rough washing machine conditions if not white water-like conditions as I plan on taking it to Georgia in up to class 3 river conditions. I sometimes kayak in rough conditions as it is on purpose and have been wondering about the benefits of a more maneuverable boat in those water states -vs- my sea yak.

Purchased an Otter XT and have had it out in a variety of conditions. I am really impressed with this little yak and it is exactly what I was aiming for. Old Town nailed it with this little scooter. Yesterday I paddled it for over 15 miles (google earthed the trip), through large boat wakes and calm conditions at first to over 10 knot winds and 2 foot swells. I wanted it to do some river like surfing on the Indian and Banana River Lagoons which are sometimes present when the wind gets whipping. And I got a chance to try that out a little so far and let me tell you this little yak can handle the rough stuff!

The hull has a nice rounding on the sides to it and in combination with the slight rocker in the hull she handles slop and waves well. I've been having a blast with this boat and, as I've pointed-out, I am used to larger more expensive boats. I use a spray skirt and recommend you look into getting a very small paddle for her, like the Aquabound Shred (very short--maybe 220 cm) which I used on my 15 mile paddle (!!!). It is the right size and blade width to compliment this boat. It will offer you the right amount of torque and not paddle you out of track.

*If you are 6'3" and something like 200 lbs this boat is obviously not for you. Look elsewhere, respectfully. I am 5'10" and 138lbs. Way it is. Tomorrow I'm taking it back out in 20+ knot winds to see how that goes. This is a rec boat that plays very much like a moderate river runner white white water boat but with stability. Good deal.

Don't get me wrong this kayak is stable and fairly comfortable. It is a little short on leg room though. I am 6'1" and I cannot extend my legs all the way when using the pegs (which I use all the time).

If you are going to own kayak on a few ocasions then this might be the right kayak for you, however if you are planning on doing more (like every weekend) then spend a few hunded more and get a bigger (i.e. longer) kayak by Perception or even Pelican.