Spirit

Purchased yellow Walden Spirit in 2001. Enjoyed it with three daughters, my wife and my sheltie.
Now 2018, enjoying it with my grandson and lab mix. It's in great shape and looks really nice. At 61, I can still lift it easily onto my Jeep Cherokee (remove the seats first). I've crabbed, fished, and toured with it in the Delaware, Manasquan, and Shark Rivers, Carnegie Lake, and Barnegate Bay. It is a special part of my family.

We have owned our Walden Spirit tandem for over 15 years now it was the first kayak we owned and it is still in great shape. The Spirit is a very dependable and versatile. With it's adjustable seats it can be paddle as a single, tandem and even has a child seat so that we can paddle as a trio with our grand daughter. We have own several sea kayaks but you can't beat the spirit for flat water or slow moving rivers. At fourteen feet it is easy to load and ideal to paddle in tight spaces. When we bought it the salesman told us it was completely recyclable but it does appear that will happen anytime soon.

I bought a purple one of these used a few weeks ago and have had it on a few flat-water lakes and creeks (2 trips a weekend, 5 weekends). The boat is nice. If left stock, it is a plain-jane kayak with a large singular cockpit, earning it the "Kayoo" moniker. Because of the kayak characteristics, it can go where canoe's do not dare. Because of the canoe characteristics, it can hold tons of gear (14+ feet) and is good for those claustrophobic types not liking hip hugging kayak fitting.

The seats are neat due to the ability to reconfigure them, but they are hard plastic, without cushioning... so take heed. I have padded the seats with after market self-adhesive pads (much better), added paddle clips (convenient), deck rigging (bow) and two cat-bag dry hatches (5.5 inch) in the stern. She is now a custom, comfy and convenient kayak for two suitable for 6-8 hour trips anywhere.

I wouldn't trade her for the world.

This is the fifth kayak I've owned. I've had single seaters, tandems and a folding double. I'm 240 lb and often paddle by myself. Occasionally I'll paddle myself and one of my two sons. I've paddled this kayak on lakes for just over a year, at least once a week and often twice on the weekends. This kayak tracks well and is very stable. I use it rather harshly along shore lines, paddling over logs, rocks, etc. and find that it handles the "abuse" quite well. I've found that the bottom of the hull does not hold it's form (tends to bow upward) after only a few uses. I store the kayak indoors and out of the sun so I don't think it is from material distortion due to the sun. It could very well be that my size has a bit to do with that too. Rarely I find that the molded fixtures on the side of the seat (that slide on the rails) want to disengage from the rail, also probably due to my larger frame. Lastly, I wish it had a drink holder (this is not that big of a deal). All that being said the kayak was very reasonably priced and I don't regret the purchase one bit! I would purchase another one in a heartbeat if I didn't want to spend a few hundred dollars more for a upgrade.