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My Wife and I pulled the trigger on a pair of the Pelican Odyssey 100s from Costco this Spring. We didn't know much about kayaks but we found out quickly that while I was under the max capacity for the Odyssey 100 at 260 pounds, I was close enough that the kayak would swamp easily even with something as simple as stopping abruptly. The rear storage area was very useful and the shock cord was nice for keeping things in place, however any extra weight to the rear of the kayak made the depressed storage area even easier to swamp. Once that area was full of water there was no way for it to escape so you ride a little lower due to the extra water weight. If you keep up the activities that swamped the rear deck the water can then cascade right into the seating area over the back. I never filled the Pelican, or capsized but I took on a lot of water in the learning process. After handing off my gear bag, leaving just me and my paddle in the kayak I was still swamping the deck and getting soaked by water coming over the back while trying to enjoy my day in a big flat river. The claimed max capacity is 300 lbs. I think that would work if you didn't move. My Brother has a Wilderness Systems Pungo 120 with a 325 lb capacity and that kayak floats me very well, I never get wet using it and I have been in far more aggressive water with it than I ever put the Pelican in.

This Kayak works well for my Wife, though she has swamped the back a bit in the calmer waters, she is light enough that the kayak trims well and she rides pretty high in it. The Odyssey was nimble, and stable for me, despite all of the water it would take on. I felt it tracked well, but that could have been because it was nearly submerged. My wife doesn't complain about tracking but she's not picky. I see her spinning with every dip of the paddle, so I think it's pretty wiley when you're not full of water. It came with a pretty decent aluminum-shaft, plastic bladed paddle.

The kayak is rated for "Lakes and slow-moving rivers", even at that it wouldn't work for me. I had the bug however and was enjoying this new hobby with my Wife and Brother so back to Costco I went and upgraded to the Equinox Angler 12.0, sit-on and I am completely happy with my purchase. I realize not everyone gets the chance to try it before they buy it so hopefully this review will either help someone to be sure that they fit the bill for the 10 footers from Pelican, including the Intrepid that they seem to have replaced the Odyssey with, or steer them away from it if they are over 200 lbs and don't want to be confined to bath tub calm waters.

I did a lot of homework on this one. I'm weighing about 260 lbs these days and hadn't considered the weight rating on kayaks before I decided to buy one. While I am under the weight limit of every kayak I've tried so far I have seen the downsides of being close to the weight limit, and how that can hamper your adventure by restraining you to calmer waters. I found the Equinox at Costco for @ $400. They informed me they will no longer be carrying this particular model however. Included was a very decent aluminum-shaft oar with a plastic blade. The oar has two rows of locking holes so you may clock the blades offset to your liking in a narrow position for more confined areas, or a wider length for open water.

The Equinox Angler 12.0 is able to carry me and loads of gear safely through much rougher water than lakes and slow moving streams with the 420 lb. weight capacity. At 12 foot the kayak is faster than the 10 foot sit-in kayaks I have used, but it's not quite as fast as a 12 foot, Wilderness Systems Pungo 120(sit-in). The Equinox is not as nimble and easy to turn as the 10 ft. sit-in from Pelican, the other Costco offering, but it is far easier to turn than the 12 ft Pungo I mentioned. That Pungo has a fairly deep keel that really makes it track well, but Equinox, as well as Pelican and others, are using the Dihedral hull shape to track very well, keep a wide bottom, stable shape, and still turn well due to not having a deep keel.

The heel lock cups molded into the boat are sufficient. I have only slipped a foot once or twice so far in a few trips to a rough river, my Brother just didn't like them, he has used foot pedals in his Pungo exclusively for over a year now and couldn't get comfortable with the heel cups. He did notice the stability of the Equinox right away with an "Oh wow!". There is a flat recess pressed in the mold right above the heel cups for adding a foot pedal system. That is on my list of upgrades because I feel far more controlled using my toes. The 10"x18" bow hatch gives you unrestricted access to the gigantic interior and I have yet to use up all of the storage on a fishing trip. I have not capsized yet, but I have submerged the bow briefly, and sprayed the hatch with the hose while washing and never have I found so much as a drop of water inside. This is the best sealing hatch I've seen so far, even the Wilderness Systems hatches leak frequently. I believe there is plenty of space to 3-day camp from this kayak. Possibly longer depending on how you pack.

The seat back has not been my favorite part. They simply ran a strap through the back of the pad and then forward to a buckle on either side of you. The buckles twist and the soft strap bunches easily making it impossible to adjust without getting out and straightening the straps. The seat is comfortable when adjusted, but it's nice on occasion to change the sitting position a bit when you've been rowing a while. The two 6" storage hatches have leaked several times now and I suspect it's due to over/under-tightening. They also have an annoying habit of sticking once closed, even finger-tight. I made a tool for it and it's no longer an issue, but without some kind of tool those hatches would have been sealed forever.

The kayak has 6 total scupper holes, 2 in the sitting compartment, 2 by your feet, and 2 more in the open rear cargo area. Equinox gave me 4 plugs and I wouldn't want any more. I leave the rear scupper holes open and it self-drains very well. I have had the entire sitting compartment completely full of water and there were no poor handling characteristics due to it. Sometimes we play in the whitewater, probably 2 foot swells max, and I feel stable, confident, and in control with this kayak. I can stand in this kayak, though I think fighting a fish would be hilarious to watch while doing so. There is no flat place to put your feet however, so standing is quite uncomfortable.

That's about all I could complain about, seems like a short list for the price of this kayak. I looked at numerous manufactures of sit-in kayaks and couldn't find a weight rating this high for even twice the cost of the Angler 12.0. Most of my complaints about this boat could be fixed in addition to the purchase price for far less than the cost of some higher end kayaks. You could even hire the work out and be money ahead if you aren't comfortable modifying a fishing kayak.

I would recommend this kayak to anyone heavy like me, especially if you're the adventurous sort and would like to be able to bring some gear along. If you're a smaller person this kayak may be a tad heavy for you to put in and take out solo. At 66 lbs it's not as light as a Pungo 120, but I can and do frequently carry it down the boat ramp by myself. Hope this review helps someone save some money and enjoy the water.