kayakers, how do you transport your boat?

[avidone1]

I have a 2014 Honda crv  which is not a big suv

My local lake is a mile away, so transporting my 12 foot eddyline to it is a simple cargo area deal with a couple of bungees

but for my longer treks I need to car top it.   I have the factory installed roof rails and crossbars, but I'm still not sure which

kayak transport system to attach.   I'm only 5'6" so the j hook system probably won't work for me.

How do y'all get your yaks to the lake?

[Dye99]

I retired one of my work trucks, a 90's chevy z71 4x4 to be my "fishing truck" so my kayak stays in the bed loaded and ready to go at a moments notice. I use the T-bone tail gate extender as well so I can just pull it up in place somewhat easy.

 

[Choporoz]

I got a new Thule 'Glide and Set' off eBay for $100 and I absolutely love it.  Not sure I'd pay $220 if I had to do it today, but for $100 its a no brainer.

[Mobydick]

I have a 2013 Dodge Dart and have been car topping my Jackson Big Rig for 2 years now. At first I was using those metal tubes that have the foam blocks on them but they are the most unstable thing out there for going over 30 mph. Last year I bought some Malone VersaRail Bare Roof bars, now I can just toss it on, run 2 straps over it and its solid. I have had it up to 80 mph and it didn't budge. Here is the link - http://www.basspro.com/Malone-VersaRail-58-Bare-Roof-Cross-Rail-System/product/14102905570055/?cmCat=CROSSSELL_PRODUCT

[J Francho]

I toss it in the bed, gate down.  Secure the bow and somewhere mid ship. I have an orange reflector flag that hangs from the stern to complete the deal.

[Preytorien]

I car top it, upside down on my 2003 tracker. Between the roof rack rails. I put 2 cross straps on it, then a bow and stern ratchet strap

[Fisher-O-men]

4 hours ago, avidone1 said:

I have a 2014 Honda crv  which is not a big suv

but for my longer treks I need to car top it.   I have the factory installed roof rails and crossbars, but I'm still not sure which

 

I put mine on the factory racks of my Highlander, right side up, and secure it with two ratcheting straps. Done!  For your height you will need to open the doors and stand inside the door opening.

Reminds me of a song, "short people got...".

[boostr]

I bought the grey foam blocks that fit nicely on my Xploder's factory roof rack cross bars and two cam straps on the front and rear, and that's that. A total of 30 bucks. I am gonna be looking for a trailer though, the Lure 11.5 is kind of a pain to load on that high roof.

*UPDATE*

Now I have this.

 

[buzzed bait]

6 hours ago, J Francho said:

I toss it in the bed, gate down.  Secure the bow and somewhere mid ship. I have an orange reflector flag that hangs from the stern to complete the deal.

this is the same for me....  sure my ride 135 looks a little goofy hanging out the back of a nissan frontier, but looking goofy has never stopped me before!

[Darren.]

6 hours ago, J Francho said:

I toss it in the bed, gate down.  Secure the bow and somewhere mid ship. I have an orange reflector flag that hangs from the stern to complete the deal.

This is what I do, as well.

As for the Thule mentioned by @Choporoz I have a 
buddy who is close to your height who uses it to top
his yak on a Jeep. At least I think it is the same one,
he has an extra piece that goes across the middle
of the back that allows him to prop his yak up, then
walk it up from behind the vehicle.

[DogBone_384]

I drive a Toyota Tundra with ladder racks. When I fish alone I slide my kayak in the bed. When I take multiple kayaks, two go on the racks and a third in the bed.

ADD:  hey booster, I can toss my Lure 11.5 on my ladder racks by myself, even after a full day of fishing. Unladen, it's about 75 pounds.

[buzzed bait]

2 hours ago, Darren. said:

At least I think it is the same one,
he has an extra piece that goes across the middle
of the back that allows him to prop his yak up, then
walk it up from behind the vehicle.

i fished around with an old guy here locally for a while one day and he loaded it up on these by himself.  guy was probably about 70 or so and refused any help.  he made it look pretty easy too!  same method, put it in the middle and walked it up from the back.

[flyfisher]

Trailer is the easiest way to go and doubles as storage when not fishing.  makes it super easy to load and unload and get out on the water.

[NinjaAbassin]

I used to throw my old yak straight in the bed of my pick up with a couple ratchet straps... Now I have a lure 13.5 and do the same but have a bed extender to support the end. 

[wpwarhawk]

I haul mine in my Honda Ridgeline, I use a Boonedox bed extender. 

[jbw252]

In the bed of my F-150, with a bed extender. Quick & easy.

[avidone1]

20 hours ago, Fisher-O-men said:

I put mine on the factory racks of my Highlander, right side up, and secure it with two ratcheting straps. Done!  For your height you will need to open the doors and stand inside the door opening.

Reminds me of a song, "short people got...".

For a 'fisher of men" you sure got some devil in you LOL

[J Francho]

Bed extenders?  We don't need no stinkin' bed extenders!  I've carried 17' boats in my PU bed without. Through upper Manhattan, right up Broadway, lol. 

My buddy has a bed extender for his little Toyota Tacoma short bed.  Works like a charm, and wasn't too pricey.  Definitely worthwhile if you feel like your bed is too short, or the boat feels unbalanced.

[moguy1973]

For our Highlander I use Inno bars attached to the factory rails and the Inno kayak dual kayak carrier.

I put the upright in the middle of the car though because it's easier to put the kayak(s) up there.  Inno also makes a single kayak carrier that looks to work rather well.

[Caliyak]

Chevy Silverado, red flag, one strap and off I go. 

[avidone1]

On ‎4‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 2:12 PM, boostr said:

I bought the grey foam blocks that fit nicely on my Xploder's factory roof rack cross bars and two cam straps on the front and rear, and that's that. A total of 30 bucks. I am gonna be looking for a trailer though, the Lure 11.5 is kind of a pain to load on that high roof.

so you put the foam blocks right on the crossbars?   When you slide the kayak over them, do they slip or come off the rack?  this sounds like an easy cheap solution if it works good

[HeavyTwenty]

59 minutes ago, avidone1 said:

so you put the foam blocks right on the crossbars?   When you slide the kayak over them, do they slip or come off the rack?  this sounds like an easy cheap solution if it works good

I used the foam blocks on my Civic's crossbar. If you do slide the kayak into position, the foam blocks can come off or become damaged. To avoid this, I put an old kitchen floor mat on each foam block, so when I slide my kayak into position it would easily glide on top of the mats. When its in the final position I just lifted the kayak up slightly and pulled the mats out. 

After about 50 trips, my foam blocks are pretty worn out. But they were mostly damaged early when I didn't use the kitchen mats. With the kitchen mats, I bet I could have easily gotten 200 trips out of them.

[Bluebasser86]

Toyota Tundra with the tailgate down, 2 ratchet straps. 

[avidone1]

On ‎4‎/‎9‎/‎2016 at 1:24 PM, HeavyTwenty said:

I used the foam blocks on my Civic's crossbar. If you do slide the kayak into position, the foam blocks can come off or become damaged. To avoid this, I put an old kitchen floor mat on each foam block, so when I slide my kayak into position it would easily glide on top of the mats. When its in the final position I just lifted the kayak up slightly and pulled the mats out. 

After about 50 trips, my foam blocks are pretty worn out. But they were mostly damaged early when I didn't use the kitchen mats. With the kitchen mats, I bet I could have easily gotten 200 trips out of them.

Great idea!  I have one mat but I was just going to use it to cover the top of the lift gate so it wouldn't get scratched.  never occurred to me to use one over the blocks.   Thanks!

[Landis Carrier]

The Kayak Wing.