Inflatable Kayaks & Canoes

This is the main page for all things inflatable kayak-related. Instead of wading through many pages of mixed boats and accessories, you can click the indivdual categories directly to your left.

Our inflatable kayak line includes whitewater models, kayaks for oceans, calm water, and even for backpackers. We feature AIRE, Innova, NRS, Tributary, Incept, Hyside, and a couple of our Boat People exclusive design touring models. We may also be adding some PakBoat skin & frame kayaks in the near future. We tend to not carry the mass marketed boats because frankly, there are too many big box outlets where you can buy these nearly at wholesale. More importantly the low end models tend to cause dealers more grief due to quality issues than they are worth for the teensy bit of profit we could make. Details on solo whitewater, tandem whitewater, and solo & tandem touring inflatable kayaks are found on their four respective pages, but some rough rules of thumb about all models are as follows:

The more boat length in the water, known as the "waterline", the more easily a whitewater model will ride through holes but the harder it will be to pivot quickly. The shape of the boat's underside also matters, flatter bottoms always being better in whitewater. Long waterlines on a touring kayak - inflatable or otherwise - increase hull speed and tracking. Wide boats are more stable but also slower. In other words, there's no such thing as a fast flatwater boat that is also going to be a great, stable whitewater craft.

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Inflatable Kayak & Canoe Payload

An i.k's total payload capacity (your weight plus your gear) depends on width & waterline length, tube diameter, and on self-bailers, how thick the inflated floor is from top to bottom. In some instances you will be sitting directly on top of the inflatable floor, and on other kayaks there may be an inflatable or foam seat underneath you. Many of the Sea Eagle, Stearns, and Sevylor "self-bailers" that are being sold today have floors that only range from 3" to 4", so if you are a larger person, and particularly if you want a tandem boat, you want to keep this in mind. To really function properly most true river inflatables will have floors 5" to 6" thick, or at least 4" on some of the longer solo models. All inflatable kayaks in our two whitewater sections are self-bailing except the Innova Vagabond.

We don't try to carry every brand of inflatable kayak. Many companies sell direct to the public, and some brands simply don't seem to offer good value for the money. This usually has to do with the price/quality/warranty formula. The absence of a boat or brand from our site does not mean the product isn't worth your consideration, but we do carry inflatable kayaks that have proven to provide excellent performance, at the minimum cost per per year to own.

Call us with any questions at 925-820-2628, or email us at theboatpeople@hotmail.com . We have had issues on and off with with our "info@" email address not forwarding (to us) properly, so don't use that one for now or we may not get your questions.