[Paddlewise] Kayak Car

With my spouse now back at home from a critical stay at hospice, I know her
days are numbered. I'm caring for her 24/7 right now. My teens are doing
their own camping these days with their friends so it was time to get rid of
the GMC Safari AWD van. Great vehicle that seats eight  but hard on gas and
way too tall with my bad back for hauling a kayak and getting it on and off
or even getting in and out). I looked around and liked the Volvo V40, Audi
wagons (AWD models are really nice), VW TDI wagons, etc, but settled on a
used Subaru Outback Limited (preowned). It has a great AWD system, a bit of
ground clearance (seems less spartan than the Forrester and easier to sleep
in when one misses a ferry, etc.), is low enough for my health issues, and
is a bit better on gas than the AWD van (I took out a Toyota Yaris but
couldn't pull the trigger). In Canada we can buy a small SUV by Nissan
called the X-Trail but most of these smaller SUVs are not real off road
vehicles so why pretend? And I don't do real off-roading anyway - just
moderate snow, icy/really wet roads, and the odd steep, muddy put-in. Now I
just need a carbon/Kevlar kayak I can lift and then maybe I can go find some
solace on a kayak road trip in a while here.

 

Doug Lloyd 
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