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Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg

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Product Description,
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The Essence 16.5 kayak from Perception is built to perform on the ocean with a design that provides a blend of speed and stability.

Touring style hull offers excellent versatility; great for those seeking a boat for everything from open water to local lakes
Cockpit is snug and precise fitting, providing positive fit for aggressive edging and rolls without being uncomfortable for casual touring
Rigid polyethylene hull withstands years of use without the need for maintenance
Liquicell seat technology focuses on the elimination of low-back pain caused by sitting in one position over long periods
Adjustable footbraces and padded foam thighbraces customize cockpit for maximum performance and comfort
Fully bulkheaded bow, stern and day hatches provide generous dry cargo storage for extended voyages
Cockpit-deployable skeg enhances tracking in rougher water and windy conditions
Perimeter deck lines for increased safety and easy re-entry into kayak
Deck rigging on bow and stern lets you stash items you want to have readily available
Ergonomic carry handles at bow and stern make trips to and from the water a cinch

Made in USA.

Item 767858

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Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg

4.3

(based on 3 reviews)

100%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Comfortable (3)
Easy in/out (3)
Easy to lift (3)
Easy to paddle (3)

Cons

Best Uses

Day trip (3)
Kayak camping (3)

Reviewed by 3 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-3

Sep

2010

(4 of 4 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this kayak

By SBSG

from Minneapolis Area

About Me Advanced

See all my reviews

Pros

Comfortable
Easy Entry & Exit
Easy To Lift
Easy to Paddle
Good Maneuverability
Stable

Cons

Best Uses

Day Trips
Flat Waters
Kayak Camping
Rivers

Comments about Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg:

I absolutely LOVE this kayak. It is so amazingly comfortable. I have had it for over a year now and I would buy this same exact kayak if I was in the market to buy a kayak today. I researched all the multi day kayaks in great detail and this one wins in all categories. I love the THREE water tight compartments, especially the one right behind the cockpit on the right. The seat is SUPER SUPER comfortable and adjusts very easily. I completed the Mississippi River Challenge this summer in it and it was perfect. I highly recommend this Kayak.

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Dec

2009

(8 of 11 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

Great Advanced/Intermediate Boat

By Ladyfoot Lindberg

from Northern Michigan

About Me Casual/ Recreational

See all my reviews

Pros

Comfortable
Easy Entry & Exit
Easy To Lift
Easy to Paddle
Stable

Cons

Slow

Best Uses

Day Trips
Flat Waters
Kayak Camping
Rivers

Comments about Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg:

I own the Perception Essence 16.5 in the Airalite makeup, not the poly makeup shown here. Both are plastic materials, though and I assume the handling will be similar between both versions.

I have found this boat to work really well at an intermediate to advanced level of kayaking. I live right on Lake Michigan and it handles well on both large rivers in my area and in open water on the lake. It is very stable, even difficult to roll if you're trying to. The phase three outfitting on the boat provides a very comfortable and adjustable seat and back band. I found the leg lifters on the seat to be especially handy for longer trips. Also, the foot pegs adjust almost brainlessly and it's easy to do from within the boat. The upper thigh braces are comfortable, but will require tools to fully adjust so I recommend setting that up before paddling out.

Only a few minor complaints here which rob this boat of a five-star rating: the hull design and wide beam slow this boat down. I myself am more of a recreational paddler and don't mind taking it slow, but I have noticed that the top speed is less than other boats I have paddled. Conversely, if you load this boat down with gear for a tour, then the added stability of this design works out as a nice plus, and it seems to handle well in most conditions even when loaded up.

One other drawback is that the bulkhead rims were glued on instead of molded to the boat, so they can break off if you lift too hard, which is easy to do with the stiff rubber lids that are provided. I personally prefer bulkheads which seal with neoprene and a hard plastic cover, but this is what you get with this boat and it's not all bad. Just be sure to bring along a repair kit which contains a methacrylate glue to make plastic repairs while you're on the water.

I'm not sure if I would take this boat into the open ocean, but it handles very well on the Great Lakes, most rivers, and any inland waters. I imagine that it would perform well on a sheltered ocean area as well, such as a bay or gulf.

Finally, the skeg is alright but you'd better learn to paddle before you become dependent on such accessories. I rarely even use mine, but it can be helpful in a tight spot. I really enjoy this boat and certainly recommend it to any mid-west paddlers that are looking for an easy to handle touring boat at a recreational level.

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Aug

2008

(63 of 63 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

This is a Great Boat!

By AIC Fan

from Nor Cal

About Me Competitive

See all my reviews

Pros

Comfortable
Easy Entry & Exit
Easy To Lift
Easy to Paddle
Good Maneuverability

Cons

Not Enough Storage

Best Uses

Day Trips
Kayak Camping
Ocean Swells

Comments about Perception Essence 16.5 Kayak with Skeg:

On the water I've tried out the WS Tsunami 145,165 and Old Town's bigger Cayuga (forget the length and exact model) and they were ok. I decided I didn't like having a rudder set-up because the one day I paddled the Tsunami 165, which has a rudder, (on an all day excursion) one of the footpegs broke off with about 2 additonal parts, that would be a disaster out on open water in windy conditons as you wouldn't be able to control the rudder. I ordered the Essence 16.5 sight unseen. Yeah, a BIG risk. I didn't realize it was a new model that came out in Spring 08 and thus the low amounts of reviews I've been able to find on it. I've been paddling it for a week and really have come to love this kayak. It's 22 inches wide (the Tsunami and Cayuga are 24" wide)and you can really haul butt with it! You can keep up a fast cadence with relative ease, this is a great touring and fitness kayak. It cuts an excellent tracking line through the water. Primary stabiltity is good. Secondary stability is excellent. The essence is more manuverable than the Wilderness System boats, and way more manuverable than the kinda clunky Cayuga. I haven't paddled it in the ocean yet but have gone out into rough lake water in windy and powerboat chop (1-3 ft high) where I had to use bracing strokes for some sections where choppy waves are abeam of your boat and the Essence performed like a champ. The deck rigging is well laid out and practical. The hatches are not completely water proof, if you flip the boat a tiny amount (about 1-2 tablespoons) of water can get in. The hatches are the rubber kind that just clamp on by themselves and don't have any straps etc. to insure total water-proofness. For some people totally dry hatches are a must, for me this is a minor niggle. I do a lot of kayak camping and you simply have to live with a little less storage capacity with a skinny boat. I don't think you'd be able to pack more than a comfortable weeks gear and food in the boat. I have ultra light backpacking gear so space is not an issue. The stock factory seat is great. It is comfortable and low-profile, so getting in and out via the venerable kick-stand method is a snap. The Essence comes with a skeg, it really does work well in wind keeping the boat on a straight course in wind. In fact there were two days with really high wind ( 30 -35 mph) in a few sections and I experienced only some SLIGHT weathercocking! I am impressed. I was really concerned about durability too. At 55 lbs. this is on the light side for a plastic boat. The comparable WS boats are all over 60 lbs. After owning the Essence and hauling it around, I'm not worried about it. Of course there is no perfect kayak yet, but this boat does have a great combination of speed and stability. The other boat I had/am considered getting was/is the Prijon Kodiak, for all the gear packing capacity. The Essence is my first sea kayak and I wanted something with a little more speediness and was a great overall kayak and I am totally satisifed in that respect with the Perception Essence 16.5

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Displaying reviews 1-3