Last summer, we impulse-purchased an Intex Excursion Pro Inflatable Kayak. Well, calling it an impulse purchase may be inaccurate. We searched and searched for this kayak. Turns out, people had snatched it up during the pandemic. It became one of those magically hot items. We couldn’t find it anywhere, despite looking for months. On a whim, we located one—just one—at an Academy Sports two hours away, so we jumped in the car, drove straight there, and acquired ourselves the kayak.
The whole ride, we were second-guessing the decision. Will we use it enough? Will it pop if it scrapes up against a log? Will inflating it be more hassle than it’s worth?
The epic road trip we had planned to Montana and Wyoming provided part of our motivation for getting an inflatable kayak. We fly a lot; it’s our preferred method of travel. But we had no interest in boarding an airplane mid-pandemic, so we asked ourselves, “What spot do we yearn to visit that is less convenient to fly to than to drive to?” The answer emerged: the Northern Rockies.
What did we hope to accomplish there? (1) Hike. (2) Experience Yellowstone. (3) Kayak a mountain lake. The first two seemed easily attainable. For the third, we needed to either rent a kayak or bring one. Reading up, the rental process seemed troublesome. At some locations, it was first-come, first-served. At others, no rentals were available. If we were to bring a kayak, the problem was transporting it. We rented a car for the trip, and it didn’t have a roof rack. The inflatable kayak solved our problems. It could be packed in the car, instead of on the car.
We spent five nights in Paradise Valley, Montana north of Yellowstone, arriving late the first day and then spending the next three full days in the national park, where we hiked and sightsaw and tried to spy wolves. On the fifth day, we drove through Yellowstone to Grand Teton National Park. Staying at Colter Bay Village, we hoped to take the kayak out on Jackson Lake immediately upon arrival. Unfortunately, we missed the inspection station at the park entrance, so we had to go back and that became an ordeal. Once we got it in the water, though, the wisdom of the acquisition showed itself.
The Intex Excursion Pro Inflatable Kayak seats two people and takes about ten minutes to set up. It comes with a pump that handles both inflation and deflation. The kayak has three chambers to fill in a particular order. It doesn’t require as much air as one might think and would be easy to overinflate, so the included gauge is helpful.
The seats require manual inflation—the old-school method with your lungs. They attach at the bottom with Velcro, and for support, a strap wraps behind the seat and clips onto metal rings on the sides of the boat. Footrests slide into built-in loops on the floor. The seat positions adjust to accommodate the heights and sizes of passengers.
The oars come in five pieces which snap together. While they aren’t made of the toughest plastic, we haven’t had any problem with their durability. The kayak has interchangeable skegs: a shorter one for shallow water and a longer one for better directional navigation. Intex calls this a fishing kayak. It is equipped with fishing rod holders, but we’ve never installed them.
Our maiden voyage on Jackson Lake proved eventful, but not because of the boat. Being from Missouri and not accustomed to clear water, we misjudged the depth. What we thought was two feet was about six, and we tumbled into the water like massive goofs and lost our phone to the abyss. We actually recovered it, but it never operated the same. The next day we hit String Lake, a small, calm, shallow lake just north of Jenny Lake. Floating on the pristine water was perfect—exactly what we’d hoped for when daydreaming about acquiring our own kayak.
This summer, we’ve taken out the kayak for a couple weekends. We found this Vivaglory Neoprene Life Vest for our 12-year-old Boston Terrier, Odie. He doesn’t help much with paddling but thoroughly enjoys the boating lifestyle. Even with our wife, the three of us fit just fine in the kayak. He even has room to nap. We bought this MARCHWAY Dry Bag to store our phone and other items that we’d prefer not get wet or lost.
Remember how we acted like Yellowstone was a once-in-a-lifetime trip because we couldn’t fly there? This year, Southwest began service to Bozeman, and we returned to Montana a mere 12-months later. Having no backseat in which to throw the inflatable kayak, we schemed and schemed. Our wife pleaded with us to let it be, but we remained determined. Finally, we realized that the bag, included with the kayak, measured just under 62 inches, Southwest’s allowable limit. We tied up the boat to ensure it fit nicely. We put some accessories in another suitcase to protect them. Our flight left at 5:50 AM, we changed planes in Denver, we landed in Bozeman, we collected our checked luggage and rented our car, we got lunch, we stopped by an inspection station, and we launched on the Hyalite Reservoir by 1:30PM. Amazing.
The Intex Excursion Pro Inflatable Kayak may rank as our very best pandemic purchase, though there are so many from which to choose.
