How To Transport Two Kayaks In A Truck | All Good Fishing
If you have an adventurous tooth, you must love kayaking to get a chance of getting closer to nature to experience it at its best. In fact, there are millions of people who prefer kayaking as it has seen significant growth in recent years. In a nutshell, kayaking is a very adventurous sport to experience joyful moments.
Though the kayaking itself is pretty calming, transporting out your kayak isn’t a cup of tea. Especially if you have got two kayaks for your family or friends as well; their transportation could get even worse if you don’t know about the exact things. Here, you will get to know how to transport two kayaks in a truck.
A truck is a common way to transport your kayak out there especially if you have got angling kayaks. Most of the time, trucks are capable enough to carry a kayak if you have got a sufficient floor bed along with a mounted tailgate as well. But, carrying two kayaks in the same kayak is no less than a challenge.
You should not worry as you are on this guide that will explain the same thing to you. So, let’s take a closer look at it. To safely transport your vessels in your truck, you have two options of carrying them through the bed of your truck or at the roof of your truck. We will see both of these cases.
How To Transport Two Kayaks In A Truck | Initial Supplies
In order to carry your boys in your truck, you need to make sure of the availability of some essential stuff, so the transportation can get there safely. First thing first, if you want to transport through your truck’s bed, you need to measure it first. After measuring it out, compare it with the size of your vessels.
Normally, fishing kayaks have a minimal length of 06 feet and this could go up to 15 feet as well depending upon so many factors. For the smaller vessels, transportation would not be a big deal. But, both your vessels are bigger, you would need extenders to extend the floor bed of your truck.
There would be many options for the extenders as well, but we strongly suggest you get any of these:
- ECOTRIC Pickup Truck Bed Hitch Extender
- Lund 601021 Hitch Truck Bed Extender
- 7BLACKSMITHS Fold Truck Bed Extender
These extensions are some of the most impressive ones out there on the market and they can easily handle up to 400 pounds of weight. So, you can use them for any hectic stuff. Also, you will get safety flags as they are much needed and we were about to elaborate about this.
If you are not happy with the bed extenders, you can always opt for the trailers or kayak carts with two wheels. They are quite more durable than the extenders but very expensive at the same time. So, you have possibly every best option on the plate.
Now, trailers or extenders aren’t going to magically transport your kayaks, you would surely need some fasteners for straps to ensure safety while traveling. For that reason, you can either pick buckle straps or Straps with hooks.
Along with all these things, you just need a companion who will be assisting you with every single thing to get it done. Ask for someone’s help and make your life easier.
How Do You Carry Two Kayaks In A Truck? | Follow these Steps
Here the battle begins!
Step 1:
The very first thing you need is to clear your truck bed by removing all unnecessary and bulky stuff. This way, you will get sufficient room to put your kayaks into that. Another thing to make sure; if there are any scratches, try to cover any existing scratches as those scratches could lead to serious scratches on kayaks.
Step 2:
Often people confuse whether the tailgate should stay open or closed. Depending upon the model of truck you got, you should keep it open as it could provide a significant length to your bed, especially if your truck bed is shorter than usual. After putting it down, you need to decide if you need to put an extender or not.
If you need it, just put that extender with your truck. However, if your floor bed has got a significant room with the tailgate, don’t forget to put your tailgate back. Otherwise, your kayaks are at risk of getting slipped if you are offroading.
The hull side of your kayak should be on top of the tailgate and vice versa. If you see your kayaks hanging out of the truck bed, you might need an extender to avoid any potential risk. Otherwise, you should ensure displaying a red flag for safety concerns. So, the vehicles behind you can pay a bit more attention to you.
Step 3:
Now, just don’t start driving the right way. You still need to strap your kayaks to ensure they both are tied perfectly. Other than this, you can also sandwich both your kayaks, and then you can strap them down. After strapping both your kayaks, pass the straps with the anchors of your truck and fasten them gently.
First, try to load your kayaks one by one as this would be a bit easier and more practical than putting both of them all at once. If it doesn’t go fine, you can set them side by side. Again, ensure your friend can assist you while settling things down.
So, that’s exactly how you should carry your two kayaks on your truck. The procedure may seem a bit technical or lengthy, but it is still better to bypass any risk or failure in transportation. Still, if the procedure seems technical, you should pick inflatable kayaks as they are pretty easy to carry and require no effort at all.
Wrapping Up
Transporting a kayak is even more challenging than paddling a kayak. If you have got two kayaks and you want to carry them both in the same truck, this would be challenging even more. Because trucks are always limited in terms of space.
In this article, we have addressed the same query on how to transport two kayaks in a truck. By following the methods explained above, you will be able to safely transport your kayaks. Initially, you might have to put some effort and budget to get essential stuff. After that, you will have peace of mind.