Kayaks ?

[rfugitt]

Anyone putting recreational kayaks on their baja ? ive got a couple 14 footers, dont know if i can fit them side by side on my baja. Any pics ?

TIA

Ray

[RedHeckle]

Will you be using the factory rack or a third party like Yakima or Thule and their crossbars? If using either the factory rack or thrid party, putting 2 14ft kayaks on top with the hulls down will probably not work due to the total widths of the kayaks. I'm guessing that the beams (width) of each kayak or yours is at least 24inches.

You're best bet is to have the kayaks laying on their gunwales (sides) using J-shaped saddles on a third party rack system. The set up I use for our 2 17ft sea kayaks on my wife's Baja is a Yakima rack system with 48in long crossbars and their kayak carrier, HullRaiser (2 sets of them). This setup has been pretty solid at highway speeds of 65-70mph. I might have pictures somewhere at home, if I do I'll post.

You might be able to fit one kayak hullside down and one angled in J-saddles; you just need to work out the math and test fit.

Hope that makes sense (I'm still waking up after the long weekend), let me know if I need to clarify stuff.

-Glenn

[WallyGator]

You can barely fit two hullraisers (yakima) or hullaports (thule) both J-shaped carriers on the stock aerobars yet they flex a bit when aattaching bow and stern straps. Yakima makes mounts that fit the Baja (EZ RIDER 05,06) plus bars of your choice.-with the 58" bars cut down to 52" I fit three hulls- one flat on the center on Hully rollers and Mako sharks (Y) and on on each side Hullavators(T). The center hull is 24"wide and just fits. The bars have much more strength than OEM yet they still warn not to exceed 100# -which I do on a regular basis. Check the Yakima site.
W

[rfugitt]

I went to my local sporting good store and they suggested the "j" shaped thule's which would mount directly to the exisiting cross bars. Does this sound realistic ? Two on each side ?

[RedHeckle]

I went to my local sporting good store and they suggested the "j" shaped thule's which would mount directly to the exisiting cross bars. Does this sound realistic ? Two on each side ?

I'm guessing that they showed you the Thule Hull-a-port which looks to be similar in design/size as my Yakima HullRaisers, so yes, you get 2 saddles per kayak. Total width space on your roof is the issue.

J-saddles that are mounted so that both cockpits face away from each other takes up the most width but makes it easier to load boats. You can mount J-saddles so that the cockpits face the same direction and this will take up less space, but may make loading/strapping difficult. You can pick up two sets of the saddles and try fitting your boats at home; and if they don't fit return them.

As for load bearing of the factory crossbars with 2 kayaks (~120lbs?), personally I wouldn't trust it or any other factroy rack, especially at highway speeds. I would hightly recommend either Yakima or Thule to transports your kayaks IMO.

If you go the factory rack route, you should use bow/stern tiedowns (everyone should no matter what kind of rack used) as added security.

Whatever you decide, let us know. Good luck in your quest

[Eric]

Over the years, I've had several sea kayak carrying setups on various trucks and cars and my 06 Baja wasn't hard to figure out. Seeing your boats are only 14 feet long, you should have no problems if you ditch the factory racks and install two 48 inch Yakima bars, secured onto the factory-rack with a couple of sets of Yakima EZ Riders. Don't forget the golden rule of hauling sea boats. Four tie downs, two ties around the rack/saddles, two ties on each end of the vehicle.

I was able to haul two 17 ft Looksha IV sea kayaks side by side with the 48 inch setup (one was a - longer/wider - High Volume Looksha). Don't be misled by the width (48 inches) of the crossbars, saddles can be postioned right at the end of the bars and the boats can go side-by-side and slightly hang-out over the side of the rack setup - unless your rec-boats are excessively wide. You won't bang your head on the boat/rack setup because of the shape of the body of the car... and you won't lose your boats at the drive-through cash machine Erring on the side of caution, IMHO, I prefer not to trust the short roof of the Baja to haul $5,000 worth of kayaks, the crossbar spread is a few inches too narrow (27 inches or so) for my liking, whether carrying the boats flat, with HullRaisers or Stackers. FWIW, my solution to Subaru Baja sea kayak carrying capabilities... I have bought an A.R.E. canopy
http://www.4are.com/product/baja/

Along with Yakima bars and EZ Riders on the cab, I have Yakima Tracks and crossbars on the canopy (tracks and bars can be installed at the A.R.E. factory). I now have the flexibility of four crossbars should I need 'em (you never know when you have to haul a 4x8 piece of plywood). Of course, I don't drive around with four crossbars but I do have infinite possibilities of two-crossbar rack positions for all of my outdoor toys, not to mention the ability to haul our 100lb, 20+ft long tandem sea kayak. The A.R.E. canopy is the best canopy I've owned, it's solid, the paint matches perfectly and it comes with a decent lock. The canopy keeps stinky neoprene (and our stinky dog, for that matter) away from the new-car smell. I don't have any photos yet.

One more thing, you may prefer the Stackers over the HullRaisers, a choice of many old-school boaters.

[NOTBRAT]

Looks like you've got some pretty good advice already on the kayak racks. I prefer Thule over Yakima. I bought Yakima first and they didn't fit the cross-bars.

I have one kayak to mount so my rack is set up to carry it flat. I had a different rack for my Toyota 4Runner (kayak stacker?).

Pictures are on my website: http://www.bretsbaja.com

[iflyfast1]

If you go the factory rack route, you should use bow/stern tiedowns (everyone should no matter what kind of rack used) as added security.

So where are you guys attaching the tiedowns for the bow/stern on the baja? I think I can tie off in the tailgate area, but I'm not sure where to tie off on the front without the strap rubbing on something.

Anybody have any pictures?

[NOTBRAT]

To attach the front tie-down, I use the attachment that is on the right front bumper. It's hidden by a removable section of the plastic bumper. It's also not easy to remove. I use a screw driver to pry it out, which also damages the very soft plastic.

And, yes, the tie-down line will then rub against the bumper. Try using a small rag to wedge between the line and the bumper.

This would have been something nice to see improved upon with a second generation Baja. But, that of course is not to be.

[Eric]

Personally, I'm a duct-tape kinda guy, and use rope to tie down the bow and stern (soft stuff, from a kayak store, but available almost anywhere). I don't worry much about rubbing, but if I did, I would experiment with plastic tubing covering the rope at the contact points. The rope does loosen if left overnight, or gets wet, but I haven't had any problems and tightening as necessary, not too tight though - you should be routinely checking your setup anyway.

Make a bowline on one end of the rope and attach to the boat, feed the free end of the rope through the bowline/boat and then feed the free end down through the loop under the car, then up again, then use a truckers hitch and a slip knot. I've been transporting sea kayaks for many years with the same ropes and haven't lost a boat yet. Do a Google to find out how to tie the knots.

I have an '06 and there is a loop way under the front bumper (I don't have to remove the tow-loop cover), you'll have to get on your knees to find it.

If you want to get fancy, you can use Yakima Straps with buckles, or major manufacturers make tie downs that make cinching down very easy. Just don't cinch 'em too tightly.

[iflyfast1]

I crawled under the Baja this weekend. Looks like I'll have to either use the tow hook location or the metal loops under the bumper, and then figure out a way to protect the paint with a rag or something. Thanks guys.

Now if I could just decide on which kayak to buy. So many choices...

[Eric]

Good hunting.
http://www.paddling.net/buyersguide/

[iflyfast1]

Good hunting.
http://www.paddling.net/buyersguide/

Wow. Good information. Thanks.