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On Sale Now!
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Coho
by Pygmy Boats, Inc. (kit)
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Coho Design Statement:
The Coho extends our line of ultra-light wood glass-epoxy kayaks.
I designed the Coho as a general-purpose touring kayak. She is fast-her
171/2' length with plumb stern gives her a long waterline. Her rounded
hull and rockered keel give her low wetted surface for high cruising
speed. Her speed, light weight and good manners make a great touring
boat. She tracks well, turns easily and handles heavy seas with
ease. She does not weathercock and paddles well without a rudder.
The
Coho's beautiful, four-panel deck creates a low sheer height in
the cockpit area-allowing you a closer paddle stroke. The deck chine
is positioned right above the paddler's big toe for more foot room.
Her
maiden voyage was a 200-mile, five-week camping trip on Great Slave
Lake in Canada's Northern Territories. I loaded her with a four-person
tent, double sleeping bag, cast iron skillet, pots and pans, over
40 pounds of food and lots of clothes, gear, fishing tackle and
stuff! She took it all and handled heavy water superbly.
She
has enough stability for novice paddlers. The Coho's speed, light
weight and maneuverability make her a great day paddler. She's the
number one choice of advanced kayakers who visit the shop. Since
her introduction in June 1997, her versatility, ultra-light weight,
excellent handling and elegant looks have made her our best-selling
boat.
John Lockwood
Pygmy Boats Inc.
Reviewers:
VS
5'2", 160-pound female. Day trip, winds to 10 knots; flat water
to light chop.
KB6'2", 210-pound male. Day trip in light variable breeze
to 10 knots. Boat wakes to 21/2 feet in open water and breaking
over a shallow bottom.
KW 6'2", 200-pound male. Day trips, from calm seas to light
chop with winds to 10 knots.
Coho Review:
The Coho is
a stitch-and-glue kit boat. The multi-chine kayak has "nice sleek
lines, and the beauty of a wooden boat can never be matched by an
all-fiberglass boat. This boat will turn heads on the water, the
beach and on the car top" (VS). "The beveled deck is a fantastic
feature which really helps make the stroke more comfortable" (KW).
Weighing
in at under 40 pounds, the Coho is "super easy to get up on my shoulder
and carry around" (VS). " I am amazed by how easy it is to solo
carry this boat and load it onto the car top" (KW). The Coho tested
had no toggles for a tandem carry.
This particular
Coho had bungies laced through padeyes forward and aft of the cockpit.
There were no bungies for carrying a spare paddle and no grab line
on the perimeter of the deck-both features that the builder could
add. "The cockpit is quite large, with plenty of room for me to
lift one leg out first" (KW). VS also found the opening easy to
get in and out of, while KB thought it was "too long and wide to
afford me a secure fit. In order to maintain knee-to-deck contact
I had to paddle with my legs widely splayed. An owner-builder could
probably install thigh braces to make a comfortable and secure keyhole
cockpit."
The seat is
a self-inflating Therma-rest pad velcroed to the hull. It is "comfortable
enough, [but] a boat like this really begs for the builder to build
a custom seat out of closed-cell foam" (KW).
The back rest
is a padded band that for KW was "simple [but] more comfortable
than the most expensive aftermarket back rests I have seen." The
adjustable foot braces "provided solid support for paddle strokes,
bracing and edging the hull" (KB). The Coho tested had no rudder
and, in the conditions encountered, none of the reviewers felt that
the boat needed one.
"The Coho has
a little bit of light initial stability, but nothing that feels
tippy" (VS). Its "secondary stability is outstanding. The boat is
very easy to set up on edge, while providing plenty of secure support
even for extreme amounts of edge" (KW).
The Coho "carves
[turns] nicely, though it doesn't quite have the sense of digging
in to the [turn] that I prefer. Still, the boat is beautifully responsive"
(VS). KW "had a little trouble turning the boat until I got used
to the moderate amount of edge required, and then I had no trouble
making fast corrections to my course." The Coho "tracks quite well
and doesn't have to be constantly driven onto a course" (VS). In
winds to 10 knots, KB and KW noted only a slight tendency to weathercock,
but it was easily corrected by edging. VS noted the Coho was well
balanced on all points in a 10-knot wind.
KW thought the
Coho was "quite fast." It "picks up speed quickly. This boat is
not going to wear out the paddler on a long day's cruising" (VS).
KB "didn't have any trouble catching power-boat wakes [up to 21/2
feet]. Once on a wave it was easy to continue surfing in a straight
line, but the Coho didn't lend itself to maneuvering much to play
on the wave face."
VS noted that
on a "fairly large power-boat wake there was nothing to indicate
that the boat had any unpleasant tendency to throw water in a paddler's
face." But for KW, the strap securing the forward hatch "can break
up the smooth flow over the front of the bow and throw some spray
whenever the bow plunges in steep chop."
KB had difficulty
rolling the Coho because the knee braces didn't fit him properly.
For KW, rolling was "a snap, provided a secure fit in the cockpit."
While practicing reentry rescues, KW noted that the aft bungies
worked well for setting up a paddle float-the ridge on the aft deck
was low enough that it "did not hinder solid bracing on the paddle
float." KW thought the coaming aft "seemed a little higher than
necessary and tended to catch on my life vest attachments." For
KB, the cockpit opening was easy to reenter.
The Coho has
plenty of room for gear: two or three weeks worth, according to
KB. Nylon straps and tightening levers hold the wooden hatches onto
neoprene gaskets. The system "seemed unnecessarily fussy" and allowed
some leakage, "two to four cups in each compartment after a long
rolling and reentry session" (KW). The mahogany plywood bulkheads
are glassed in place and are secure and watertight.
While KB would
like to see better thigh bracing and a simple hatch closure system,
he thought the Coho provided "seaworthy, serviceable performance
for a paddler my size. It's not playful, but it tracks well, and
edges and maneuvers reliably, securely and predictably." KW "really
liked this boat. The good handling for its length combined with
its quickness and beauty send it to the top of my ratings for an
expedition-style kayak." While noting that beginning paddlers should
learn to edge the Coho to turn it, KW thought "it would be a good
training boat for advanced beginners on up." "Of all of the boats
I have reviewed, the Coho is my hands-down favorite," wrote VS:
"the combination of light weight and superb handling make this a
wonderful boat. It is a good-tracking cruising boat I would recommend
to anyone, whether a novice or an experienced paddler. While it
may be a little light in initial stability for some novices, I think
it is well worth adjusting to because it is such a well-mannered
boat overall."
Designer
Response
Thank you for reviewing our new Coho. I was thrilled that your reviewers
liked the boat so much. There is nothing as beautiful as a wooden
kayak, especially when it is combined with ultra-light weight and
superb performance.
KW
loved the Coho's unique new beveled deck. It gives you the maximum
foot room for the lowest sheer height. While your test paddlers
ranged in height from 5'2" to 6'2", all experienced the ease of
stroking close to the hull without banging their knuckles.
A
closed-cell foam seat with hip pads, knee braces and full thigh
braces is available from us. One of the advantages of building a
Pygmy kayak is that the builder can outfit it to fit his or her
weight and leg length. One size never fits all.
I
took the same Coho your reviewers tested on a two-month paddle last
summer. Even with waves washing over my hatches, I experienced no
leakage. That is our customer feedback as well. My guess is that
your reviewers needed to tighten the hatch webbing, which easily
adjusts.
Your
test paddlers thought the Coho was good for avid beginners. At our
shop, highly skilled test paddlers arrive to try out many of our
13 kit boats. They almost always choose the Coho. Nearly half of
the novice paddlers select her as well. I spent intense weeks on
the computer CAD design of this boat, followed by construction of
three prototypes. I refined the Coho's lines and handling until
she reached my concept of that sweet balance of tracking and turning,
with good edging. When one of your reviewers sent her "to the top
of my ratings for expedition-style kayak" and another states that
"Of all of the boats I have reviewed, the Coho is my hands-down
favorite," I feel like all that work was worth it.
Thanks for the great review. Thanks for offering the paddling public
expert opinions and statistics.
John Lockwood
Options
and Pricing
Designed: 1997
Standard construction: 4mm marine mahogany sheathed inside
and out with 6-ounce fiberglass cloth and epoxy. Building time:
around 70 hours.
Standard Features: Kit includes precision pre-cut panels,
System Three epoxy, fiberglass cloth and tape, illustrated construction
manual and building materials.
Options: Bulkheads, hatches, rudder, deck rigging, closed-cell
foam seat with hip pads, knee braces and thigh braces.
Approximate Weight: 39 lbs. (using kit's recommendations)
Price: custom glass $695
Availability: From the manufacture
 Pygmy
Boats
P.O. Box 1529
Port Townsend, WA 98363
Phone: (306) 385-6143
E-mail: pygmy@olympus.net
Website: www.pygmyboats.com
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