I have a 15.5 Zephyr. I love the way the boat paddles, handles, etc. Only problem is deck height. I'm having issues with my knees and feel I need a little more room for comfort, but I really don't want to give up the handling aspects of this boat. I mainly paddle it in fairly tight creeks and swamps as I have a composite boat (Cetus LV) for more open spaces. The Cetus, while low volume, has more room for my old painful knees. I know about the Zephyr 16, but wouldn't mind looking at other options (down to say 14'). Any suggestions. 5'10" 170lbs size 10 shoes.

So, are you mostly interested in a polyethylene boat?

Yep, need something durable for bumping over Cypress knots, logs, oyster shells, etc.

My suggestion is to take a look at what Current Designs has to offer. They seem to do a good job with poly. I would also recommend taking a look at What Necky and Old Town have. One of my boats is an Old Town 138 Loon and for the kind of paddling you're talking about, it would be superb. It doesn't come up to the 14' you mentioned, and it is kind of heavy, but the Loon is a great boat. I don't think they build them anymore, but you might find a used one.

If you like the Z I'd take a good look at the 16 foot version. It has more knee room with a bit higher deck and the same performance as the 15.5. The other option is to remove the thigh pads and replace them with some 1/2" thick neoprene or minicell foam. This opens up some room, as well. Lastly sometimes moving the seat aft a touch helps reposition your legs/ thighs.

BTW- I work for Confluence Watersports (who makes the Z)and helped design it along with Bob Mc Donough.

Steve Scherrer