My fellow paddler who carried off my Dirigo reported that he paddled it for the first time the very next day. The first boater he encountered on the water remarked to him what a very handsome boat the Dirigo was/is! I am at peace.

Thanks to Magooch and Deb for your suggestions as to which boat should replace my Patuxent. I know that both of you (and everybody else out there in Kayakland) give your boats at least a 9 and more likely a 10 out of 10 (don't we all?). But as I've indicated in some other posts, for me, sea kayaking is a Head Trip--I'm not a picky paddler when it comes to boats; I just want a boat to get me there and back. (Besides, how many meaningful differences can there be among 200 models of roughly 17-foot, 22-inch beam sea kayaks?)

With that in mind, I was looking for a boat with a slightly wider beam than my 22-inch Patuxent, a rudder (always), and much lighter weight. So I got the Epic 16X (after test-paddling it), and got a kayak that actually is a little bit different. I'm sure I'll discover things about it that are less than perfect, but, like all of my boats, I'll learn to live with them, and continue to have a fabulous time out on the water.