Sea Kayaking Articles from P&H Staff, Team Paddlers, and Friends

Tag: Lightweight Sea Kayak

A Taste of the Ultralight Volan

As a proud owner of a Cetus, I have been on many sea kayaking adventures, exploring the outer Hebrides, the caves of South Wales, and the coastlines of Scandinavia as far north as Tromso in Norway. However, I always thought that a longer, expedition-style sea kayak was necessary for these types of trips – which I realise might be a common misconception. That is until I was told to check out the P&H Volan

I have wanted to paddle a Volan since its release, and I was curious to see if a shorter kayak could still provide the speed I needed for group paddles and solo missions, while also offering more manoeuvrability for rock hopping and playing along the British coastline. So, when I had the opportunity to try out a demo of the Volan 158 in P&H’s new Ultralight layup, I jumped at the chance to steal it for a weekend.

The Expedition layup of my Cetus, complete with rudders and accessories, weighs around 26 kg. In contrast, this new Ultralight Volan, made of a kevlar/carbon weave with additional strengthening bands, weighed in at only 14.8kgs. It is truly a thing of beauty, and I was warned not to break it!

Despite being designed for touring in the fjords of Norway, lakes from Windermere to the Great Lakes in the USA, and the perfect conditions of the European continent and the Mediterranean, the weather and the tides don’t always tell the story you want to hear though, and the fun Spring tide conditions in Pembrokeshire were calling Gabi and I to make the trip to West Wales for the bank holiday weekend.

As someone who grew up as a slalom paddler, I have developed a strong appreciation for lightweight composite boats, while also learning to avoid rocks. Most slalom paddlers will remember the sound of the first time their composite boat connected with the rocks below, but most also remain true to their composite roots. I was amazed by how light the Volan felt when I picked it up, and in the right light, you could see the construction showing through, which served as a reminder that rocks are not our friends.

This education makes us all too aware that composite boats are not to be seal-launched or landed on rocks.

My first impression of this boat began the moment I picked it up to place it on the roof, but I knew that the real test was to come when we arrived in Pembrokeshire. The Bitches, a tidal race between St Davids and Ramsey Island, is well-known for its fast-moving water, complex eddy lines, and breaking waves and would also be a perfect testing ground to make sure the specification was strong enough to be a P&H Sea Kayak. The new Ultralight construction did not falter in these conditions, and it was an absolute joy to paddle. It cruised quickly up the coastline, ferrying across the flow, through the back eddies and paddling out of the whirlpool-like transitions between all the contrasting flows. The Volan’s manoeuvrability blew me away when I threw it on edge, where I am sure weight is a contributing factor, but not the only factor for this design excelling.

While there was a little more flex in the hull due to the reduced layers of fabric, this was only noticeable when I side-surfed a larger breaking wave on the back of the tidal race. Even then, there was no damage to report, but it’s worth noting that these are not the conditions that the Ultralight construction is designed for.

The P&H design team had a vision for this new construction, and I’m sure that it will be a hit among paddlers around the world. The single-person carrying and loading onto roofs are just some of the benefits, as the Ultralight layup is a game-changer on the water.

Whether you’re touring in the fjords or paddling on lakes in calmer conditions in this spec, or playing in the British coastline with a more hardy Expedition layup, the Volan’s versatility is evident in every stroke and it is firmly on my list as a boat to work towards.

All models of P&H Composite Sea Kayak are available to order in the Ultralight layup now, including the brand-new Composite Virgo!

The P&H Volan; A Tale of Two Boats

The developmental road of the Volan has been a long one, and we thank the members of our global network of specialist dealers and P&H Pro Paddlers who packed generous amounts of energy and enthusiasm, and joined us for the journey…

We originally announced the concept, a complementary pairing of polyethylene and composite, lightweight sea kayaks focused on day and weekend trips, at PADDLEexpo in 2018. Whilst many have found their perfect, two-boat fleet in a combination of an Aries or Delphin, and a Cetus or Scorpio, we also recognised that not all had the necessary funds or storage space for two boats and that this new range also had the potential to fulfil the needs of those paddlers.

We soon reached a fork in the developmental road, though; one path led to a shorter design with a relatively straight keel, whilst the other’s destination was a 16’ sea kayak with pronounced rocker. We decided to explore both, with the former becoming the polyethylene Virgo (you can read more about the Virgo in its own blog post), and the latter becoming the composite Volan.

The Volan is 16’ in length with a pronounced rocker profile and subtle chines, which in combination, allow the boat to swing around nimbly in the surf, and keep the weight low, reducing the effort required to move the boat around both on and off the water.

Our 50+ years of cross-discipline design experience shine through once again, including the incorporation of the innovative wave deflectors seen in recent Pyranha models, deflecting spray outwards, away from the paddler when powering through chop, and creating dynamic bow lift without excessive volume or rocker.

The Volan’s combination of a planing, mid-section hull and finely tailored chines is enhanced by decades of experience with the performance characteristics of this type of hull in the Pyranha range of whitewater kayaks, ensuring the edges are tuned to engage when desired without hindering the paddler otherwise. The hull shape and dimensions promote planing performance and manoeuvrability at high speed on a wave yet retain tracking and efficiency at the lower speeds associated with normal paddling.

In that vein, the Volan eschews the school of thought which says a sea kayak must be unstable when motionless to perform in motion, and is exceptionally stable when flat, yet comes alive at the influence of your paddle strokes or the engagement of an edge.

The properties of the Volan’s hull are amplified by our advanced construction offerings; Lightweight Kevlar/Carbon Infusion offers incredible, industry-leading weight saving, hull stiffness, and durability, for higher performance, lower exertion, and increased longevity. Learn more on our constructions page.

In summary, the Volan’s features include:

  • The renowned comfort of our Connect outfitting
  • All the predictably smooth characteristics of the Cetus in a lighter, more compact format for shorter journeys and easier portaging, transport, and storage.
  • Influences from the Aries, such as a wave-piercing bow, to enhance the play potential of the responsive, compact design with lower swing weight.
  • A planing, mid-section hull with subtle chines, which can carve on a wave face and manoeuvred using traditional techniques during normal paddling.
  • A rocker profile tailored to partner with the intent of the hull design, whilst working with the bow wave deflectors to produce a dry ride in a wide variety of water conditions.
  • Exceptional stability, making a great platform for all abilities to take in the sights, whether that’s with your eyes or a camera.
  • Balanced sheerline and deck profile, allowing simple trimming with the skeg to neutralise the effect of wind and waves.
  • Low-profile back deck and cockpit rim for easier rolling and re-entry.
  • Bow, Stern, and Day Hatches as standard, with optional Pod Hatch, allowing paddlers to choose between the weight saving or additional storage.
  • The most comprehensive range of construction and custom options available. Create your own, bespoke P&H Sea Kayak on our customiser.

We’re proud to offer a performance, composite sea kayak which combines the essence of both the Aries and Cetus in a single, compact, lightweight design, making it equally competent from simple excursions over a long-weekend to a few hours of fun in the surf, and all the varied trips in between; the Volan.

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