I have no prior kayaking experience except occasionally paddling one while camping with friends on still water. That’s fun and all, but I’d like to get out on the water on my own, to some of the nearby lakes near me, maybe once a month during the sunny seasons. None of these would have anything remotely considered as “rapids”.

My main consideration is transporting a prospective kayak, as I greatly prefer biking rather than driving a car for distances within an hour of me, which includes two or three suitable bodies of water. While I have the capacity to store a conventional hard-shell kayak at home, I’m exploring a folding kayak, since this could go with me in a car for farther locations, on a bike for nearby waters, and even a bus. I feel the hassle of moving a 12 ft hard-shell kayak would discourage me from ever using it outright.

This specific model won’t ship until October, which might be a bit late in the season, but it’s on sale for $300 out the door, or $273 because of a 10% email coupon for keeping it in my cart for an hour.

I’m aware that this isn’t anywhere comparable to conventional kayaks, certainly not in price, rough water handling, and maybe not even longevity. But at this particular juncture, and for that particular price point, I think I have a use-case that aligns well with a folding kayak, and if I do develop the itch for something even better, I can always upgrade later. I can accept that this might be a “kayak-shaped toy”, but if it floats on water and moves, I would be happy to start with that.

To that end, my questions for this community are whether there are other comparable folding kayaks I should look at, or reasons I should or shouldn’t proceed with this purchase in the coming days.

Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!

Update: I’ve ordered it and hope to see how it turns out when it arrives in October