Carrying Kayaks on a 5th Wheel

[Plowking1]

Hi folks....looking for some advice and I hope I am in the right section of the forum for it...I would like to purchase 2 10' kayaks but I am not sure how I should haul them. I carry two bikes on the back of my 5th wheel now and I could buy or modify a platform to carry all and still be under my weight limit of the rear hitch (500 lbs)... or I could purchase a roof system for my 2018 2500 Ram quad cab.
I have a full time camera on the back of my 5ver so I would be able to keep an eye on everything back there if that comes into play. Either way, I doubt it will be cheap.
Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you

[Crusadernoob]

Roof rack for us,

[ependydad]

Truck roof rack. You're going to want to be able to carry the boats to the put-ins anyway.

If they're longer than the cab, you might need a front-hitch and goal-post mount.

[X_Medic 73]

following ..... there are big $$$ (ie 1800 USA $) solutions but that's way to much. Looking for a < 500 CDN $ solution.


Crusadernoob can yo give some info on your roof rack system, I have Coachman Chaparral and F 250 = close to your set-up.

[Belleville Bob]

following as well. F-250 and Flagstaff Super Lite 5er

[Sandbagger]

Roof rack, use the Yakima system set up specifically for my truck. Have hauled on three 13+ hour round trips without a problem. Helped that I found a dealer that knew the product and how to configure.

[Capt. Mike]

Originally Posted by Sandbagger

Roof rack, use the Yakima system set up specifically for my truck. Have hauled on three 13+ hour round trips without a problem. Helped that I found a dealer that knew the product and how to configure.

Sandbagger, we are looking at doing the same thing with our kayaks, carrying them on the roof of our 2015 Silverado 2500HD. What do you use to keep the front tie-down strap from rubbing the paint off the hood of your truck?

Thanks
Mike

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by Capt. Mike

Sandbagger, we are looking at doing the same thing with our kayaks, carrying them on the roof of our 2015 Silverado 2500HD. What do you use to keep the front tie-down strap from rubbing the paint off the hood of your truck?

Thanks
Mike

Back when I avidly kayaked, there were straps that you would mount to the body of the truck and they tucked up out of the sides of the hood. They were fantastic and saved any rope rubbing/abrasion.

[Capt. Mike]

Originally Posted by ependydad

Back when I avidly kayaked, there were straps that you would mount to the body of the truck and they tucked up out of the sides of the hood. They were fantastic and saved any rope rubbing/abrasion.

Thanks, Doug. Any idea what they were called or where to find them?

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by Capt. Mike

Thanks, Doug. Any idea what they were called or where to find them?

Back in the day, the company was called TopTies. These look to be the same thing:
https://www.amazon.com/Seattle-Sport.../dp/B07W9B1C97

These ratchet rope things are awesome, too. I had ones made by Thule, but this is the same idea:
https://www.amazon.com/Sentry-Ratche...dp/B06XVFDM5W/

Makes real quick work out of tying down the fronts. Remember, the purpose of these tie downs are to prevent lift of the front kayak which puts stress on the roof rack. You aren't "securing" the boats with them and you don't need a ton of gorilla strength put into them. I've seen people warp plastic boats by getting nutty with them.

(Warping and cracking boats is also why you have to be careful with ratchet straps when securing them to the racks themselves.)

[rickndebi]

I carry mine on top. Thule removable rack on top of truck and thule goal post. I have changed trucks since this pic but i use the same process

Originally Posted by Plowking1

Hi folks....looking for some advice and I hope I am in the right section of the forum for it...I would like to purchase 2 10' kayaks but I am not sure how I should haul them. I carry two bikes on the back of my 5th wheel now and I could buy or modify a platform to carry all and still be under my weight limit of the rear hitch (500 lbs)... or I could purchase a roof system for my 2018 2500 Ram quad cab.
I have a full time camera on the back of my 5ver so I would be able to keep an eye on everything back there if that comes into play. Either way, I doubt it will be cheap.
Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you

[fred3]

Look up “Vertiyak” holds 2 kayaks in vertically. Saw a fifth wheel with one at Raystown Lake last month. Considering getting one for my Wildcat

[RoyalFrog2]

We had a 2 person 14' kayak on top of the truck UNTIL we changed to the 5er. Our solution was to sell that and buy an inflatable. We love it! The box with deflated kayak fits in the basement of the 5er. The bikes go on the back of the 5er. Lovin' our toys!

[4ester]

I formerly put removable bars on the roof of my F-250 Supercab when I carried our kayaks while towing. That got old fast. I removed the bars when not carrying kayaks because they created a distracting roar at even 40 MPH. So each time we traveled, I had to carefully mount the bars on the roof of my very tall truck as the manufacturer is very specific about where to place them. I then had to lift our 49-pound 12-foot kayaks over my head as far as I could reach to get them on the truck. I then lashed them down and tied them off front and back, which made our tonneau cover impossible to open without undoing the tie-downs. When just kayaking without our TT on the hitch, I slide the kayaks into our 8-foot truck bed and tie them in in less time than it takes to talk about it. But I finally had enough of all the gymnastics of carrying hard-side kayaks while towing, so I invested in two inflatable Sea Eagle kayaks that weigh 26 pounds each and roll up into their supplied bag for transport in the truck bed under the tonneau. They inflate in minutes and are WAY easier to carry than our hard-side kayaks. They don't handle quite as well as the regular kayaks, but the ease of transporting and lifting them more than makes up for any of their shortcomings. I highly recommend this route.

[Sandbagger]

Capt. Mike, the straps that came with our Yakima system have an adjustable clear plastic sheathing that is 3 times wider than the strap itself. This plastic sheathing comes in contact with the top of the plastic chrome colored front grill. Have not had any rub issues to date.

We had to play with the placement of the kayaks on the roof to make sure that they did not come in contact with the 5er during sharp turns. Sold our Prime Time Crusader this year and bought a Cedar Creek Hathaway 34IK. With the change of 5th wheels had to move kayaks further forward on the roof racks. Recently had to do a U-turn on uneven ground due to a low bridge and to do so had to loosen the tie downs and temporarily move them forward another few inches. Both my DW and I are always aware that they are on top when we run into situations like this and also when I am backing into a campsite with a sharp angle.

[FlaNative]

We carry our kayaks similar to Crusadernoob: our kayaks are the 10' length and fit nicely on our '05 GMC 2500HD. However, loading them and removing them is a hassle due to the height of the truck. We currently use the Malone brand of cradles mounted on top of Thule cross bars. Now we're considering the Thule Hullavator carrier system, which allows the kayaks to be loaded from the side of the truck, then raised up onto the Thule cross bars vs. loading from the rear of the pick up bed and then up onto the cradles. Has anybody had any experience with the Hullavator style of kayak carrier? We would like any feedback on that. Thanks!

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by Jimmy James

Now we're considering the Thule Hullavator carrier system, which allows the kayaks to be loaded from the side of the truck, then raised up onto the Thule cross bars vs. loading from the rear of the pick up bed and then up onto the cradles. Has anybody had any experience with the Hullavator style of kayak carrier? We would like any feedback on that. Thanks!

I knew an older gentleman who had fishing kayaks loaded to the hilt with add-ons. Those boats had to be pushing 80-100 lbs. He did guiding trips with them and loved the Hullavator.

I'd buy it in a heart-beat.

A cheaper option is a simple extension bar that comes out from the side of the bars. You set one end on that and then the other end up. Or something. I forget. You still have to lift it 7' into the air, but you only do 1 end at a time.