Self-Support Kayak Comparison & Grand Canyon Nov 2024 Trip Report

Some fresh objectivity on self support boats, flows, and packing with Kayaker Russ from Durango! 

Phone rings: “Hey Russ, it’s Annie Q, any interest in a self-support kayaking trip down the Grand Canyon launching in less than 2 weeks”

Me: 100% in.

The hardest part of going down the Grand Canyon is saying yes. Now that that was out of the way, the preparation begins! Normally my trusty Dagger Green Boat is quivering in anticipation for such an adventure but I wanted to try a skeg boat for this trip. There are several boats capable of such an adventure with the ability to pack 12 days worth of supplies. As stated the Green Boat is a good choice as well as the Dagger Vanguard, Jackson Karma, Liquid Logic Stinger, and the Pyranha 12r. The problems are the boils and flatwater, which are ample. These are particularly cumbersome obstacles in lower water and the release flows from Glen Canyon dam were forecast to be the lowest they release, bottoming out at 6500 cfs. Enter the Skeg! This dynamic fin that drops down on demand from the stern of your kayak increases the forward paddle efficiency by about 20% and saves a lot, and I mean A LOT of stern draws.

The long boat self support market is not particularly robust and finding a skeg boat is not exactly easy. The top offerings are the Liquid Logic Stinger XP, the Dagger Katana, Pyranha Fusion II and the Jackson Karma Traverse or Karma RG. These are mostly limited production boats and are not necessarily readily available…enter 4Corners Riversports who has a quiver of these boats available to rent for your outing. Our newly formed team ‘Team Skeg-Down were 4, and we all had skeg boats. There were 2 Liquid Logic Stinger XPs, a Dagger Katana 10.4, and a Jackson Karma RG. I'd like to offer you a comparison of these boats…

Firstly, all three of these boats are perfectly capable, safe, and durable enough to rally an expedition on moderate whitewater. They all performed well. Personally I have, and would again paddle every one of them. Sorry but I do not have a clear recommendation of which is best because they all legitimately perform their job well. There are some benefits and drawbacks to each though so let’s take a closer look…

DRY: The Karma RG and Katana were both impressively dry boats both with rear separate dry compartments accessed through a hatch. The Stinger XP also has a hatch but does not have a separate compartment. This is somewhat moot as everything goes into drybags anyway as even the hatch compartments are not completely dry. General Powell reminds you that you don’t want to have your flour go moldy or you may have a mutiny! The trick here is to get several smaller 10-20 liter drysacks and organize your meals, extra clothes, and sundries appropriately. Pro-Tip/Make sure the drysacks are different colors so you can learn which bag to grab for breakfast!

GEAR: The loading and unloading of the boats is a daily chore and some boats are easier than others. The Katana has a huge hatch as does the Stinger XP. These boats were much faster to load compared to the Karma RG as the hatch is pretty small. Gear in front of the foot pegs is a common thing and it’s no surprise the Jackson kayak wins easily here with no bolts or hardware to deal with. The footpegs on Jackson boats merely pull out providing ample access up front. This may be moot as well considering the second Pro-Tip/you can pack only the second half of the trip gear and food up front and only have to deal with foot pegs once.

HANDLING: Speed and agility was almost equal between all the boats. The Katana may have taken a little more energy to keep up as it is a more bulbous design and conversely the Stinger XP seemed to slice through water the best with its streamlined design.That being said with the low flows everyone was able to keep pace with approximately the same effort. Even with the heavy loads of 12 days worth of cold weather supplies the boats were able to change direction and maneuver through rapids. All models boast plenty of rocker to flow over small holes and keep your face relatively dry from splashing. One thing we all noticed is they are very stable and have a substantial secondary stability due to the huge amount of weight that makes them pretty hard to flip. Thankfully they were all very easy to roll back over after flipping, ask us how we know!

FUNCTION: The skeg function in each boat is designed a little differently. The Stinger XP has a lever, the Katana and Karma RG have a chord with a pinch. While loading the boats you have to be cognizant of the inner cable and be careful not to pinch it. It seemed the Karma RG had the most difficulty operating. There is also a little plastic ball you pull on the Karma RG that you must move before you put your skirt on or you will have to take your skirt off to uncover it. There were no problems with the Stinger XP or Katana skeg operation. How about another Pro-Tip/the skeg stays down all the time till beaching, when you turn backwards, lift the skeg and backstroke up to shore. Then you launch and put the skeg down again. Routine builds good habits and this simplifies if the skeg up or down.

FEATURES: Each of these boats have a few esoteric features that may set them apart. The Katana for instance has a glove box type storage container that is in the front pillar. It is easily accessible and adds to the easy access storage available. The Karma RG as stated above has easily removed foot pegs for forward storage access and it also has a nifty spot behind the seat that fits another murse/lap bag. With the Stinger XP you have the ability to load from the back of the seat so you can put heavy objects very close to your core center to make the boat easier to handle. All these boats have cordage to stow a map or hold down your helmet for a bit of relief when not needed. There are optional stow hatch covers that are designed to accommodate a leave no trace poop tube. There are also stow cover skirts that aid in keeping water out.

SUMMARY: It seems with the pros and cons added up the Katana may be a front runner.

Honestly each of these boats work just fine. I’d say the biggest con of the Stinger XP is the water soaking all your gear. I’d say the biggest con of the Karma RG is how small the access hole is. I’d say the biggest con of the Katana is the bow/foot compartment access. I’d say the biggest benefit of each of them is they get the job done. If you have the opportunity to sit in each of these boats and test the outfitting and how it fits you this may be the deciding factor. Let’s be real though, I’ve rode a keg through the Grand Canyon and frankly once you say yes, you’ll figure it out…

4CRS Take: There are a few other boats worth mentioning that weren't featured on Russ's trip, mainly the Jackson Karma Traverse, which is a VERY comparable option to the Dagger Katana. In fact, the handy Jackson Hard Hat Hatch Cover (designed to fit the Traverse) will even fit the Katana to help you get your groove tube out of your boat and allow for more storage. The Traverse has slightly more edge, and the obvious differences in outfitting between Dagger and Jackson, but otherwise they perform very similarly. Another boat mentioned was the Pyranha Fusion II, which, while being a solid design, lacks a removable front bulkhead making it very difficult to pack the bow with gear, thus we don't generally stock or recommend the Fusion for extended trips with lots of equipment (such as the Grand). If in the future Pyranha decides to make the bulkhead removable, the Fusion would also be a solid choice. We don't really consider the LiquidLogic Remix XP to be a viable option for anything over Class II+ 

As of this writing, the Dagger Katana and Pyranha Fusion II were the only models in full-time production. Currently the Stinger XP and Karma Traverse are limited run models that are not always available. The Karma RG has been discontinued for several years now with no indication of future production runs.