Sea Eagle 385ft Inflatable Kayaks and Canoe Reviews

7 Discount Packages available. starting at $999

sixstringsteve 7/17/2014 4.5 out of 5 stars.

I love this boat for flatwater. It gets overwhelmed quickly in anything over class 2, but that's why they make the Explorer. We did a 45 mile, 3 day, 2 night trip on the Green River in Moab on this boat and it did fantastic. It was the perfect boat for the conditions. Video found here:

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4ToYCP-BII

Full review with pics and video here:

http://backcountrypost.com/forum/threads/sea-eagle-fast-track-385-inflatable-kayak-review.3322/
joel 6/18/2014 4.5 out of 5 stars.

O.k. here's an honest review of the SEA EAGLE FastTrack385(2013 model). I want to mention, before I start, that one of the most important aspects of evaluating the quality of a product is the issue of how long it will last under 'normal' use, and that this is something that I can't comment on as I've only had it for a couple of months.

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I feel that this is important to mention here because for the average working class person like myself, THIS IS AN EXPENSIVE ITEM. While the average hard shell recreational kayak costs between four and five hundred dollars (Canadian), this baby set me back almost thirteen hundred bucks when all was said and done, so I would expect it to last for many years. Sea Eagle guarantees the boat against 'manufacturing defects' for three years, but for the price I paid, I would expect it to last much longer than that. Only time will tell. That said, It seems like a very high quality product.

I'm enjoying this thing immensely. I don't know much about fabric but this cool, hard rubbery stuff just seems to bounce off of, and slide over everything. I paddled with a seventy pound lab in the boat and had no worries whatsoever about the floor. The kayak is extremely stable, and it tracks perfectly. The inflatable seats are very comfy, and they put you in a great paddling position a few inches off the floor. You can stand in this boat and use it as a paddle board, and it's absolutely great for fishing. Furthermore, you can jump off of it for a swim, and easily climb back in without tipping.

I can't say all that much about the speed of this kayak because I'm not an experienced kayaker, but I can say that it's as fast as any recreational kayak I've ever paddled. I've also paddled upwind and up-current, and it stays straight. You can easily put an electric motor on this kayak thanks to some rear 'carry-handles'(I can't wait to try this), and another great feature is the fact that you can position the inflatable seats any where you want to in the boat, facing either forward or backward. This way, You can just sit back, put your feet up on the side of the boat and fish while your girlfriend does the paddling......like I do, and hopefully will for many years!
Gary M 1/31/2014 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Overall for lakes and bodies of water greater than 12" deep the FastTrack is a great inflatable kayak. However, for skinny rivers (like many smaller rivers in the summer that have shallow spots) the FastTrack has problems. Because of the inflatable skeg up front the FastTrack requires the paddler(s) to have the rear skeg in place which makes the FastTrack unusable in many shallow spots or rivers with submersed tree branches. If someone reverses ends to track better without the rear skeg in place the square front of the inflatable skeg gets hung up on submersed objects.

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In short, if you tour smaller rivers in summer that have many shallow spots or submersed objects this is not the kayak you want.
Mike S. 1/27/2014 5.0 out of 5 stars.

My wife and I have both a 2012 Sea Eagle FastTrack 385 and a 2013 Explorer 380X model kayaks. Both are excellent boats that easily store in our small hatchback and are built tough but we are very careful about which one we use on our trips. While both are capable of traversing flat water and whitewater neither one is perfect for every adventure.

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The FastTrack 385 is excellent for flat water lakes, bayous, reservoirs, or any body of water that doesn't become shallow but not the best for whitewater. When you install the included skeg and air up the front keel it tracks dead straight and is a pleasure to paddle but gets stuck easily in shallow water or around underwater rocks and trees. If you plan to take the FT 385 into whitewater you'll need to remove the skeg and not inflate the keel. Unfortunately the keel sticks about 4 inches under the water even while un-inflated and makes traveling over shallow water more difficult It also hangs up on rocks, sandbars, and any other object that you may pass over.

The FT385 Classic that we own has 4 self drain valves that drain water quickly but the new 2013 model only has 2 and drains water slower. For these reasons I don't recommend the FT 385 if you plan to do lots of whitewater trips.

The FT 385 will easily seat two passengers with a large kayak cooler plus other gear so long as they are 5'8" or smaller. If either passenger is taller than this I highly recommend you buy the longer FastTrack 465 for the extra leg room. If you plan to paddle solo you'll have more than enough room no matter how long your legs are. Width wise the FT 385 has plenty of space even for those with "extra cushion" if you know what I mean.

The included inflatable seats and 8' paddles are ok but I highly recommend you buy the tall back seats and make plans to buy a quality paddle at a local kayak/canoe or sports store. The inflatable seats are great for anyone weighing less than 125 lbs but they do not provide much back support for those weighing more. The backs tend to bend or collapse as they cannot support much weight. The Sea Eagle paddles are heavy, have lots of vibration, and are not very efficient. They are best used as an emergency backup rather than you main go-to paddle. If you plan to do short 1 hour or fewer paddles they would be ok but if you plan to paddle for longer periods of time you'll appreciate a lighter, more efficient paddle. The only good thing about the SE paddles is that they can be broken down into 4 sections for easy storage.

To recap, the Sea Eagle FastTrack 385 is a sturdy, lightweight, fast, extremely portable kayak that is best used in flat water and very light white water. It can easily hold two kayakers, lots of gear, and tracks very straight. It does not take much effort to get the kayak moving and going fast. Solo kayakers will have plenty of leg and storage room while larger (i.e. longer) kayakers who paddle tandem would be better served with the larger FastTrack 465 model.

For those who are looking to paddle lots of whitewater I highly recommend a Sea Eagle Explorer model as they are better equipped to handle shallow water, rocks, and sandbars.