If you could buy a new truck for hauling your gear...

Ref the tonneau cover for the Ridgie... thought I already posted this but don't see it now... my PA fits under the tonneau no problem. I do use the bed extender when I haul it in the bed....

Send us pictures of your cutting board approach before your new Yak is on it and afterwards.

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2009 Oasis
2012 Freedom Hawk Pathfinder

Instead of a special purpose truck why not get a fiberglass cap for the bed to protect your gear and adds value with a trailer and provides a mounting point for a roof rack. You can even buy a fiberglass shell/cap with rails installed for Yakima mounting brackets.

Then get a second kayak like an Outback (or lighter still the Sport) that you can lift up onto the rack by yourself or with the addition of a Thule Hullavator that makes the load 40 lbs. lighter with its pressurized cartridges.

Wintersun - Thanks for the reply. This goes back to my original question. How difficult is it to get a hard cap on and off the truck? I will probably leave it on most of the time, but occasionally (like 1-2 x per year) would need to remove to haul larger loads.

Just wanted to add my 2 cents. I am a fellow dodge owner and currently have a Malibu Kayaks Stealth 12 that i haul around using the bed extender although mine is not a true L as it angles up prio to the T bar peice. I have a Dodge Ram 1500 Outdoorsman edition and it has the Ram Box side boxes in the bed. It wasn't something i had to have and honestly worried that i would'nt be able to fit anything in the bed that i normally carry around. With the Ram Box side boxes it only takes up the area normally used by the wheel wells. Still allows me to put a 4x8 sheet of plywood in it and more importantly has room for my Polaris 500. The side boxes i didn't think i would use too much but wow i love them now. I keep my paddle, PFD, Radio, tackle, and basically everything besides the yak and the cart in there. I do put poles in there when broken down but now i am using longer poles so i leave them together and just lay them in the bed next to the yak. Having a roll top style cover would be nice but really I have enough room in the side boxes to meet my needs and then some. The biggest part of the boxes is that they lock!

Not saying that this is the only way to go by any means but just another option to consider. I must say i am jealous as hell right now of all you guys on the mainland as we are hoping to get the 2015s into Hawaii by the end of october and my PA14 is on that order so i am dieing here waiting for it to come in!!!! Hope you enjoy it and look forward to all the pictures and reviews!!!

Go Easy!

After looking around I am strongly leaning toward a Ram 1500 crew cab model with an A.R.E. fiberglass topper cap. I was concerned that the shorter bed may be a problem for hauling my PA14 with my bed extender. But since my current Dakota bed is not quite as deep as the Ram, I will pick up some of that difference in bed length when the yak is resting on the bed+gate; about 87" for Ram and 96" for the Dakota. Anybody have issues hauling a PA14 in a short box pickup? Any regrets among those of you who have been down that road?

Well, I pulled the trigger and just bought a Ram 1500 Laramie crew cab. It has the short (5'-7") box, but I hope that the bed extender will get my PA14 where it needs to go. Planning to do exactly what Wintersun suggests - looking at an ARM fiberglass cap now and hopefully I can adapt my Thule cross bars to the Yakima rails that ARM puts on. I was going to do a carpet kit, LED interior lights, ventilated window for drying gear out, maybe some interior roof-mounted rod holders, etc. Can't wait! Any other advice on how to outfit a cap like this?

After purchasing my 2014 PA-14 I set it up with a Lund Bed Extender on the back of my Ford F-150 Platinum short bed. Worked great but I have since gone to a trailer, much easier on this old back. In the process of using the extender I decided to use PVC to help protect the yak from rubbing the steel supports when loading. The PVC worked great. The Lund Extender is completely adjustable so all the pieces slide off allowing the PVC pieces to just slide on then repin the sections of the extender back into place. Once fitted to the truck and yak the extender is ready to go each time. The PVC also helps the yak to roll on easily. Never had trouble with the extender rubbing the ground because the Lund is angles up. Pretty nice set up. Hope the picture helps show how I set it up.

The problem I had with the extender is at the boat ramps. At home the yard is level and easy to load the yak. I found that at the ramp's steep angles made it much more difficult to load the yak. Not wanting to risk another back surgery, already had 2, I opted for a trailer. Happy with the decision.

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Just a Kid to the End

Jim the links below shows PA's being loaded and unloaded on/into short bed pickups.

I recently bought this bed extender and it is easy to set up and take down. It works with my Freedom Hawk Pathfinder and Oasis in and out of my driveways and local roads. We hope to try the Oasis this week on local boat launches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryrXEaGF3DI

PA with this bed extender and a Ridgeline:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9URvFmxh80

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2009 Oasis
2012 Freedom Hawk Pathfinder