Mill Creek 13

£1270

£25

£18

£99

£3

£920

+£15

+£48.80

Offer Details

Prices include VAT

Product Description

The Mill Creek 13 is a recreational sea kayak with a large open cockpit. It is stable and comfortable for paddling and also sails well with a small balanced lug sail available as an upgrade.

Ever since 1997 when WoodenBoat Magazine featured the Mill Creek 13 in a two-issue spread the Mill Creek models have been built in the thousands. They look good, are easy to build and, even though they are more stable than most kayaks, the Mill Creeks offer good speed and handling that you will never get tired of.

The Mill Creek was designed as a wider, shorter and more stable alternative to the typical sea kayak. It offers the stability sought by nature photographers, fishermen and bird watchers. Mahogany trim on cockpits and rails, cambered decks and contoured slatted seats add elegance whilst the fibreglassed 6 mm bottom panel will absorb years of groundings in shoal water.

These comfortable, versatile boats have good handling, rewarding speed, stability and classic good looks. The Mill Creeks have found fans among paddlers of all skill levels because they offer so much boat in such a light and easy-to-manage package.

The Mill Creek's multi-chine hull and relatively long waterline give a surprising turn of speed. It tracks reliably even in big seas and strong winds.

The Mill Creek echoes the feel of 1920's double-paddle canoes. Combining the stability and comfortable seating of a canoe with the light weight and decked-in security of a kayak, the Mill Creek is perfect for photography, fishing, ornithology and relaxed paddling.

Like all of the Mill Creeks, the 13 is surprisingly fast thanks to her efficient 5-panel multichine hull and feather-light 40lb weight. The cockpit is 54″ long to allow easy entry and exit while the high coaming ensures a fairly dry cockpit even without a spray deck. The Mill Creek 13 is light and easy to carry on a roof rack whilst still providing enough capacity for camping gear.

There is also a tandem version of the boat, the Mill Creek 16.5, which can also be rowed using a sliding seat.

The Mill Creeks make wonderful sailing boats, sailing well with a standing or balanced lug sail.

The kit includes:

The boat comes with a traditional slatted seat but an option is available which replaces it with a foam seat and backband for less than the standard price. It is not as pretty as the traditional seat, but more comfortable for long distance work. The seats are available separately but will save you money if purchased as an upgrade to the kit.

The sealed buoyancy chambers under the fore and aft decks require some means of ventilation. When the boat is not in use, they should be opened to allow the air pressure to equalise in response to temperature changes. You can do this by installing a pair of drain plugs or inspection hatches in the bulkheads or by installing deck hatches, which will also provide storage.

What else do I need?

Study manual

This is intended for pre-build study or to help with the decision to purchase. This is the comprehensive manual that accompanies the kit; reading it will help you decide whether or not you can build the boat. It describes all of the techniques that will be used during the build and also a step by step guide to construction. Scale drawings are used throughout as well as photographs of critical jobs.

If, later, you decide to purchase the kit the cost of this manual will be deducted from the kit price.

The manual does not contain the cutting instructions so it is not possible to build the boat from scratch using only this.

PDF study manual

The construction manual for the boat is also available as a PDF download. After credit card authorisation a download link will be sent to the email address put on the order form.

Plans and manual (not required by kit purchasers)

These plans contain sufficient information on the cutting of the panels to make it possible to build the boat from scratch rather than a kit. The plans include full size templates for every part of the boat.

PDF study plans

These study plans are intended to give you an overview of the construction of the boat. They are in PDF format that can be viewed using Adobe Reader. There are two pages and they measure 279 × 216 mm (11″ × 8½″). They can be printed for carrying around.

After credit card authorisation the plans will be sent to the email address put on the order form.

When you have studied the plans, your next step might be to order the printed instruction manual, which will walk you through the project step-by-step.

Wood only

This option contains only the pre-cut plywood and solid wood components plus the plans and manual. It does not contain any of the epoxy to glue and coat the boat, the fabric or tape nor any of the hardware.

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