Pristine ventures legend

[sambuck12]

I am in neeed of a new boat and have been eyeballing this one as a possible candidate but as always I have a few questions for the folks out there that have had hands on experience. Anyone have experience with these? Do you you like them? Are they self bailing (I haven't found where it says this and I don't remember from the outdoor show.)? I know Larry can fit a moose in them. Have any of you tried? I have only ever talked to Larry about them and he is a great salesman. If you read this Larry feel free to chime in. My intended target will usually be moose. But weight restrictions and pack ability in a small plane dictates what a person can take. I have watched the videos pristine ventures has on their website. Will it handle class 3 rapids? Class 4? Any thoughts from the folks in the know?

[aksnagger]

It is a nice boat that can handle some water. There are plugs in it that you can remove or leave in if you want a "dry" boat. A buddy has one and it isn't a dry boat with the plugs in. In a four hour float down placer he had about a gallon of water in the boat which surprised us both. I'm not sure if he had a defect or what but frustrating. The other complaint that I had about the boat was the cheap valves. At $1800 for a PVC boat I'd expect better valves and valves are on the outside. It is about the only whitewater boat I've seen with valves on the outside.

I've been looking at this boat but have been really tempted at Brian's IK at Alaska Raft Connection. It's half the price....but doesn't have the hunting features the Legend does.

[Alaska_Lanche]

I am in neeed of a new boat and have been eyeballing this one as a possible candidate but as always I have a few questions for the folks out there that have had hands on experience. Anyone have experience with these? Do you you like them? Are they self bailing (I haven't found where it says this and I don't remember from the outdoor show.)? I know Larry can fit a moose in them. Have any of you tried? I have only ever talked to Larry about them and he is a great salesman. If you read this Larry feel free to chime in. My intended target will usually be moose. But weight restrictions and pack ability in a small plane dictates what a person can take. I have watched the videos pristine ventures has on their website. Will it handle class 3 rapids? Class 4? Any thoughts from the folks in the know?

I wouldn't want to float a moose in any raft in Class IV personally....but thats just me.

[sambuck12]

I wouldn't want to float a moose in any raft in Class IV personally....but thats just me.

To be more specific. Me neither. The class 4's would be for fun. Not loaded with a moose.

[Gulkana Rafting]

Guys:

Any moose hunt that includes moving meat and horns out via any serious white water is a foolish bet. We outfit lots of float hunts and when you load up 2 guys, gear and a moose you are pushing the capacity of almost any raft. We tell our float hunters that our 14 foot round boats are perfect with 1,800 pounds of what ever and our SOARs are solid at 1,600 pounds and that is on water under class III. Toss in anything at the class II level or above and all bets are off. Too many variables to calculate here guys and way to much downside to consider.

Areas of serious concern include: shifting weight in a poorly secured raft, Over estimating the oarsman's skill level, Cold water, Wind, underestimating the amount of weight in the raft....and the list goes on.

Above all else you need to always consider safety first. It does not mater is you bag a B & C bull if you can't float it out safely. Play it safe and keep the memories coming. The choice of raft is not the issue here but the choice of river conditions are!

Walt
Northwest Alaska Back Country Outfitters
Drop hunts and Float gear for Unit 26 and 25
907-259-4290
www.northwestalaska.net

[sambuck12]

Let me set things straight. I will NEVER be floating a moose in ANY boat in class 3 or 4 rapids. I am wondering if I can float whitewater in the legend NOT loaded with a moose.

[aksnagger]

Let me set things straight. I will NEVER be floating a moose in ANY boat in class 3 or 4 rapids. I am wondering if I can float whitewater in the legend NOT loaded with a moose.

Yes, I'd say class III with the legend but that would be about it for my skills. We took it down Eagle River just above the campground rapids and was pretty impressed. So much easier to portage than the 13' raft.

[Larry Bartlett]

yes sir, it'll handle whitewater.

[sambuck12]

Update: I bit the bullet and sold my aire outfitter 2 that I had had for 7 or so years that I have taken on 3 successful sheep hunts 2 successful caribou hunts and one successful moose hunt. I also used it for whitewater adventuring. That boat was fun!! As my interests have changed from sheep hunting toward moose hunting it was time for a bigger boat. I purchased the Legend in early summer just about the time I had shoulder surgery. Needless to say with shoulder surgery I haven't had the opportunity to take it out until Saturday. My wife insisted she do nothing on the float as far as paddling because if I am successful this year moose hunting I'm going to be paddling the moose myself and she wants to see if I could handle it. There were 3 of us onboard and I was the sole paddler. Prolly 650lbs of people. The Legend is far easier to paddle, way more responsive, and humongous compared to my outfitter 2. I ended up using a kayak paddle as the boat seems way to narrow to use oars? Anyone else have this observation? In all of the videos I went back and watched they all used kayak paddles. Anyway so far I really like it. More to come as I use it more.

[mntransplant]

I used the Legend last year on my first float hunt. I liked it a lot and will be buying one soon (or maybe a Kork). It was relatively light weight for my flight in. I don't doubt that Larry or some other people can load it with a moose. I fit 2 people and some gear in it. We pulled a PR-49 as a meat trailer. I just can't imagine putting a whole moose with gear in that raft and feeling like you have control. All this being said, my disclaimer is that it was my first time in the boat and my first float hunt.

[Larry Bartlett]

With boating in general there are inherent capacity rules that are governed by the captain's skill level...with small narrow rafts this is a tricky science. To uphold my reputation I have to stick to the truth with marketing by demonstration. But a responsible marketing plan should include basic safety disclaimers.

Yes, our groups and myself frequently put a whole moose with gear and one paddler in the Legend (and some of us have done it in the Kork), but sketchy as hell is this experience. Can it be done, absolutely. Is your safety and control margins exponentially greater with half a moose per boat, absolutely.

some guys do well with this safety performance, others just dont.imagejpeg_0.jpg

We use these boats as tools for smart remote access. They can support a greater load than we can physically manage, so it's important to practice maneuvering heavy loads when not in a survival scenario...

later