TC16 Inflatable Kayak Reviews

My wife Bonnie and I love the TC16 canoe and plan on using it a lot this summer and fall in the lakes and rivers show more... of Oregon. I was impressed with the return policy in that the first canoe we received have a defect that showed up when we had the canoe for 5 months and I called and sent pictures of the defect and your staff determined that it was a manufacturing error and after following your instructions was able to have it replaced free of any charges. I have not been able to take the new canoe out yet but am anxious to do so soon. Thank your staff for all their help with our questions.

I bought this so it could fit in our RV and take it with us, and also use around our home on the lakes. Overall show more... I have been happy with the boat but do have some issues with the seats being comfortable.

It's been a great canoe. We took it on a 12 day, 185 mile float down the Yellowstone River. It handled very well and didn't show more... have any issues with it (very robust). The river was up higher than usual so there some nice class II and a few class III rapids to go through. The boat performed very well. The only complaint I have is the weight of the hull. Its listed as being 60 lbs on the website but mine weighs 74 lbs with the cover (without the seats or fin). 70 lbs is the limit for a normal check bag for airlines so it makes it quite expensive to travel with by air. Prior to the next trip I will see if there is any way of shedding some weight.

Sea Eagle Reply:
TC16 models 2018 and newer weigh 60 lbs. Identifiable by the gray color versus the prior green model that weighed 70 lbs.

The TC 16 is the best inflatable canoe I have seen. It packs into my 23 ft Wennebago motor home along with all the gear show more... I need. I tested it at Flamingo in Everglades National Park after Hurricane Irma left debris and obstacles. I inflated with the manual pump, set it on a light collapsible dolly with an ice chest, 3 tackle bags, 4 rods, the pump, patch kit, 2 paddles and a foam paddling block, GPS/Hand Held Marine two way radio and big spray. The wind was 20 mph and in those conditions, the area can be the harshest environment in the US. I wheeled the loaded canoe 1/8 of a mile, drug it through Mangrove mud to launch and fished mangrove islands and caught Sea Trout. The canoe handled perfectly while I sat on my knees resting my rear on the paddle block. The seats were useless because the proper way to paddle a canoe is on your knees not on a seat. The seats do not attach well, move around and only allow for ameture paddling. Canoe is a five stars but the seats are 2 Stars. Great Canoe.

We took our boat out for its first time on the water early in October, on a 3-day trip down the Kootenay River in British show more... Columbia. The boat performed admirably. It carried our load of camping gear and supplies, paddled well on the flats and in the rapids, and ran Class III drops with no fuss. It handled the river at least as well as our friends’ conventional canoes, and was generally drier at the foot of the rapids. I was skeptical of the inflatable seats at first, but they proved to be both quite comfortable and very functional on the flats and when maneuvering in rapids. I was also concerned that it would be awkward and time-consuming to try to fold back up, but it went quickly and exactly as the directions describe. It was a nice bonus driving home in the windy conditions on the Trans-Canada Highway without a canoe on the roof catching gusts. We found the TC16 performed every bit as claimed. It's a solid wilderness tripping boat.

I have considered myself a "canoe guy" since 1988, having owned and paddled many fine canoes. When I retired and became a full time RVer, show more... my canoe lived on top of my camper van. It did a lot of suffering there: U.V. sun damage, reduced gas mileage, strain of loading/unloading. When I learned of the Sea Eagle TC16 it sounded to good to be true. Since getting it last February, I have put it to the test, paddling numerous rivers and lakes in eight different states. I have paddled it solo, tandem, and with a grandchild to make three. I have overnight camped out of it, both solo and with a partner for multi nights. It is quiet to paddle, no more banging of the gunnels with the paddles. We have been thrilled running level 3 rapids and surviving a surprise wind event while paddling the Flaming Gorge (Glad I had the skeg on.). We have purposely capsized it and practiced self rescue and it performed magnificently. We can have it unpacked and inflated in less then 15 minutes. We highly recommend it.

Hi: I have become your best salesman. I take my canoe out at Rock Cut State Park. Many people come and ask me about the show more... canoe and are very impressed. I tell how to get to your website etc.. I am thinking of getting a Razor Lite kayak next. The canoe is great to take more than one person out on the lake, However, I think I would like the Razor Lite when I am by myself which is most of the time as I am out of on the lake usually in the early morning. Many people can not believe that the canoe is inflatable. They assume that it is some other rigid material. Many people comment about how sleek it looks in the water. The quality of construction is great. It really skims across the water. I love the portability and ease of storage. I did a lot of research before buying and was very impressed with this canoe when I received it. Anyway, I love it and look forward to warmer weather when I can take it out again.

Fantastic boat! We've had the TC16 for over 2 years now, and I can't say enough good things about it. It's light, stable, fast for show more... an inflatable, carries my family of 4 without any problems, and is constructed very well. It's also really good in class I-III whitewater, especially solo. I love the structure created by the drop-stitch construction, especially since it allowed Sea Eagle to create a nearly plastic boat-like stiffness with only 3 chambers and no thwarts. The only 2 downsides that I've experienced are that it's not self-bailing (which is probably asking too much for a canoe), and putting the inflatable seats into the boat is a bit janky. I'd love to see a more robust mounting system for the seats, but other than that there's nothing I'd change about the boat. Finally, Sea Eagle's customer service is fantastic! The TC16 will be with my family for a very long time!

Amazing quality and strength of construction. Perfect fit for a portable fishing and fun platform. I found for single person paddling, a kayak paddle was show more... an advantage for power and the canoe paddle was used for maneuvering around a fishing hole. Looking forward to get out in 2020.

I actually bought my TC16 back in September 19 and had it imported from the US to UK. I've now been out in the kayak show more... numerous times on lakes and rivers including whitewater. We had been searching for an inflatable kayak for sometime but struggled to find one robust enough for both lakes and whitewater and to be able to load up with a weeks worth of camping gear and food. The Sea Eagle has so far exceeded all expectations. It's difficult to believe just how sturdy it is once inflated. Last week we played on grade 3 whitewater and the kayak handled better than expected. Breaking in and out was relatively easy and the ferry gliding was outstanding. We have covered almost 30km per day when travelling without effort as the kayak cuts through the water with ease. Storage capacity is amazing. The kayak sits nicely on our trolley for when we are moving it on the shore and we have practiced getting back into it after capsizing - easy! The only negative is that I wish the seats were more comfortable.

We have been kayakers for a while, so this was our first excursion into canoeing. We have a small RV, so wanted to have something show more... we could carry with us. Due to a variety of circumstances, we've only been able to use it twice and so far it hasn't been too pleasant. It is definitely sturdy and setting it up hasn't been a problem. We tried setting it up at home first and had some issues packing it up, but finally figured it out. We are used to sitting low in the kayaks, so when we put the canoe with the inflatable seats in the water, we felt really unstable. Not sure if this is just a factor of the seats or the canoe. We hope to get out again soon and try it without the seats and see if that is a better experience. Haven't given up yet.

Sea Eagle Reply:
Thank you for the review John. Please feel free to contact us and we can assist you in the use or your canoe.

Quality is very good. Easy to assemble and inflate and impressive air pump, web seats and carrying capacity. Heavier than expected which makes difficult for show more... a one-person carry or store. Cannot fold in 1/4 but only in 1/3 so does not fit well into carry/store bag. Difficult to manuever in wind perhaps because it sits high in water, not sure.

Sea Eagle Reply:
Thank you Nelson for the review. Here is a video showing the proper folding method https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juxrLHfiGH0&t=352s For any other assistance or advice feel free to contact us at any time.

I received my TC 16 last week. It fits in my car! Thats a big plus. The single stage air pump works its wonder in show more... less than 8 minutes. I am 72 years old and at this point am unable to pick up and carry the inflated canoe ( I am going to work on my strength). Impressions - a quality product but if you plan on going out by yourself and ordered the web seats I I would suggest that you get the three seats because they will only fit in the designed location. Why do I say that? If you sit in the back as a single, the front of the canoe is out of the water and turns into a sail in any kind of wind. My wife and I sailed for many years and during that time I developed an intense dislike for any kind of o ring. They are just difficult to deal with. An alternative is to use shoe laces or any kind of good string to secure the sets. Simply thread it through the holes and put a knot in each end.

This was a boat that was purchased for my son's family. It arrived at my house in a timely manner and in good shape. I show more... knew that when they were camping that they would like to have a boat but they have a trailer and nowhere to put a hard sided boat, hence the blow up canoe.We took it out of its packaging immediately and aired it up. I was surprised at how fast it aired up with the compressor that came with it. The boat really does get hard and firm as if was made of hard materials and does not flex like a person might think it would. My son thought it was too tippy when in the water and sitting on the seats with the family so they elected to sit on the floor. I think maybe the blow up seats you have for it may be a better choice for them. I and my son had it out once and I thought it was not that tippy. I asked my son if he wanted to trade it for another of your boats but he said he was happy with it. He did try turning it over and getting in and was able to do it without much water getting in.

The canoe.. I love it and loathe it. I’m glad we got the electric charger. That’s KEY! The canoe is incredibly stable and reliable. My show more... only complaint is it’s weight. I live in a windy area and if it is windy, it’s very hard to control. I’m an avid paddler and I’ve had times where myself and another are padding as hard as possible on the same side and nearly run a ground/ obstacle. Skeg was always used.

We love our inflatable canoe. It packs up reasonably small for its size and fits nicely in the back of our Grand Cherokee. We use show more... the hand pump to inflate it which doesn’t take too long but is a decent work out. When inflated, it is solid and we were able to strap it to the roof of our vehicle for a 3 mile drive to the lake. On the water it is fast, easy to maneuver and much more stable than a traditional canoe. We got ours with the inflatable seats instead of the webbed ones and I slightly regret it. The inflatable seats don’t really fit in tight and slide around if your not sitting in them. I also find the seats to be at the the height where I feel the most unstable so I usually kneel rather than sit. If I could change anything about it, I wouldn’t mind having a few more D-rings at either end of the boat to to tie things down but it’s not a huge inconvenience. I cannot imagine ever getting a traditional canoe after using this one.

We bought our canoe at the start of Covid and felt so fortunate because other models were back ordered. I'm not sure how many times show more... we used our canoe on the Chattahoochee River by our house but at was at least twice a week all summer long. We did a couple of canoe vacations this summer and are getting ready to do a Florida paddling vacation on Sanibel Island next month. The boat handles beautifully and is easy to set up. It's rugged and super spacious. My only complaint is that I've had to patch the bottom in the same spot a few times. We went over some rocks when the river was low. Patching was a breeze but is in a funny spot right on the fold. I think I have it right now by using a much bigger patch and that seems to have done the trick. The fun part is everybody on the river does a double take and asks if it is an inflatable. It really is kind of hard to believe.

We bought the travel canoe last summer. It arrived in 5 days. And we live in Canada. It is so stable, we tried to tip show more... it to see how stable it was to take our 60lb dog Jake. We’ve had no issues with him looking over the edge or getting a drink. Although it made me a little nervous until we knew the stability was there. My husband and I had to work hard to tip it. One day we took it out on a calm lake until we got out in the middle, the waves picked up and the wind. The waves were almost up to the top of the sides. And we stayed upright. My husband has jumped out of it from standing and it barely moved. Getting back in is also easy. We are very happy about tossing it in the van instead of having to tie it on the roof. First summer with it and we are extremely satisfied.

We purchased our TC16 to use on our trip out west to the Rockies with our camper. We were debating hauling a fiber canoe on show more... the rack but found SeaEagle inflatables. We are very happy with our purchase!!! We've canoed in Canada using kevlar canoes etc. But are sold on this canoe! No reduced mpg and hidden from site until ready to use. We canoed Jenny Lake, Two Oceans Lake and Salmon River in the Tetons. Redfish Lake, Stanley Lake in the Sawtooth. Fannie Hoe Lake, Indian River, Kingston Lake, Blind Sucker Lake in the U.P.. The Nippersink River in Illinois. We got our money's worth already and this is just the first season!! Be sure to get the electric pump! When we purchased the TC16 the pump was out if stock so about 400 pumps on the hand pump but only 15 minutes longer to set up. Good cardio. The shape of the canoe is so nice for the times you want to chillaxe and lay on the bottom with your shoulders resting on the weave seats. It takes waves abreast much better than a fiber canoe because of the hull. Happy!

We have a camper van that can’t take a roof rack so we don’t travel with our Kevlar canoe. The TC16 folds up and fits show more... under the bed so now we have a boat whenever we travel. The quality is great and the stability and speed on the water is better than expected. We paddle it tandem and solo across New England. Inflating it is not a big deal nor is folding it up after a day of paddling. The weight when packed is not insignificant. 65lbs is just plain heavy. When it’s blown up, though, carrying with two people is not a problem. We love this boat and the flexibility it has brought us!

We have really enjoyed paddling our new Sea Eagle kayak in the waters of Northern Virginia. It is easy to set up and inflate, especially show more... with the battery operated pump. It is easy to launch and comfortable to paddle. It stores easily in our garage - we keep a duffle bag with the accessories next to the kayak so that we can just put everything in the car and take off. We are looking forward to more paddling trips!

Love this boat it has allowed our entire family to go on canoe trips at the same time! Would recommend to friends and family

Love it

This boat is absolutely amazing!! We brought it on a cross country trip in the back of our jeep and used at a bunch of show more... different lakes and rivers. It’s a fully functional canoe and doesn’t take long at all to get set up. It’s actually pretty fast too and quiet stable.

We purchased our Sea Eagle Canoe in May and just used it the first time on Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park. Sure, the show more... setting influenced how we enjoyed the canoe, but seriously, it worked like a dream. From unpacking to inflating with the two-stage electric pump, to inflating the portable seats and installing those, to attaching the skeg, to rowing, the canoe was amazing, every bit as good as our hard sided Old Town and better, because we could take it in our RV storage, and it weighs 20 lbs. less! The canoe seems incredibly well built and easy to control, even if on calm water this first day. Honestly, I never rate things a 5, because that’s almost perfection to me, but I have never owned or used anything that is closer to that!