You definitely don't have to know how to roll to enjoy kayaking. In fact, if you were to take lessons, it's likely that the first thing you would be taught would be the "wet exit". If you aren't paddling in extreme conditions, the wet exit is one way to handle a capsize. The roll is another. The benefit to the roll, of course, is that you don't have to re-enter the boat. I've been paddling for a few years and still haven't taken any roll lessons (I hope to soon, though).

Build the kayak for the sheer pleasure of building, and if it turns out you enjoy paddling, well, you've got a new hobby. If you don't like paddling, sell the boat and make a profit. You win either way.

Ross

> I have built two wooden boats but no kayaks and am thinking about building
> the Osprey Standard, the Artic Turn or the Mill Creek 13. I have paddled
> canoes but have never been in a kayak. At this point, I have not made up
> my mind to build a kayak since I am 61 years old and have not acquired any
> skills in this area. It is not the building that I am worried about, it is
> the using the finished product. I read that you have to learn the Eskimo
> Roll and practice it. I will be paddling on lakes in Kansas for the
> exercise and enjoyment. Can one have an Osprey Standard or the Artic Turn
> and not learn the Eskimo Roll? Maybe I should build the Mill Creek 13 with
> a 29 inch beam it should be fairly stable? Any advice would be
> appreciated.

> Jerry from the Flatlands of Kansas