David, I'd suggest that you define how you want to use the boat; open flat water? Surf? Multi-day excursions, or play / day paddling? And tailor it above your current skills level to give yourself room to grow. To some extent budget plays a role, kit costs at one end of the spectrum, and scrounged wood that you mill at the other end. It takes a little more time to build from plans, but the expenses are streched out as well, and the material can be chosen differently than might be supplied with a kit. If you have no tools to mill strips, there's sure to be somebody nearby who does, perhaps you could provide the pizza and beer for a day of milling... The options are endless!

: Hi David, this question comes up a lot. I would figure out what is most
: important to you. Weight, comfort, speed, beauty, capacity... then become
: infatuated with a design and build it. Some people make stitch and glue
: boats as their first, some buy kits, others dive right in. Check into the
: Guillemot Designs, Bear Mountain, Chesapeake Light Craft, Pygmy, Redfish,
: Laughing Loon, newfound.com ... who did I leave out?

What about San Javiar out of Berkely? I havent heard anything about them for awhile, are they still around? And dont forget Shearwater.