: When sizing a spray skirt do you measure from the outside of the lip? My
: cockpit is very large. I want to make sure I get the right size. May even
: have to have it built.

Hi Gerald, I had the same question (in my head) so I emailed a kayak manufacturer (Boreal) and they say the cockpit dimensions given on their website are the dimensions of the hole in the deck (inside cockpit). Example: kayak model Alvik has a cockpit that measures 30" X 16". However if you check spray skirts sold for the Alvik they measure 33" X 19.75" so I guess this quite clearly means that the spray skirt is sized for the outside dimensions. But most off the shelf spray skirts are sized "Small, Medium, Large" and these dimensions vary from one manufacturer to another.

If there is someone in your area who can make a sprayskirt for you, you can make a cardboard template of the cockpit outside dimensions and they will make the spray skirt to fit. Or throw the kayak on the car roof and go to a store where they sell spray skirts and try different ones until you find the size you want.

Glen in Baie-St-Paul.