I was in a very similar situation... I paddle a three yr old poly Manitou 14 (that I've ripped the old seat back out of, and retrofitted with a back band and thigh braces). The 14 is a great boat for putzing around on flat water, and even surfing small waves. But I found out the hard way what happens when an eight foot wave hits you broadside in it off of Cape Hatteras.... a 5/8 of a mile swim to shore...(wearing my pfd of course!). It's one of those tween boats.. not as wide as a rec boat, but not as narrow as you need for good stability in confused water. There is also the issue of friends in 17 and 18 footers being able to maintain my best cruising speed with much less effort.

I'm 6'1", 200# with size 11's, so my dimensional requirements were pretty close to yours. And I came down to two of your three choices, the King and the Night Heron (though the OI certainly belongs in that company). I ultimately chose the NH, and it was a combination of its looks, and its efficiency that made up my mind. To me, it looks low and sleek and fast just sitting still. And that's how people say it paddles too. I am building the hi deck version so that I have foot room for shoes, so that I can put stuff up under the deck between the thigh braces, and also to carry more stuff for camping. After reading the posts about the tracking, I decided to do what some others have done, and add a 3/4" high (or deep, as it were) keel to the back 30" of the hull. I figure that will keep her straight in crosswinds, but won't interfere with a leaned turn. I've built and glassed the outside of the deck, and I'm building the coaming lip now...