A 13' long 25" round bottom kayak is going to be tippy, experience definately helps. Btw, it's a heck of alot easier to enter from the shore, straddle the kayak and lower yourself into it while bracing the paddle on the bottom, than entering from a dock.

The white areas are definately not bonded to the wood, will need to be sanded back to where it is bonded and new glass/epoxy added. Cedar strip by itself isn't strong enough, needs the glass/epoxy to get any real strength.

The hull is very likely paint (the white part), gelcoat was never intended as an external coating to be applied to a boat, it's normally used in a mold when a hull it built. So can be treated just like any other painted project.

Bill H.