Hi folks, I am going back on the river with a kayak (sit-in and not a canoe) after about 30yrs i might add, nothing crazy, just to pootle about whilst my mate falls in, the waters will not be fast flowing, just a lazy trickle, it's Norfolk, no hills lol. It is going to be impossible to get the drone out as it will be packed behind the seat as there are no storage compartments, I didn't want a tourer as they are less agile.

Just wondering if anyone has done anything like this with a sit-in kayak and a drone before, how'd ya go about it? storage etc, any easy access ideas? \I supposed i could buy another dry bag just for the drone and have that on my back, might be a bit cumbersome with the PFD mind...

I could have done with the extended battery now, a friend in the US tried to buy it and ship here but DJI won't even allow that, it has to go her 1st but she said she's not allowed to ship lithium batteries, strange...

i would not try this but you can keep small bag between legs in front of you, i hope the river is calm

fateofangel Posted at 8-2 20:47
i would not try this but you can keep small bag between legs in front of you, i hope the river is calm

Thanks, Its about as calm as a canal lol, but i also use a spray deck.

I have just bought another dry bag just for the drone so that will save me packing it with the main stuff at least now i have the option to go on my lap or across my back.

Plus battery from Ali Express £96 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/ ... 0029296358373%21sea

DAFlys Posted at 8-2 23:11
Plus battery from Ali Express £96 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004475438876.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.1c0dbef8lPL99f&algo_pvid=bdc1b512-368c-478e-87cf-fac304f125c0&algo_exp_id=bdc1b512-368c-478e-87cf-fac304f125c0-0&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000029296358373%22%7D&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21GBP%21107.34%2196.6%21%21%21%21%21%402100bb4c16595106758626739e2770%2112000029296358373%21sea

Thanks but what about when RM chap at the door, i bet they will want to charge extra for the privilege, perhaps?

Bashy Posted at 8-2 23:33
Thanks but what about when RM chap at the door, i bet they will want to charge extra for the privilege, perhaps?

£8 handling plus the vat if they catch you, I’ve been lucky with AliExpress and bang hood so far.  

Bashy Posted at 8-2 23:33
Thanks but what about when RM chap at the door, i bet they will want to charge extra for the privilege, perhaps?

Or have a cheeky bid on this - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/13418 ... emis&media=COPY

DAFlys Posted at 8-2 23:53
Or have a cheeky bid on this - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134186667230?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=y4_711R2Sza&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=O-7XaGC_Q_6&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Yeah, as its below £135 theres no VAT i think,
The last one i bid on, i setup a snipe at £120 but it exceeded 130 lol I don't mind paying a bit extra but i am not over doing it, plus, not sure i can atm, i have just skint myself of the kayaking stuff

Hi there. Hope that you could get the best recommendation from our fellow DJI Pilots that already experienced this. Should you have other inquiries, please don't hesitate to reach us. Have a safe travel and take care always, Bashy!

Well, this has turned out to be a none starter, 1st off, the larger 30L bag was just not accessible.

So i got a 10L bag that fits the DJI bag but on its side so not happy with that from the get-go because I have to pull it all the way out of the dry sack, then put the bag back in, flying about, then doing the reverse.

Thats one issue, the other issue is that i still couldn't get the dry sack out from behind me, even though it was much smaller, i managed it on dry land during testing, but on the water, i couldn't get far enough forward.

Thats 2 issues, the 3rd issue, I attached the dry sack to a line I have going from the bow to just in front of the cockpit, that worked well, BUT, it does get wet, so I didn't even bother as i didn't want to unfold the sack and get water inside.

4th and final issue, if it came to it that I managed to get the drone out, flying it would be just too nerve-racking, the concentration needed on the water, the possible drips from the paddle onto the spray deck where the DJI RC would have to sit so that I can see what's going on up there etc, etc,

So, flying a drone from a sit-in kayak with a small cockpit is a none starter. Certainly not whilst on the water, and certainly not without taking some big risks. Just not worth the risk, i can take it with me and if we found somewhere to stop, fly it then, but thats all.

For paddle boarding I bought a hard shell for the drone and modified an old GoPro case to fit the rc and a spare battery. They pop in the dry bag easily and are as easily extracted. Good luck.

DAFlys Posted at 8-2 23:11
Plus battery from Ali Express £96 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004475438876.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.1c0dbef8lPL99f&algo_pvid=bdc1b512-368c-478e-87cf-fac304f125c0&algo_exp_id=bdc1b512-368c-478e-87cf-fac304f125c0-0&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000029296358373%22%7D&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21GBP%21107.34%2196.6%21%21%21%21%21%402100bb4c16595106758626739e2770%2112000029296358373%21sea

Do NOT buy from Aliexpress!!!! Why? I got the "bait and switch" sell.
If you look at the item description it says,"... Plus 47/34-min Max Flight Time....", but if you click the right battery the price will be lower but the description stay unchanged!!
I ordered the Plus one but they sent me the stock 34 minute one.
Lucky me I paid via PayPal and filed the claim which I won even Aliexpress insisted that I ordered the regular one.
NO NO NO

BTW, it is the DJI store that sell through Aliexpress.

Used to do a lot of paddling on a sit on top with my DSLR I just used a small pelican case strapped on to my rear hatch just behind me. Watertight as anything.  Good luck!

lionelrik Posted at 8-7 22:10
For paddle boarding I bought a hard shell for the drone and modified an old GoPro case to fit the rc and a spare battery. They pop in the dry bag easily and are as easily extracted. Good luck.

Thanks, the problem with a sit-in (Perception Mirage), they have a very small cockpit, so the most you can access from behind you is a bottle of water, try for anything else and 1,  you cannot pull out the bag cause of no room past the seat and your body and 2, you will end up in the drink, believe me, i know, it happened Sunday lol (i was at the bank and I was only trying to grab a line to tie off, only thing i lost was my £70 E-Ciggy, well, so far, it may still come around and dry out ok, not holding my breath (nice pun lol)

Bussty Posted at 8-8 17:56
Used to do a lot of paddling on a sit on top with my DSLR I just used a small pelican case strapped on to my rear hatch just behind me. Watertight as anything.  Good luck!

Hi, yeah thanks, a sit-on kayka are a lot more stable and so much more accessible to stored items. I wanted the sit-in so i could hit the weirs etc and have some fun with them and try to learn the roll again lol I may take it to the sea too but not whilst i still have an old, poorly dog at home.

Well, the whole idea is not a viable one, certainly not with my kayak, its just too risky, i might be able to take off and even hand catch, but it would be far from enjoyable, not to mention the RC would have to sit on the spray deck that gets wet from paddling and that's just on the river, I have even attached some D-rings and bungee cord and sat a back on top, problem there is that it make the kayak more unstable, not a vast amount once you get used to it but its just not worth it, then things got really hairy when i took it to the beach down at Cobbolds Point in Felixstowe, had a bit of chop past the sea breaker, no more than 3 to 4ft but it was enough to get soaked, so it looks like the plan is dead in the water so to speak. would be ok to keep it in the boat in case i stopped off etc but that's as far as that goes...

Bashy Posted at 8-7 21:03
Well, this has turned out to be a none starter, 1st off, the larger 30L bag was just not accessible.

So i got a 10L bag that fits the DJI bag but on its side so not happy with that from the get-go because I have to pull it all the way out of the dry sack, then put the bag back in, flying about, then doing the reverse.

Have to agree with you!  Even IF you found a little settling area of water, where you could sit still.  Have a great time though.

Tanasit Posted at 8-8 05:13
Do NOT buy from Aliexpress!!!! Why? I got the "bait and switch" sell.
If you look at the item description it says,"... Plus 47/34-min Max Flight Time....", but if you click the right battery the price will be lower but the description stay unchanged!!
I ordered the Plus one but they sent me the stock 34 minute one.

Nice to know Pay Pal backed you!

Bob-Mini-2 Posted at 8-28 11:11
Have to agree with you!  Even IF you found a little settling area of water, where you could sit still.  Have a great time though.

Even on the very slow (2mph) river, i would have to find a bank that i could latch on to without fear of moving off from it and it would need to be without trees. around, not found anything like that as yet, perhaps next year now. Ideally, i wanted to get some footage of my mate falling off his paddle board, missed opportunities for sure lol but i also wanted some footage of us moving along. perhaps some mastershots etc, it was just too risky for the DJI RC...

Bashy Posted at 8-28 22:05
Even on the very slow (2mph) river, i would have to find a bank that i could latch on to without fear of moving off from it and it would need to be without trees. around, not found anything like that as yet, perhaps next year now. Ideally, i wanted to get some footage of my mate falling off his paddle board, missed opportunities for sure lol but i also wanted some footage of us moving along. perhaps some mastershots etc, it was just too risky for the DJI RC...

Well planned Bashy. . . ENJOY!