Native Watercraft Falcon 11 Recreational Kayak Review

Best ‘Bang for the Buck’ kayak?

When you’re trying to decide what kayak to buy, your biggest question is whether to get a sit-on-top style, or a sit-inside. The former is typically for someone who is willing to give up some paddling performance for a range of other benefits. The Native Watercraft Falcon 11 is a recreational, sit-on-top kayak that offers an ideal platform for fishing enthusiasts and calm-water paddlers. What it sacrifices in performance (i.e. efficiency), it makes up for in stability. In fact, it’s designed to stand on, which is great for stretching out and for doubling as a paddleboard. Plus, this model is perfect for people who just don’t like the idea of sitting inside a kayak. It won’t fill with water if it tips over – just roll it back upright, climb back on, and keep on paddling. And for any arachnophobes out there, those dormant spiders won’t have a chance to creep up on you, mid-session.

ABOUT THE NATIVE FALCON 11 KAYAK

The Falcon 11 features solid handles at the bow and stern, as well as both sides of the kayak. It has a front hatch to access the inside of the boat and adjustable foot braces for performance and comfort. There’s a slick, center storage console, which, for all you anglers, supports a fish-finder, as it holds a battery and has a scupper for transducer access. Plus, there are stand up traction pads, additional scupper holes (with plugs), a framed seat for use in a high or low position, pre-installed gear tracks to support accessories (ostensibly), dual flush mount rod holders, a paddle holder, and lastly, a wheel on the stern to make it easier to get the boat to the water. 

In the words of Native Watercraft, the Falcon 11 is “…a feature-rich, super stable, compact fishing-machine at a price point that's hard to beat.” Sounds great, but it’s my job to find out just how accurate that is. So, let's break down how this thing actually paddles and what kind of ‘bang for the buck’ you get with this mid-range price-point, made in the U.S.A, sit-on-top kayak. 

How to transport the Falcon kayak

Before actually getting on the water, let’s talk about the transportability of this kayak. Weighing in at 65 pounds, the Falcon is predictably heavy, like most sit-on-tops, but it’s far from being one of the heavier ones on the market, as many sit-on-tops eclipse 100 pounds.  Coupling its moderate weight with its 11’ length, and you’ve got yourself a boat that is reasonably easy to transport on the roof of your vehicle, and then to get from your vehicle to the water’s edge. While a 65 pound kayak would usually be a lot for a single person to carry or drag to the water, the wheel that’s integrated into the stern of the Falcon helps significantly across hard surfaces. On the flip side, the wheel is too narrow to help when dragging over soft surfaces like sand.  In these circumstances, you should expect to need to bribe one of your friends to help you out.  

What is the Falcon 11 kayak performance?

After paddling around for an hour, I can tell you that there’s lots of  great things about this kayak.  But speed is not one of them… This boat definitely won’t win you any races. This is no big surprise, because with a sit-on-top style kayak, you need to expect that you’ll be sacrificing efficiency for other features. With this kayak, you reach full speed after two or three strokes, which is quite low. This is not a fast model. 

When it comes to maneuverability, there isn’t much to highlight with the Falcon. The kayak turns very easily, as you’d expect from a boat of this length, and the wheel that’s integrated into the kayak’s stern is unnoticeable. 

Is the Falcon kayak stable?

What you give up in terms of speed, you make up for with an incredibly stable platform. This thing is absolutely rock solid in both the low and high sitting positions. Of course, it was slightly less stable in the high position, but not a problem at all. I often talk about primary stability and secondary stability. With the primary, or initial, stability, the boat is super solid when you’re just sitting in the flat position. It doesn’t want to roll back or forth at all. It’s so stable that it’s not even worth talking about the secondary stability because this thing doesn’t want to sit on edge, whatsoever. If you’re looking for a kayak that you can put on edge, then the Falcon 11 isn’t for you. You’ll need something with higher performance. Overall, this boat is wonderfully stable and easy to stand up on. 

Is the Falcon comfortable?

Bingo! The Falcon 11 is great for what I call, “the pass out test.” The stable, open concept, and framed seat make an open-water break a particularly drool-worthy experience. Simply put, this boat is extremely comfortable. Most notably, the seat is wonderful. This can be a bit subjective, as it really depends on your butt shape. But what I can tell you is that I love this seat. It fit me really well, it’s quick drying, and the fact that it has a high and low position is a great asset. Even the low position isn’t super low, which means my butt is always higher than my heels. This makes for a more natural sitting posture. It’s easier on your back, you don’t have to worry about tight hamstrings – it’s just more comfortable. Top marks for comfort! 

Falcon kayak features

For an $899 kayak, the Falcon has some great features. They’re not extravagant but it’s what you need and what you’d expect from a quality, sit-on-top model. The big hatch used to access the interior is excellent. It might let you do some overnight trips, and if you’re an angler, you can store almost a whole tackle box in there. I love the center console. Whether you’re an angler or not, it provides some great storage that’s easily accessible. If you are fishing, you’ll appreciate the scupper that makes it simple to set up the transducer for a fish finder. There’s also a cup holder for easy hydration (or dehydration depending on your adventure…). The central gear track lets you mount anything from a camera to a phone holder, to a rod holder, etc. The scupper plugs are also great little accessories that come with the boat. They prevent water from splashing up through the scuppers, but you can pop them out quickly to drain the kayak if water does start accumulating on top.

My only slight critique in terms of the Falcon’s features is the position of the lateral gear tracks. On paper, it was a smart idea to use the tracks to form the handles so you can carry it from the side. However, in practice, anything you put there will just impede your paddle stroke. So for me, this add-on is absolutely useless. I’d much prefer they put them somewhere more practical, like behind the seat or up front, ahead of the center console. For my money, that would give the gear tracks much better use. In that case, you could actually mount extra camera poles or different rod holders, etc. 

Who is the Native Falcon 11 kayak for?

This kayak is best suited for flat-water paddlers who are looking for comfort, stability, storage and something they can stand up on, or kick back and stretch out on. It’s also particularly well suited for anglers, given its framework and features that are specifically tailored for fishing. 

Is the Falcon 11 kayak worth the price?

All in all, I loved testing out this kayak. If you’re willing to give up some performance in the name of stability and comfort, if you’re looking for an American made, mid-price point boat, if you prefer sitting on top, rather than sitting in a kayak, if you like fishing or overnight trips, or if you appreciate a range of useful features then the Native Watercraft Falcon 11 is for you. At $899 USD, you’d be hard pressed to do better. And did I mention the cool color? Sure, some folks might call it “Electric Booger,” but I really like it. Overall, I give the Falcon 11 two thumbs up! 

I hope you’ve enjoyed this review of the Native Falcon 11, sit-on-top kayak. For more kayak reviews and lots of great paddling tips and information, please check out and subscribe to my YouTube channel at PaddleTV.