Transporting kayaks: Bow and Stern Tiedowns

I see frequent questions online about how to make bow and stern tiedowns on cars without an obvious place to tie to. Don’t overthink it. Here are two ideas for doing that you can implement for only a couple of $ (or even with materials already on-hand).

For the bow, cut a length of 3/4”-1” wide nylon webbing, tie it into a loop with a water knot through a slot or hole in the frame of you car inside the hood. The loop can be hidden away when it’s not in use (although you’ll get questions about it every time someone changes your oil). Tie the bow down to this loop.

For the stern, tie a loop of utility cord or webbing through a hole drilled into a short (~6” section) of 1 1/2”-ish PVC pipe. Dangle the loop outside of the car and close your trunk/hatch on the loop, capturing the pipe inside. Tie your stern to that loop.

I’ve used this system on both my vehicles for over 20 years without a failure and with ZERO marring of the paint of the car.