The Alpacka is expensive because it was designed for wilderness racing in Alaska and it's durability is literally a matter of life or death. It is an investment, but one that is worth it if you are going to be doing alot of wilderness/remote rafting. If you just want it for tootling around on mountain lakes you might want to think about other options. IIRC, Jimshaw has discussed how he uses his air mattress as a raft to laze around on remote lakes.

MNS