Creating SearchAPI searches without using Views
Realized I never added a follow up. Search API Page does not solve all the cases, and this is possible in Drupal 8 as well.

A query string was added on form submission, redirecting to my url + query string args. These prefill form values (sanitized of course) and modify the initial Search API query. Extra work was done to store some data in session, so that the query could be repeated on detail pages for sidebar results (prev/next navigation in the same result set).

Using the normal Drupal pager worked fine as well.

As part of this work, a module was born: https://www.drupal.org/project/search_api_view_modes

Here is an example of doing it in Drupal 8: https://gist.github.com/kevinquillen/cad07541347385744b161a26690ab75d

Taking this route allows you to create and provide a very tailored, controlled experience.