I am thinking about getting a canoe?

B

Bo T

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Feb 12, 2011
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There are a number of canoes for sale in these parts. Everything from the low end fiberglass and Coleman, the older aluminum, the laminates (ie Royalex), and the fancy and costly wood, cedar strip and lightweight Kevlar.
I will use the canoe mostly for small lakes and meandering streams. The odds are very low that I will end up beyond class 1 in a river. I am getting along in age so loading and unloading on a roof rack might be an issue. I do not foresee portaging any distance and I can get a caddy to use from the car to the lake.
I would use it tandem and solo. Maybe a little canoe camping. I almost went after a Old Town 17' Tripper but at 80# it seemed a little heavy.
I am a little confused about the advertised 'carrying capacity'?
I've been told it s easy to quiet the fiberglass and aluminum canoes down with a coating of vinyl on the inside? The fiberglass canoes seem to be the best deal as far as cost.
Any help is appreciated.
 
Probably not exactly what you are looking for but have you considered building one? I made a 14 foot stitch and glue cane that I love. It is tough and weighs 35 pounds. It wasnt too hard to do and was cheaper than buying a new one.
 
I've looked at a few designs for cedar strip canoes. But, there is a time constraint. And, it seems a fairly high level of craftsmanship needed in fitting and gluing the pieces accurately.
 
Consider a shorter canoe if primarily you will be alone. The weight will be less, but also, the length can be a factor if you are trying to lift it as well.
 
What is your budget. A bit ago a gentleman in Seattle was selling two kevlar tripping/trouring canoes for a steal. Clipper and Wennona.

I should have jumped on them. They were 1/2 price and super condition.


Shop around, and try some out if you have any chance.

What kind of canoeing are you looking to do? Lake? River? White water?


I bought a white water canoe a bit ago, and it is probably not the best for what I am actually using it for.


These two beauties are the ones that sold. They sold quick! I had a shot at the Clipper, and hesitated. I should have told him I would take it, and just driven over to the coast to get it.




Here is mine, with my two boys and wife in the front.





On an overnight canoe trip down the Winchester Wasteway in central WA (out past Moses Lake).


 
Bumppo said:
Consider a shorter canoe if primarily you will be alone. The weight will be less, but also, the length can be a factor if you are trying to lift it as well.
Click to expand...
With a friend, I'll be packing close to 450#. Any gear will increase that weight. I'm thinking I should have at least 600# capacity to maintain a level of comfort.
 
Bigfattyt,

No whitewater, unless I really screw up. That Winchester overnighter looks like the kind of canoeing I'd like to do. Where do you camp?
 
Camp where ever you want. On the banks wherever you can pull out and find a spot flat enough for the tents.

Pull out spot to camp this year (we normally stop a few times over the two days).



Camp spot. The leaders put our tents up a bit away from the boys so we could sleep.

That's where they pitched.





We pitched our tents on the top of a sand dune about 60 yards away.





One of the many "goof off stops". We play foot ball in the water here.






The Winchester Wasteway meanders all over. Lots of narrow turns, but it is mostly pretty easy. The water on the Upper Winchester is not moving as fast. Beginners can bang around pretty safely.

Here are a few more pics of the upper Winchester.






The lower Winchester, where we pull out, gets swifter, and a bit more dangerous.

I did the lower Winchester as a kid. Much pushier, more strainers, and a few little drops, and one sneaky long drop, that gets people every year! We broke a canoe in half, and had to leave the canoes and hike out (I was a kid then, and the leaders took us down the wrong water way. the put in spot we meant to go to was only about 1/2 a mile away.


We got out at 3 in the morning, and they had to send a search plane to find the canoe's.
 
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Bigfattyt,

Sounds like you had a lot of good times. The upper Winchester sounds about my speed. Talked with some friends about canoe camping next year. I've ridden with a friend in the front of a canoe many times, usually fishing. I have seen a lot of old fiberglass canoes 15' - 17' in the $150 to $250 price range. I'm still a little confused. I've seen a 17' Coleman with @ 600# capacity, a 17' Grumman aluminum with @ 750# capacity and a 17' Old Town Tripper Royalex with a 1500# capacity. Is there any way to determine the @ capacity by looking at them? I really do not want to spend more than $500 on the canoe and I need to put some racks on the truck for hauling it and pick up some dry bags and a good vest.
 
I'm a paddling nut but I prefer SOT kayaks. When we have local meets to fish however several folks always show up in Canoes. I've been able to paddle many of them and the two best that I have seen are the NuCanoe (I had my doubts but I really liked it) and my favorite by far, the Ultimate 14.5 Tandem <--That thing is just cool! It paddles smoothly, VERY stable, weighs 71 pounds and holds 450! If I were to ever buy a Canoe, the Native would be it if I didn't mind spending the money. The NuCanoe is also very nice but it a bit easier on the pocketbook. I'm not a big fan of old town Canoes. I've done a few trips down the Devils river here in SW Texas and the 2nd trip with with an Old Town canoe. Lets just say the Old Town didn't hold up very well...
DISCLAIMER: The Devils River is VERY rough on boats..
 
I have camped out of a canoe and it was fun. If mostly on lakes it is nice to have a slightly longer canoe for tracking, I have no experience on a river in a canoe but have seen some very skilled paddlers go through some very tough water. If I go out alone I prefer my SOT kayak for weight and ease of paddling.
 
For tandem use and carrying a load of camping gear, either or both, look for a canoe 16' or longer. Width also plays a role since capacity depends on the amount of water displaced vs. the amount of freeboard left when loaded.

Hull weight really doesn't matter on the water so much as it does, as you said, in hoisting it on and off the top of a car and getting it to and from the water. Modern composite hulls are in the light weight catagory. Older composite canoes tend to be quite heavy. Polyethelyne canoes tend to be heavy but some ABS canoes (R-84 and some Royalex designs) are a bit lighter.

Most of us store our canoes more days than we paddle them, so consider where you will store it. An aluminum canoe can sit out in the sun and rain for years and be little worse for the wear. Most plastics and composites will degrade to varying extents if left out in the sun.

Actual hull design is a rather complicated and lengthy discussion, and most people with experience have their own preferences depending on where and how they use their canoes. A good "all around" design is the "prospector". It has decent stability (not "tippy"), capacity and can be paddled solo with some effort or carry a partner and a load of camping gear.

My own solution is to own a small "fleet" of four very different canoes. Some are heavy and some are light, 40-80#. They are different lengths and hull designs and perform very differently on the water. I decide which one to take on a particular outing according to what I plan to do and water conditions. Most people would want one canoe to "do it all", so find a canoe that is a good compromise for their most often intended use. IMHO, the "prospector" design is a good compromise for most casual paddlers. Most canoe companies make one or more models of this design.

All of my canoes were purchased below your maximum target price, it just took constant searching and willingness to do a bit of easy work cleaning and/or repairing hulls and seat replacement. And not being put off by scratches from prior owners.

I partially solved the weight problem by building a trailer from a PWC trailer to carry my canoes and gear. I don't worry about high lifting and possibly scratching or denting my car roof. I also partially solved it by owning two relatively light weight canoes that I can still cartop without much effort. The heaviest canoe is racked so that I can set it, one end at a time, on the canoe trailer without having to lift the entire weight at once. Reloading it at the river, I either let the outfitter's wranglers do it for me or I lift it progressivly in stages. I set it on it's side on the trailer tire, reach under, lift/slide it up the trailer upright and flip it up onto the rack, never having to lift the entire weight at once.

Good luck in your search. Please show us what you come up with and I hope you get as much enjoyment from your "new" canoe as I do from mine.

Michael
 
Did anyone mention that with a small fiberglass repair kit that you could patch/repair your fiberglass canoe on the fly in the event that only something minor happened.
 
With duct tape and g-flex, you can repair any of them on the fly. Assuming the canoe hasn't been broached, shattered and turned inside out. But yes, a glass composite canoe is easier to damage and easier to repair than some other materials.
 
Here is a video overview of various canoe types and materials.

[video=youtube;gHwN-UNdf9A]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gHwN-UNdf9A#t=118[/video]
 
Unless you are dead set on a canoe, consider a kayak. They are (depending on the type of course) stable and easy to handle, easy to paddle, and a lot of fun. I think a sit-in style would be best for you and your intended purpose. More canoe-like than a sit-on-top, drier too. I have a Pungo 120 that I am very happy with, it weighs about 50 pounds by itself. An open cockpit, easy to get in and out, no claustrophobia. I have a spray skirt to keep out water in bad weather or rougher water. Just a thought.
 
Michael,

Thanks for the information. That gives me a lot to narrow my search. The video(s) were really helpful. It seems 15' to 17', shallow arch for solo, 800# capacity for tandem camping. Material is not important but I'd prefer a little more rigidity to the hull than my friend has in his 15' Tripper. I don't know why but that oil canning irritates me. I'd also live with it has only happened when we were trying to get out of the weather and the water was getting rougher. I hope I am on the right track?
 
Blue Sky said:
Unless you are dead set on a canoe, consider a kayak. They are (depending on the type of course) stable and easy to handle, easy to paddle, and a lot of fun. I think a sit-in style would be best for you and your intended purpose. More canoe-like than a sit-on-top, drier too. I have a Pungo 120 that I am very happy with, it weighs about 50 pounds by itself. An open cockpit, easy to get in and out, no claustrophobia. I have a spray skirt to keep out water in bad weather or rougher water. Just a thought.
Click to expand...

I took half a kayaking class a couple of decades ago and something came up. I enjoyed myself and was sad that I was unable to finish the course and the river trip. Today, I'd need to get serious about getting in better shape and learning that Eskimo roll. Even for a solo camping trip I am looking at 300# capacity which would eliminate a lot of the fast water kayaks. That being said, if my friends were kayakers, I'd be looking for a kayak.
 
"Recreational" kayaks, especially those with an open cockpit like the Pungo, do not permit the Eskimo roll anyway, flip it over and you're falling out. Much like a canoe actually, which is why I suggested them. You're not going in fast water, no need to look at those. There may be more styles now than you are aware of, if your experience is from 20 years ago. You may be surprised what is available these days.

It sounds like you are focused on a canoe, to be compatable with your group and their experience. It's all good, best of luck in your search and be sure to let us know what you decide! I'd like to see how you get it set up.
 
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