DIY Canoe Cart

[Robin]

I had some left over parts from the interior frame of my wall tent after I downsized it, so I came up with this little cart. Here, in a not to clear picture, I'm cutting up some galvanized conduit which I will use for the frame.

After some cutting I ended up with this frame. My son will weld it together, he just asked me to grind off the galvanized material for welding. You can see the shiny spots where it will be welded. Here's all the parts before welding.

after it's welded I will add two long pieces of 2x3 pine cut down to fit and covered with leftover canvas from restoring canoes, plus a sort of "kick stand" that will level the cart for loading and then be folded up for travel, plus a couple of straps to hold the canoe on the cart.
This should be finished before ice out, so I'm looking forward to exploring a couple of new places close to home that required a long walk to get into.
It's not all that heavy, it doesn't fold up, but this is for day trips around home, not for tripping. I could never look at a cart all day in my canoe on the trail, but that's just me.

no kickstand yet, but everything else is done. It weighs 23lbs, but it is not only heavy enough to carry a canoe, it will be used to haul deer out of the woods via logging roads here where I live. I just need to devise some sort of frame with a turkey wire bed to lay a deer on.
Welded with the pine boards bolted on-

Pine boards being covered with canvas left over from canoe work-

Painted green like my canoes

Under a Chestnut Pal

 

[Guest]

That's a very rugged looking canoe cart that should be able to handle some rough trails. Nice work. Every time I see a DIY project that involves welding it makes me wish I'd learned how to weld when it was offered in high school.

I built my own using PVC piping and some wheels I recovered from a discarded baby buggy. It won't serve me at all on bumpy trails in the woods, but it does the trick for getting from my garage and down the street to my local dock when I'm in the mood to do a little fishin'. The upside is that it's very light and small so fits in the boat without taking up a lot of room and it even floats.

- Martin

 

[Robin]

That's a good one Martin, it's great to fashion something out of stuff you find home or for real cheap.

I'm lucky my son welds, comes in handy from time to time. If he didn't I might have tried drilling and bolting the rig together.

 

[Robin]

I finished the cart and added some more pictures to the original post.

 

[Robin]

So yesterday was my 65th birthday and I went down to the town hall to pick up my first "free" hunting/fishing license for us oldtimers who turn 65....I then loaded the canoe, canoe cart and fishing tackle and headed down to a small pond where the cart was going to help me access some water I was never able to get to.

The pond is part of a flood control area that was built after the floods of 1955 ravaged the valley below. There is an old road lead to the pond, not too far, but it's nice to be able to pull the canoe rather than carry.


Another shot of my 15' Chestnut Chum at about 58lbs on the old road. There was a detour around the gate that led through a wooded area and the cart worked well, the canoe never moved on the rough trail.



I wanted to see how the cart fit inside the canoe and whether it would be a problem or not. It takes up alot of room for a tripping situation, but for what I needed, it fits good and is not a problem. I'm going to get a small chain and lock and next time just lock it up at the put in.




Finally, my reward for building the cart turned out to be a small hidden trout stream that meanders thru the alders just above my bow in the picture above. I saw no evidence of other canoes having been in there, there was alot of bird activity and although I didn't catch anything yesterday, I will be back to test the trout fishing. Here's my canoe where the paddle-able part of the stream ends at some rapids.

 

[Murat V]

Great job on the carts guys and a very happy 65th to you Robin. Great that you got to celebrate it in style exploring some streams.

 

[Guest]

Now that's a cart that would even stand up to the way I use my gear. Nice job.
Beautiful day, beautiful boat, beautiful water, and passing time fishing; what more can you ask? Happy birthday!

 

[oldie moldy]

Great cart Robin! You talk about a chain and lock; when I still rode my motorcycle I got a small cable lock with a four number combination. It's about the size of a 16 foot tape. It's use was to secure the helmet when away from the bike. Now the cable is about 1/8 by 36" and retracts into the lock, not awfully strong but very handy. Brand name "Kryptonite". If you've worked for a newspaper or leap tall buildings at a single bound maybe it's not for you.

Next time someone wants you to hurry; just tell you've earned the right to take your time: after all your 455 in dog years!!
Happy Birthday!
Rob

 

[Guest]

Happy Birthday Robin, that's great way to celebrate the day. I really like how the cart fits just right into your Chesnut. Happy trails.

 

[Seeker]

They also make tree-stand locks that come in a 3-piece set (something like green, red, and blue cables) all keyed alike. you can daisy chain them together if you need it to be longer (I think each one stretches to about 6'), or if you have multiple things to lock up (like a bike, canoe, and treestand).

 

[Rippy]

Happy 65th Robin, and thanks for the pics. That Chum looks like a sweet ride. Dave