Who’s still paddling a Royalex solo boat

SouthernKevlar · Tuesday at 6:07 PM

eckilson said:
Haven't seen one of those in a while. A friend had one with an adjustable seat that you could lower for sitting or raise for kneeling. Added to the weight but an innovative idea. Not sure paddlers actually move around that much.

Here are a couple of photos of the adjustable seat system. My Argosy was made in 2007; I understand that some earlier ones had slots for more that just two adjustment settings. I have paddled it in both kneeling and sitting positions and it seems to work well.

Please forgive the grunge. I have not cleaned on the seat system yet.

yet.

tketcham · Tuesday at 7:06 PM

I wish Wenonah still sold those adjustable seat brackets. I've been looking for something similar but haven't found anything yet. I may see if I can get a local machine shop to build a set for me.

SouthernKevlar · Tuesday at 7:50 PM

It seems to be a good idea. I wonder why the adjustable drops were discontinued?

stripperguy · Tuesday at 8:07 PM

I still have my Mohawk XL13, bombproof and perfect for ADK whitewater. Paid $300 for it with OEM saddle and both flotation bags.
It's in great shape, I paddled a rarely visited section of the Boreas River in it.
However, since my buddy of 40 years passed away in 2019, I rarely paddle whitewater any more, shuttles are too hard to arrange and I can't find anyone that wants to paddle stuff like that...solo shuttles are tough, and solo wilderness whitewater trips make MDB nervous.
I doubt that I'll ever sell it, maybe my kids or grandkids want to play with it.

Steve in Idaho · Tuesday at 8:30 PM

SouthernKevlar said:
It seems to be a good idea. I wonder why the adjustable drops were discontinued?

I seem to recall some complaints that the seat didn't always stay where you wanted it when things got rough.

SouthernKevlar · Tuesday at 8:38 PM

Steve in Idaho said:
I seem to recall some complaints that the seat didn't always stay where you wanted it when things got rough.

Interesting. I tested the cord and lock by picking the canoe up by the seat while in the low position. Everything held in place. I wonder if folks forgot to lock it in place? I could see movement up and down being an issue then.

SouthernKevlar · Tuesday at 8:43 PM

stripperguy said:
However, since my buddy of 40 years passed away in 2019, I rarely paddle whitewater any more, shuttles are too hard to arrange and I can't find anyone that wants to paddle stuff like that...solo shuttles are tough, and solo wilderness whitewater trips make MDB nervous.
.

I have the same issue with a decreasing number of paddling buddies that have given up whitewater due to various age related issues. Maybe we need to start local chapters of the OFPC (Old Farts Paddling Club) for those of us who remain.

eckilson · Wednesday at 6:37 AM

SouthernKevlar said:
Interesting. I tested the cord and lock by picking the canoe up by the seat while in the low position. Everything held in place. I wonder if folks forgot to lock it in place? I could see movement up and down being an issue then.

That looks pretty good, and not much different than a normal metal hanger. It's been a while, but I do remember it having more slots than that, and I don't remember the cord lock. Maybe a later version. By the way, grunge is good!

eckilson · Wednesday at 6:40 AM

SouthernKevlar said:
I have the same issue with a decreasing number of paddling buddies that have given up whitewater due to various age related issues. Maybe we need to start local chapters of the OFPC (Old Farts Paddling Club) for those of us who remain.

I'd join the OFPC, but you are a little far away. ;-)

My solution has been to paddle with kayakers - so far they have been OK with having an old fart along.

eckilson · Wednesday at 7:08 AM

Glenn MacGrady said:
Heavily influenced by John Berry and other whitewater slalom racers in the early 80s, I mostly paddled a Kevlar canoe even in my most serious whitewater decades, a Millbrook ME.

Someday I am going to buy a John Kaz Millbrook - for me it will be the Outrage.

clemency · Wednesday at 9:24 AM

SouthernKevlar said:
Here are a couple of photos of the adjustable seat system. My Argosy was made in 2007; I understand that some earlier ones had slots for more that just two adjustment settings. I have paddled it in both kneeling and sitting positions and it seems to work well.

Please forgive the grunge. I have not cleaned on the seat system yet.

View attachment 144624 View attachment 144622 yet.

That is the same system as on the Wilderness. Never had it self adjust, but it sometimes doesn't want to adjust and it is a bit noisy sometimes.

Steve in Idaho · Wednesday at 10:46 AM

SouthernKevlar said:
Interesting. I tested the cord and lock by picking the canoe up by the seat while in the low position. Everything held in place. I wonder if folks forgot to lock it in place? I could see movement up and down being an issue then.

eckilson said:
That looks pretty good, and not much different than a normal metal hanger. It's been a while, but I do remember it having more slots than that, and I don't remember the cord lock. Maybe a later version. By the way, grunge is good!

I think you are right. I've only seen one Argosy - the used one I test paddled years ago - but I seem to remember the adjustable seat looking different from that.

I'd have a much better memory of it, but I hesitated on the purchase and someone else bought it before I decided to.

Steve in Idaho · Wednesday at 10:56 AM

eckilson said:
Someday I am going to buy a John Kaz Millbrook - for me it will be the Outrage.

Of course - you already are tuned in to it.

I will settle for the first Kaz creation that materializes in range.

I have a lot of faith in his builds.

Regarding your OP, what about royalex canoes we wish we hadn't sold? First one that comes to mind is the Dagger Sojourn. If I had more storage space, I would have never let it go. Probably going to say the same about the Guide....

SouthernKevlar · Wednesday at 11:52 AM

eckilson said:
Someday I am going to buy a John Kaz Millbrook - for me it will be the Outrage.

I lucked up on finding a Millbrook Outrage this year but haven't put it to the use it needs due to dry rivers and a diminishing number of paddling partners. I'm hoping 2025 will be a year of better water and expanding my circle of paddling partners, maybe teaching some young folk in "The Way of Whitewater".

recped · Wednesday at 1:40 PM

SouthernKevlar said:
I have the same issue with a decreasing number of paddling buddies that have given up whitewater due to various age related issues. Maybe we need to start local chapters of the OFPC (Old Farts Paddling Club) for those of us who remain.

I have solved this issue by being the old fart in a group of not so old farts.

For the past 25 years virtually all of my whitewater tripping companions (when I'm not solo) have been "required" to be at least 20 years younger than I am. I've been planning my regular Spring trip for 2025, I will be the oldest in the group, the next oldest will be just turning 50.

In another 20 years some of those people will be claiming they are "too old for this crap", I'll be 90 and won't have to claim I'm too old, it will likely be obvious to anyone.....maybe even to me!

SouthernKevlar · Wednesday at 2:20 PM

Steve in Idaho said:
Regarding your OP, what about royalex canoes we wish we hadn't sold? First one that comes to mind is the Dagger Sojourn. If I had more storage space, I would have never let it go. Probably going to say the same about the Guide....

Not the OP, but here is my list of Royalex canoes that have moved on:

Perception HD-1- Wettest WW boat I ever paddled, but introduced me to OC-1s. Glad it is gone.
Old Town Penobscot 17- Wish it had been a 16; big for me and my wife on day trips. Not too sad about selling.
Old Town Kennebec- A bit of a log. It would float high through the rapids, but not great for quick maneuvering on small rivers. Heavy! No regrets.
Bell Yellowstone Solo- Nice canoe, but it felt small to me at the time. Gone to make room for another canoe, sort of regret selling it.
Bell Yellowstone Tandem- Tandem and solo with a substantial kneeling thwart. I probably should not have traded this one off.
Mad River Explorer- A classic, but a buddy needed a canoe, so I know where it is. Not too sad not to have it in my storage area.
Old Town H2Pro- Nice classic whitewater canoe. If I hadn't upgraded to my Millbrook Outrage I would still have it, but no regrets.

That was a fun trip down memory lane. Before passing judgment, remember that my first Royalex canoe was bought in 1993, so divide the number of canoes by 31 years. I currently only have one Royalex canoe.

eckilson · Thursday at 5:50 AM

SouthernKevlar said:
Not the OP, but here is my list of Royalex canoes that have moved on:

I currently have 8 boats - 2 tandem, 5 solo and 1 sea kayak. In terms of materials - 2 composite, 4 Royalex and 2 plastic. I never really been a boat collector, so the only boat I have ever passed on was my first WW solo - a Dagger Impulse. It is also with a friend, so I know where it is. I should probably pass on the C1 to someone who will paddle it more that I do. Either that or I need to learn to roll.

Pseudonym · Thursday at 9:39 AM

All my canoes are Royalex: a Bell Wildfire RX ("Yellowstone") and two OT Trippers. I sold an OT Osprey in RX last year.

I look forward to a stripper or composite in the years to come but most of my tripping is white-water-centric and I always double-carry the portages (oftentimes three-carry

), so the weight of RX hasn't become an issue for me yet.

Tsuga8 · Thursday at 10:47 PM

No true Rx solos, but I soloed.an Rx Heron as my only canoe for about 6 yrs. I now have 3 Rx tandems in the stable, the Heron, a Penobscot 16, and now a Morningstar. The Penobscot is probably 50/50 on solo vs tandem use because of weight. The Heron sees use poling these days, and I got the Morningstar for solo paddling and poling. Hoping to do some of the Allagash this year and debating whether to use the Rx Morningstar, white gold Morningstar, or Penobscot ( I understand it's likely too rocky for my blacklite Phoenix, plus I'd like to be able to pole). Hard to imagine getting a true Rx solo because, as with the Allagash, if I'm in stuff too rocky for the blacklite I'll want to be able to pole anyways. But of course if one comes along....
Gotta say, cartopping 30lbs sure is a lot nicer than 50lbs.

Will Derness · Friday at 10:36 AM

When the occasion arises that has me paddling rocky gravel bed streams my usual choice is the Swift Raven. This past spring here I am in the teal Raven on the Jacks Fork River in Missouri.

Who’s still paddling a Royalex solo boat

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