Hello! I have been reading a few canoe forums the past several months and found myself repeatedly drawn back to this one often enough I thought I should finally join!
A bit about my canoe background and journey below, and I apologize in advance for being long winded:
TL;DR - “I recently got back into canoes and now have an addiction”.
I live in Missouri, only a couple of hours from the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, and have been canoeing the Jack’s Fork or Current river at least once or twice a year with my Dad since I was around 8 years old (for reference I’m now 36). For many years we used an old square stern 17’ MonArk aluminum canoe my Dad bought. Neither of us had any formal training, but we got pretty decent with her just the same. I still have the old battleship, and several of her scars and dents have great memories from my childhood associated with them. In high school I started going a little more with other family and friends in addition to my yearly trip with Dad, usually renting plastic sit on top kayaks. In college I bought my own rec kayak (a 13’ Perception Conduit) and talked Dad into getting one for himself as well (a 12’ Perception). We found them much more maneuverable than the old canoe so that’s what I used for a few years, including most spring breaks where a buddy and I would “float” as we call it, fish, and camp on gravel bars. After college I found I wanted to carry more gear and bought an Old Town Next but continued to paddle it exclusively with a double blade. Unfortunately I found that the Next was not quite as maneuverable as I had hoped, and it sent me swimming a lot more than I expected.
Then in Fall of 2023, it sent me swimming twice on the same trip. As we were finishing up the trip at a low water bridge, getting our boats on the truck (rather soggily in my case) an “old timer” floated up in a canoe he was paddling solo and asked if we could help him portage it over the bridge, to save him unloading all his gear. We of course gave him a hand and in doing so I couldn’t help but think, “man that’s a nice boat”. It was a green Wenonah in Tufweave with an immaculate gel coat, and just struck me as a beautiful, classic looking canoe. Keep in mind composite boats are not very common down here, with the vast majority being poly kayaks, or beat up poly Old Town canoes. All winter and spring I thought about that boat and how cool it was, and how skilled that old fella must’ve been to solo paddle a full size canoe with a single blade. I had to have one, and had to learn what he knew. So I sold the Next and my kayak and started researching canoes. I quickly found out how little knowledge I had! That old aluminum beast I started in had a flat bottom and a keel, hardly ideal for maneuvering on a river (legendary durability notwithstanding). My Old Town Next was a flat bottom as well, with no rocker, straight sides and low sheer. No wonder it wasn’t as maneuverable as I wanted and flipped me when I leaned just a little too far.
I really only looked at Wenonahs at first, and ended up purchasing a Prospector 15 in T-Formex last July that I paddle from the bow seat backwards. I really wanted a composite but 1) couldn’t find one near me, and 2) was led to believe a composite just wouldn’t hold up on my rocky, gravel bottom rivers (although I now think it would have been just fine for my uses). Even so, WOW what a game changer! On my second outing I figured out my J stroke and that was that. Ive gotten better with every trip, and I’ve never had more confidence in a boat. It simply goes wherever I want it to, almost effortlessly, and the stability is incredible. It’s not the fastest, but leaning it over to the rails without fear as it slaloms down the river wherever I want is a blast. It is a flat out joy every time I’m in it, and it’s something I know I can improve my skills with for the rest of my life. I have been on more trips since July than the last seven years combined, and paddled right up to December for the first time ever. Every weekend I just want to be in the canoe. I have tried several unexplored (by me) rivers much closer to home and Dad and I are planning a multi-day trip on the Buffalo in March. I now want other boats for different uses, if only I could afford them all! And I can’t get enough canoe info. I’ve read John Winters, Bill Mason, etc, and watched more hours of YouTube videos than I care to admit - available models, layups, reviews, trips, design, paddle making, you name it.
I broke down earlier this month and ordered a Northstar Polaris in IXP (will pick up at Canoecopia), with a center seat, and already can’t wait for my two boys (currently aged 2 years, and 2 months) to be old enough to take out in it. Next will be a dedicated solo if my wife doesn’t kill me first (apparently two new canoes and several new paddles in one year is cause for concern).
All that to say that this seems like a great community, I still have lots to learn, and I hope to take in all I can here. Sorry for the novel, thanks for reading.
-ABT
A bit about my canoe background and journey below, and I apologize in advance for being long winded:
TL;DR - “I recently got back into canoes and now have an addiction”.
I live in Missouri, only a couple of hours from the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, and have been canoeing the Jack’s Fork or Current river at least once or twice a year with my Dad since I was around 8 years old (for reference I’m now 36). For many years we used an old square stern 17’ MonArk aluminum canoe my Dad bought. Neither of us had any formal training, but we got pretty decent with her just the same. I still have the old battleship, and several of her scars and dents have great memories from my childhood associated with them. In high school I started going a little more with other family and friends in addition to my yearly trip with Dad, usually renting plastic sit on top kayaks. In college I bought my own rec kayak (a 13’ Perception Conduit) and talked Dad into getting one for himself as well (a 12’ Perception). We found them much more maneuverable than the old canoe so that’s what I used for a few years, including most spring breaks where a buddy and I would “float” as we call it, fish, and camp on gravel bars. After college I found I wanted to carry more gear and bought an Old Town Next but continued to paddle it exclusively with a double blade. Unfortunately I found that the Next was not quite as maneuverable as I had hoped, and it sent me swimming a lot more than I expected.
Then in Fall of 2023, it sent me swimming twice on the same trip. As we were finishing up the trip at a low water bridge, getting our boats on the truck (rather soggily in my case) an “old timer” floated up in a canoe he was paddling solo and asked if we could help him portage it over the bridge, to save him unloading all his gear. We of course gave him a hand and in doing so I couldn’t help but think, “man that’s a nice boat”. It was a green Wenonah in Tufweave with an immaculate gel coat, and just struck me as a beautiful, classic looking canoe. Keep in mind composite boats are not very common down here, with the vast majority being poly kayaks, or beat up poly Old Town canoes. All winter and spring I thought about that boat and how cool it was, and how skilled that old fella must’ve been to solo paddle a full size canoe with a single blade. I had to have one, and had to learn what he knew. So I sold the Next and my kayak and started researching canoes. I quickly found out how little knowledge I had! That old aluminum beast I started in had a flat bottom and a keel, hardly ideal for maneuvering on a river (legendary durability notwithstanding). My Old Town Next was a flat bottom as well, with no rocker, straight sides and low sheer. No wonder it wasn’t as maneuverable as I wanted and flipped me when I leaned just a little too far.
I really only looked at Wenonahs at first, and ended up purchasing a Prospector 15 in T-Formex last July that I paddle from the bow seat backwards. I really wanted a composite but 1) couldn’t find one near me, and 2) was led to believe a composite just wouldn’t hold up on my rocky, gravel bottom rivers (although I now think it would have been just fine for my uses). Even so, WOW what a game changer! On my second outing I figured out my J stroke and that was that. Ive gotten better with every trip, and I’ve never had more confidence in a boat. It simply goes wherever I want it to, almost effortlessly, and the stability is incredible. It’s not the fastest, but leaning it over to the rails without fear as it slaloms down the river wherever I want is a blast. It is a flat out joy every time I’m in it, and it’s something I know I can improve my skills with for the rest of my life. I have been on more trips since July than the last seven years combined, and paddled right up to December for the first time ever. Every weekend I just want to be in the canoe. I have tried several unexplored (by me) rivers much closer to home and Dad and I are planning a multi-day trip on the Buffalo in March. I now want other boats for different uses, if only I could afford them all! And I can’t get enough canoe info. I’ve read John Winters, Bill Mason, etc, and watched more hours of YouTube videos than I care to admit - available models, layups, reviews, trips, design, paddle making, you name it.
I broke down earlier this month and ordered a Northstar Polaris in IXP (will pick up at Canoecopia), with a center seat, and already can’t wait for my two boys (currently aged 2 years, and 2 months) to be old enough to take out in it. Next will be a dedicated solo if my wife doesn’t kill me first (apparently two new canoes and several new paddles in one year is cause for concern).
All that to say that this seems like a great community, I still have lots to learn, and I hope to take in all I can here. Sorry for the novel, thanks for reading.
-ABT
