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Canoe advice for a disabled vet.

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sixbennetts

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Hi everybody!

I'm Barbara from upstate NY. My husband Donny is a disabled vet. We travel around the Adirondacks and Green Mountains across the lake in Vermont on an old motorcycle and sidecar.

We recently sold a truck to fix the roof and pay some medical bills. We had enough left over to buy a tiny motorcycle popup trailer to tow! It's an Aspen Classic and its only the size of a single mattress, but unfolds to have a king-size bed! We're VERY excited!

We help returning vets by taking them camping and fishing. We were slated to get a canoe and camper from Wounded Warrior Project, but that was before the scandal hit, and we never heard back.

So, we're looking for a used canoe. Donny and I both grew up canoeing. My family had a huge Grumman aluminum. He and his brother had an 18' Lincoln fiberglass.

Here's what we're thinking:

1. Because weight is a problem, it must be light, (Kevlar? Aluminum?)

2. Short, but with two seats.

3. Wide and flat bottomed, to carry weight.

4. Traditional shaped, (if you look at it from the side, the ends come up a little to a point. Does that make sense?)

5. We'll be using this more for lakes and ponds, rather than swift water, so a slight keel ridge would help with the wind.

6. Weight: He's 6'1", 300 lbs, and I'm 5'11", 130-ish, so it should be capable of carrying 500 lbs or so for overnighters. So, wide flat bottom. Donny calls it tumble home? Sp?

7. We live on his military disability, so price is a major issue. Used is fine. Needing paint is fine. Needing repair is fine. (He's pretty handy).

So, I guess I need guidance on what brands and models to be looking for, which is why I'm here!

Thanks!
Barb
:0)
 
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Hi Barbara, and welcome... the specs you describe might be found in a used Sportspal... lIght, wide, short, two seats, flat-bottomed IIRC, should carry 500 pounds plus and not too expensive. They are not the most durable since the lightweight aluminum will dent but with a little care around logs and rocks, could be the right choice to get on the water.

Sportspals get some bad reviews since they're not the best sort of design for expert canoeing but still are popular with anglers and casual paddlers.

Check these on Kijiji in Ontario, you'll probably find them at other places as well... good luck and enjoy your time spent out there.

PS... there are also heavier used aluminum canoes on Kijiji and Craigslist.... Grumman and Michicraft, and not too expensive used. Much more durable. I don't recall what weight range but googling should reveal all.

http://www.kijiji.ca/b-ontario/sportspal-canoe/k0l9004
 
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I just restored a Mad River Winooski in Kevlar. As a 100% disabled VN vet I would have gladly donated it to my fellow Vet. It was short, wide, light weight and really nice looking but it sold quickly. I will began a search and see what I can come up with. I have a nice Ranger right now, but it weighs a ton (62+ lbs)
In your initial note to me, you mentioned you where in the Plattsburgh, NY area if anyone can help out.
If you have to buy one, do you have a budget?
 
Two different responses for thought:

1. Based on your requirements for a tandem canoe, you probably need a 16' footer, 36" wide in the middle. A 15' may not be able to hold your combined weights well unless it is 38"-40" wide in the middle. Aluminum, heavy plastic or solid fiberglass construction will all be quite heavy. Ideally, you want a fiberglass/Kevlar mix or a carbon/Kevlar mix. Unfortunately, the lighter the weight canoe construction, the more expensive. So you have to look for used canoes on selling sites like Craigslist, eBay and Paddleswap.

2. Consider two 10'-12', light recreational kayaks with big cockpits instead of one tandem canoe. These can be relatively inexpensive and lightweight plastic, but strong enough for ponds. They are stable because you sit on the bottom with a double blade paddle. The ultimate in lightness -- 12 to 16 pounds -- would be used Hornbeck "pack canoes", which are essentially undecked kayaks that look like small canoes. Many couples prefer to paddle side-by-side in separate boats rather than have a stern paddler staring at the back of a bow paddler in a tandem canoe. Plus, each person can go off in different directions when they want to for their own explorations.
 
Robin said:
I just restored a Mad River Winooski in Kevlar. As a 100% disabled VN vet I would have gladly donated it to my fellow Vet. It was short, wide, light weight and really nice looking but it sold quickly. I will began a search and see what I can come up with. I have a nice Ranger right now, but it weighs a ton (62+ lbs)
In your initial note to me, you mentioned you where in the Plattsburgh, NY area if anyone can help out.
If you have to buy one, do you have a budget?
Click to expand...

Oh hi, Robin! Yes, we're in Plattsburgh. We have a couple plastic Dick's Sporting Goods kayaks that our son got us, but as you pros know, they're not ideal. Yes, they allow for us to go side by side, but Donny has problems with his knees, (old war wounds), so getting wedged into a kayak is difficult for him. Plus, he's a big guy, so there's that lol! We tried lashing the two we have to the top of the camper, and they just don't fit. So it's definitely gotta be a lightweight canoe.

And that is very sweet of you! Your help is greatly appreciated, thanks. I don't think he'd accept such a gift, but coming from a fellow vet, he might have. Thanks for YOUR service, btw. No greater gift than to serve...

I don't know what you call this shape, but it's what we envision.

http://thewildernessreview.com/wp-co...Wood-Canoe.jpg

Those Sportspal ones look like a perfect fit! Those long black thingies along the sides, bumpers? Do those come off? That would probably save a ton of weight.

Budget wise, a few hundred now, but I'm being, "creative", with our budget, so maybe a little more as we go. We live mostly on his disability. I work some, on his good days. So I guess I'd rely on everyone's advice here on what we can afford.

If we could find a Kevlar or graphite the exact size and shape of those little Sportspal canoes, that would be perfect!

Thanks for the welcome, guys! Barb :0)

ps. The canoe at the top has the bow shape were looking for. See how the front edge curves backwards? What do you call this?

http://www.trailspace.com/images/gear/guide/2011/07/08/rocker-full.jpg
 
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Dang. Savage River has a decked canoe with an outrigger open cockpit. But it's carbon fiber and out of budget. Pack canoes are great for stability as you sit low and a ledge person can do well in a skinnier boat. Check out the Hornbeck line. That is the most cost conscious builder.
Slipstream is here too at the Solo Canoe Rendezvous and I'll check if they have tandems. There are some here. This would be tandem pack canoe
Those black Radisson bumpers are actually the boats floatation. If you lose them the boat has as much buoyancy as a kitchen pot
Re curved stems are the shape you like. Not found often on anything but wood canvas canoes. The hill comes off the mold open at the ends which are later brought together. With the molds used in other canoes that can't happen aside from high end boats
 
Oh, that makes sense! How would you get a stem like that off a mold. Good point!

So, to get the shape we desire, that means aluminum, right? Cause those are made in two halves.

Where's my light bulb emoji! :0)

B
 
There are composite canoes with recurved stems but they're rare.

I had that exact wooden Old Town Guide you linked, but I traded it 35 years ago. Very expensive canoe, new. Champagne taste.

A used Sportspal is probably a good recommendation for your budget and tandem canoe desires in every way except weight.

Another thought, if your husband is handy and so motivated, is to build a woodstrip (or maybe a plywood) canoe from professional plans. There are expert builders here who can estimate the costs and time. That way, you could get something brand new, very aesthetic, very close to the shape you want, at a weight less than aluminum, and probably at a reasonable cost. Everyone who's built them did one for the first time.
 
I don't think building our own is what we're interested in at this time, but thanks for the suggestion!

It's looking like the Sportspal S-12 might be the one. The weight capacity is close, but this will be a day trip canoe for us, with *maybe the occasional overnight.

It's light at 48 lbs, (is that light? Would a comparable Kevlar or graphite be much less?)

It's short, so it will fit just right on top of the trailer.

Hopefully we can find one cheap. In some of the searches, I've seen that there are US and Canadian made Sportspals. Is there any difference?

Thanks guys! B
 
What to aspire to the Merrimack Osprey go to their website and take a look Fulfills your needs except for the budget
 
Oh my, that is a beautiful canoe! Is there anything more quintessentially old school cool than a traditional canoe in green with wood? If I bought one of those, I'd have to also get Donny a pipe, packbasket, and drape him in wool buffalo plaid! So handsome.... ;0)
 
I believe this is the one, guys! The Sportspal S-12. Does anyone have one of these they might let go cheap? "Cosmetically challenged", units are fine. It's 48 pounds, so it's a little heavier than we want, but we should be able to find one cheap, right? I LOVELOVELOVE the birch bark colored one!

http://www.meyersboat.com/#/sportspal/models/S-12
 
...48 pounds, so it's a little heavier than we want...
Click to expand...

That does seem to be on the heavy side... check this ad, 34 pounds, 12 feet.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-canoe-kayak-p...ationFlag=true

Maybe there are heavier, more durable Sportspals being built?


PS,,,, the black bands on either side are light foam sponsons, for added stability when leaning the canoe over. They provide flotation and resist being submerged, reducing the chances of tipping or filling the hull with water.
 
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After some googling, it seems American-made Sportspals are indeed built from thicker and heavier aluminum (the text would not copy for some reason). More durable, it seems. I guess lifting and porting is the thing to do to find if the added weight will be an issue. OTOH, there were some good used Canadian SP deals IIRC in the first ad link up above... as always, good luck and try before you buy....
 
My concern is the capacity listed. It's very common to list capacity as the weight of water displaced when the canoe has 4 or six inches of freeboard. That is not enough. It's likely that on an overnight you would be trusting with your life that 500 lbs
14 feet gives you a little more margin but it's heavier
Also considering your weight differences you have to have room for him to sit closer to center for good trim which makes the canoe steerable and more stable
 
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