Thanks for that Marc. I think the OP would want a boat that is stable when leaned to the rail and not squirrely. What boats do you solo guys recommend for him.
Thanks Glenn and Marc. I have watched Marcs videos and have read his articles and understand the physics going on. I was just wondering if I was missing something when it comes to leaning a boat to the rails. I think of it more in terms of secondary stability and how it affects how much I can...
The question I have is. Is it better to have a boat you can lean to the gunnel, or one that gives you the performance you want without having to lean it that far?
Another question I have concerning solo boats when leaning is, Do you keep one knee in each chine or do you put both knees in one...
I'm with Glenn on this one, just use your single blade paddle with one hand. In the "Woodcraft" book Nessmuk uses the one handed paddle as an alternative to the double blade he used. It was probably his only spare paddle and I imagine it took up less room in his 16 lb canoe than a standard size...
I would never go tentless during bug season, but have had success with a tarp in the shoulder season. I would make sure my tarp was big enough to make it weatherproof during a storm.
Welcome to the site. I love the Malecite, have been tripping with it since '94. I've been paddling mine solo from the stern seat recently and have noticed that it feels less tippy from there than the center seat. I've noticed this with other boats too. You don't need any ballast, but about 25...
That works well as long as you have a healthy back. It's also not too bad lifting a bag off the ground and onto your back. The problem is loading and unloading the boat, especially when the landing isn't the best.
When did you live there, and did you know Buck Brown? He lived at the junction with the road to Tok and always had a cedar strip boat on his rack. He sold me that boat in '91 and built a shorter one for himself. He used to do shuttles on the river too.
I was at a friends house last week and he had these pictures from when he visited me in Alaska over thirty years ago. The boat is the 16' Whitewater model found in Gil Gilpatricks book. I can't remember the river but it's possibly the Gulkana.