Prospector or……

OxbowJay · May 2, 2026

I’ve been looking for an all around tandem that will paddle well as a solo, primarily on smaller rivers, that fits in between my Esquif Echo and my 17’ MR Duck Hunter. And because I’ll be using it mostly as a solo, weight is key. I’d prefer a weight around 50-55, tops but it’s going to be tough and able to take a beating.

I’m thinking a 15’ “prospector” type design. In terms is spend, a new canoe is probably not an option so I’m depending on the secondary market and patience, of which I have very little. I have an opportunity to pick up a 16’ fiberglass MR Explorer (Eggplant) but it’s heavy and I already have a 17’ Revelation so even thought the color it really cool…it’s not really what I am looking for, is it?

What are the options?

VA paddler · May 2, 2026

Maybe a pocket Canyon? Or NovaCraft makes a slew of Prospectors. Old Town's Appalachian is an excellent boat. I have an old Mad River ME - which I like, but wouldn't recommend - she's a squirrely thing.

dutchlennart · May 3, 2026

Not sure a out the wieght of the eggplant explorer it could be either kevlar of polyesther.. mr build those for many years. So weight is not fixed.
They are close to your duckhunter.

OxbowJay · May 3, 2026

dutchlennart said:
Not sure a out the wieght of the eggplant explorer it could be either kevlar of polyesther.. mr build those for many years. So weight is not fixed.
They are close to your duckhunter.

Yeah. That’s the problem. The MR has a grey interior which I believe means is fiberglass and that means ~ 65 lbs.

OxbowJay · May 3, 2026

VA paddler said:
Maybe a pocket Canyon? Or NovaCraft makes a slew of Prospectors. Old Town's Appalachian is an excellent boat. I have an old Mad River ME - which I like, but wouldn't recommend - she's a squirrely thing.

I have always thought that Canyons were specialized, primarily for white water.

Tryin' · May 3, 2026

How much payload? The Northstar Polaris is exactly "an all around tandem that will paddle well as a solo".

Steve in Idaho · May 3, 2026

OxbowJay said:
Yeah. That’s the problem. The MR has a grey interior which I believe means is fiberglass and that means ~ 65 lbs.

From what I've seen, the fiberglass Mad Rivers were the same color inside and out. The kevlar boats have the "football" on the floor painted grey and the rest of the inside is the natural honey color.

OxbowJay · May 3, 2026

Tryin' said:
How much payload? The Northstar Polaris is exactly "an all around tandem that will paddle well as a solo".

350-500, max. 75% of the time it will be a solo, well under 300. If I were going to spend the $$ on a Northstsr it would probably be a B15.

VA paddler · May 3, 2026

OxbowJay said:
I have always thought that Canyons were specialized, primarily for white water.

The Canyon is excellent as a white water tripper but most whitewater trips involve a great deal of flat water, too, and the Canyon does fine.

Alan Gage · May 3, 2026

Can you define what you mean by "smaller rivers"?

I consider my local river to be a smaller river. It's not very wide, deep, or fast and has no whitewater.

Someone out East might consider a smaller river to be swift flowing and narrow with rapids that require quick maneuvering.

What works on my small river wouldn't work well on their small river.

Alan

OxbowJay · May 3, 2026

Alan Gage said:
Can you define what you mean by "smaller rivers"?

I consider my local river to be a smaller river. It's not very wide, deep, or fast and has no whitewater.

Someone out East might consider a smaller river to be swift flowing and narrow with rapids that require quick maneuvering.

What works on my small river wouldn't work well on their small river.

Alan

The AuSable River system and Manistee River system in northern MI. No rapids, parts are twisty and navigating around sweepers and low hanging branches. Spring 400-450 qfs summer/fall 200 qfs. One of the biggest changes is being able to navigate through pinch points between down trees rocks and sweepers.

MrPoling · May 4, 2026

OxbowJay said:
I’ve been looking for an all around tandem that will paddle well as a solo, primarily on smaller rivers, that fits in between my Esquif Echo and my 17’ MR Duck Hunter. And because I’ll be using it mostly as a solo, weight is key. I’d prefer a weight around 50-55, tops but it’s going to be tough and able to take a beating.

I’m thinking a 15’ “prospector” type design. In terms is spend, a new canoe is probably not an option so I’m depending on the secondary market and patience, of which I have very little. I have an opportunity to pick up a 16’ fiberglass MR Explorer (Eggplant) but it’s heavy and I already have a 17’ Revelation so even thought the color it really cool…it’s not really what I am looking for, is it?

What are the options?

I have a 'glass Explorer, and the inside is indeed gray with no foam. I'd recommend it over a Royalex canoe for most paddling. Mine is about 34 in at the gunwales, so it is a much better solo than a 17 Duck Hunter. But it is nearly 70 lbs, so it misses your most important requirement of being lighter.

I'm ready to replace the Explorer with something lighter. I'm also thinking Prospector. I love the sound of a Polaris but I pole so something wider is probably better.

The problem I see is the outfitters normally use 17+ foot canoes, and only a few 16 footers. So the used market for lightweight canoes is kinda tight in the 15-16 ft range.

Good luck.

OxbowJay · May 4, 2026

MrPoling said:
The problem I see is the outfitters normally use 17+ foot canoes, and only a few 16 footers. So the used market for lightweight canoes is kinda tight in the 15-16 ft range.

Good luck.

Sounds like we are in the same "proverbial" boat, and yes, there aren't many 15-16' prospector-type canoes on the market. A really nice "Bob" popped up on the FM marketplace at a very fair price - it was gone in minutes.

Steve in Idaho · May 5, 2026

OxbowJay said:
The AuSable River system and Manistee River system in northern MI. No rapids, parts are twisty and navigating around sweepers and low hanging branches. Spring 400-450 qfs summer/fall 200 qfs. One of the biggest changes is being able to navigate through pinch points between down trees rocks and sweepers.

That sounds a lot like the Boise River where I spend a lot of time. If you must go with a tandem, a 15' Prospector should do nicely as a solo or tandem there. But I never felt like my 16' NC Prospector was too much on that river. On a faster technical stream, that's where it seemed like too much boat to solo with a paddle (it worked great, standing with a pole).

As has been mentioned though, 15' tandem Prospectors seem to be rather rare on the used market - lightweight versions are unicorns. I see more river oriented solo canoes for sale in my area than 15' Prospectors or Prospector-ish tandems, and that's saying something.

Riffle-Raff · Thursday at 10:11 AM

OxbowJay said:
I’ve been looking for an all around tandem that will paddle well as a solo, primarily on smaller rivers, that fits in between my Esquif Echo and my 17’ MR Duck Hunter. And because I’ll be using it mostly as a solo, weight is key. I’d prefer a weight around 50-55, tops but it’s going to be tough and able to take a beating.

If looking for used to save a few bucks something like a Dagger Reflection 15, Mad River Tahoe, Explorer 15 or even an Old Town Camper may turn up on marketplace somewhere between $300-1000 depending on condition and location.

If you find you don't mind saving up for a bit, the huron 15 in t formex like it probably the perfect boat for your application.

OxbowJay · Thursday at 2:32 PM

Riffle-Raff said:
If looking for used to save a few bucks something like a Dagger Reflection 15, Mad River Tahoe, Explorer 15 or even an Old Town Camper may turn up on marketplace somewhere between $300-1000 depending on condition and location.

If you find you don't mind saving up for a bit, the huron 15 in t formex like it probably the perfect boat for your application.
View attachment 154574

I already have a Camper. Does most things ok, but nothing great. The flat bottom is a negative on streams and rivers that twist and turn, while dodging sweepers, low branches, and rocks. The Huron 15 does check a lot of the boxes, especially relating to weight and price, but I think I want the additional 2" of depth.

Riffle-Raff · Thursday at 5:13 PM

OxbowJay said:
I already have a Camper. Does most things ok, but nothing great. The flat bottom is a negative on streams and rivers that twist and turn, while dodging sweepers, low branches, and rocks. The Huron 15 does check a lot of the boxes, especially relating to weight and price, but I think I want the additional 2" of depth.

I hear ya on flat bottom boats. I've had two of them and came away from them fairly unimpressed in regards to paddling characteristics.

In regards to depth, just remember another 2" of depth along the 15ft hull is another 5 square feet of sail to the wind when paddling on your own. (15' is 180" 180"×2" for each side is 720" total. 720÷144=5 sq ft)

While it could be manageable, many have made it work over the years; why work harder than you have to if you're not going to be doing whitewater? The less sail you give to the wind, the easier your time on any kind of water will be.

Bill Mason famously favored his Chesnut Pal over the Prospector for this very reason.

Food for thought, obviously if you want a deeper hull for carrying more stuff or general sense of security that is A-okay

OxbowJay · Thursday at 9:19 PM

The depth of my Camper has never been an issue; it's 13," and the H15 is 14.5. (and 10 lbs lighter.) Maybe I need to revisit the H15.

Prospector or……

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