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I almost spit my coffee out, Jim - you set the bar pretty high. Thank you for the kind words. I had thought about building the seats, but I wanted cane and I get sore fingers just thinking about it. The contoured seats do look comfy but I'd be fairly picky about grain "flow" and would either...

I was moose hunting in Matane Park. I came around a corner and spooked 5 goldens that were feasting on a gut pile. So they do go for carrion, but given the quantity of it in the park, it might be a localized/learned behaviour. One of the few moments that I would not have minded some company...

We used to have these net jackets that were made of cotton. Loose netting, like 1/8 - 1/4" - a mosquito or black fly could easily make it through. But you stuck them in a Ziplock and "charged" them with a couple of good squirts of strong DEET. It's easily been 25 year since I last saw one...

I have found that trying to explain the desires and the nature of an empathetic introvert to an extrovert, while somewhat entertaining, is largely futile. Although it is impossible to say so without implying fault, It is mostly outside of their realm of comprehension. Again, with the qualifiers...

It wasn't long after completing my Bob Special build that I got the hankering to build something else. Perhaps a bit bigger this time, maybe we'll give traditional stem construction a try... The Freedom 17' plans arrived sometime in December 2020. I had left over cedar from the last build. I...

I hope they are bringing the Domaine into the fold because Sepaq itself is oblivious to backcountry canoe camping. They're geared toward selling complete packages to urbanites - like cabin rental with boat, motor, and fishing rights for the weekend. I spoke to a bunch of them at an outdoors show...

I bought a Novacraft Cronje in Aramid Lite in 2019/2020. Closest dealer was in Quebec City - a 7 hour round trip for me. Headed out in August to test drive a few before settling on the Cronje. He did not have an aramid lite in stock and was quite intent on selling us this ridiculous 16' carbon...

Sounds familiar... There was an outfitter on a high altitude lake and they had placed a screen across its outlet to prevent "their" fish from escaping. Every Spring the lake would overflow and the specks would get flushed downstream. This was a typical Canadian Shield stream - black, high...

My name is Paul and I'm a car addict. At least it would seem that way to any onlooker. I have a purchased a vehicle (not always new) every year since 2016. Sticking with the canoe-carrying vehicles... I got rid of my 2011 Wrangler Sahara when I realized I'd only lose $2K on a 7 year-old vehicle...

Make mine Saskatoon berry syrup, please.

There's a specialty up here - although you have to get well off the beaten path to find it: eggs poached in maple syrup. They serve them in a soup bowl, swimming in the maple syrup poaching liquid. Hard pass, superchief.

Getting a bit soggy in the mid-section I have temporarily abstained from alcohol. 2 tablespoons of good vinegar mixed in a glass of soda water and ice is a pleasant, slow-sipping drink. I'm a boil water guy. Mostly commercial dehydrated meals but I have recently been testing some of the...

That's very similar to what I used to tote as a kid in the Lanaudière region of QC searching for speckled trout in small streams/ponds. Mine were on a stiff wire, though, and were bright orange. I think they were what is known as an Idaho rig.

The joke is that by the end of winter, Quebecers are so fed up with the snow that they pour maple syrup on it in an attempt to consume the remainder. I could happily live the rest of my life without maple syrup - I'm quite sick of it. And the foodies that insist on putting it in every...

One thing with which I have hard time is the utter incompatibility of wild tripping and camera/electronic equipment. Slogging a canoe through an alder-choked bog while being consumed alive by horseflies - pulling out the camera would be the very last thing on my mind. And if I was traveling with...

As far as I can tell, the channel is shared between a few guys from Ontario and Nova Scotia. They are down to earth and entertaining with great content and not overly produced. Their latest series (in the process of being released at the time of this posting) is of two guys making their way from...

From the Wenonah Owner's Manual, page 54: "How to repair a gel-coat finish: Gel-coat is thickened, colored polyester resin that is sprayed into the mold before a compos- ite canoe is made in it. The gel-coat is not a structural part of the hull; its only purpose is to impart the canoe’s color...

I'm not much more knowledgeable myself, but I would lean more towards a polyester resin since that is the make-up of your original gelcoat. I think you can epoxy over poly, but not the other way around, so if you ever wanted to re-gelcoat you would need to get rid of any epoxy. Bonus - poly is...

As a kid I used to head off with everything I needed inside one of my grandfather's old empty tins of Mac Baren's Navy Flake. I'm trying to get back to that point.

I have a T8. Stings a bit, at first.