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A cooler is fairly common on river trips in Utah. I did a trip on the Colorado River in July, 2022 and it was over 100 degrees every day. The day we got off the river, it was 110 in Moab. It was awful nice having a cold drink every evening. Even in the spring and fall, when it isn't so hot...

This last summer I bought a small waterproof camera that I keep in a thwart bag, most of the time. My other camera is a Sony 7 IIa, I keep it in a screw top petfood vault, or a bucket with a gamma seal lid, right in front of me.

I've probably repeated myself numerous times on this forum. It's hard to remember all the things you've said before.

Man, I've really enjoyed looking at all the photos of solo canoes! Some real eye candy. I'd add one thing about my Echo. The low sides make it pretty ideal for paddling like a pack canoe, with double bladed paddle. I really need to get some photos. It's a pretty sweet setup.

I'm well aware that Swede form has been determined to be faster than fish form and have seen that article before. John Winters has a website with some good articles on canoe design. But I think there could be an argument for fish form at low speeds when wave making resistance is less important...

I think canoes, in general, handle better if slightly stern heavy. Is it worth it to give up some handling to gain some speed? I've been on club trips where I've paddled what should have been the slowest boat and been at the front of the pack and I've been on trips where I probably had the...

It's more of an academic question. Could be a consideration when buying a canoe or kayak. All racing canoes and Boundary Waters type boats are Swede form. There is obviously a difference, but at what speed does it become an issue? I have a theory that, at very low speeds in deep water, fish...

Concern or interest ;)?

As a canoe increases in speed, relative to the water it is passing through, the bow tends to rise and the stern squat. This is more pronounced the shallower the water. To counteract this, racing canoes and performance lake tripping canoes are Swede form, meaning their widest point is aft of...

I'm firmly in the no exterior skid plate camp. Ugly, slows the boat down, can't sand Kevlar, not sure they even protect the place that get's the most wear. Internal skid plates are another matter. I usually order them on my composite canoes. Not so much for wear, but for impact protection. I...

Right now, I have a Northstar Northwind solo, in Blacklite and an Esquif Echo. I would say the Northwind is better at whitewater but slower on the flats than I thought it would be. The Echo would be everything I thought it would be except it's low freeboard rules it out for anything more than...

I periodically send friends an email with the subject line, another thing I should have done when I was younger. I turn 70 in 2024. I have a compromised cardio vascular system, but other than that, my only major problem is arthritis in my left hip. I can still do a lot, but a couple things I...

Who makes the Foxfire? Is that an old Bell design?

Northstar designs their boats so they are widest at or just a few inches below the gunnels. This gives them better secondary or ultimate stability but may reduce initial stability a bit. I have a North Wind solo that is designed that way and it seems pretty stable. Not as stable as my Wenonah...

I have a road bike, a few in fact, but I put slicks on my gravel bike and use as my main road bike. If I want to go off road I use my MTB. But I could get along pretty well with just the gravel bike. Slicks for road, and fatter knobbies for off road. But I'm at a disadvantage on group rides...

I own a North Wind 17 and a North Wind solo. I got to take both on river trips in 2023 and here's what I think about them. With the North Wind series, Northstar decided to sacrifice some speed in favor of seaworthiness. I knew this when I bought them but I expected them to be faster than they...

A white water solo a flatwater solo a white water tandem a flatwater tandem, a white water kayak and touring kayak, an inflatable kayak, There's seven. Then there are the in between rivers. You could paddle your banana boat through Ruby-Horsethief, but it would be slow and frustrating, or you...

That was exactly my point in a response to someone else's post. Not only are there a ton of boats, with varying degrees of rocker, etc. bearing the name prospector, but there are a number of boats that could be called prospectors, but aren't. I liken it to calling a vehicle a pickup. A Chevy...

So you've paddles a real prospector and not some poser. Can't say I have. I feel you about the knees. I won't even kneel for a day paddle. Around these parts you can sell a used prospector about an hour after it goes on Craig's List. I kind of liken it to ethnic food. I may like Italian, you...

You could buy a 16' Prospector tandem and never have to buy another canoe. You and your wife/girlfriend can take it down that class II+ river one weekend, paddle Labyrinth Canyon, the following week, and paddle it solo by paddling backwards from the bow seat, the weekend after that. Sometimes I...