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Not sure how solid a set up it is when used as a paddle but I can imagine frustration if 1) the handle grip won't easily lock in a position oriented parallel to the blade, 2) the length is not easily adjustable and 3) every time you go to push off shore you risk shortening the paddle. I don't...

Oh great, by the time I get to my northern NE destinations (Nulhegan River followed by a side trip to Spencer Stream) the Black Fly Jamboree should be going full swing. Fun!

I hope it was a case of PBR!

Aside from the fact that it was a screen name I used on another paddling forum (or was it two?), as an occasional canoe poler I wanted something descriptive of an activity that for me is as close to walking on water that I'll ever get. And although I've canoed plenty of large lakes in my day, I...

This winter has had its moments so far, but it is still a pretty warm winter (he says from southeast New England, lol). I don't know if anyone else gets the Allagash updates from Maine DEP, but I'm starting to wonder if the Allagash Lakes are ever going to freeze over this winter. They keep...

All of my other four visits to Chesuncook Lake involved what I like to call lightly to moderately "textured" water; nothing like that howling maelstrom of my first visit. I've never seen it "glassy". Maybe one day I'll get lucky.

A 1990 Mohawk Fisherman (14'). It was short and wide. And my first canoe. It wasn't a terrible boat by any means, but I certainly learned a lot more about canoe design afterwards, and made sure that my next boat was superior to it for the type of paddling I wanted to do...a Mad River Explorer 16'.

My wife is 100% in for day trips, short over-nighters, or multi-day extended trips that do not include any significant portages or cold (under 40 degree) weather. Her enthusiasm also wanes a bit in the rain or wind. So I voted 60%. It could be worse. And the balance of that 40% turns into some...

Nice trip report, Gyork! That is one of my favorite canoe destinations. I've never been south of Chesuncook Village on the big lake, but during one of those visits we managed to surf a 17' MR Explorer in 3.5 foot waves that were having their tips blown off by gusts! Dipping in behind Graveyard...

Getting one's hands on a big Maitake is worth the risk of losing a paddle. My wife and I harvested three a couple nights ago, on a short hike. We roasted them...couldn't stop eating them, like mushroom crack lol!

My first paddling experience wasn't in a Grumman, but it might as well have been. I recall vividly stepping into the bow of a Michicraft aluminum canoe when I was 12, on an up-and-downriver canoe trip with my Scout troop on the Wood River in southern RI. I was hooked. My scouting experience...

Sites with easy landings for ease of loading/unloading boats, and plenty of flat, root & rock free tent sites are top of my list. That being said, a site with a phenomenal view and out of hearing range of any other artificial human noises can balance out poor tent sites or tricky landings. A...

Thanks, Glenn, for getting canoetripping back up and running, and then letting me know about it! I've been away from this site for years...tried to get back on a couple times but there were always issues. I'm looking forward to scanning through the threads to see what I've missed while I was...

Got mine in the mail over the weekend. The shirt rocks, Doug! My new favorite in my collection of canoeing T-Shirts. -rs

I had an encounter on one of the best and worst canoe trips I ever shared with my wife. We put in just below Hoover Dam to paddle the Black Canyon of the Colorado. Beautiful day, and a magical canyon. We stopped in several canyons to enjoy the desert flowers and hot springs, with the...

I'm not sure if a festival dedicated to Poutine should give me hope or cause for despair.

I stand corrected! Certainly a very wet spring or early summer was a factor, and I'm glad you got a chance to experience that stretch...The South Branch Dead River was a great run! -rs

I'm not generally a gear hound. Once I have something that works I generally stick with it. I did go through a phase of trying to find that perfect small, lightweight, packable camp chair until I decided why the hell own a canoe if I can't bring along a big comfy chair with 4 legs, a back and...

Last time I paddled some of this stretch with Mike B, we camped at both Belknap (tiny site, but we liked it) and Samuel Benton. While at S. Benton, we had a ferocious wind blowing all the way down the field. Getting tents up and keeping them up was tricky! Did you have any trains go by? I could...

I tried to get Mrs. Riverstrider to come along with our Fly-Catching Canoe Hound, Trixie, but cold rainy weather doesn't agree with her when her only accommodation is a tent. I'm still working on her, though. Maybe I'll buy her a wicked warm sleeping bag and a canvas wall tent with steel sheet...