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    Taking another look at the Werner Bandit and how to use it.

    Last year (2023) I bought a Werner Bandit. A whitewater paddle with carbon shaft and curved fiberglass blade. I don't do serious whitewater, but I thought it might come in handy. I used it once, didn't like it and never used it again. Last trip of the year, one of the other guys paddling stern...
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    Good article on canoe design.

    I was looking for something to read while riding my exercise bike and came across this. https://www.bearmountainboats.com/blogs/news/anatomy-of-a-canoe-essentials-of-good-design-canoecraft-excerpt Good info for anyone looking for a new canoe.
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    Esquif Echo pack canoe conversion.

    I finally got around to taking a few photos of my Esquif Echo that I converted to a pack style canoe. I'm defining a pack style canoe as a solo canoe set-up to be paddled kayak style. The photos aren't too good. Sorry. I'm losing my touch. I used parts I ordered from Northstar. I added an...
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    Swede form vs. boat trim.

    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...
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    An honest assessment of Northstar's North Wind series.

    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...
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    One canoe to rule them all?

    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...
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    The best solo canoe may be a touring kayak.

    You can argue the pros and cons of paddling solo with a single bladed paddle vs. a double bladed paddle all day long. I've made my choice. I'm not a suffering is good for the soul kind of guy. I can go faster with less concentration and frustration with a double bladed paddle. Most solo canoes...
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    The best solo you aren't considering.

    I've had several solo canoes. The first one I owned was a Wenonah Encounter in Tough Weave. https://wenonah.com/Canoes.aspx?id=129 Not very light, and doesn't turn very well, but otherwise I really liked that boat. Super stable, reasonably fast, tracks well, holds a ton of gear, sliding tractor...
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    Wenonah Black Lite straight unboxing first impressions.

    Finally got the straight shaft. When tandem paddling, I normally use a bent, in the bow, but a straight in the stern. I wanted to upgrade my straight shaft for the North Wind 17 I have on order. I came pretty close to buying a Werner Journey, but then I saw the Black Lite on sale. My quality...
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    Wenonah Tour Lite elbow unboxing impressions.

    I was really looking to buy a new straight shaft paddle for use in the stern of my new North Wind 17. Somehow, I ended up ordering a Tour Lite Elbow. Crazy! I got it last evening and unboxed it. My first reaction was holy crap! This is a really nice paddle. Build quality is excellent to...
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    Does waxing the hull make the canoe slower?

    I sent a friend an email about Graphene wax, suggesting he use it on his hull to make it faster. He replied that he'd heard wax makes a boat slower. I thought I might have heard that too, at one time, so I decided to look into it. Seems that power boat racers do think that wax does make a boat...
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    What kind of paddle do you use in the stern?

    I have a Northstar North Wind 17 on order. I've been doing some paddle shopping, New boat, new paddle. This would be for class one river trips, like Labyrinth and Upper Missouri. No question I'll have a bent shaft for the bow paddler. Just wondering what sort of paddle most of you use, in the...
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    Essential nonessentials.

    There are things that are obviously essential, like a boat, a paddle, a PFD. If you are comping, it's hard to get by without a sleeping bag, a pad, a stove, a pot, food and water. But there are some things, though not strictly essential, make canoe camping a lot more pleasant. A chair: On my...
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    Paddling a solo canoe with a Greenland style paddle?

    I'm not afraid to break with tradition. I started paddling my solo canoe, with a double bladed paddle, long before it became mainstream. There is a local seakayak club, that I've paddled with a few times, and Greenland style kayak paddles seem to be very popular. What I keep hearing from...
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    BWCAW routes for old geezers with bad hips or knees?

    I almost signed up for a BW trip, this summer, but decided my hips couldn't handle it. It would have been my fifth trip in the BWCAW. My only chance of going back to the Boundary Waters is to find a route that has short portages and not very many of them. I'm thinking something that includes...
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    Paddle sizing revisited.

    I keep seeing photos of people with super long paddle shafts and they are gripping the shaft in about the middle. Like the guy in the photo at the top of this page (I hope). https://wernerpaddles.com/collections/canoe-raft-traditional I've read many, many articles on finding your correct paddle...
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    Quick review of Esquif Echo.

    After a very long wait, I finally got my Esquif Echo. Pretty happy with it overall. Reasonably fast, pretty stable, easy to keep going straight, yet turns without a lot of effort. I let a fellow club member, who is an ACA instructor, take it out and she seemed very impressed with it. On the...
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    Drip covers?

    Like a lot of solo paddlers, I've found that I prefer paddling my solo with a double bladed paddle. The problem I have with it, is all the water that drips into the boat. Yes, a really long, low angle paddle helps, but I prefer paddling with a shorter, high angle paddle. I don't want to get a...
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    Need info on Sawyer Oscoda.

    I saw a fiberglass Sawyer Oscoda on Craig's List and it seemed to be in pretty good condition, so I bought it. I can see that it's 17', about 37" wide, shallow V. Can't tell if it's asymmetrical, so if it is, not aggressively. Doesn't look like it was a very expensive boat. Maybe intended for...
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    Best shoes for Boundary Waters?

    My club has a Boundary Waters trip scheduled and I'm actually thinking about it. Not too seriously, but it's on my mind. I'd pretty much decided my Boundary Waters days were over, but most of my other trip plans fell through and I have a new solo canoe that just screams Boundary Waters. This...
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