Well I see no one has posted in the "Tandem" section yet, so here goes.
I can see a solo canoe in my future, but I sure have had fun with our old aluminum tandem.
There is something special about moving across the water as half of a 2 person "engine". We live in such an independent, solitary world. It is a joy to work together, truly dependent and directly affected by another's efforts. A tandem canoe will not do what you wish unless there is a connection, a unison between the bow and stern paddlers. Often there are no particular words spoken, just a natural adjusting to the energy , rhythms, and decisions of the other paddler.
I guess I never appreciated this as our goal was always to get to the campsite. Certainly the journey was a big part of the enjoyment as I look back on some of our canoe trips. A while back, we took some kids canoeing and taught them to paddle...what a great time, but it made me really appreciate the skills and bond that my son and I have developed over the years. Another learning moment happened when my son and I switched seats on Little Tupper Lake. When he was small it made sense for me to be in the stern. But now that he is 4 inches taller and 40 pounds heavier than me, we decided to switch. What a mess. It was then that I realized the skills we had developed from our different leverage points in the canoe. We switched back.
So that's why I'll always appreciate a good tandem canoe and my bow paddler.
Scott
I can see a solo canoe in my future, but I sure have had fun with our old aluminum tandem.
There is something special about moving across the water as half of a 2 person "engine". We live in such an independent, solitary world. It is a joy to work together, truly dependent and directly affected by another's efforts. A tandem canoe will not do what you wish unless there is a connection, a unison between the bow and stern paddlers. Often there are no particular words spoken, just a natural adjusting to the energy , rhythms, and decisions of the other paddler.
I guess I never appreciated this as our goal was always to get to the campsite. Certainly the journey was a big part of the enjoyment as I look back on some of our canoe trips. A while back, we took some kids canoeing and taught them to paddle...what a great time, but it made me really appreciate the skills and bond that my son and I have developed over the years. Another learning moment happened when my son and I switched seats on Little Tupper Lake. When he was small it made sense for me to be in the stern. But now that he is 4 inches taller and 40 pounds heavier than me, we decided to switch. What a mess. It was then that I realized the skills we had developed from our different leverage points in the canoe. We switched back.
So that's why I'll always appreciate a good tandem canoe and my bow paddler.
Scott