New Esquif Solo for 2026, Echo 2.0

[NikonF5user]

It looks to me like it would be an improvement on the royalex Mad River Guide. IIRC, that weighed about 54 lbs.

Certainly in terms of weight. Not sure the Echo 2.0 has the capacity or the big water abilities of the Guide. Would be a fun pair to match off in a YouTube comparison video!

 

[ABT]

Certainly in terms of weight. Not sure the Echo 2.0 has the capacity or the big water abilities of the Guide. Would be a fun pair to match off in a YouTube comparison video!

Guide is actually even heavier than that at 58 lbs. Echo is a bit shorter so loses some capacity there, but the big thing is the depth. I love the depth of the Guide. The Echo is still more shallow than I’d like. Helps on windy lakes, but I prefer the security of the added depth on rivers.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

Guide is actually even heavier than that at 58 lbs.

And I thought it was just me getting weaker.
I never realized my dream of finding a Guide in kevlar for sale.

 

[New England Waterman]

I could pretty interested in this as not only a bigger guy, but someone who doesn’t have the budget to add say a phoenix to the roster for the less frequent river trips or as a gunk holing boat. I never even looked at the original echo in person due to my weight and it’s low freeboard and capacity.