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- Apr 13, 2025
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I recently made the 6-hour trip north to Oxtongue Lake in Ontario to pick up a new Cruiser 16.8 I ordered from Swift Canoe and Kayak. I then took it on a backcountry trip the following day in the Temagami region of Ontario (more on that in a different post).
The Cruiser 16.8 model is extra special to me because it's the fourth-generation version (per Charlie Wilson) of a Sawyer DY Special, one of David Yost’s most iconic designs. My uncle bought a new Sawyer DY Special in about 1980. He absolutely loved that boat. Included is a picture of him paddling it circa 1980 on the Allegheny River in Northwestern PA. On the back of the photo he wrote "How I'd like to be remembered". My uncle passed away several years ago, but my cousin still has the DY Special.
Sometime after my uncle bought the DY Special, he let me paddle it. Here's a photo of me in it. I still remember that day. What a boat! The feeling of paddling that boat has always been in the back of my mind.
Fast forward many years, and I now have my very own modern version of that canoe. Here's a picture of me paddling my Cruiser 16.8 for the first time at Smoke Lake in Algonquin Park, Ontario about an hour after I picked up the boat.
I can agree with my uncle that it's how I'd like to be remembered as well. Many thanks to David Yost and Swift Canoe for designing and building such an awesome Cruiser 16.8. I was able to get DY's contact info so I could call him and thank him for designing such a great canoe. I called DY recently, and we chatted for about an hour. He was glad to hear the feedback.
The Cruiser 16.8 model is extra special to me because it's the fourth-generation version (per Charlie Wilson) of a Sawyer DY Special, one of David Yost’s most iconic designs. My uncle bought a new Sawyer DY Special in about 1980. He absolutely loved that boat. Included is a picture of him paddling it circa 1980 on the Allegheny River in Northwestern PA. On the back of the photo he wrote "How I'd like to be remembered". My uncle passed away several years ago, but my cousin still has the DY Special.
Sometime after my uncle bought the DY Special, he let me paddle it. Here's a photo of me in it. I still remember that day. What a boat! The feeling of paddling that boat has always been in the back of my mind.
Fast forward many years, and I now have my very own modern version of that canoe. Here's a picture of me paddling my Cruiser 16.8 for the first time at Smoke Lake in Algonquin Park, Ontario about an hour after I picked up the boat.
I can agree with my uncle that it's how I'd like to be remembered as well. Many thanks to David Yost and Swift Canoe for designing and building such an awesome Cruiser 16.8. I was able to get DY's contact info so I could call him and thank him for designing such a great canoe. I called DY recently, and we chatted for about an hour. He was glad to hear the feedback.
