Ha ha, that's the method I use for guns. Sometimes if I order them online, I have to try to hilt the post office before her every day, and there can be a fair amount of anxiety until the parcel is in my hands.
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We-no-nah solo canoe - advice please
- Thread starter Erica
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Ha ha, that's the method I use for guns. Sometimes if I order them online, I have to try to hilt the post office before her every day, and there can be a fair amount of anxiety until the parcel is in my hands.
I just wave the Rockler catalog in front of hubby. I get one canoe. He gets one power tool. Thats fair no?
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OK, so here is the canoe, some pics and my experience (in 10 minutes) on a small lake: it is VERY tippy and I felt very uncertain in it, but supposedly due to the tumble home/chine design, you won't actually flip. I decided not to test that today because it is cold (60 degreesF) and I didn't want to get wet. 
The seat which looks like it would be uncomfortable was, in fact, very comfortable. One benefit of the narrow breadth is that I don't have to reach so far out to paddle. (narrow shoulders, me, not the canoe.) It definitely goes fast and apparently the way to get it through any turbulence or waves is to paddle like heck and it cuts right through it. Not surprisingly it does not turn well. A cross bow draw, for example, does not do much to change the trajectory. It appears to be a Kruger design and made of "tuf weave." It is a little heavier than I would like, but there are always future canoes to look forward too. I took a bunch of pictures so those who wanted a closer look can get their questions answered. If you want more pictures, let me know. I appreciate everything everyone has said. Though I have done a lot of canoeing, I don't know much about canoe design. I think I am going to have a lot of fun with this one, learning some new (to me) techniques.
If I did the photos incorrectly, please someone correct me. I wasn't sure how to resize.
The best way to get your wife to approve new canoe purchases is to marry a canoeist. My husband and I met on the Suwannee River and, incidentally, it was a member of this forum who facilitated the introduction.
Erica
The seat which looks like it would be uncomfortable was, in fact, very comfortable. One benefit of the narrow breadth is that I don't have to reach so far out to paddle. (narrow shoulders, me, not the canoe.) It definitely goes fast and apparently the way to get it through any turbulence or waves is to paddle like heck and it cuts right through it. Not surprisingly it does not turn well. A cross bow draw, for example, does not do much to change the trajectory. It appears to be a Kruger design and made of "tuf weave." It is a little heavier than I would like, but there are always future canoes to look forward too. I took a bunch of pictures so those who wanted a closer look can get their questions answered. If you want more pictures, let me know. I appreciate everything everyone has said. Though I have done a lot of canoeing, I don't know much about canoe design. I think I am going to have a lot of fun with this one, learning some new (to me) techniques.If I did the photos incorrectly, please someone correct me. I wasn't sure how to resize.
The best way to get your wife to approve new canoe purchases is to marry a canoeist.
My husband and I met on the Suwannee River and, incidentally, it was a member of this forum who facilitated the introduction. Erica
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top picture.. Notice how the bubble is low on the side then after the tuck back in, there is an outward flare. That abrupt bubble if it passes under you is going to tend to turn you turtle. I don't think that little flare out will save you. Ergo I'd edge the boat ( heel it) carefully. Wenonahs aren't terribly friendly to be paddled on edge and were meant to be paddled flat,
I've tried heeling the Argosy when I had it and I never had that Oh this is fun feeling. I had "uh oh" feeling though I was able to stay up.. Much unlike boats like the Solo 13 by Mohawk or the Fires that you can almost bury the gunwale and yet stay upright.
Oh yes I got a canoe as a wedding present so hubby knew what he was in for. We did lots of tripping from the get go as much as work would allow.
I'd enjoy that boat for what it is and paddle it! Would be great on the Silver River!
I've tried heeling the Argosy when I had it and I never had that Oh this is fun feeling. I had "uh oh" feeling though I was able to stay up.. Much unlike boats like the Solo 13 by Mohawk or the Fires that you can almost bury the gunwale and yet stay upright.
Oh yes I got a canoe as a wedding present so hubby knew what he was in for. We did lots of tripping from the get go as much as work would allow.
I'd enjoy that boat for what it is and paddle it! Would be great on the Silver River!
Certainly looks like an Advantage, designed by Dave Kruger. The tippiness you describe depends on your background as a paddler, and what boats you've spent time with. You can get used to a lot--this isn't a tub! In my C1W, which is similar in waterline dimensions (though a lot deeper--designed as a downriver racing boat, meeting marathon racing boat specs with added freeboard), I can dip the gunnels in a low brace, and that is sitting on the seat. I haven't tried that in my Voyager, which is more squirrelly. Performance hulls, and solos in particular, tend to be tender (tippy), as they are narrower (and hence faster). They do, however, reward good technique. Cross-draws in such boats are marginal in effect--you're trying to move a lot of boat through the water with straight keel lines. Once you get comfortable in the boat, and start using leaning to steer, they are quite maneuverable. It does take practice if you've never spent much time in fast boats. I've paddled dogs (e.g. tandem tripping in 14 foot aluminum, whitewater boats), and prefer fast boats for everything but technical whitewater--I've never looked back (although I did buy a Royalex MR Courier last winter for the local boney whitewater).
In general, weight in the canoe will help stabilize it--packs, etc. Although I had an Advantage for a while, I didn't spend a whole lot of time in it (moved to Alaska, where the rivers are big and cold), but I don't remember it being much different stability-wise from my C1W. It was a lot of fun to paddle, though. I've taken my C1W on Class 2-3 technical whitewater (not recommended), stormy coastal areas with wind and seas, week long tripping, and lots of western rivers. It is a wonderful tripper. You can adapt to a lot if you're a mind.
So did you buy it?
In general, weight in the canoe will help stabilize it--packs, etc. Although I had an Advantage for a while, I didn't spend a whole lot of time in it (moved to Alaska, where the rivers are big and cold), but I don't remember it being much different stability-wise from my C1W. It was a lot of fun to paddle, though. I've taken my C1W on Class 2-3 technical whitewater (not recommended), stormy coastal areas with wind and seas, week long tripping, and lots of western rivers. It is a wonderful tripper. You can adapt to a lot if you're a mind.
So did you buy it?
Erica,
I have a We-no-nah Voyager. Picture a larger version of your canoe (17' 6") with a lowered seat. From what I understand the lowered seat makes a big difference in stability. I get down to the Ocala National Forest alot and paddle it on the Silver River and Juniper Springs about 6-8 times a year. The Voyager is a breeze to paddle upstream to Silver Spring headwater. The first two miles on Juniper Springs can be a bit of a challenge, not so much because of all the twisty turns but because you are only paddling in about 6 inches of water and alot of fancy paddle strokes don't work to well with the paddle stuck in the soft sand river bottom.
Kayak_Ken (in a canoe)
I have a We-no-nah Voyager. Picture a larger version of your canoe (17' 6") with a lowered seat. From what I understand the lowered seat makes a big difference in stability. I get down to the Ocala National Forest alot and paddle it on the Silver River and Juniper Springs about 6-8 times a year. The Voyager is a breeze to paddle upstream to Silver Spring headwater. The first two miles on Juniper Springs can be a bit of a challenge, not so much because of all the twisty turns but because you are only paddling in about 6 inches of water and alot of fancy paddle strokes don't work to well with the paddle stuck in the soft sand river bottom.
Kayak_Ken (in a canoe)
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yes!
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I'm not sure what boat it was, or even what year it was. An off the cuff guess would be early 80s?
Great! Just take the time to get used to it, and you'll have a lot of fun with it. If it's not your cup of tea, you can sell it for what you paid for it and get something else. Or not sell it and get something else.....
I ran into Dave Kruger in 2015. He was driving the Wenonah delivery truck that was making a delivery our local canoe and kayak shop.
