Beautiful!
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Wenonah Canak
- Thread starter adkjoe
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If anyone is around North Georgia or willing to travel there has been a Monarch posted for a while on FB.
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Spendy but looks like it's in great shape. I paddle a Prism and wanted a decked option for off shore. I asked Wenonah about it and they said they can't build one anymore. Doesn't sound like much hope of finding a used one either. The gentleman I corresponded recommended a spray deck. Initially I was resistant because I might want to trade up for a Voyager when I inevitably go lighter (currently 1995 Tuffweave).
Mad River Monarch Canoe
1993 Mad River Monarch for sale. It weights about 49 pounds and is a Kevlar build. Boat is in excellent condition with a few bottom scratches from light use. The boat comes with the original spray...
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Spendy but looks like it's in great shape. I paddle a Prism and wanted a decked option for off shore. I asked Wenonah about it and they said they can't build one anymore. Doesn't sound like much hope of finding a used one either. The gentleman I corresponded recommended a spray deck. Initially I was resistant because I might want to trade up for a Voyager when I inevitably go lighter (currently 1995 Tuffweave).
The Monarch and the Falcon both look really intriguing to me. I just can't stand the look of the cockpit coaming. Has anyone seen a boat with a canoe-like center, (just gunwales, single blade height seat) but with front and rear decks?
The combing is how you attach the skirt. If you remove that option you ultimately lose a ton of functionality. Of course, 90% of the time you would go in or not go at all in the type of conditions that would require you to use a skirt. I've also read that a spray deck and skirt trap heat when it's cold so there is that. I'm going with the float bag and spray deck option. I'll do the float bags first because I might get a voyager or advantage when I upgrade and I only want to spend the cash on a spray deck once the boat is settled.
I'm a little late to the party, but I've had my Canak for a decade, and still loving it. Yup, I'm another "it will be for sale when I am dead" Canak owner
It would be perfect if it had significantly more flare to the bow, just to keep it from torpedoing through waves. But that's where the coaming comes in. Only time my lap gets wet is launching off a beach with breaking waves. In open water even in a good swell, the bow cuts through the waves but the coaming lip pretty much stops any water that gets that far back.
I STILL haven't been able to compare hull bottoms of a Prism vs Canak side by side, I was not the biggest fan of a Prism, and I was told that the Canak hulls came out of a different mould. The Canak 'paddles soft', is the best way I can describe it. Not the fastest boat, but just nice confidence inspiring to paddle in big water. And it is as wind immune as a canoe can be, which suits me just fine.
Kruger boats were 'too much boat' for what I needed, and like Goldilocks, the Canak is juuuuust right. There's the little things, like the kayak paddle bungees on the side which are very nice to have, the guys that came up with this boat know paddling and had what they wanted in mind. It is a unique niche boat, and I am feeling bad I didn't pimp it enough when it was still in production.
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That goldilocks feeling is how feel in the Prism. The guy I talked to said the hulls were very similar (canak & prism) but the canak is a bit shorter so not quite the same. His words. I kind of assumed the 6" came off of the bow and stern when it was cut down for the deck. Cool boats and it's a confidence inspiring hull for sure. With a deck on my Prism I would feel completely at ease in almost any conditions I would actually want to paddle in.
If the OP or anyone is unable to find a Canak, you might consider buying a Prism and adding a deck.
I've been wanting a Wenonah Canak for years now. Yesterday I drove 643 miles RT to Amesbury, MA to pick this up.
Looks pretty fast. Where do you put the dogs? Where do you put the 2 burner stove?
Exciting!
As a canoeist surrounded by salt water, I've always been intrigued by the Canak as an open water canoe, especially because of what I assume is reduced windage. @adkjoe, I'll be glad to hear your impressions and would welcome a video clip of how it paddles! I'm especially curious if you think the hatch covers might hold up to a bow wave or if they're better considered in the "drip" category.
Along these lines, I came across a canoe design called a "Kootenay" in Calvin Rutstrum's North American Canoe Country, which he refers to as especially seaworthy. He mentions the primary "difficulty" of the design "is that the paddler must sit rather far from the bow or the stern, and this more central paddling position reduces maneuverability." Of course, that's anathema to most modern solo designs.
I've always thought it might make for a challenging stripper project someday:
For now, I've decided to go in a different direction for an open water boat and will be excited to share impressions once I have my hands on it.
As a canoeist surrounded by salt water, I've always been intrigued by the Canak as an open water canoe, especially because of what I assume is reduced windage. @adkjoe, I'll be glad to hear your impressions and would welcome a video clip of how it paddles! I'm especially curious if you think the hatch covers might hold up to a bow wave or if they're better considered in the "drip" category.
Along these lines, I came across a canoe design called a "Kootenay" in Calvin Rutstrum's North American Canoe Country, which he refers to as especially seaworthy. He mentions the primary "difficulty" of the design "is that the paddler must sit rather far from the bow or the stern, and this more central paddling position reduces maneuverability." Of course, that's anathema to most modern solo designs.
I've always thought it might make for a challenging stripper project someday:
For now, I've decided to go in a different direction for an open water boat and will be excited to share impressions once I have my hands on it.
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If I remember correctly, Kruger and Landick installed rigid hatch covers for their Loon/Monarch canoes for paddling the Pacific. The single opening was much larger than the dual openings on the Canaks, though.
Great for smaller dogs, mine preferred the front hatch. I had the Mini Canak, it was a novel boat, but cumbersome to portage and transport.
Those must have been a special modification if it was on a Monarch. My Mad River Monarch did not have hatches and there was not much room or need for a hatch with the long open cockpit; I wonder if they made the cockpit smaller for that trip?
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I guess I misspoke--it was the cockpit they made the rigid cover for, as they didn't have hatches. I'd assume they had a smaller cockpit, with spray skirt, within the decked cockpit, basically turning them into kayaks. I don't know if they ever went down the deep dark hole of using double bladed paddles. We had a Kruger Kevlar bent shaft at the shop I worked at--definitely for burley men!
I've seen in person a grand total of one Canak. Paddled alongside it for a bit, my wife and I in the Malecite. Very impressive. I have since always been watching for a used one because it would be ideal for windy days on the local lakes. I would be using a single blade, of course. 
Congratulations, @adkjoe !
Congratulations, @adkjoe !
Much like the old Easy Rider canoes.
The Easy Rider TSL1 is a tandem canoe though. And comparatively heavy. But I am a fan of that boat too. I'd also say it's more suitable for rough water.
As I recall the hull is the same as the Prism but it just has a deck added. It's a neat idea and really blurs the line between canoe and kayak. I'll be interested to hear how it works out for you. I've thought of building something similar for local day paddles on days when the wind is up (most days).
Alan
Alan
