Design, performance, and maintenance

There are many points to consider when choosing a canoe.  So many so that there is a great deal misinformation that is passed on from person to person.  With all due respect to the people who have worked hard for their opinions and the right to express them, there is much misinformation that is passed around by "Armchair experts".

Hopefully the following will be useful to you.

Wooden canoes are expensive.

When you consider that it takes a minimum of three weeks of full time labour to build a canoe, plus the cost of operating a shop and acquiring high grade materials, the cost of a fine wooden canoe starts to look like a real bargain.  We begin with raw lumber and mill it to our specifications regarding dimension as well as grain orientation. Each wooden part is carefully shaped, sanded and has its finish applied.  Care is taken at each and every step of the building to ensure that the canoe is of highest quality.

Long gone are the days when a purely utilitarian wooden canoe is the norm.  Today's buyer is looking for an "heirloom" grade canoe, a canoe that they can be proud of using, and proud to pass along to future generations.  They appreciate feeling connected to nature, quality, and the hand of the builder.  Details are important, and details take time.

Wooden canoes are typically valued by their owners for a very long time.  A Wooden canoe isn't even old until its over 40-50 years old.  When  you consider the life-cycle costs of the canoe, that is if you spread its cost over the lifetime of its useful life, the cost per year becomes very affordable.

Wooden canoes are only for the rich.

I have yet to build a canoe for any client whom I would consider to be rich.  All my canoes have been ordered by clients of very modest means who value craftsmanship and choose to patronize fine work. 

Wood canoes require extensive, specialized, and expensive, maintenance, or they will rot away. 

A wood & canvas canoe is constructed of natural materials, that is a major part of their appeal.  As a result, they require a particular kind of care in their use and storage.  Just about every canoe builder that I know, myself included, build canoes that are intended to be used.  We have no desire to see our work rot away, so we build them to last, and to perform under the conditions that they are expected to be used in.  They are not "delicate", unless deliberately built that way.  Still, the distinction must be made between "use" and "abuse".  No canoe will ever survive abuse for long, no matter how tough they are built.

In use, a canoe is subject to the normal bumps and scrapes.  What isn't normal is paddling the canoe hard into shore to drive it up the beach in order to avoid getting your feet wet, neither is dragging a loaded canoe around.

Storage is the single issue that has the greatest affect upon the condition and lifespan of a wooden canoe.  I can't count how many canoes I've had to work on that have been stored on the ground, or if off of the ground, on sawhorses outside year after year.  The soil is rich with microbial life that will feast on wooden canoe parts, so keep the canoe off of the ground during storage!  Outside, the canoe is subjected to the rigours of the sun, rain, and snow loads in winter.  Exposure to the sun over time will hasten the deterioration of the finishes and the canvas, hot-cold cycles will cause the materials to shrink and expand causing further stress; rain will get into all the nooks and crannies of the canoe and maintain a high moisture content which encourages rot; high snow loads can deform the canoe over time.  Wood can get wet with no adverse affects, as long as it can dry out again.  Storing the canoe in a sheltered location, such as a garage, is idea.  Simple, common sense, indoor storage, can easily double the lifespan of the canvas and finishes, and virtually eliminate the occurrence of rot.

Simple maintenance such as keeping up the paint and varnish will go a long way to preserve the canoe.  There is no hard and fast schedule for how often this should be done, you need to pay attention to the condition of the finishes and recoat as needed.  A great resource for information is the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association.

A wood canvas constructed hull wants to “unbend” as the ribs try to return to their unbent state.  The hull requires stability that is supplied by evenly spaced thwarts.  Carry thwarts at the bow and stern help to hold the gunnels from spreading away from the decks.  Seats set upon risers can double as thwarts for the bow, as the seat is nearly equidistant between the end and the center.  The stern seat is too near the end to fill this function well, so a stern thwart should be there.  A center thwart is very useful for carrying the canoe. or a portage yoke may be used.  The center is where the greatest amount of “unbending” force is located.  If weight is a concern,I would recommend slimly shaped thwarts, rather than foregoing the thwarts.

Wooden canoes are heavy, and get heavier as you use them.

Weight in the canoe is a systemic consideration.  There is not just one place to save 10 lbs, but rather 10 places to save 1 lb.  Anytime that you give up weight, you give up structure, which is directly affects long-term durability.   A canoe that is under-built has to be treated far more delicately than a more robustly built canoe.  A canoe that is over-built feels like a tank. 

On average, a 14' solo canoe should weigh about 40-45 lbs., a 16' tandem should weigh about 60-65 lbs., and a 17'+ canoe should weigh about 70-80 lbs..

Weight is only really an issue for carrying, and for momentum changes, as in starting.  A lightweight canoe "feels" fast because it will respond to applied energy quickly.  Once the canoe is moving, it is no longer of great concern.  In fact, greater weight  may actually aid in maintaining forward momentum between strokes.  In the end, the greatest amount of mass in the canoe/crew mix is due to the crew. 

It is often said that a wooden canoe starts out heavy and just gets heavier from water soaking in while you use it.  A canoe stored dry should start out a journey at the weight stated above.  The canvas is on the canoe to keep the water out, so the only water that is soaking into the wood and canvas is coming in from leaks ( in a poorly maintained canoe), or from rain and waves.  A good paddler will be bailing out rain/wave water regularly enough that it doesn't have time to soak in.  Some weight gain may occur on longer trips, but care should keep this to a minimum.

How shape and crew affect performance.

Speed in a canoe is a function of both the canoe itself, and the abilities of the crew.  The canoe needs to balance the potential of the hull shape (represented by max. waterline length); with the handicap of skin friction, (represented by immersed surface area).

-the real advantage of long lean entries is that is will cut through the standing bow wave rather than trying to climb over it.

-smooth long waterlines are “cleaner” to water flow.   Very fine, straight lines which have a short transition around the midsection before becoming the stern, acting as a ”bump” to the water flow.

-returning the water off of the Aft. section of the canoe is equally critical as initially parting it.

-A too narrow canoe will sit deeper in the water creating extra skin friction; it will also be tippier, taking concentration of the crew away from their paddling.

-A little rocker is actually desirable in lifting the ends to reduce skin friction.  This has been found to be true even in Olympic flat-water canoes and kayaks.

-The less energy the crew has to expend in steering, the more energy is available for forward speed.

-A continuous application of power results in a smoother motion of the canoe with less opportunity for loss of momentum.

-An experienced crew will be more comfortable in narrower canoes than less experienced crew.  In fact, they will find that the wider canoes desirable to less experienced crews feel sluggish and tub-like.  Its all a matter of skill and familiarity, and of matching the needs of the crew to the abilities of the canoe.

One canoe can do everything.

There is no such thing as the "prefect" canoe, and no one canoe can do everything that you will ever ask of it.  In order to make the best choice you canoe, you need to determine what you will be using it for most of the time.  The first question is "Solo or tandem?".  What makes for a good solo canoe is a detriment in a good tandem canoe; conversely, what makes for a good tandem canoe is a detriment in a good solo canoe.  Some canoe companies offer what they call a "cross-over" design, a canoe of mid size that will work for solo and tandem.  The unfortunate result is that the canoe is usually too bulky for solo, and too small for tandem, except for light use in protected waters.  There are a few exceptions, but they still have their limitations and fall short of the goal of either a good tandem or solo.

I have chosen to offer a variety of good solo and tandem designs, varying according to the type of performance required.  I don't offer a "cross-over" canoe.