I'm humbled by the amount of knowledge that folks have shared.  I now know just how much I DON'T know about canoeing!   

I'll be sure to report on our decision and how it turns out.  Thanks to everyone for all the insight.

Jimbo wrote on May 3^rd, 2010 at 9:28pm:


The only problem with experience being a "good teacher" is that you have to take the test before reading the book.

I've never lost a canoe like you describe, but have had friends in similar situations.

It always the last thing to remember before going to bed and if it's a calm evening you don't thing twice about it until you hear the wind and waves crashing in that wakes you from your beauty sleep.  Yah, I've gotten up in wind and rain to double check how secure the canoes are in the middle to the night.

starwatcher

marlin55388 wrote on Apr 30^th, 2010 at 7:41am:


Fifteen years ago I was camped one summer night on the immense Santee Cooper Reservoir down in South Carolina.  I didn't tie down my Crow Boat (very similar but heavier than most canoes; has a squared-off back end for trolling motors).  A big wind blew up in the night.  As heavy as that danged thing was with all my fishing gear still in it, the vessel was upright & the wind shuffled it a dozen feet or so right into the water. Then it sent her sailing - minus a crew - eighteen miles across the lake!  A good samaritan commercial fisherman heard my pitiful APB that I put out on CB radio, saw her bouncing off the rocks near the dam, & hauled her all the way back to me.  Oh, by the way, all my fishing tackle, fishing poles, landing nets, etc., were still in her.

Just after the first-ever Bushwhacker's Jamboree five years ago, my oldest son & I were camped on Wetasi Island in southern Pickerel Lake.  We were just stopping for lunch but I guess I hadn't learned my Santee Cooper lesson very well some ten years earlier.  I had the bowline laced through some bushes.  Of course the afternoon wind kicked up - as it is sometimes known to do on Pickerel Lake - and, well, you can guess the rest.  My SR17 was probably 30 yards off shore and about to catch bigger wind on more open water when we looked up from our peanut butter & jelly and noticed what was happening.  We didn't say a word.  Ben simply looked at my portage boots laced all the way up; I looked down at his bare feet (bad island to walk around in bare feet; LOTS of ants).  In another minute that vessel would be headed full steam toward French Lake.  Ben took the cold water plunge, caught up to the Souris River 17 &, thankfully, retrieved her.

Since then, for lunch stops, I tie very securely.  For overnight camps, I flip it over & tie it down bow & stern, generally under the bushes to avoid wind.

If there is anything stupid that can be done in or to a canoe, I've probably done it at one time or another.  Experience is a great teacher.  It's just that some of us require more remedial attention than others.

Jimbo  

So the ladies aren't left out, she is going to help show us what it is about.

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Scooteri- here is something to ponder a bit.

I wasn't really sure where I should put this maybe it is the wrong thread, I but I elected to do so because of the discussion surrounding stroke and solos. If these offends any my humble apologies.

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OH yes, tucking in the boat. Tie her in for the night, when yah get into camp very sound advice indeed. The new ultra light boats make fine kites indeed.

Jimbo wrote on Apr 28^th, 2010 at 11:35pm:


I just took my Encounter (a little bigger and deeper boat than the Prizm) for a maiden voyage with my 80# dog who I plan on taking at least to the BW. I'm not sure there is even room for her to lay down. But I want to repeat Jimbo... If you plan on a solo, paddle it before hand I can see it will take getting used to. I paddled across our lake from my place to my dad's... On the way back I was already feeling more comfortable with it. I can't believe the speed... I'm lucky I didn't get a ticket!

The other observation was I remember reading guys stressing tying down thier canoe at night. I can't believe how much the wind can take my 38# Encounter vs my 56# Old Town.

I might as well post what I sent to scooteri as an IM response:

scooteri,

I used to add a third "drop-in" style seat to a tandem & try paddling from the center.  That didn't work so well; it's simply too wide to permit effective stroking.  I did the same thing with a seat/yoke that was "reversible".  Even though it sat me higher, permitting an easier reach, I found I could not grab water well with the paddle.  Also, stroking from the center is simply not as effective as from either end due to the shape of the canoe.

I've also tried paddling from the reverse position in the bow.  db uses this approach, if I recall correctly from when he joined my party on Beaverhouse a few years back.  It worked well for him and I guess it was ok for me when I threw a pack in the opposite end of the canoe for counter-weighting.  Frankly, my favorite approach paddling solo in a tandem is to sit in the stern facing the way I'm supposed to face and simply load up the front end of the canoe accordingly.  I've done this in my Souris River 17 footer many times and get by fairly well except when I can't avoid strong sideways winds.

Yet another approach I've used with a tandem involves a "rowing rig".  I bought one from Spring Creek Outfitters years ago.  The big downside of this is you spend your time facing backwards the whole way.  An upside is that the craft is stable as hell IF you lock your pontoons on correctly.  I could also pretty easily keep up with most tandems using my 9 foot oars.  Of course, another BIG downside was that I had to disassemble the rowing rig to get through most portages.  Come to think of it, that's probably why I targeted Cirrus Lake when I travelled with that rig; very FEW portages and those were almost "highways".

Now, you ask my preference?  Well, I guess there WAS a reason why I finally purchased my Wenonah Prism.    

I guess I simply wasn't convinced these other methods of soloing were as effective as they could be.  I took the plunge & bought the Prism.

The Prism took some getting used to.  Initial stability is unlike the tandems I've been in.  Until you get the vessel moving, it tips fairly easily.  Also - and this is a MUST - you have to learn how to load the Prism correctly given  wind condition.  Going "bow-heavy" in a tailwind nearly sunk me on lake one, day one last year when we first launched into Woodland Caribou Park.  That was carelessness; I knew better but let myself get hurried.  On the other hand, loaded correctly, I have found the Prism to be exceptionally good-handling in the wind, particularly in a headwind.  It's also offers decent stability for fishing though not nearly what you might be used to in a tandem.

I'd recommend practicing in a solo canoe such as a Prism before committing to paddling one for an entire trip.  They do take some getting used to.  After a few times out in one, you'll get comfortable.  I've used mine over the past three years or so & have been very pleased.  I mainly paddle with a bentshaft single blade but I also carry a 9 foot double-blade for when I want to cover water fast.  When conditions get surly, however, it's my trusty bentshaft that I grab.

Due to center-seat placement, the portage yoke arrangements in some tandems can be tricky.  I did not like the removeable thwart bar portage yoke that was initially offered with my Prism.  It tended to slide around on me while carrying.  Instead, I purchased an expensive aluminum portage yoke that locks onto the bars of my slider seat.  This solved the problem & worked just fine.

I'll be in the stern seat of a tandem for my trip to Woodland Caribou this July.  The numbers worked out that way.

That's all I know to tell you about my experience.  Again, with a little practice time in advance, I'd opt for a solo canoe such as a Prism every time.

Good luck with your decision!

Jimbo    

Good stuff except...
marlin55388 wrote on Apr 28^th, 2010 at 12:57am:

Hands off the rails.  A paddle across the rails and hands on the paddle near center.  Distributes your weight evenly.  Otherwise you may find yourself instinctively leaning on one rail more than the other and over you go!  Both times that I've dumped in a solo it has been entering with hands on the rails.  One buddy even yelped, "No!" when he saw me reaching for the gunwale.  He has a bunch of ORCKA certs up to Sea Kayak III.

Head between the gunwales.  Where the head goes, the body is sure to follow.

"Bear mice," heh.  The first time I slept without a tent I was certain there was something large nearby.  Then I realised it was little mouse very close.

scooteri - Do you know the difference between the feel of a loaded tandem with two paddlers and that same boat totally empty with one paddler?

I borrowed a Prism last year. Empty it felt as stable as my tandem paddled backwards, loaded with gear. Fully loaded? It was so stable I kinda didn't trust it since I've heard the horror stories too. In my experience, most canoes don't tip, paddlers fall out and get grabby when they realize they are past the point of no return. Who accepts responsibility for a mistake when there's a perfectly believable inanimate object to blame?

If I intended to rent, I'd choose a solo over a tandem any day. There's not a doubt in my mind recommending a solo over a tandem backwards if you intend on renting.