When Basswood kicks up a snot (not IF), just remember, you got what you wished for...stay safe. Your canoe can probably handle more than you can, superman.

Took the Expedition for a test run..........

The first thing I noticed is how sensitive it is to weight placement. The little 24lb 12 volt battery was off center and the effect was immediate. I suspect fore and aft weight placement less of a concern with its 18 ft length.

The 2nd thing I noticed was just how fast the boat is. Moves right along. I have gone from a chevy pickup to a mazarati.

3rd.........rudder system is super sweet. I can also envision using it while drifting a shoreline fishing to correct the attitude of the drift.

4th..........paddles very nicely with the rudder up.

5th........depth finder shot through the hull just fine. Great!

6th..........it is heavier than my Merlin at 65 lbs. I went to flip it up like I usually do and had to double clutch. Not used to that.

A rather funny incident (at least from my perspective) happened at the take out. I was wondering about secondary stability and was rocking her pretty good at the take out trying to heave her over (and almost suceeded when the aforementioned battery decided to help out). A middle aged jogger lady yelled out "do you need some help"...............Had she been a pony tailed, spandex wearing, blond twenty something I might of responded in the affirmative..........."why yes, yes I do..........how very kind of you" 

mastertangler wrote on Jul 11^th, 2012 at 11:18pm:

My fear would be that a 24pound ??? solid object of that size could over power the neutral buoyancy of most paddle type crafts and take it to the bottom in certain situations.

Tie a rope to that battery to give it a dual purpose, boat anchor.

12 pounds!
Why not try a cheap beach chair from K-Mart or Walmart or Target?  Only about 3 pounds.  At 12 pounds you could opt for a cheap folding camp chair, since they fold up you can stow inside the boat or lengthwise on top, still with a lower center of gravity.