Choosing a new canoe.

What kind of canoe is right for me? Its a good question... and one we get asked a-lot.

The first question is always; Who will be using it and where are they going to use it? 

For tandem or single paddling we would normally recommend a boat of at least 14 feet in length as when you go shorter than this the canoe has to become wider so as to have enough buoyancy to keep everyone afloat. When the canoe has to become wider it becomes slower and harder work to move forwards. Generally we use canoes that are between 14 and 16 feet in length as that gives the optimum length vs width ratio which helps make the boat easy to move forwards with minimum effort. Boats of 16-18 feet in length will happily carry 2-4 paddlers and/or the equivalent in kit, so if you are looking to do multi day trips for 2 persons then you will need a boat of at least 16 feet in length or you will have to pack very light ;-). A 16-17 foot canoe will happily carry three adults and some kit or two adults, two children and some kit. Canoes of 17-18 feet in length start to get heavy due to the size, so be aware, it may be a hand full to get on the roof rack, and may not fit in the garage!

Where you will be using the boat also affects what type of boat is best for you. If you are planning on white water trips down the rapids, you will probably want a deeper boat with a good amount of rocker, however if you are planning on lots of lochs/lakes then less rocker and less depth will work better for you. Rocker is simply the amount of curve in the hull from front to back, a canoe with more rocker will turn easier but will be harder work to keep in a straight line so more rocker is good on white water but not so good on a big lake trip. A deeper canoe will be drier in the rapids but will be more affected by the breeze on open water like lochs/lakes. So with just knowing who will be using the boat and where, we have already a much better idea of what boat is best for you. 

We then move onto spec, how many seats will you need? Do you want extra buoyancy fitting? Do you want a kneeling thwart? etc. All canoes can be custom set up so the world of spec/extras is another article in itself, but for now, just know that you will be well looked after if you know who and where the boat will be used.

Budget, its like anything, you get what you pay for. There are cheap canoes available but in general they will suffer more from issues like loosing their shape over time, and being easier to damage. At the other end of the scale you can have very expensive, very strong, and very light canoes, but they cost a lot more money. The mid market boats are generally the most popular and this is normally a three layer polyethylene construction. This construction is now commonly fully recyclable plastic that has a tough outer layer, a foam core central layer and a strong inside layer, this sandwich construction keeps weigh to a minimum, strength to a maximum, and at all for an optimum price point.

Colour is the biggest and most important decision, canoes traditionally have been red or green, but now can be found in just about any colour you care to mention. We even have now on some product lines a fully customiser where you can blend up to seven different colours on the outside of your canoe. But as always, colour a choice only you can decide on.

What ever your questions about buying the right canoe you can always give us a ring, or drop us an email or contact us through social media, remember, we are canoeist and we love talking about canoes and making sure you buy the right boat for you. Thats how we have such a long list of happy customers.

See you on the water,