Choosing the Perfect Canoe
Choosing the right canoe for you can be a challenging prospect. These pages are intended
to help you make the right choice. If, after you've reviewed these pages, you are
still unsure, feel free to contact us and talk with one of our experts.
There is a reason why canoes come in so many shapes. What may appear to be subtle
differences in hull design can have dramatic effects on handling. One design is rarely
better than another; rather, different designs will excel under different conditions.
It is worth noting that some designs are more general-purpose than others. Our Quetico
line is a good example of a general-purpose design. A Quetico 16 is well suited to
solo paddling, tandem day-trips, and short canoe trips. Our Tranquility, on the
other hand, is a superb solo canoe, but it simply is not built for tandem use. Likewise,
our Wilderness 18 is an aggressive tripping canoe, but it is not suited to occasional
solo paddling.
What does this mean when choosing your canoe? You should choose a canoe for those
activities you will do most often. Whether you choose a general-purpose canoe or
a more specific design depends on whether you want to use that same canoe for those
activities you only do occasionally.
Our design choices affect how each of our canoe models handles under different conditions.
This page compares different handling characteristics among our models.
Model Chooser
Our Model Chooser chart will ask you a series of common questions, and recommend
different models based on your answers.
Our Model Chooser application is nearing completion. Check back soon.
