Souris River Canoes: light and tough in one canoe!
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Souris River Canoes
106 Reid Street
P.O. Box 1116
Atikokan, Ontario CANADA

Tel: 1-807-597-1292
         1-888-226-6386
Fax: 1-807-597-1157
sales@sourisriver.com

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Low-cost shipping!

We will ship your new Souris River canoe to most points in Canada and the continental U.S. for  only $300.

See our shipping page
for details.

Quetico - into the wild book

Le Tigre Canoe!

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How We Build a Souris River Canoe

There are five main steps to building a Souris River Canoe. First, four layers of specially chosen fabric are laid-up into a cleaned and prepared mould. Keith Robinson has worked closely with our Kevlar®  suppliers to develop materials and weaves unique to Souris River. Our Woven Colour, Le Tigre and Duralite® layups are the result of this ongoing research and development.

 

Preparing the mould

Each mould is carefully prepared to ensure a clean, smooth finish on your canoe.

Smoothing-out the fabric

Each layer of fabric is painstakingly smoothed-out to ensure a clean look.

Pulling Kevlar

Four layers of fabric are laid-up to provide an ideal blend of weight and strength, and a stunning look.

Second, Epoxy resin is applied to the cloth using our proprietary Resin Evacuation System Technology. RES Technology ensures a consistent canoe shell that is both light and durable.

Souris River Canoes Resin-Enhancement System

Unfortunately, we can’t show you our proprietary RES Technology.

After the resin has begun to cure, ribs and floats are carefully marked-out and installed. Foam ribs covered with several layers of specially selected material ensure a hull that is firm enough to retain its shape, yet flexible enough to slide over rocks and obstructions. Innovations like this make Souris River Canoes the best design for wilderness tripping.

Trimming the canoe

The sides of the canoe are carefully trimmed.

Filling flotation tanks with foam

Our floatation tanks are filled with foam. Many of our competitors use air-filled floats. It’s an added safety feature we hope you won’t need.

Sanding foam rib inserts

The foam inserts for our ribs, like most of our fittings, are fabricated in-house to ensure quality and consistency.

Measuring rib layout

Ribs are measured and glued to the hull.

Laying-out rib fabric

Just like our hulls, our ribs are made of four layers of specially chosen fabric to ensure a lightweight combination of strength and flexibility.

Wetting-out the ribs

Wetting-out the ribs is a craft.

Each shell is cured overnight in an oven. After curing, the completed shells are moved into the Assembly Room for final construction. Here the gunwales, endcaps, seats and other fittings are carefully installed.

Fastening grommets into the hull

Grommets are a feature not found on many of our competitors’ canoes. (Hulls from most other manufacturers are not  strong enough to hold the grommets.)

Attaching the gunwales

Our aluminum gunwales are of a heavier gauge than many of our competitors, helping to strengthen the canoe. (The canoe shown here has extended ribs, a feature popular for outfitters.)

Attaching the thwarts

Our thwarts, fabricated in-house, are slightly curved to add strength. This is a feature you won’t find in the competition.

Attaching the seats

Each seat is measured and cut for that canoe, ensuring a perfect fit every time.

Attaching the decals

In the last step before inspection, the decals are placed on the canoe.

Quality control

Finally, each canoe is inspected for quality control purposes. No canoe leaves our shop until it is good enough for you.

If you’re around Atikokan sometime (perhaps you’re paddling Quetico Park this summer), drop by our facility. We’d love to show you around.