Don't waste money on a new piece of cheap crap. Rent good boats of different hull types for a few trips, or buy a cheap used boat of at least vaguely suitable size and type to bash around, learn with and have fun.
Somewhere along the way, research canoe hull designs for different uses.
If you like canoeing enough to commit, you will know by then what boat you really want. Buy a good one new, or watch Craigslist patiently until your boat pops up, then pounce with cash. You have to be ready, good deals go quick, check every morning, have cash readily available and know how you'll get it home.

If you really turn out to want to take only one or two short trips a year (along with other activities) then just work the price of good rentals into it. Not worth owning and storing a canoe and gear for just one long weekend a year, rentals are cheap enough and present so much less logistics. Just reserve the local rental place, bring your normal camping gear and enjoy.

Beaver Canoe Club can really help, check them out.

I've got this as a long-term goal.
Please, kindly post a TR.

I'll add you to the list that want it.

I forgot to include Evergreen as a good brand name... this boat for sale in Squamish is probably along the lines of what you're looking for:

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/va...555304492.html

Pat.

thanks all above for the valuable suggestions. After comparing all the specs, i think i may go for clipper Yukon because it's strong/stable, big load capacity. Good for family use and trips with an affordable price.

was thinking Trip S but stability is a concern. Scout seems not have a good load capacity.

Jeff

I have a "no-name" fibreglass canoe that I bought for $75. about 15 years ago. It's a very beamy 16 footer and will carry two people and big packs on a multi-day trip, or three w/packs on short boat approaches to alpine climbs, or four people and gear on a day trip.

I have had to re-glass the keel a couple of times and replace the seats and breast-hooks, but it owes me nothing for the fun it has given me and to friends that I lend it out to.

It's nice to have a clunker that you don't have to worry about getting dinged up. My advice is to get a big ugly cheap boat, that you won't worry about scraping up and try it out everywhere and in all conditions, within reason, and quit looking for the "perfect canoe". It doesn't exist.

Oh ya, my canoe is '80's bright orange, so don't worry about colour as well.

Hi Jeff,

I'd still advise renting both of them first. Since they're both Clipper canoes and they'll give you credit towards your purchase on your rental price, you don't really lose anything by trying them both out before buying one or the other.
Good boats either way, and I wish you years of fun trips for you, your family and friends. Keep your paddle wet!

Early in the discussion you mentioned you would be doing a lot of solo paddling. Isn't the Yukon pretty big for that?

Yeah, that's where I was coming from with something like a 15' Bob Special - solo and weekenders is what was mentioned. I think of the Yukon as kinda a blah canoe for rental outfits, or maybe a family canoe for bigger loads than what you described, and therefore a lot of boat for solo paddling (but maybe I'm a snob, and I've never paddled a Yukon, I'm sure all the Clippers are good boats).

If you will buy new from Western, definitely try out different boats! Don't write off the Tripper S based on a print out of stability, give it a try! Sounds more like what you originally described wanting. If you do need the capacity of a Yukon or Scout, I'd persoanlly lean towards a 16' Prospector (and there's one of those on Craigslist too!).

A nice thing about canoes (especially if you buy used) is that they hold value pretty well, so if you buy a Clipper Yukon now, but then wish you had a nice Bell solo canoe (see Craigslist) or a full-size Tripper (see Craigslist - great deal!), you can sell & buy. Too many canoes to choose from really, don't sweat the details too much. It's not a bad idea for your first canoe to buy used & cheap so that you can determine what you want longer term. Here's an unknown canoe for under $500 that looks to have decent lines:
http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rd...524250445.html

Good luck, Pat.

Hi sgRant, my wife disagree with that. She says first it's going to be a very stable family boat, then the solo boat. well, Women rules

My friend Alastair actually recommends me to go MEC and get Nova Craft Prospector 17" (http://www.mec.ca/product/5025-162/n...04+50233+51524). So i compared Yukon, tripper and this boat all together as below:
name beam center_depth capacity weight length
Clipper Yukon 36" 14" 900lbs 70lbs 16'8"
Clipper Tripper 35" 15" 1000lbs 70lbs 17'6"
NOVA CRAFT PROSPECTOR(17") 36" 15" 1200lbs 73lbs 17"

Seems like Nova craft prospector 17" is somewhere between Yukon and Tripper but price is even cheaper than Yukon (with MEC club members night discount).

any thoughts? definitely i will try all 3 of them before i buy. But as beginner i am afraid i can't tell much difference.

If you want a bigger family canoe, I'd take a very good look at the Tripper and Prospector that are currently on Craigslist! Somebody is going to jump on that good-looking Tripper for $975!!

But the 16' Prospector would be a much better compromise if you do want to do some solo.

Pat.

I am not very knowledgeable but somewhere I picked up the idea that a 17ft - 6in. canoe was faster than a 16ft canoe of the same hull design. I supposed because it rode higher on the water. Since the longer canoe also would carry a lot more it seemed like a better choice even for a solo paddler. The disadvantages being that it would be a bit heavier, and bulkier for portaging.

If the above is true (that a 17-6 is faster, carries more, and is more stable) why wouldn't it be a better choice than a 16ft canoe?

My canoeing experience is almost solely on 2 month trips in the territories and I found a 17-6 way better for carrying a big load.

A 16' canoe can be better because 99% of the time people are not going on 2-month wilderness trips!

Length does give a pretty good idea of speed & tracking (going straight), but it also depends on hull design and how much "keel" is in the water.

A Tripper is relatively long, narrow and "flat", so having those sharp ends in the water keeps it going faster & straighter (i.e., you could have a boat that measured the same tip to tip but had less of straight-line length in the water).

Prospectors tend to be a little wider and a little more banana-shaped (rocker), making them less fast in the water, but more manuverable - especially when tilted over onto their chubby mid-sections, making much less length of boat in the water. And a 16' Prospector can still carry a big load for tripping, in part because of a bit more width & stability.

For solo paddling, a Tripper could still go faster and carry more, but those aren't always the primary goals. Basically, why buy a van if you only need a 2-door car?

Solo paddling it can be much nicer to have a boat that's easier to lean & turn than a 17'6" pencil that wants to go straight and will fight your efforts to change direction - and 17'6" is a lot of empty boat to catch wind, which can be really annoying when solo.

The reason I mentioned a 16' Prospector was partly because of the stated use for short trips & solo, but mostly because there was a used one on Craigslist!

One design is not better than the other, they each have their advantages, depending on how you'd use it most of the time. No different than buying a new car or anything else.

Pat.

oh, there's that word--stability. I have read reviews by people who complained that a certain canoe was too tippy, but that is a bit of a red herring. Boats have both primary and secondary stability. As you gain experience, you will feel comfortable with a boat with poor initial stability (feels tippy to a beginner) and be able to use that to access the boat's good secondary stability for flat water paddling.

There are two ways to gain experience: paddle lots and take a course.

So, I encourage you to buy a boat that you can grow into rather than a boat that feels good now. That idea lends itself to the idea of renting at first or buying a cheap beast and buying the better boat later when you really know what you want.

Finally, please don't plunk down $2,000 on a boat because of its specs. Canoes are like people--all have both good and not so good characteristics and with patience, you can learn to get along with even the gnarliest.

Just noticed there was recently a Tripper S on Craigslist, made me think of this discussion...

I've been surprised at the number & quality of canoes that have been available, and some at decent prices. Did you ever get one jeffhan?

P.