Team,
I live in South Florida and plan to canoe across Florida Bay to nearby islands in the Everglades. We will be crossing the bay; 2 adults. Also down protected man-made canals. Am concerned about rough weather in the bay most of all. Am looking for something that will track but will also have some flexibility?
Any suggestions???
Fernando
Saltwater Canoe ???
-
canoeblderinmt
- Posts: 415
- Joined: Sat Jul 03, 2004 12:04 pm
- Location: Butte, MT
Fernando,
Track is a term usually used when talking about kayaks. The typical canoe has no keel, sits higher in the water, and is more subject to being pushed around by the wind than a typical 'yak. There are things that can be done while in a canoe to deal with wind, and I'd recommend that you get a copy of Bill Mason's excellent series called The Path of the Paddle.
How far across is the Bay? What about shipping or other boat traffic? Are you strong enough to do a rough water bail-out and re-entry?
Consider getting some inflatable flotation for your trips across the Bay, the kind the white water guys use. You can take them out when on the canals, and they'll keep the canoe from swamping so easily.
Crossing large, wind-blown bodies of water can certainly be done with a canoe, but precautions and a sober appraisal of the risk need to be made before and during the trip. Forty-five of the hardest minutes I have ever spent paddling were spent crossing a half mile wide lake in a 15 to 20 knot wind with one to two foot waves. Way smaller than what you are likely to encounter, I bet. An unseen rogue wave from a cigarette hull or large boat passing by and you could be swimming a long way from shore. Don't mean to sound so pessimistic, but I'd think long and hard about this one.
Greg
Track is a term usually used when talking about kayaks. The typical canoe has no keel, sits higher in the water, and is more subject to being pushed around by the wind than a typical 'yak. There are things that can be done while in a canoe to deal with wind, and I'd recommend that you get a copy of Bill Mason's excellent series called The Path of the Paddle.
How far across is the Bay? What about shipping or other boat traffic? Are you strong enough to do a rough water bail-out and re-entry?
Consider getting some inflatable flotation for your trips across the Bay, the kind the white water guys use. You can take them out when on the canals, and they'll keep the canoe from swamping so easily.
Crossing large, wind-blown bodies of water can certainly be done with a canoe, but precautions and a sober appraisal of the risk need to be made before and during the trip. Forty-five of the hardest minutes I have ever spent paddling were spent crossing a half mile wide lake in a 15 to 20 knot wind with one to two foot waves. Way smaller than what you are likely to encounter, I bet. An unseen rogue wave from a cigarette hull or large boat passing by and you could be swimming a long way from shore. Don't mean to sound so pessimistic, but I'd think long and hard about this one.
Greg
" Choose to chance the rapids, Dare to dance the tide..."
Fernando,
I haven't paddled the Everglades, but others have reported that the shallows there can be full of sharp-edged shells (clams, mussels?) that are rough on the hull. You'd probably have to reinforce a stripper heavily on the exterior with extra layers of glass or kevlar to prevent too much abrasion.
You might try contacting Kim Gass at www.myccr.com and starting a thread in the forums - she has paddled there and I believe it was in a royalex canoe, better suited to the rough shallows.
The Redbird has been used in seagoing trips, I haven't paddled one so can't say how seaworthy it really is. I'd also use flotation bags and spray covers if I were on the open ocean for any length of time.
I haven't paddled the Everglades, but others have reported that the shallows there can be full of sharp-edged shells (clams, mussels?) that are rough on the hull. You'd probably have to reinforce a stripper heavily on the exterior with extra layers of glass or kevlar to prevent too much abrasion.
You might try contacting Kim Gass at www.myccr.com and starting a thread in the forums - she has paddled there and I believe it was in a royalex canoe, better suited to the rough shallows.
The Redbird has been used in seagoing trips, I haven't paddled one so can't say how seaworthy it really is. I'd also use flotation bags and spray covers if I were on the open ocean for any length of time.
Just a point of clarification, the flotation bags won't do much to prevent swamping, but when you do, they will displace water making it easier to bail, make the canoe float higher in the water, and make a self rescue easier. All very useful things, but of course they won't do much to prevent the dump in the first place.canoeblderinmt wrote:Consider getting some inflatable flotation for your trips across the Bay, the kind the white water guys use. You can take them out when on the canals, and they'll keep the canoe from swamping so easily....
By the way, maybe others use the term differently, but I do refer to tracking or lack thereof as a characteristic that describes a canoe hull, not just kayaks.
Minor points but I have an hour to kill ;).
Cheers,
Bryan
-
canoeblderinmt
- Posts: 415
- Joined: Sat Jul 03, 2004 12:04 pm
- Location: Butte, MT
Bryan,
points well taken. I only had a minute to post so kind of "shorthanded" it. If you get bags that fit the front and rear spaces really well, like I've seen on some of the WW canoes, they will help shed some water, but you are right, they are not really going to prevent a swamping. Of course canoes track, well, most do. Lots of rocker and you can spin like a play boat, or add a keel and you can stay pretty straight. Like a lot of us who paddle, it seems like Fernando is looking for one boat to do two different things: He's going to need a V hull or keel for tracking, and a flat bottom with a shallow draft for cruising the 'Glades. Maybe somebody will come up with a hull that can be reconfigured as you go....
Cheers,
Greg
points well taken. I only had a minute to post so kind of "shorthanded" it. If you get bags that fit the front and rear spaces really well, like I've seen on some of the WW canoes, they will help shed some water, but you are right, they are not really going to prevent a swamping. Of course canoes track, well, most do. Lots of rocker and you can spin like a play boat, or add a keel and you can stay pretty straight. Like a lot of us who paddle, it seems like Fernando is looking for one boat to do two different things: He's going to need a V hull or keel for tracking, and a flat bottom with a shallow draft for cruising the 'Glades. Maybe somebody will come up with a hull that can be reconfigured as you go....
Cheers,
Greg
" Choose to chance the rapids, Dare to dance the tide..."