Every Sept. I canoe a twisty little river near our farm in search of Moose. I’ve always used a 17 ft Coleman and it’s worked very well for me. I’d like to build a canoe this summer to use for moose hunting this fall. I’ve looked over all the designs and I’m leaning towards a Freedom 17/9. I'm looking for some expert advice.
Your thoughts?
Thanks,
Darrin
A canoe for hunting
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Tom in MN
Moose hauler
How much does a typical bull moose weigh? I assume you quarter it and take it out in pieces. How much do you weigh and how much do you want to haul at one time. Also, are you portaging this canoe very far or just from the truck to the river?
It sounds as if you need a large capacity canoe that will solo well in moving water. Is the river white water, or just a gentle flow? These are some of the things that immediately came to mind.
You should look at the White Guide 18.5', you will find plans in Gilpatricks book. This is a symmetrical canoe, so it will paddle both directions. You can set up the seats to solo in one seat facing the stern on your way in, then use the other seat to "tandem" with your moose on the weight out. This is the most versatile, all around canoe out there in my opinion. It is also quite easy to build. It is on my list next for a family canoe that will have three seats and will hold me, wife, and three kids. It is pretty fast as well and will make an excellent tripping canoe for two or three.
It sounds as if you need a large capacity canoe that will solo well in moving water. Is the river white water, or just a gentle flow? These are some of the things that immediately came to mind.
You should look at the White Guide 18.5', you will find plans in Gilpatricks book. This is a symmetrical canoe, so it will paddle both directions. You can set up the seats to solo in one seat facing the stern on your way in, then use the other seat to "tandem" with your moose on the weight out. This is the most versatile, all around canoe out there in my opinion. It is also quite easy to build. It is on my list next for a family canoe that will have three seats and will hold me, wife, and three kids. It is pretty fast as well and will make an excellent tripping canoe for two or three.
The 16' Prospector and it's larger version (17' Nomad) have proven themselves as work canoes, and used by hunters and trappers carrying heavy loads in situations such as you describe. The optimum capacities are listed on the specs page - they'll probably be able to exceed that by a considerable margin and still maintain a decent amount of freeboard. A 16' Prospector can carry a lot of weight, I found this out once when transporting bags of cement and gravel across a lake to a building site.
You'll want enough rocker in the hull to make it turn easily. It's a real PITA to try and turn an unrockered boat tightly and still maintain some speed, especially when it's heavily loaded. The above hulls should have enough, and were used traditionally on small streams.
I don't know about the Freedom - besides being asymmetrical, it's less rockered and might not have the room up front because of the narrower bow. For paddling solo and empty until you get that moose, it needs to be paddled from a third seat or kneeling thwart mounted just aft of the midpoint, which can also cut down on capacity. When you load the canoe up, sitting in the stern seat may or may not result in good trim. It's a great tandem tripping boat, but the various sizes of Prospectors are more versatile since they're symmetrical, with the bow seat used for paddling solo and light, and the stern seat when carrying heavy loads.
You'll want enough rocker in the hull to make it turn easily. It's a real PITA to try and turn an unrockered boat tightly and still maintain some speed, especially when it's heavily loaded. The above hulls should have enough, and were used traditionally on small streams.
I don't know about the Freedom - besides being asymmetrical, it's less rockered and might not have the room up front because of the narrower bow. For paddling solo and empty until you get that moose, it needs to be paddled from a third seat or kneeling thwart mounted just aft of the midpoint, which can also cut down on capacity. When you load the canoe up, sitting in the stern seat may or may not result in good trim. It's a great tandem tripping boat, but the various sizes of Prospectors are more versatile since they're symmetrical, with the bow seat used for paddling solo and light, and the stern seat when carrying heavy loads.
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Bryan Hansel
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I also think that the Nomad and Prospector would be good boats, if you went that way.
I paddle a Freedom 17, which works great loaded down and soloing from a kneeling thwart or on the floor behind the yoke. You can even paddle it unloaded backwards while sitting in the front seat. Even though it is an asymmetrical canoe, the waterline shape changes enough to make it manageable backwards, but a kneeling thwart works better. It's a fast boat that is easy to maneuver in tight areas. Before I moved to MN, I paddled many of Iowa's rivers with it, and it handled even the tight ones fine. I don't know if the 17/9 keeps all the characteristics of the 17. I have no doubt that the 17 could carry you and a moose out.
I paddle a Freedom 17, which works great loaded down and soloing from a kneeling thwart or on the floor behind the yoke. You can even paddle it unloaded backwards while sitting in the front seat. Even though it is an asymmetrical canoe, the waterline shape changes enough to make it manageable backwards, but a kneeling thwart works better. It's a fast boat that is easy to maneuver in tight areas. Before I moved to MN, I paddled many of Iowa's rivers with it, and it handled even the tight ones fine. I don't know if the 17/9 keeps all the characteristics of the 17. I have no doubt that the 17 could carry you and a moose out.
moose hunting
On a twisty little river I would suggest a canoe with enough rocker to make it manouverable.(spell check where are youuuu) The prospector is an excellant choice. and handles well with a load as stated by other respondants.
Denis
Denis
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ron
Prospector 16'
Definetly the Prospector, it handles the rivers good, very manuverable, not to long that it is clumsy. You will find that it handles MUCH better with weight in it (300lbs + paddlers). My wife and I swam to shore once, because it is a bit tippy with no extra weight.
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Northern bowhunter
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2005 6:08 pm
Sorry to be so long in responding. I’ve been out of town.
The river I do is small and twisty, 1 set of rapids that are very mild. Last season's moose was about 400#’s, could go as high as 600-700 #‘s, but I would take it out in 2 trips in that case. It is loaded in quarters. I generally have a buddy with me also, we take very little gear with us, as it’s only a day trip.
Thanks for your help,
Darrin
The river I do is small and twisty, 1 set of rapids that are very mild. Last season's moose was about 400#’s, could go as high as 600-700 #‘s, but I would take it out in 2 trips in that case. It is loaded in quarters. I generally have a buddy with me also, we take very little gear with us, as it’s only a day trip.
Thanks for your help,
Darrin