How to find a lost canoe? Our blue Old Town Camper got pinned in a strainer on the Contoocook RIver in southwest NH last weekend. When we returned with ropes and gear to free it, the boat was gone. Any ideas where to post? It was my parents’ boat and breaks my heart to lose it.
Try the local Sherrif’s office or police.
If a honest person found it, I would think they would report it to one or the other.
Down here in the south, if a red neck found it, they would be pounding on your door to return it.
Thanks, JackL. We contacted the police right away, in case someone came across the boat and thought there were drowned bodies nearby.
I found a boat in a strainer this past February. I contacted DNR police, posted on my club’s lost- and stolen-boat web page, and put a found-boat add in Craigslist. I was unsuccessful at finding the owner, but that may give you an idea of actions the finder of your boat may take. I also contacted a local Old Town dealer and learned they don’t keep records of boat sales.
I’m either not in the south, or not a red neck, because I wasn’t pounding on anybody’s door,
~~Chip
The red neck outfitter I know used to go salvage them after storms. Then sell them or use 'em in his business. Something about “abandoned” for 48 hours.(Florida) Always tie a rope to it. Then it’s not abandoned.
Yeah… If it were the Midwest, do-gooders would have freed it and sat next to it waiting for you to come back.
If this happened in CA, they would have posted pic and a “strainer meme” on facebook, Instagram, and twitter, as smart, caring techies would know to do.
If in the PNW, one would have better headed to the nearest coffee shop, check the bike racks t see what has been pedal towed.
If you were in the SW, one would go and down the RIO Grande to see if it has been appropriated for migrant transport usage.
sing
With tongue in cheek about stereotyping
Thanks, Chip. I did Craig’s list, and notified Eastern Mountain Sports and the local police, plus flyers. If whoever has my boat is inclined to find me and give it back, I’ve left some bread crumbs. The challenge is, this was a holiday weekend in NH, and they might have been out-of-staters.
Best bet for recovering lost paddling items is to have your name and phone number on it. I dropped a paddle in the Androscoggin up in Errol and got called about it a week later. Since I was in Boston, I was not able to get back up there and get the paddle for another month. But, when I went up, I got the paddle from the person who held onto it until I got back up there.
I left one of my new surf paddles at the local surf break in MA. Never got it back. Why? I didn’t remember to get some metallic sharpie to write my name and number on the black carbon beauty.
sing
Contact Merrimack Valley Paddlers and Contocook River Canoe
It is a good idea to have name and contact info indelibly mark on your boat. The Coast Guard likes this to be done so they can check first with the owner before expending the funds to do a search for survivors or bodies.
A couple years ago I got a set of these labels from Amazon. Imprint I chose was “Please return to,” plus my name, email, home and cell phone #s. Waterproof as there’s one on each end of my Cyprus and they’re still there and easily read, Also on my dry bags and the back of my phone case. While I have the USCG “if found” stickers in each my boats, stuck one of these small labels in the bow hatch of my newest boat.
Great buy for $10: https://tinyurl.com/yyfbcrdq
Thanks, Rookie. Good idea for next time 
Good idea on the Merrimack and Contoocook groups. I’ll contact both. And yes, next time — a sharpie is my friend.
Contocook River Canoe is a livery and retailer… Its possible any finder would turn in the boat there.