Does anyone own one or paddled this boat? Just like to get some feed back on this one.
Yup, I Have a Bell Angler
– Last Updated: Jun-27-09 9:03 PM EST –
Have one and it's not a bad hull. Didn't care for those with the plastic seats so we have the contoured nylon laced seats. We bought ours with the intention of using it on the river and using our Bell Northwind more on flatwater. My wife paddles with me less and less, so it's only been paddled a couple times tandem and 4-5 times solo (by me) and a few times as a "Guest boat."
It is not fast, but not a "Dog" to paddle. It is comfortably stable, even to beginners. No problems fishing out of it. This boat is best for small lakes and rivers, because the depth is a bit low for large waves and wind driven whitecaps. Turns easily, but is not difficult to control. If I might compare it to a vehicle, it's like our Honda Element. Good "Utility" vehicle that will get you where you want to go, but not fancy, pretty, or speedy. Not the most efficient, but not a hawg either.
We have friends who sometimes use it for father and two sons and it works fine. It is a day-tripper; but, you could do tandem overnights if you didn't bring the kitchen sink and you weren't a couple 300 pounders.
We are selling ours since we bought it to "Spare" our Northwind some river miles, but we've ended up using it mostly as a "Loaner." Time to sell it and buy another solo and let my friends buy their own boats! Here's a couple pics of ours tandem, solo, and "Dry" so you can see some pics besides Bell's catalog pictures. Any other questions and I'll gladly answer e-mails. The last pic the Angler is the boat in the middle. WW
http://www.pbase.com/ozarkpaddler/image/110346093
http://www.pbase.com/ozarkpaddler/image/104853819
http://www.pbase.com/ozarkpaddler/image/114342871
http://www.pbase.com/ozarkpaddler/image/112010769