Primarily big lake paddling and fishing. Larger water systems that often have good choppy whitecap waters. Wide slow rivers with LOTS of powerboat fishing.
2 adults + child and possible future child. Only day paddles with at MOST 1 night trip or emergency sudden weather shore stays on the larger of our favorite lakes.
LOTS of fishing and sight seeing. Some occasional solo fishing paddles. Both of us have previous paddling experience.
-Price under $2000
-minimum 16ft
-good secondary stability
So far after exhaustive research and reviews we are leaning towards:
Clipper Cascade (highly dealer recommended)
Clipper Ranger
Old Town Penobscot 17 (other dealership recommendation)
My major question is, I CANNOT find any reviews of the Clipper Cascade. Does anyone here have any experience with this boat?
It appears near identical to the Clipper Yukon which seems to have a heavier cheaper fiberglass layup.
mostly seeking reviews
Was supposed to get my late fathers 18ft Springbok from my mother but it was stolen this last summer. If only I had taken enthusiastic interest in paddling earlier…
I kind of like the Clipper series and will be test paddling all we can next summer.
Just having a rough time finding information on the Clipper Cascade other than from their website. Or even their rental fleet favorite Clipper Yukon.
Penobscot 17
I have a Penobscot 17. I fish from it and do 3 to 4 day tripping with it. It can hold a lot of stuff. If you plan to only do day trips, I would go with the Penobscot 16.
loved the old grumman
But you have to be careful not to get hurt loading and or carrying it. Please consider a boat half the weight and twice the fun. When hit by big wave, you can get down on your knees to lower center of gravity.
Another option . . .
Maybe a Hellman Quetico 16 would fit the bill? These have the added advantage of being very light.
I haven’t paddled the Clipper Cascade, but Western has an excellent reputation, and with a full line of canoes, I suspect the dealer would try to match you with the right one.
As your needs aren’t to specific or demanding, I’m sure you could find a suitable canoe used if price was a major issue.
Wenonah’s seem like a bargain these days with the exchange rate - if you have a dealer nearby. I am not very familiar with their line either - but as with Clipper’s, they seem to have a good range.
Jan/Feb sale at Redrock - Quetico 17
Another option is to look at the Souris River Quetico 17. http://www.redrockstore.com/index.html
They usually have a sale on in Jan/Feb. In regards to my Quetico 17, I purchased it during the sale and had the option of getting my money back if I did not like it when I took delivery at their location (Ely, MN). Let me emphasize, at their location. Joe is a straight shooter and my business dealings with him have been excellent.