Hi everyone, I’m a new canoe owner and new to the forums. I purchased a 1980’s (I believe–checking with Old Town) Pathfinder and will be asking questions on here about it. The first pressing issue is that I need to repair an approximate 3" long hole in the trim on top (see pic). What is the best way to do this? A patch of some sort? I would assume that I don’t want to fill it. (Please know that I am not very handy and I do not own a blow torch 
Thanks for the help!
Starting to answer my own question here, and just need confirmation that this will be fine and any added advice…Looking at repairing it with Fiberglass Cloth and Fiberglass Resin. I don’t need anything fancy, just good enough to cover the hole and keep it waterproof…Thanks in advance.
You don’t have to check with OT to know the date it was made. The date is the last digits of the serial number.
I had a 70’s era OT with that same color combination. The gunwales got a crack, which I fixed. Then it got more cracks. I was told those white vinyl gunwales held up very poorly and they just break down after a while. I suspect you will need new gunwales.
Certainly, go forward with your repair. It can’t hurt. But, you may just be wasting your time. If you get new cracks, throw in the towel and replace the gunwales.
~~Chip