Coleman 17 foot

I recently was offered a Coleman 17 foot canoe for 25 dollars. Of course, I couldn’t resist the price. As my husband and I have ventured out to use our canoe, we have found it to be so heavy and awkward that it discourages us from taking it out. Does anyone know the weight of this model? Are we just being wimps or is this brand heavy and awkward? Does anyone have a recommendation for a canoe that a female with limited arm strength can cart around?



Thanks.

Don’t feel badly about your Coleman
25$ is about the right price. If you have friends with a place on a lake you can give it to them and they can use it to bang around in. There are many, many brands and designs of tandem canoes that are much lighter and better built. What do you want to use it for? Rivers, lakes, whitewater,other? How do you want to transport it? Give us a little more information and I know you will get lots of suggestions.

Look at Wenonah and Western/Clipper
canoes. Dealers for those brands will be knowledgable, and have a wide range of highly functional canoes.



If your husband comes along part of the time, you may eventually want two canoes, one that you can heft and paddle easily, and another that can carry a tandem load. It’s hard to find a canoe that does both tandem and solo with full effectiveness.

cheap canoes are heavy

– Last Updated: Jul-09-12 12:18 AM EST –

Yes, cheap plastic canoes like Coleman, Pelican and Old Town tend to be heavy. Also slow and awkward to paddle. You get what you pay for in boats. Lightness, durability and performance cost money.

The suggestion of Wenonah is a good one -- they have a range of lovely and lightweight solo canoes. But they will be considerably more than $25. One of their 46 lb Fusions would be around $1000 new while their 29 lb Wee Lassie solo will set you back $1350.

If your budget is limited and you will mostly be paddling tandem, the Old Town Guide 147 can often be found for under $500 (or $300 used at times) and is a decent entry level river canoe for two people. Still a bit heavy at 79 lbs. We own one and paddle it frequently.