I’m looking for a canoe to use with my 2 kindergarten aged kids for now and as they grow up.
I’ve been looking at mainly the Old Town Camper (which seems to be had for about $700 for a reasonably new used one. But now I’m also looking at a used Wenonah Adirondack Kevlar flex core because it’s less than $1000.
My questions:
Does the Adirondack lack the initial stability required for taking young kids canoeing? I know the Camper will be okay.
I’m concerned about delamination possibility of Royalex. How old a Royalex boat can I get and not be worried about it for a while?
I’ll be using the boat in coastal marsh creeks and slow blackwater rivers in the south. Do I need to worry about the gel coated boats being damaged very quickly by oysters, etc.? I don’t mind making minor repairs every year or two but I don’t want to destroy it by just bumping a few shells.
Part of me thinks I should get a very used Camper for $400 or $500, but then I could be needing a new canoe in 3 years whereas a gel coated Kevlar should last much longer I assume. And lets face it, a shiny gel coated boat is much more relaxing to look at than a faded Royalex boat - although they both float.
Any advice? Thanks.
Go wenonah
It is a lighter boat with better performance and from your message sounds like your mind is already made up. Any boat is going to last as long as you take care of it unless it has some kind of defect. Buy the boat you want and use it. Scratches/dings are just part of ownership. I think I mark up my boats more often loading/unloading them then actually using them.
Royalex will not delaminate unless it is
hammered mercilessly. I have a 17 year old Royalex ww canoe, and it has not delaminated anywhere, though it has many surface scars.
The Camper would be the more durable boat, but unless you use your canoe in whitewater, both would be acceptably durable.
We started our kids in a very "tippy" canoe, but we both knelt while paddling, so it was plenty stable. The Camper would be more stable at rest, but the Wenonah will be much easier paddling. And easier to load and unload.
go with the wenonah composite…
Imho they're both on the small side, but between the two I'd go with the Wenonah, and flexcore is a good layup and the hull is meant to be paddled, as opposed to the Camper(imho).
another vote for the Wenonah
The Aderondak is plenty stable. The oisters etc will scratch the jell coat which is only a visible till you put it on the water. Jell coat is there to provide abrasion protection . The lighter weight and easier paddling will far outweigh the royalex durability which you dont need.
another vote for the Wenonah
The Aderondak is plenty stable. The oisters etc will scratch the jell coat which is only a visible till you put it on the water. Jell coat is there to provide abrasion protection . The lighter weight and easier paddling will far outweigh the royalex durability which you dont need.