I’m considering buying a Champlain and selling my Spirit II. I know I should test one first, but it’s not the best time of year for that. Has anybody tried them both and noticed a big differance in stability or weight carrying ability.
I recently made a eight day
trip on Takla Lake up in BC in my Champlain. Our plans were to paddle down to Stuart Lake about a trip of 120 miles. We had our two dogs, a table and chairs and enough food for two weeks. I weight 200lbs. Even with all our equipment the Champlain had room for more. Takla, Tremblar and Stuart are big lakes and the weather was awful with wind and rain. We had to get up at 4:30 so that we could get some paddling in before the wind picked up. The Champlain handled great in the waves and it’s a very stable boat even with two dogs shifting their weight. Because of it’s cargo capacity, it has enough freeboard for the big water even when loaded. Wenonah accurately describes the people who should get one and if you don’t need the cargo capacity you’re paddling a large boat with a high wind profile unnecessarily. We owned our kevlar Champlain for two years and have made several extended trips in it mostly with our dogs. Highly recommended if you need the capacity; otherwise, I’d go for the Spirit II.
Thank you for the information
I guess I might have to wait and rent one to try out first.