I have both and own or have owned a fine example of each.
I no longer have the solo canoe , but here are my thoughts on comparing the 2.
The SOT is more versatile. I have run class 2 rapids and danced with 3’ waves with no problem.To be fair,the canoe could probably handle both,just not with me paddling.
Both can be paddled with a double or single paddle.
The SOT is a little wetter ride, but not much.
The SOT can handle as much weight as a canoe,but volume can be an issue.
The canoe can be very light where SOT tend to be tanks.
Plastic can take a beating that I would not subject CF to.
The comparison here is a Rapidfire vs. a Tarpon 140.
I’m still trying to talk my way out of another canoe.
Let your heart be your guide The canoe can be paddled with elegance and grace. The SOT is a blunt instrument. But, no matter, if you are happy in a SOT, it is good.
Personally, I think if you paddle enough and develop the skills, your heart will put you in the canoe more often than the SOT. But, that’s just one persons opinion.
You’re comparing one SOT to one canoe. The best SOTs are for open ocean. The ones offered for ww are, as BT said, blunt instruments. SOT designs for rivers and ww have not progressed or diversified much. That says something. As for canoes, there are designs and constructions for every environment, and most of them are versatile enough for several environments.
I await the first SOT whitewater slalom event with interest… Some old SOT will probably win it!
self rescue I paddle a solo canoe and I can’t perform a self rescue in open water in my canoe. I’m guessing in a SOT a self rescue (with a paddle float) would be doable. I’m learning to kayak paddle a PH Capella and I learned a heel-hook self rescue with a paddle float in one session.
I prefer a solo canoe but I’m uncomfortable knowing that I need to get help, get to shore or get to shallow water to get back in my boat.
Self rescue might be a consideration for what you choose.
I am astonished! But you’ve paddled the two boats and so you probably have a good idea of how the the they perform. Having paddled both boats, did you feel that it requires more effort to move the Tarpon at, say, 3 knots than it does the Rapidfire?
Right tool for the job Which tool is better? A hammer or a screwdriver. Kinda depends if you want to drive a nail or a screw. Both boats have their strong and weak points.
My reasons for using an SOT for Kayak Fishing:
The SOT / Drysuit combo makes self rescue realistic for the average non gymnast. No paddle float needed. Just pull yourself over the boat until your belly button is over the center and flip around. This extends the season into December and early spring right after ice out safely.
Wind kicking up whitecaps may case spray coming over the bow but it doesn’t become a white knuckle paddle back to the launch.
Having a really big fish swim under a canoe on a short line is not that much fun.
For all other non ocean paddling I would rather be in a canoe especially in moving water . It may have a steeper learning curve to get all the performance the hull has to offer but I just find a canoe more enjoyable. But hey, that’s just me.
SOT vs solo canoe A Placid Rapidfire vs a mass produced plastic Tarpon 14 is hardly a fair comparison of both types of watercraft and a Tarpon 14 is hardly the ultimate SOT.
In terms of just speed a surfski would be the ultimate SOT.
Fiberglass South African SOTs like the Kaskazi Marlin or Skua are better examples of SOTs to compare with the Rapidfire and I paddle mine with both kayak and canoe paddles.
Of course, it depends upon the uses you intend to put the boat to. I come at it as a river paddler who uses the boat for fishing. The solo canoe is a very clear winner in that case for a number of reasons. Some you listed. But the biggest is simply that you can carry more stuff, and have your rods and tackle always within easy reach. I carry a tackle box and five rods in the canoe, and all rods are stowed so that the tips are within the gunwales and the handles are within easy reach from my sitting position, as is the “tackle box”, which is actually a black plastic auto battery box from Wal-mart in which five 3701 Plano boxes fit perfectly. I threw away the lid, ran a couple of velcro straps from the former bottom edge of the box and out the former top opening, so that I can strap the box to the underside of my bench seat with the opening facing forward. All I have to do to reach the lures in the Plano boxes is reach between my legs and drag one out.
In addition, if you do solo canoe camping as I do, the canoe carries all the camping gear I would ever want to take, and I don’t have to worry about stowing it nor keeping bulk to a minimum like I’m a backpacker.
agreed, alg’s different boat for a different “purpose” or “use”…but add IN the portage as an additional effort to combine with the covering of territory in a canoe.
Both reside in their own playgrounds… …but imo crossing over into the other’s domain is pushing the envelope a bit, enjoyment-wise…y/n? Seems as though each design will show weaknesses in the other’s realm…