me too
too
I can only comment on the Nordkapp…
and a GP paddle - no experience with the other boat(s).
My Nordkapp is the RM version, I paddle it unloaded often on day trips using both GP and euro paddles. My body weight and day kit go about 200#. Several multi-day trips annually with a load of 60-80 pounds plus the 170# paddler using the same paddles.
Paddling locations are large western lakes in the Rockies. Wind is the order of the day, long fetch with the resultant chop.
One of the things I really like about the Nordkapp is how it shrugs off an expedition load. I can feel it in terms of maneuverability but its not a dramatic change like one discovers in most boats. I paddled WS Tempests for many years but always found them rather sluggish with a 250# load when Yellowstone lake began to act up. No such issues with the Nordkapp - it simply wants to keep on goin’. An expedition boat may seem overkill for day paddles but the Nordkapp excels in this scenario, too. Packed lightly it can be danced like few other 18’ boats yet turn right around and efficiently track its way 15 miles back to the put-in. The only place I’ve found the Nordkapp out of place is on completely still water and air. The poor boat just kinda sits there not knowing exactly what to do in such storybook conditions. After a while it simply nods off while waiting for something a little more interesting. Fortunately, such conditions are seldom encountered in my neck o’ the woods.
I like the GP for cruising in mild conditions, loaded or unloaded. Its quiet and efficient. I have about three years of regular GP use but do not consider myself and expert with one.
I’m still more comfortable with a good euro paddles, especially when things get rough. While the wind does catch them more than the GP I am able to better achieve quick direction changes and more effective braces. Cliff-like geography is common in my region and combined with the wind makes for clapotis around many a corner. I find the euro paddle noticeably more effective in this stuff for both forward momentum and maneuvering. Good solid linked strokes work well for me.
I’d rather roll with the Nordkapp with the GP but I’m fairly accomplished with the euro, too.
Either paddle will drive a loaded Nordkapp just fine. I run the euro paddle more often when loaded because years of experience set in and I just fall into my comfort zone with my particular style and cadence.
My experience and preferences undoubtedly say more about my current skill/experience level with the two paddle styles than the actual efficacy of either one when used with the Nordkapp.
The decision on which to use is painful for a Libra thus I simplify life and use both 
ask here
You could ask in the NDK yahoo group. Not alot of posting there but when someone asks a question usually several chime in.I have a Greenlander Pro but only day trip so I have never loaded it with much plus iam only 170 lbs myself. I really love mine in ruff water and fast with even the smallest of waves from behind.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NDKOWNERS/
sorry…
when I asked about paddling the GP with a load I was referring to the Greenlander Pro, not a Greenland blade. My bad for not being more specific.
As to your assessment of the Nordkapp though…I think that is pretty accurate from my perspective. A little boring on flat water, but a lot of fun when it is choppy, and super capable with a load.
And here as well…
Also ask our neighbors on the other side of the pond who should have lots more experience with both of these boats…
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/forum/viewforum.php?f=4
It’s always interesting to get the perspective of others…
Bill
Ooops! n/t
Surfing a Greenlander
So how well do these things really surf on a wave with no rocker. I’ve yet to see anyone do even basic maneuvers on a wave with a long straight boat like this.
I can’t imagine either of these boats being good in the surf, but I’m quite new to it so please let show me.
I’ve seen the Romany, Capella, Deplhin, and Alchemy in the surf. They have more rocker and a much shorter waterline, but still seem really hard to turn.
I will say more length and hard chines help catch the waves but you need to turn it before it pearls and that is hard for me sometimes even in my 13 foot boat.
Surf…
In my original question when I asked how the GP surfed I was really referring to how it surfs wind waves and how it performs in a following sea, and not how it performs in the surf zone.
In the surf zone I would not choose a GP. The bow plugnes way too easily in waves that steep. It also tends to lock onto a course easily. It would not be my choice for the surf zone at all.
I would use it primarily as an open water boat for day paddles or for tripping.