I’m thinking about buying this boat…would like some feed back from anyone with experience with this model…yes I did go to the reviews…
Test paddled a royalex specimin
on flat water while looking for an all-round river boat for flat to class 2. It runs nicely on the flats, turns fairly well but not a spinner, sideslips nicely, very stable for me at 5-10, 150. I went for something smaller and lighter but the Wilderness made the short list.
Have seen the hull but have not
paddled it. Looks like a great lake and smooth river cruiser, but the lack of rocker will mean that the paddler will need skill and strength to manage it in class 2. I have paddled the W Rendezvous and the W Solo Plus, and neither spins or turns easily enough to meet my expectations for a good class 2 boat.
If you mainly want a lake and smooth river cruiser, the Wilderness is a good choice. If you think you want to do some easy whitewater, you could consider the Wenonah Rendezvous, but the Mad River Freedom Solo would be a better choice.
It’s an unavoidable choice. You can have easy cruising speed, or easy maneuvering in whitewater. Or you can have a canoe like the MR Freedom Solo that’s just kind of fast, and just kind of agile. (I have a MR Freedom Solo and also two more serious whitewater open canoes.)
Thnx for the replies…it’s
always a trade off isn’t it…
I have a feeling that you might be happy
with the Wilderness. But look at Wenonah’s other solos and see if you can identify what offers just a little more handling with just a small sacrifice in speed. Some might go the other way. I always wanted to own an Encounter, which is faster but requires even more skill if eddying or ferrying are required. But I rarely do fast cruising on flatwater, and I’m probably too old to learn.
I paddled a Rondevous for 2 seasons
took a it on the Pelly River for 12 days and never bonded with that boat…I adjusted the tharts cuz when I paddled it straigh and hard the stern would come around…It dumped me a couple of times…I alway felt that when it leaned past the tumble home (the flared sides)the boat would dump…I sold it when I got off the river…