I’m contemplating a Wenonah Kanak to use for trips to the BWCAW. I can’t easily exit the short cockpit of most kayaks due to weakness in triceps muscles, making it hard for my long legs/knees to clear the cockpit.
Consider a solo canoe
A little confused by your posting about having weak tricep muscles. I don’t see how the Canak is going to help that, you’ll still be sitting basically on the floor of the boat and will most likely use tricep muscles to get up from that position. Sounds like a solo canoe with a higher seating position would be more suitable. If you like Wenonah take a look at their Argosy canoe, in Kevlar it’s about 5 pounds heavier but $1,000 cheaper, in Kevlar Ultra light its 8 pounds less and still around $700 cheaper than the Canak.
You can double blade and
– Last Updated: May-07-11 4:55 PM EST –
drop the seats some in most solo canoes.
The Argosy is just one of dozens of suitable solo canoes.
I take it you want to sit on the bottom and double blade
There is a growing rank of pack canoes that work well for the Boundary Waters. They can carry your gear in canoe packs so there is no need to reassemble a portage pack every time you have to portage.
Look at the Placid Boatworks RapidFire for example. At 23 lbs its a dream to portage. You can get a seat and a height for the seat that suits you.
The Canak is not your only choice. Think a little outside the box. You can alter any solo canoe to your sitting height( I see there are no options to customize the Canak..as the hull is essentially a Prism and Prisms have lowish seats..the Prism is going to be easier to portage.
The only time I would consider a Canak is for bigger waves and fewer portages..then you would probably be thinking closed bulkheads and a sea kayak.
triceps
Seem slightly important for paddling. If you can get up out of a boat I’m not sure I’d go paddling for days. But that said the canak does have a higher seating position that a kayak so It could help. If you are willing to spend the money on the canak, the prism would be a good option. I believe it is the base of the canak. Some people on here are down on the canak because it is new a different. I say try it, it looks cool.
Ryan L.