Narrowed down a new canoe purchase down the the Northwind 17 or Quetico 17, either one will be in the BlackLite or CarbonTec finishes. Considering the price and weight are so similar I'm having a hard time deciding. I've paddled them both over the years and enjoy them equally.

Any deciding factors that I should take into account?

Mainly lake and BWCA use with the occasional Lower Wisconsin River trip. FYI, I have no interest in other brands / models.

I've also been curious for some time about the (probably subtle) differences between these two.
--off to make popcorn---

Because Northstar is a cool ass American company that just donated the proceeds from their Canoecopia canoe sales to Saving the BWCA

FWIW, I am the proud owner of a new Northstar Northwind 17. I did exhaustive research, looked at and paddled both canoes, talked to numerous outfitters that outfit with both canoes and made my choice. I can say the Northwind is considerably stiffer and more efficient paddling for us. Additionally, we really didn't care for the "oil canning" effect of the Souris River. They are great canoes but, a completely different design philosophy. SRs are infinitely stable, durable, repairable and sea worthy. However, because of the hull design they definitely lack straight line efficiency. IMO the Northwind is a Ferrari compared to the SR. With that said the Northwind is no MN II either for efficiency. My .02

I have a Northstar Northwind 18 and it is a beautiful canoe. While it's no slouch in its speed and efficiency, I really don't think it's quite as fast as a Wenonah Minnesota II or Odyssey, nor does it track quite as straight as those two Wenonahs. I definitely have to do more steering strokes with the Northwind, as there is a tad more rocker to it. Having said that, there is a little more foot room in the bow, and initial stability is a bit better, while final stability seems just as good as anything out there. I give the Northstar canoes a slightly higher rating overall than Wenonah and Souris River, however, if money were no object, I'd be on a Savage River like a duck on a June bug.

Can you pull the thwart behind the bow seat on a Northstar 17 and then paddle solo by reversing the canoe and sitting on the bow seat backwards? You can do that with a SR Q17 (with some weight added to balance the canoe). The two factors for the Northstar are whether you can get away with removing the thwart and that the hull isn't quite symmetric. Of course, this may be a extremely minor point for most people. I have done it sometimes for day trips in our Q17. We do love those boats but I have to say that the comments about the Northstar are very intriguing.

Have only rented both. Loaded heavy or light, wind or not, same bow paddler, I just liked the solid feel and track and overall handling of the Nortwind. I Don't know which is stronger or more durable but it sure fit my bill. Bow paddler agreed and after paddling several tandem models we look no further.

Thanks for all of your input. I've always longed for a Bell Northwoods and this is why I was leaning slightly towards the Northwind. Now it is just deciding whether to pony up for the wood trim and extra 4 lbs or not. Thinking the aluminum trim will be less maintenance and more durable long term, but I do love the wood aesthetic.

The wood trim does look great!! If I really wanted to save 4 pounds; I'd lose some weight That's just me; but I don't count ounces on trips.

Every time you look at your new canoe with the aluminum trim you'd be thinking; "Wish I got the wood trim..."

quote Nozzelnut: "The wood trim does look great!! If I really wanted to save 4 pounds; I'd lose some weight That's just me; but I don't count ounces on trips.


Every time you look at your new canoe with the aluminum trim you'd be thinking; "Wish I got the wood trim..." "

I went and looked at one today and the wood seats and trim were 2 different colors, didn't look as good as I thought it would have. The wooden thwarts also seems really thin. Plus the idea of flipping the canoe at night and having the wooden trim getting banged up has me concerned.

The price would be the main reason. $400 extra isn't chump change.

quote andym: "Can you pull the thwart behind the bow seat on a Northstar 17 and then paddle solo by reversing the canoe and sitting on the bow seat backwards? You can do that with a SR Q17 (with some weight added to balance the canoe)...."

Not sure if this is an important aspect for the OP (I know there are some old threads on this), but as I recall Bell/Northwind boats have an asymmetrical rocker, which may be part of why some here say they track straighter, but would be a bigger problem if turned around. SR's are symmetrical rocker - so paddle about the same forward or back. So I'd suggest if paddling backwards is important, its a point for SR; if paddling backwards is not important, its a point of Northwind.

quote Jaywalker: "

quote andym: "Can you pull the thwart behind the bow seat on a Northstar 17 and then paddle solo by reversing the canoe and sitting on the bow seat backwards? You can do that with a SR Q17 (with some weight added to balance the canoe)...."

Not sure if this is an important aspect for the OP (I know there are some old threads on this), but as I recall Bell/Northwind boats have an asymmetrical rocker, which may be part of why some here say they track straighter, but would be a bigger problem if turned around. SR's are symmetrical rocker - so paddle about the same forward or back. So I'd suggest if paddling backwards is important, its a point for SR; if paddling backwards is not important, its a point of Northwind. "

Good point and thanks for bringing that up, but for me personally, that is irrelevant.

I own an SRQ17 and have paddled the Northstar17. I like both boats. The SR is exceptionally stable especially in rough water conditions. I haven't had the chance to paddle a N17 in the same conditions but others may be able to speak to that aspect. I like them both -- the N17 might be a tad lighter which is a nice advantage if you have alot of portaging to do on a trip.

Granted, a very minor point: I find foam ribs unpleasant, aesthetically and otherwise.

Buy the one you want and then call me....we'll go fishing.

To save heart ache, buy both! Regardless of which you pick, you will still yearn for the other as well.
This coming from a guy who loves his SRQ17 and his Bell Northwoods.

quote unshavenman: "To save heart ache, buy both! Regardless of which you pick, you will still yearn for the other as well.
This coming from a guy who loves his SRQ17 and his Bell Northwoods. "

There's no such thing as too many boats.

I really like the northwind after paddling one.

I am curious why the blacklite finish?

quote HighnDry: "

quote unshavenman: "To save heart ache, buy both! Regardless of which you pick, you will still yearn for the other as well.
This coming from a guy who loves his SRQ17 and his Bell Northwoods. "

There's no such thing as too many boats."

seems like that is words to a song I heard recently ...........
:-)
dr bob

quote Loony_canoe: "I really like the northwind after paddling one.


I am curious why the blacklite finish? "

2 lbs heavier, but you get extra durability and stiffness.

I've had a Northwind 17 for two seasons now and I love it. I test paddled several different makes and the day I took out the Northstar we encountered whitecaps and that canoe quartered like a champ. Not a drop of water in the boat except for the spray on my face! I bought it soon after. My whole family uses it at least once a week all season. Now I'm looking into buying one of Bell's solo canoes. I've heard one major plus about SR is that they use one piece of Kevlar as opposed to the layering that most other manufacturers do. They say that one sheet method produces a stronger hull. Never paddled one, but they're all over the place in the BWCA so I don't think you can go wrong with either a Northstar or SR. My .02...

When I see a title like this, I think of the innie vs. outie threads on ground cloths.

I love my Q17, which does get beat up a bit and keeps on ticking. I actually like the ribs that a guest did not, certain they make it even a little more rugged than the slab bottom.

But it sure seems to be purely personal preference and prior experience with one or the other.

As someone who no matter how many times he reconsiders all of the options keeps coming back to wanting an SR Q17 as his tandem...

This is still an interesting comparison because I would like to have a dedicated solo someday and keep waffling between an SR Tranquility and various Northstar solo choices such as Magic, Phoenix, and Northwind solo (yeah, they're all pretty different, but I'm flexible enough to enjoy any of them). The charity/BWCA preservation angle mentioned earlier is an interesting angle I hadn't thought of. It doesn't mean SR doesn't do something similar though; I'll have to look into that.

I have yet to be able to even afford to own the first of these, so while I understand it's all in good fun, I don't really find the "get both" and "you can never have too many" comments to be very helpful or funny.

I went with the wood trim on my Northwind 18. I think it's lovely, although I have to admit, one of the biggest reasons I went with the wood is because I don't like the style of aluminum gunwale on Ted Bell's canoes. I love everything else about his boats, but that squared off gunwale just has an edge on it I would have inevitably been cursing every time my legs would rest against it. I'm assuming that's why so many people line the gunwales with swim noodles or pipe insulation but dog gone it, you shouldn't have to do that! Anyway, so I just put up with the hassle of oiling my wood trim twice a year.

quote thinblueline: "I went with the wood trim on my Northwind 18. I think it's lovely, although I have to admit, one of the biggest reasons I went with the wood is because I don't like the style of aluminum gunwale on Ted Bell's canoes. I love everything else about his boats, but that squared off gunwale just has an edge on it I would have inevitably been cursing every time my legs would rest against it. I'm assuming that's why so many people line the gunwales with swim noodles or pipe insulation but dog gone it, you shouldn't have to do that! Anyway, so I just put up with the hassle of oiling my wood trim twice a year."

I've heard that often, but not limited to the Northstar canoes. I currently have an Old Town Canadienne and have a similar issue with the aluminum trim. I do wish the aluminum was darker on the Northstars, but that is a minor detail.

The fact that souris at canoecopia offered ZERO discount compared to everyone else there was enough for me. My next solo will be a northstar.

quote : "The fact that souris at canoecopia offered ZERO discount compared to everyone else there was enough for me. My next solo will be a northstar."

Maybe, but maybe SR's canoes are always priced as low as they're comfortable going while everyone else has room to discount theirs. Are they discounted sometimes or are they marked up most times?

I'm not accusing anyone of anything. I'm just saying that there's more than one way to look at it without knowing more information.

Plus, I didn't think SR was at Canoecopia. I'd have been more likely to go if they were.

quote : "The fact that souris at canoecopia offered ZERO discount compared to everyone else there was enough for me. My next solo will be a northstar."

Hmmm. I don't recall ever seeing Souris River at Canoecopia.

quote awbrown: "

quote : "The fact that souris at canoecopia offered ZERO discount compared to everyone else there was enough for me. My next solo will be a northstar."

Hmmm. I don't recall ever seeing Souris River at Canoecopia. "

I didn't either. Maybe that's why they didn't offer a Canoecopia discount