Hi all. I am in the market of buying a new canoe and I was looking at getting either the Wenonah 16' Adirondack or the 17' Spirit II. I currently have a 15' 6" off brand canoe that I have used for day trips down the Mississippi River and on some small lakes for fishing. I was looking to upgrade to one of the aforementioned canoes but I can't seem to make up my mind. I'm 5'7" and close to 200lb and am looking to continue some day trips and fishing but also some week long BWCA trips in the future with a decent amount of gear and another 150-180lb person. I know the Spirit II will be more stable and have a larger capacity but I don't know that I could solo it being a foot and a half longer.

I think that you should buy a canoe that will fit the majority of your activities. If you paddle solo most of the time, I'd recommend buying a true solo canoe. Then you and your friend could rent a tandem canoe for BWCA trips.

A Wenona Adirondack may not be appropriate for you, your friend, and a "decent amount of gear", whatever that means. I typically take a 45 pound food/gear pack, another 45 pound pack with personal and group gear for two guys, a large Pelican case for camera gear, a tripod, and fishing gear in a small day pack. My friend will typically include another day pack. We are 160-180 pounds each. With all of that gear, I would not want a canoe smaller than a Spirit II for a week's trip in the BWCA/Quetico.

I really like my Spirit II, but the only time I ever paddle it solo is on relatively calm flatwater. I wouldn't want to solo it on a fast-moving river. While it has more rocker, and so has greater maneuverability than many other We-no-nah boats, it's just big and beamy. That makes it a great tripping boat for the BWCA. There are always trade-offs.

Thank you both. I think the spirit II is probably the canoe for me. I am usually with somebody else anyway and they are usually fishing. If I really want to be alone I can use my father's kayak. I was just torn between getting a larger canoe than I already have. I have been to the BWCA a few times and we always took a friend's Minnesota II so I have been in larger canoes on week long trips. It has just been a few years and I am looking to break back into long trips. Like I said, the spirit is probably the canoe for me I guess I was just partial to the smaller size. Once again, thank you.

Owned and spent a ton of time in an Adirondack and have rented a Spirit for two different trips trip so I'm no stranger to either. I think the Spirit II would be a "Bear" to solo, but the Adirondack is easy. I've paddled the Adirondack probably 20-25 BWCAW trips? It always had enough volume, but there were a few trips I wished for a little more if that makes sense?

I'm not a little guy and most of my trips I had my wife, but a half dozen or so were guys. The friend who bought one of my Adirondacks was no little guy either and paddled it with his teen, then adult son.

If you won't be needing to solo the boat, the Spirit II will fit more gear. I just was very fond of the Adirondack and had it in some really tough conditions on big lakes like Sag, Gunflint, and Seagull several times and it performed well I'd not hesitate to recommend this boat. Here's a review. If you look back toward one that says by "Wildernesswebb," that's mine. BTW, the royalex model is a different creature than the composite and I was NOT crazy about it. Both canoes were Adirondacks.
Adirondack

I have a Spirit II in royalex and have solo paddled briefly both facing back from the front seat (that thwart is not in a comfortable place) and from the drop in third seat that the 6 year old "paddles" from. A little ungainly from either position empty.

Loaded with the new to paddling wife and the oh so determined young'n I love the performance. Once I got them to trust the secondary stability it became a mainstay on our local camping trips.

I have no experience in an Adirondack.

I have owned a Spirit II in royalex for about 10 years. I am your size and the Spirit II has worked well for me in a variety of uses. I have a considerable amount of time in it on Missouri rivers and streams and find it easy to maneuver and able to carry a significant load. I have also used a Kevlar Spirit II in the BWCA and found it also did well when primarily traveling lakes with a load. Empty with two people or loaded with two people, on lakes or rivers, it works well. Solo not so much. It really is a "jack of all trades" tandem canoe, maybe not the best at anything but adequate in a lot of categories.

My first canoe purchase was a royalex Adirondack about 15 years ago. I then purchased (used) a Kevlar of the same model. My wife, 3 young boys, and I have taken them to the BW for a 5 night trip, and then myself and 3 other guys for a similar trip. Plenty of space for a week long trip if you are a reasonably light packer. Truth be told, if I could make the new purchase again, I would probably have went Spirit II for more room (especially bow paddler legroom). I would have also sprung for the Kevlar if I could do it over again because the price of Kevlar boats back then was much lower than new boats now and I've now started to take trips to the BW every year. I've since purchased a Kevlar Wenonah "17", and will be taking it on its first BW trip next week along with the Kevlar Adirondack. It will be so nice having two light weight boats (37 and 44 lbs, leaving at home the 60lbs royalex). The Adirondack is approx. 5 lbs. lighter than the Spirit II in most layups, but I still think if you're making the purchase on a new boat (where you have the selection) you will be happier in the long run with a 17' boat if extended trips and fishing are a priority. As mentioned, the 17' Wenonah's both have a thwart right behind the bow seat, so reverse paddling does not seem like an option to me. When I've solo paddled my Adirondack, I've kneeled behind the center thwart. It's tough to get one canoe to do it all, especially considering solo and tandem, but in my opinion the Wenonah Spirit II and "17" are do-it-all tandem boats.

quote Drew L: "Thank you both. I think the spirit II is probably the canoe for me. I am usually with somebody else anyway and they are usually fishing. If I really want to be alone I can use my father's kayak. I was just torn between getting a larger canoe than I already have. I have been to the BWCA a few times and we always took a friend's Minnesota II so I have been in larger canoes on week long trips. It has just been a few years and I am looking to break back into long trips. Like I said, the spirit is probably the canoe for me I guess I was just partial to the smaller size. Once again, thank you."

You're welcome!

Thank you all for the responses. I think that in the long run the Spirit II will be the better of the two canoes for what I do. I saw the Adirondack and I thought that would be nice to have since it was a similar length. I will probably order the canoe tonight. Thanks all again!

I have had an Adirondack for about 10 years and used it on multiple trips and in many different settings. It doesn't have a lot of freeboard left with a heavy load, but I have never felt unsafe in it. It does not have a lot of leg room for the bow paddler. I am 6ft and cannot sit up there for an extended time.

It is good if you want a boat that can occasionally be paddled solo, as you point out.

I have rented Spirit II's and consider it better if I were considering one exclusively for flat water tripping.

I own a spirit II and a Wilderness, both in royalex. If I was doing a tandem trip you can't beat the Spirit II. That is what we also rent when we go to BWCA.

For solo, the Wilderness is a great boat. 15'4" long. . . plenty of room for gear. I had no trouble portaging it as well.

I would not paddle a solo on a BWCA trip shorter then 15 feet due to limitations of gear, and less tracking ability and speed.

I used to have a Wenonah Voyager Ultralight Kevlar solo. It weighed only 35 lbs but was 17 feet long. I wish I had never sold it.

Hey everyone, this is Drew. I'm a member of the site now. I'd like to say thanks again to everyone for their input. I decided on the Spirit II because of the size. I think that if I want to solo in the future I'll get a solo canoe. My brother is always doing more fishing than paddling when we go out anyway so I thought the Spirit would be a little more suited to that. Thanks again.

Welcome to the Spirit II family!