Are Old Town canoes good for the BWCA? We are doing about a 30-day canoe trip in the BWCA and are looking for a tandem canoe to fit us and my two dogs. My dogs are 47 and 20 pounds and, of course, our gear.

Old Town makes several different models of canoes, but are primarily designed for recreational paddlers, not serious wilderness tripping.

They are reasonably priced but would not be my first choice for a month long bwca trip of 30 days.

Their Discovery series is probably the biggest seller in the canoe market, but they weigh a ton. Good canoe to have at the cabin but not designed for serious tripping.

Prepare yourself for many responses. An old town will work. It is a little on the heavy side when portaging. Kevlar canoes tend to be lighter. But, require a little more care. 30 days is a long trip and unless you are doing alot of base camping you have to move that canoe. Renting a lighter canoe for that long if a trip may be impractical. Expensive. My advice; keep looking. Get something lighter. Good luck

Lighter weight Would be my suggestion.

OT will work, but it is a tank to portage.

I do want a lighter canoe. I just don’t want to pay so much for a Kevlar. Any recommendations?

Look for used kevlar. A lot of outfitters have them in the fall $1200-1500 for a a good tandem. Looks like the OTs are nearly double the weight.

Get a Kevlar canoe. I got a used one from Voyaguer North Outfitters in Ely. It’s a Souris River Quetico 17 ft Kevlar canoe.

A kevlar will weigh half of what an OT weighs and will paddle easier and faster on the water. Start looking now for a decent used one; if necessary you'll be able to resell afterwards. A thirty day rental would be almost as much as a good used one.

There are boats in kevlar going up for sale now on CL and outfitter sites if you choose to purchase over rental. Shopping for them is almost as much fun as paddling one of them.

Contact all bw area outfitters and see what used boats they have available. You will need a sizeable boat for your gear and 2 dogs. Look for tripping canoes by wenonah, northstar, and souris river.

To comfortably carry you and dogs and a 30 day outfit you will need a big canoe. Bigger means heavier, especially if you are looking at materials other than kevlar. An 18 or 18.5 footer will serve you well. In Royalex or other plastic material you are going 80-90 pounds. In kevlar 45-50. A huge difference.

It just needs to be big and light, not pretty. Look for a used one that is well used but sound.

Northwind 18 and Souris River Quetico 18.5 would be my choices. Wenonah has some like the Champlain that would serve you well.

The nice thing about a used Kevlar canoe is once they have some miles put on them they don't lose their value very much. You can probably buy one from one of the outfitters, use it for 30 days, then sell it for about what you paid for it in the first place - maybe a bit less if you are in a hurry. Or better yet, keep the canoe and use it on next years 30 day trip. Be sure to get a couple of flying moose stickers for it. Youll likely end up bumping onto folks from this forum who can give on the spot advice.

On a side note - since you'll have your dogs along, I'll suggest you find the "Doggie Paddle" special interest forum. It's a section of this site focused specifically on paddling with dogs. On the main forum page look for special interest groups at the bottom. You'll find lots of ideas and questions answered that may help you with your planning.

Stephmed: "Are Old Town canoes good for the BWCA? We are doing about a 30-day canoe trip in the BWCA and are looking for a tandem canoe to fit us and my two dogs. My dogs are 47 and 20 pounds and, of course, our gear. "

I second everyone else's suggestion about buying a used outfitter's canoe in the spring and reselling it.

One thing I'd like to note is that with our two dogs (about 50 lbs heavier than your dogs), and me being a tall guy, I felt that a 17' tandem canoe was a little marginal on big water for a trip with myself, one other person, two dogs, and gear for a week.

Ok, I will offer a different opinion so that you have something else to think about. You could use, if you can locate, a 17 foot OT Penobscot in Royalex. I have one and at around 65 lbs is heavier than Kevlar. But, If this weight is manageable, it does provide a great tripping canoe that you won't have to worry about scraping rocks or any other underwater surprises. They also have great cargo capacity - I think up to 1200 lbs. I think i have seen some used ones go for around $600 - $700. Just something else to ponder.
Good luck - BTW, many of us would love to have your problem of having to find a canoe for a "30 day" trip.

Old town discoveries, never. For trips to wabakimi and rivers trips I always preferred my 17’ Penobscot over my wenonah. A bit of extra weight was worth it as we tend to do a lot a whitewater. Also it handles better with a huge load.

the troop has 2 OT Penobscott 'blems' royalex that we got new for $500. each. pretty bomb proof, very stable and at 65# or so doable on portages. With Royalex gone you cen't get them anymore.... so you have to look at what they are made of and what they weigh before spending for them. We have a Discovery 174 which I picked up for $300 once but it weighs a ton...I have seen buff guys hauling them around up there but they are much better for river canoeing... still they are very stable and can hold a ton of stuff.

dr bob

Well......, maybe? Which OT canoe? There are a few older models made in kevlar. But for gear for a month long trip and a couple dogs, you're going to need a good sized canoe unless you and your paddling partner are pretty small?

Some of the OT canoes like the Penobscot and Camper were actually "Upgrades" at the outfitters when I first started paddling in the BWCAW. They ARE a bit lighter (Mid 60's?) than aluminum. But, again, how much weight will you need to load in for your trip? Small people, you may get by, larger, not a good idea.

And OT Discos, unless you or your partner have muscles like a Badger lineman, are out of the question unless you plan to stay on lakes not requiring portages more than a few rods. I have portaged 78-80 lb canoes in my younger days and wouldn't recommend it.

This time of the year is a good time to shop Craigslist and Paddling.net for used canoes. Here's a pic of my buddy and his son with a heavily loaded OT Camper. Penobscot would give you ONE more foot to wedge the two dogs into. Remember, You are going to have two dogs and another pack for food in addition to the load in the picture. A week long trip with one small dog is doable. And, this will be the canoe they use in the BWCAW this June. But we're not going out for a MONTH!

I have a discovery.....Its a great canoe, tough and stable. with 2 people and gear its pretty full.....add a couple dogs? nope.
As mentioned before its HEAVY! Last year I swore I would never portage it again and it looks like I wont have to since I bought a used Quetico 17 this winter.

I'm on the fence on whether I should hang on to it or dump it. I figured it would be a good loaner canoe.

Check out this website as it pulls all canoe and kayaks for sale on Craigslist nationwide plus several other paddling websites that have used canoes and kayaks for sale. PaddleSwap.com

ozarkpaddler: "Well......, maybe? Which OT canoe? There are a few older models made in Kevlar. But for gear for a month long trip and a couple dogs, you're going to need a good sized canoe unless you and your paddling partner are pretty small?

And OT Discos, unless you or your partner have muscles like a Badger lineman, are out of the question unless you plan to stay on lakes not requiring portages more than a few rods. I have portaged 78-80 lb canoes in my younger days and wouldn't recommend it.

This time of the year is a good time to shop Craigslist and Paddling.net for used canoes. Here's a pic of my buddy and his son with a heavily loaded OT Camper. Penobscot would give you ONE more foot to wedge the two dogs into. Remember, You are going to have two dogs and another pack for food in addition to the load in the picture. A week long trip with one small dog is doable. And, this will be the canoe they use in the BWCAW this June. But we're not going out for a MONTH!

"

Exactly what Ozark Paddler said! Most anything in Old Town's current line-up; which feature almost exclusively three-layer polyethylene, save for the wood/canvas canoes, would be far to heavy and impractical for extensive portaging. BTW Ozark Paddler, I love the "Badger lineman" reference. :-)

At one time, especially during the 1980's and early 1990's, Old Town produced some decent Kevlar canoes that would have been contenders. As others have mentioned, searching craigslist might turn up some of the older Kevlar canoes by Old Town if your heart is set on tripping with an Old Town canoe.

I've included a few catalog pages below of some possible Old Town's that would fit the bill and could potentially turn up in the used canoe classifieds. The Old Town Canadienne 17 would be the most likely canoe to turn up of the older Kevlar canoes that Old Town once produced. The "Northern Lights" series are very rare, but there were some nice models that would be decent for extended tripping in my opinion.

The Penobscot 17 would probably be the only reasonable non-Kevlar canoe that could work and is still be at a manageable weight, but it's definitely not close to a Kevlar weight canoe. But with Royalex no longer being manufactured, a used Penobscot 17 would probably be the only way to snag one of those. Although the catalog page below lists the Penobscot 17 at 65-pounds, it's probably closer to 70-pounds or more. Old Town was notorious at under reporting the actual weight of their canoes. It's been my experience that many of the listed canoe weights that Old Town published were approximately five to seven pounds lighter than their actual weight.

Finally, if weight were not an issue, the venerable Old Town Tripper, and the mammoth Tripper XL could definitely carry the load if portaging were not an issue, but both are beasts though! In 1982 I did a 7-day BWCAW trip with an Old Town Tripper. I can tell you that portaging that beast with a #3 Duluth pack is not something I long to do again. Nevertheless, the tripper carried myself, an adult friend, my 15-year nephew, and a week's worth of gear with ease.

Hans Solo

HansSolo: "

ozarkpaddler: "Well......, maybe? Which OT canoe? There are a few older models made in Kevlar. But for gear for a month long trip and a couple dogs, you're going to need a good sized canoe unless you and your paddling partner are pretty small?

And OT Discos, unless you or your partner have muscles like a Badger lineman, are out of the question unless you plan to stay on lakes not requiring portages more than a few rods. I have portaged 78-80 lb canoes in my younger days and wouldn't recommend it.

This time of the year is a good time to shop Craigslist and Paddling.net for used canoes. Here's a pic of my buddy and his son with a heavily loaded OT Camper. Penobscot would give you ONE more foot to wedge the two dogs into. Remember, You are going to have two dogs and another pack for food in addition to the load in the picture. A week long trip with one small dog is doable. And, this will be the canoe they use in the BWCAW this June. But we're not going out for a MONTH!



"

Exactly what Ozark Paddler said! Most anything in Old Town's current line-up; which feature almost exclusively three-layer polyethylene, save for the wood/canvas canoes, would be far to heavy and impractical for extensive portaging. BTW Ozark Paddler, I love the "Badger lineman" reference. :-)

At one time, especially during the 1980's and early 1990's, Old Town produced some decent Kevlar canoes that would have been contenders. As others have mentioned, searching craigslist might turn up some of the older Kevlar canoes by Old Town if your heart is set on tripping with an Old Town canoe.

I've included a few catalog pages below of some possible Old Town's that would fit the bill and could potentially turn up in the used canoe classifieds. The Old Town Canadienne 17 would be the most likely canoe to turn up of the older Kevlar canoes that Old Town once produced. The "Northern Lights" series are very rare, but there were some nice models that would be decent for extended tripping in my opinion.

The Penobscot 17 would probably be the only reasonable non-Kevlar canoe that could work and is still be at a manageable weight, but it's definitely not close to a Kevlar weight canoe. But with Royalex no longer being manufactured, a used Penobscot 17 would probably be the only way to snag one of those. Although the catalog page below lists the Penobscot 17 at 65-pounds, it's probably closer to 70-pounds or more. Old Town was notorious at under reporting the actual weight of their canoes. It's been my experience that many of the listed canoe weights that Old Town published were approximately five to seven pounds lighter than their actual weight.

Finally, if weight were not an issue, the venerable Old Town Tripper, and the mammoth Tripper XL could definitely carry the load if portaging were not an issue, but both are beasts though! In 1982 I did a 7-day BWCAW trip with an Old Town Tripper. I can tell you that portaging that beast with a #3 Duluth pack is not something I long to do again. Nevertheless, the tripper carried myself, an adult friend, my 15-year nephew, and a week's worth of gear with ease.

Hans Solo



"

My 65 lb Penobscot 17 weighs in at 74 lbs

i have a penobscot royalx and it's a beast. I finally broke down and purchased a kelvar and haven't regretted it. For a trip such as yours I would seriously look at an expedition type kevlar canoe. That style of boat can handle waves well, tend to have some rocker for maneuverability, and can hold lots of gear.

Captn Tony: "For a trip such as yours I would seriously look at an expedition type Kevlar canoe. That style of boat can handle waves well, tend to have some rocker for maneuverability, and can hold lots of gear."

Case in point; during a Quetico solo trip in 2012, I came across a couple on Cutty Creek that was in for three-weeks. They were paddling a Minnesota III @ 20' with the third seat removed for additional space for their four packs. (pictured below)

Hans Solo

Heheheh, I think if we still had old-fashioned encyclopedias, the Badger line (ANY year) could be used to illustrate "Strength" IMHO (LOL)?

I almost forgot about my favorite OT hulls, the Canadienne. Very nice hulls, with the 16 my favorite. The OP shouldn't even consider it for this trip, though

Stephmed: "Are Old Town canoes good for the BWCA? We are doing about a 30-day canoe trip in the BWCA and are looking for a tandem canoe to fit us and my two dogs. "

Did you decide on a canoe? Did you go 30 days without a resupply?

HansSolo: "

I've included a few catalog pages below of some possible Old Town's that would fit the bill and could potentially turn up in the used canoe classifieds. The Old Town Canadienne 17 would be the most likely canoe to turn up of the older Kevlar canoes that Old Town once produced. The "Northern Lights" series are very rare, but there were some nice models that would be decent for extended tripping in my opinion.

"

HansSolo,

Thanks again for these scans. I keep having a deja vu experience.

It seems like every few months an odd duck/rare canoe comes up on CraigsList. Googling the make and model leads to one of your posts on this message board.

My current search was for information about an Old Town Northern Light.

rdgbwca: "

Stephmed: "Are Old Town canoes good for the BWCA? We are doing about a 30-day canoe trip in the BWCA and are looking for a tandem canoe to fit us and my two dogs. "

Did you decide on a canoe? Did you go 30 days without a resupply?"

Wondering same things: did you do 30-day trip and, if so, which canoe, Stephmed?