Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: Odd number going. Options?
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icefishbaby |
So, thoughts on three in a boat vs one person solo canoe? We will have a bit of gear, all 30-60 year olds. Lots of fishing. What are your experiences in this situation? We will be going in June 7th. |
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HayRiverDrifter |
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AmarilloJim |
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schweady |
After years of making do with borrowing a larger 2-person canoe of a friend, we started renting a true 3-man (SRQ18.5) for those times when we had an odd numbered group. What a pleasure. We have found that trolling out of it is much the same as in the 2-man: stern man paddles and uses rod holder or leg-lock on his rod, the others fish. No need for the other two to paddle, for the most part, unless situation presents itself. Steering and speed control is much easier when one is doing the driving. Knowing how to keep lines untangled is no different than any other trolling outing in any craft... watch your line and be aware of what's going on. No casting. Just drop your line out by the side and troll. |
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TominMpls |
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thlipsis29 |
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treehorn |
We've never done it with a solo though so it's hard to compare. To my knowledge none of us have ever paddled solo at all. I will be giving it a go this year when I do a solo trip before our group trip though...if I find I like it, we may go 2-2-1 rather than 2-3, as it's looking like we're going to have 5. |
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nooneuno |
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Michwall2 |
The latest one is here: 3 vs. 2+1 I also went to the search feature and searched the terms: "solo three man" and the search returned over 1400 links. Lots of advice there. |
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RTurner |
Totally agree with you on kayak = mistake. Why? The reason I'm asking is I'm planning a trip with my kids this fall, and we'll likely end up with 5 of us. We've done a number of 3 person trips in Maine the last few years, and usually bring a canoe and a kayak...one of my daughters much prefers kayaks to canoes, and she really wants to use the kayak I just finished building last year. Is the problem with kayaks the portaging? All our Maine trips have been river trips, no portages. thanks, Roger |
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nlong |
RTurner: "Hi, mind if I horn in on this topic? I think most people's issue with kayaks is the portaging portion. There are plenty of solutions to this by either making or purchasing a portage yoke for the kayak and you carry it over your head the same as a canoe. The other issue can be portaging your gear. If you stuff a bunch of stuff in the hatches, you'll likely have to take it out to make the boat light enough to portage. Then needing to load it in pack to portage and then reload it in the hatches is a big pain. I've personally done all my solo trips in the BWCA with a kayak. Longest trip was over 100 miles in 8 days. I used my Perception Tribute 12' kayak. It's only 40 lbs and portage it with about 10lbs of gear in the rear hatch to balance it out when portaging. The rest of the gear and food is in a 70L SeaLine Boundary Pack that is strapped on the back deck of the kayak. This makes it quick to do portages as the pack is easy to remove, portage, and then portage the kayak. I think the people that complain about kayaks haven't ever tried it or haven't worked out the logistics to do it properly, or used a super heavy kayak and failed to use a portage yoke. |
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fishnfreak |
My take is if you have someone who can handle and is willing to handle the solo then do that. We did the 3 man thing on a fishing trip once. Fishing for top water smallies. I can't believe we didn't impale someone with a hook. We wore ski caps and sun glasses at all times fishing to keep from getting hooked in the ears or eyes. I have been in the solo position before on a group trip and actually really liked it. It gave me a lot of freedom and I still got the comrardarie of a group trip. To each his own I guess. |
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BearBurrito |
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fishnfreak |
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icefishbaby |
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billconner |
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Birdknowsbest |
I would personally do the odd person solo canoe. This way it can be rotated if you so chose and if someone wants to solo fish at any time there is a canoe for them. As long as the solo can portage the canoe and carry a pack at the same time, I think this is the way to go. On all of our 5 man trips we have always done 2-2 person canoes and one solo canoe. It has worked so great we have never even brought up the idea of doing 3 in one canoe. I also bring an 80lb dog so 3 in my canoe is never gonna work. |