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Three tandem canoes or two 3-seaters?

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Date/Time: 04/29/2024 05:26AM

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Three tandem canoes or two 3-seaters?

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Previous Messages:
Author	Message Text
schweady	03/08/2023 05:21PM Even number in the group, at least half with some paddling experience... all tandems, no question.
JohnGalt	03/07/2023 05:39PM Imho, the flexibility & increased space makes three tandems my choice. With a three-person canoe, the person in the middle is often basically sitting on top of gear & it is more difficult for them to properly paddle as the canoe is widest where they are sitting. After taking a trip with five grown males in two canoes, I'd have gone with two tandems & a solo if I could have a do-over.
Kendis	01/27/2023 05:19AM For weight comparison, a MN II weighs 42 lb and a MN III weighs 55 lb. The argument about portaging two triples or three tandems comes down to number of portage loads (pro triple) vs maximum load weight (pro tandem). There are other arguments for each, including theoretical max speed, ease of steering, lesser comfort of a removable center seat versus bucket seats, and maybe some others that aren't occurring to me at this moment. I personally would choose three tandems. I hurt my back 20 years ago and my foot 10 years ago and experience long-term pain from both, so minimizing maximum portage load weight is a priority for me to reduce the chance of aggravating those injuries. This is especially true for the canoe, which is the most awkward load to pick up or put down and has the most potential to strain your back while doing so. Ultimately this is a subjective decision. Any strongly worded statement on this thread is just a strongly held opinion. Good luck.
Hockhocking	01/27/2023 12:52AM If you are doing lots of portaging, you may like the efficiency of three-person canoes, if this lets you 1-trip the portages. There are some advantages to either option, as others have said.
straighthairedcurly	01/26/2023 07:55PM RodPortage: "If you have three people of similar strength, in my experience the canoe behavior is confusing and it takes some learning to get the canoe to fly straight. So I'd go with three tandems if I had the choice, though it'll cost you 50% more to do so." Really? We just put the bow and center paddlers on one side and the stern on the other side. Works great! We can crank out the miles! We are all extremely equal paddlers and we switch positions after every portage with no change in canoe handling. I love the 3-person canoes and they have worked very well for us. Gives your group one less canoe to portage. However, I have heard some groups with 3 large men and a lot of gear to feel like they ride too low in the water. They are also much longer so if you are going to be on tight, overgrown portages or very narrow, winding streams, they can be more challenging.
scat	01/26/2023 06:39PM It was a tad confusing when he said he’s going up with 5 buddies, but pretty sure he means a total of 6 people. I vote for 3 tandems, more freedom and you never know what the dynamic might be with 3 people in a boat. 3 kids in a boat is one thing, 3 buddies is another.
cyclones30	01/26/2023 05:59PM If you're doing a lot of portaging, 3 tandem canoes is far more weight than 2 three person. So I'm not sure why you'd say 3 light canoes is better. A kevlar 3 person vs 2 person is usually only a few pounds. Plus it takes a whole extra person to carry the extra boat. If you want true portaging efficiency the 3 person is the way to go. If you want paddling freedom once at camp, then of course more canoes is more freedom. I'm also not sure why you think you need them to be the same? Get a 3 and a 2 if you only have 5 people. 3 tandems means a single person paddling a tandem??? Get a solo for that person if you go that route.
bwcadan	01/26/2023 03:35PM Nick While you are all set, additional thoughts for others. Be sure to take paddles for any third seater camper. Keeps them in same comfort as to weather issues on trip. It has been said the longer a canoe (within reason) is, the faster it will travel. Throw in a third paddler for even more speed. As noted above, it can add challenges to canoe behavior. However an adept bowman will have little if any issues here. I seldom had problems in this setting. I always let the front 2 paddlers paddle the side of their choosing except when in windy conditions when it was beneficial for safety and for steering strait. Then I would tell one or both which side I needed them to paddle. It is easy for me to adjust to their paddling choice of side. Even if 3 canoes are used, I would take one at least to be a longer canoe for storage of gear. Lower profile for each canoe as traveling across lakes. Also easier to load and unload at portages. For me, I would take at least 2 longer canoes out of the 3 needed for 6 when using 3 canoes. Over all, longer canoes are easier and the tripping faster. Having said that, it is not to be discounted the extra weight on the portages. If this is an issue, take only lighter canoes.
Speckled	01/26/2023 10:43AM Not a fan of three seaters. I'd do the three tandems for sure.
halvorsonchristopher	01/25/2023 11:49PM If you are doing lots of praying there 3man canoes will pay dividends. Much less overall worth and it will free up someone's shoulders for a pack. 3man canoes are a blast!
nick	01/25/2023 08:53AM Appreciate you all sharing your insights. We're planning on doing a big loop, so we'll stick with three lighter tandem canoes for mobility and lots of portaging. Thanks again and hope you're all getting up there this year!
foxfireniner	01/25/2023 07:16AM I took my daughter and some nephews up last year. I had them in three seater and they had a blast.
PointMe2Polaris	01/25/2023 06:49AM Nick, All of these posts are right. It really comes down to the details of what you plan to do on the trip. However, you may want to consider adding in a three man canoe regardless how many of you are going if you are planning to do some base camping. We've typically incorporate a 3 man canoe into our trips for the sake of satisfying every situation, which means only two are navigating it on moving days (no big deal, we use our best canoers in the three man). Here's a few examples of why we do this: Let's say we have 6 in our group: 1. If a portion of our group wants to fish and the other others just want to chill at the campsite, then you have the seating capability to accommodate that regardless of the numbers, whether it's 2, 3, 4, or 5 people that want to fish. 2. Example #1 also applies for a short day trip to go exploring. 3. If someone is feeling a little under the weather and needs to stay at camp, the other 5 can still get out in the canoes if they wish and you don't have to draw straws to see who has to stay back on dry land with sicko:-) Of course, the scenario I just layed out goes out the window if you are doing a big loop. In that case, just stick with 3 tandems as mobility on your trip is of most importance. Hope that helps! Darin
Hammertime	01/24/2023 11:55PM Your trip goals and priorities are the main factor here. With that said, it’s 3 tandems for me and it’s not a close call at all. In my humble opinion of course.
timatkn	01/24/2023 11:23PM Depends on your trip. If you are looking to reduce rental price, travel faster, and you want more camaraderie then I’d take 2, 3 person canoes. By that I mean it’s important you are all together more. If you want more freedom to separate and do your own thing then 3 tandems for sure is better. There isn’t a wrong or right more what is better for you. I’ve fished 3 per canoe with no issues many times I wouldn’t factor that into the equation at all.
PaddleBoi	01/24/2023 06:59PM The freedom of 3 tandems will be worth it IMO
Lawnchair107	01/24/2023 06:28PM If fishing is a priority, I’d recommend three 2-seaters. Otherwise if not, I’d go the 3-seater route.
RodPortage	01/24/2023 06:27PM I started with a three-person canoe because my son was too small to pair up with either me or my brother. But by last year he could have held his own, and certainly this year he can. If you have three people of similar strength, in my experience the canoe behavior is confusing and it takes some learning to get the canoe to fly straight. So I'd go with three tandems if I had the choice, though it'll cost you 50% more to do so.
nick	01/24/2023 06:24PM Hey all - first post here. Going up with 5 buddies this year and planning on renting some canoes from an outfitter. Wondering if we should rent two 3-seaters or three 2-seaters — anyone got any opinions?