I noticed there was a previous thread about pack weight and what do people usually average when packing in gear. I am soon completing my first cedar strip canoe build and have not been able to find anywhere the weight limitations of my 15' Prospector.

I was wondering how much total weight do you folks bring in the canoe with you? Cedar Strip canoe paddler's input are much appreciated!

I plan on someday packing the dog/gear, girlfriend/gear, and myself/gear. I averaged that our total weight with everything would be around 550lbs as a high estimate (German Shepherds aren't made in pocket size...) Canoe total weight should be around 35lbs when completed.

You are really pushing the comfort/safety limit with 550# in a 15' Prospector. You can do it, but it might not be fun, especially with dogs. We traveled with 620# in a 16' Prospector, but no dogs were involved. We were definitely at the limit of safe travel at 620 and soon built a bigger touring canoe. If you like the feel of the prospector I would suggest the Nomad 17 from Bear Mountain Boatworks. Their Freedom 17 or 17-9 would be good in a more modern design.

This question should have best been raised before choosing a design and start of build!

Oh I agree but the build was started before the dog was around and she insists that we bring him with us on our adventures!

I think you should be ok. For that canoe you probably loose about 1" for every 1 30# of weight so 550# should be about 4.5" of draft. That should be ok.

Unless you are hauling iron, volume is more limiting than weight. It will probably carry whatever you can fit in.

I appreciate the input! I shot 550lbs out there as a weight we would probably never reach but it is better to over estimate then go low.

I am afraid you may be pushing it? I had a stripper that was 16', 34" beam. It was fine for day trips and I thought my friend and I would try it on a BWCAW trip. We didn't get a chance to test it out with gear until we were at Hungry Jack the evening before. I bet we had no more than 6" freeboard with about 600lbs? So, we rented a Mad River Explorer and my stripper sat it out on the roof of my truck at HJO. Good thing we didn't "Chance" it, nasty nasty weather, including the September Gunflint tornado in the early '90's.

Weight you can carry is entirely dependent on volume..
Here is the waterline depths on some 15 foot canoes. It does not matter if it is Kevlar cedar strip plastic or whatever. Archimedes rules as to how far in the water the boat is sunk.

Here is a link to the Northwind Solo. It is 15 feet and a big 15 so its a wider boat for its length Northwind solo

Note that at 370 lbs you will have eight inches plus a little for freeboard. That is the minimum you should have. Some less scrupulous mfrs tout their boats carry more like 800 lbs for 15 feet. That leaves six inches of freeboard. Try that in waves.. Plus its like paddling a sunk log.

Note on the Nortwind Solo the optimal load ratings top out at 340.. any more and the stems are so stuck that steering is hard.

Build another bigger dog boat. But I will leave the math to you to figure out! Since you built a Prospector design the stems might be looser.. Why not add a lot of gallon milk jugs full of water and try it out with dog?

Thanks for the help! I think the best choice is to just leave the dog behind when doing a trip with the prospector. I figured that it would be a stretch trying to fit all of that weight in the small prospector. I think I will still give it a try at the dock and perhaps give an update later to this thread on how it goes. By the time the dog is full grown, I think my next build will have to be a war canoe. I appreciate all of the advice!

550 was an ideal load for my Bell Northwind which was 17.5 feet and rated for 350-650 pounds optimum load. The Swift Prospector 15 is rated up to 550 max efficient load but it's a weird Prospector with very little rocker...it has an industry capacity of 1000 pounds which is much more than any other P15 I see on the market. You want some margin of safety for any conditions that you will ever encounter...when you are out on a windy day and the wind picks up and then the dog moves when a loon pops up next to you (dogs are not dead weight...they add dynamic loads) or your girlfriend sneezes or gets stung by a bee or you bump a sunken log you are in real trouble. The way it feels by the dock on a calm day doesn't really matter and 500 is definitely pushing your luck on anything but a day paddle on a calm day and even then you're in the zone where you want a 17 footer or at the very least a P16.

Take it out and try it before you go. Full gear. You will know if you are too heavy. I do 270-280 in my solo stripper and she sits pretty high in the water. No problem. Pre-paddle!

If you really have plans for a Chestnut Prospector 15', then you should be ok. It is a deep boat meant to carry a lot of weight. I mention this because what many people call a Prospector aren't really that, but some other similar model like the Pal. A fine boat, but not the same at all. The Pal is the boat used inmost of the scenes with Bill Mason.

I agree with Hank. Most Prospectors are 15" deep at midship. So even if you draft 7" , you still have 8" of freeboard. Even at 80# an inch of draft, that is still more than 550# for 7" .