Hello, I see a 18ft Sawyer champion set up as a solo canoe would this actually work for BWCA, and such?? Thanks

Frankly, I think 18 ft for a tandem set up for solo is too large. I tried that with my bell northwind (17.5 ft) a few times and any moderate wind makes it an effort. Ive done solo in a 16 ft tandem a number of times and it works ok.

RileyDog: "Hello, I see a 18ft Sawyer champion set up as a solo canoe would this actually work for BWCA, and such?? Thanks"

I'm guessing the Sawyer Champion that you mention is an old, orange painted Sawyer Champion on craigslist-Milwaukee/Madison. At 18' 6" it is rather long for solo use, but my primary solo tripper since 2004 is a Wenonah Kevlar Flex-Core Voyager @ 17' 6".

I think the length would be manageable on the larger lakes of the BWCAW and Quetico, but the weight would be a liability. Those old Sawyer glass lay-up were pretty hearty, albeit heavy. Additionally, if it's the orange Sawyer Champion on craigslist-MKE, the seller increased the weight by applying what appears to be a rather thick layer of orange paint.

Hans Solo