I'm considering the above boat as a replacement for my Souris River Q16 solo. My main question is with attachment of the yoke, as I don't think my current yoke would be compatible with the smaller gunwales.

When I emailed Ben, he said it mounts on top of the rails and attaches with a strap which wraps the canoe. I'm wondering if anyone here with experience with this system can weigh in on whether it is a quick & easy process, or is it somewhat of a pain to attach & remove?

For those with Savage River boats, any reservations or regrets at this point? Any must have options, or no go options?

Thanks.

There are a few of us here who paddle solo Savage River canoes though I don't know anyone paddling that model.

Some of their solo canoes have a pedestal seat which can take a yoke that is very similar to this wenonah one:

(My canoe has one like that.)








A strap-around-the-hull yoke sounds very cumbersome to me and I would balk at that for sure.

Wenonah also makes this:









I wonder if this would work with the Deep Creek Solo...

And no - I have zero reservations about the brand. They make excellent canoes.

I have a Blackwater paired with the Savage River carbon fiber yoke with the straps. I was a bit dubious at first but after a couple of B-dub trips and two seasons of fairly heavy Q tripping I'm quite satisfied. Much better (for me) than the Chosen Valley yoke that SNS pictured. Once you get accustomed to the process set up is very quick and quite sturdy. I usually attach in the water and then float the canoe over the strap. A matter of seconds. For the first season I used the square pads but switched to a Level 6 pad - never going back.

The Blackwater had been my dream boat for years. Working with Ben and Jon was an excellent experience and the canoe is a dream to paddle. A very happy customer.

I have a Blackwater. I tried the yoke that fastens to the seat rails and hated it. I took the extreme step of making partial cedar inwales, They run from the thwart behind the seat to a thwart I added in front of me. They are siliconed and screwed into the canoe. I can now use my standard clamp on yokes.

Savage river has changed the way they mount seats in solo canoes so the Chosen Valley (sold by Wenonah as well) yokes no longer work.

My initial thoughts were similar to what sns & Banksiana indicated... It sounded likely to be somewhat difficult or cumbersome to attach. That's precisely why I thought I'd reach out here to get thoughts & experiences of any Savage River solo users, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel. Everything I've read on their boats seems very positive. If not, I think I'd struggle to get past the price tag.

Thanks to each of you who've responded & to anyone else who weighs in. I appreciate getting some possible options & the benefit of your experiences before I pull the trigger & learn by trial & error.

Hi JBerns,

I have a Deep Creek that I purchased used (like new) last Spring to replace my much loved and used MN2. I posted a few pictures on the forum when I bought it. The Deep Creek is just a beautiful canoe and it paddles great.

I have the ash yoke and I built a drop in seat for solo use and that works well.

The SR is most certainly a wet entry canoe and I am much more careful with it than I was with my MN2. The extra caution is a trade off for the super light weight. Because of the shape and design of the canoe and the gunnels, it is actually much easier to add and remove full portage packs vs. the MN2.

I spoke with Ben at Savage River several times about the canoe I bought and he was very helpful. Their canoes are expensive, but one of their canoes would most likely last you a lifetime, but if you did decide to sell, they hold their value extremely well.

Good luck.

Mike

I ditched the chosen valley pedestal yoke because of the weight, though it's really not bad at 29.5 oz.

The Chosen Valley one looks a bit different than what is on the Wenonah website, though for all I know they may all be made by Chosen Valley.

I got a Blackhawk for weekend excursions and local races with my wife and our dog. Worked with Ben on the design and materials, and ended up with a textreme on the outside and kevlar on the inside for cooler temps and paw/claw durability. It's fast, stable, hauls a ton, we're all thrilled.

Every time I look at it I notice some new detail that looks well thought out and meticulously crafted.

I love that boat. Highly recommend working with Savage River!

Checking again if anyone else here has used that yoke system, especially with the web seat & what your experience is? I am good with everything with purchasing the Savage River, other than some skepticism on using that yoke system...

I'm sending a deposit check this week & I want to finalize my boat set-up. I fully believe & trust Banksiana's info that it works well after a bit of familiarity. I'm questioning if it's slightly easier on his Blackwater with a sliding seat & inquiring if anyone here has used that system with a Deep Creek solo, or other Savage River solo with a stationary web seat?
Thanks

On my boat the yoke mounts well in front of the seat. Not sure where the yoke would mount on the Deep Creek- ask Ben to give you a sketch of where it fits. If the seat presents an issue it can be addressed by thicker pads (to get your head farther from the the seat) but the Deep Creek is such a deep hull that I doubt its an issue.