Quote:
Originally Posted by Lothar
Agreed. The wicker seats are great. People have the idea that you actually sit on them. When paddling, I kneel on the closed cell foam pads that you can see forward of the stern seat. I have the same in the bow. Very comfortable and much promotes proper body mechanics.
The canoe in the pic is actually a 160K. It came with a middle seat, but I removed it and added the thwart for use on my annual 3 day camping/canoe trip. You can load a lot of gear in that canoe. It is a little wider than the 158, but very similar in every other respect.
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Ah -o.k., I thought maybe it was just an updated 158. The reinforcing rib down the keel is absent in my 158, plus the thwarts are entirely different. Mine has the contoured carrying thwart, which is invaluable for loading and unloading it on the roofs of my Landcruisers, plus for short solo portaging.
Boy, and no kidding about "a lot of gear". How about two guys, our camping gear, and two large Washington mulies? Did that several times over the years.
This thread is making me want to break out the old canoe and get back into it again, at least more actively than the last few years. I've been pretty much just spending a few hours on a small local lake, or cruising up and down a slough that connects two local lakes. Just me and my partner Katie the Wonder Dog. I really need to head back up into the back country with it again. Those were the days...
I was actually without a really good means to haul it out to the back country for a few years. My local paddling was accomplished by hauling it on top of my '72 911 (with Katie riding shotgun). Now you want to get some looks, waves, and thumbs up - try driving around in an old 911 with a canoe on the roof and a Golden Retriever hanging her head out the passenger window... good times...