Alleghany Highlands Blueway:



Kayak in Orca Whale Territory
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  Had a similar thought
  Posted by: booztalkin on Nov-06-12 6:21 PM (EST) 

This past weekend I paddled a river that was very shallow in many places (Edisto, and the level was low, low, low). There was water to float the canoe, but not much for the blade to get a bite in. This had me thinking of using a double blade, because the low angle stroke doesn't go as deep. Something I dislike about double blading in a canoe is the water dripping in the boat. If the boat had a deck, you'd have less drippage and less water accumulating in the hull.

I encountered a paddler out on the river one day. He was in a Wenonah Rendezvous and he had it decked with some kind of material that looked to have a hard finish. I remember thinking aluminum or some kind of laminate. But I just looked at a picture I took of him and his boat and I don't see that the deck had any kind of lip on it to prevent water from rolling into the cockpit. He said he did it because he often paddles open water and the deck made the boat handle better in the wind. But if any water splashed up on the deck it is going for the cockpit. I'm less impressed now than when I took the picture!

I've contemplated a deck from a trash can. Cut out a piece to match the shape of the boat. That would give you a deck that is rounded and has a lip on it. But, it might look kind of, well, trashy, and I have no idea how it would be attached. A silly idea, really.

I'll be interested to learn what you end up doing. Please post back with your result.

~~Chip