A good fishing canoe

[Weeds]

Hi all. I was hoping someone out there might be able to make a suggestion or two regarding what to look for in a canoe that will be used mainly for fishing; keeping in mind that I'm pretty much a complete rookie when it comes to paddling. What's a good length, width, that kind of thing, probably 90% solo use, on quiet lakes. I checked out an old aluminum sportspal, 12 foot long , nice and light and pretty wide but maybe just a little too beat up. Any body care to offer some advice? It's worth mentioning that I will be buying used, no super modern/super expensive stuff for me. Thanks, Rossco

[danbo]

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[Victor]

if you're using it mostly for fishing, i'd recommend you to look at the square-sterned ones or one with a motor mount. You can fit a electric trolling motor or a small gas motor to push you around the lake. It's much easier on the arms after a long day of casting or if you're fishing a relative big body of water.

[Weeds]

Excellent, thanks for the advice guys and good link there Danbo, have not read it all but looks like a promising source of information.

[mepps]

definetly square stern, and a flat bottom wide canoe will alow you to stand can cast with ease.

[danbo]

Get a kayak, then ya won't have to fight the wind.

[BFSC Kevin]

my concern would be that kayaks are less stable and not as much room to carry things.

although i do see some around $200 mark only and they are lighter in general i believe

[Mike the Pike]

The wider the better.I have a 16ft fiberglass canoe 40 inches wide.My kids make some antsy moves in the canoe and she won't tip.Very stable.The downfall is it is a bit slower and heavier than most canoes.As some of the others have mentionned a square stern would be useful.Paddling a canoe solo can be hell on windy days the use of an electric motor would be nice on those windy days.I know some people with the sportspals who really like them stable and light weight for portaging.Before you buy a canoe ask to try it there are some very tippy canoes out there.I know someone on this board who has a Beagle you could test out on the canoe

 

Good luck with the purchase.

 

MTP

[jediangler]

Don't be afraid of an old Sportspal. My uncle handed down his Sportspal to my brother Joonmoon and I after he had it for 22 years. We used it for another 6 years before I went out and bought a brand new one. That was 14 years ago now and I'm still using it today. They are light and extremely stable. Never even had a close call in all those years. They do not paddle all that well though so I recommend getting an electric motor for power. The ones I'd recommend for fishing are the transom models.

Here are some pics of a 12' transom model.

 

 

This is my 14' transom model Sportspal. Notice brother Joonmoon (who stands 6'4" and weighs 230lbs) kneeling to release a 41" musky he caught with me last opener.

 

 

You won't be sorry if you end up with a Sportspal.

Edited April 17, 2007 by jediangler

[BFSC Kevin]

mtp.. lol..

 

i had a scotts 12 ft flat back before..model was Feather..

was stable enough for me to stand on.. 39 inch beam.

even if you dont go with a flat back canoe you can always buy or build a bracket for a motor. i see them on ebay and here is a pic..

http://www.bournemouthcanoes.co.uk/product...motor-mount.jpg

i dont think it would be too hard to build one either.

[little angler]

something that wont tip...lol

[Weeds]

Well, looks like I'm gonna get it as beggars can't be choosers and the price is right, maybe too good to be true even (providing of course that it does not leak). Maybe I'll try and take a pic, it's a real eyesore.

[urbanangler1990]

something that wont tip...lol

 

 

hmm and something that floats

[Dabluz]

There are many different styles of canoes. Some are narrow and go faster when paddled. Others are wider and more stable for fishing.

 

For fishing alone....there is nothing better than the 12 foot Sportspal. It's just as wide as the 14 foot model. You don't have to paddle it because it has oar locks and you just row it. You can easily put an electric motor on any Sportspal. There is a support bracket for the Sportspals with both ends pointed. However, the 12 foot model (actually just barely over 11 feet long) is good for one person or 2 people and very little extra equipment. The first 11 foot Sportspal canoes only weighed about 19 lbs. However, I think they were not even 11 feet long.

 

My 14 foot Sportspal is about 30 years old. I use it at least 2 times per week and have never even come close to getting into trouble with it. It weighs about 30 lbs (with 2 paddles and 2 foam seats)

 

The reason I have the 14 foot Sportspal is because we are often 2 people in the canoe. When I am alone and go for a weekend camping trip, I can load my canoe with everything I need for the wilderness camping trip and go camping wherever I want.

 

I can use a gas engine up to 2 hp on the side mount motor support. A bigger motor makes things a bit more complicated because of the weight on the side of the canoe.

 

However, the big plus with a light Sportspal canoe is the fact that you can portage your canoe, the paddles, all your fishing gear, your camping gear etc .... all at the same time. I am 60 years old, diabetic, heart problems (pacemaker/defibrilator installed) and I still can portage to remote fishing spots while carrying everything at once. One place I go to takes me 8 hours to get there. Half of the time, I am carrying the canoe and all of my stuff at once. I wouldn't be able to do this with a fiberglass canoe. Hell, with a fiberglass canoe, I would even have problems putting it on my roof rack.

 

However, with the light weight, you do have to cope with the fact that the Sportspal canoe is fragile. You do not let it bump into sharp objects nor do you stand up in it when the bottom is rubbing on the rocks. When the bottom of the canoe touches bottom, that means that there is no more than 6 inches of water under the canoe.....it's time to step out.

 

If you do punch a hole in your Sportspal, it's an easy fix with metal tape. The only hole I have in my canoe was when I was dumb enough to lend it out about 25 years ago. It came back with a hole that the guy tried to camouflage. I removed the junk he used to camouflage the hole and put some aluminum tape. It's been there for over 25 years now. Maybe this year, I will remove the tape, remove the interior foam carpet and put new aluminum tape inside and outside of the hole then put back the interior foam carpet.

 

I often stand up in my 14 Sportspal when fly fishing.....but it's not recommended. However, I have some buddies who have installed outriggers on their canoes. This makes canoes very stable. You can buy outriggers or make them yourself. In an emergency, you can even just tie a long branch across your canoe and tie 1 gallon Javex bottles to each end of the branch.