Paddled the Prospector
Folks,
Again, thanks for all the input. I'll give you the update and add a bit more about my proposed uses for the boat, etc. (I found myself having the same conversation with my wife tonight, who said something like, "Now, how will this one be used differently...).
First, a bit more of background. I live in southwest Wisconsin where we have a lot of nice windy streams, many with rock bottoms. I'm about a half hour from the Wisconsin River, which is wide and flat and has great island camping. I'm also quite close to the backwaters of the Mississippi, which mimics lake paddling on most days. This being the local neighborhood, most of my regular paddling will involve day outings on these waters. That said, I hope to get to the northern part of the state at least once a year for a short river trip. (I just moved to Wisconsin from Nebraska last year, so I've got a lot of exploring to do.) The waters up there can be placid to white and frothy. I don't see tripping on anything more than II+. Almost all of my local paddling will be solo. Last summer I did a tiny bit of experimenting with poling, and I'd like to do more of that in the future as it will open up more possibilities for me on short, solo outings on the local rocky, rivers.
So last summer I took a one-day course on Canadian style paddling. I'd experimented with this on my own, using Mason's books and pictures as a guide. (I still have yet to see any of the movies, though I'm thinking that I'll pick up Waterwalker one of these days.) Anyway, as much as I love my Northstar, I really began to see the advantages of a symmetrical hull after a day of the formal instruction. So, that started me looking at the modern prospectors, e.g. Novacraft, the new Wenonah. Then I saw this Cedarwood Prospector on sale, for not much more than a new Wenonah with the wood trim option. Again, this Cedarwood is brand-new. The canvas on the bottom has no scratches--as I verified this evening; which brings me to the test paddle.
I spent about 45 minutes in the boat. I paddled from down a gentle current to a lake and then back upstream--with a fairly stiff wind in my face for added effect. First impressions, it being a bit cool, I wasn't sure how much I wanted to push it, in terms of healing it on edge. But when I got in and gave it a go, I couldn't believe how soft it felt. It is a heavy boat, but that counter balances my 160 lbs nicely. I felt very comfortable with it healed over to within a couple of inches of the water. Going down stream with the wind at my back was quite pleasurable. Once I got out to the lake and turned around, I really had to dig in, and slide forward quite a bit. While it was a fair bit of work going back, it was doable. With some more weight to help trim, and reduce the draft, it would of course have been even better. That said, I would not have wanted to paddle across the lake in the breeze that I was experiencing; it would have been challenging.
So, the long and short of it is that I just don't know. I'm not normally an impulse kind of guy, and something like a Pal would almost certainly be a more pragmatic choice. But, it is a Prospector; with all the benefits and detriments of that model. And, it does, in fact, have the original Chestnut emblem on it. I am told that the lines are taken from one of the original Chestnut forms.
So, does it sound like I'm talking myself into this boat? Should I be patient, spend more money and get a Stewart River Pal or something comparable? If I went the restoration route, at least at this stage in my life, it'd be years before the boat touched water; so if I go the wood/canvas route I'll be looking at something I can paddle at the time of purchase. Any more thoughts? Thanks...
)
