Do birch bark canoes age well?

[The Canoe Kid]

Do birch bark canoes age well? Does the bark grow brittle? Do the wrappings deteriorate?

I'm looking at 25-year old birch bark canoe and I'm wondering if its age is going to be an issue.

Thanks

The Canoe Kid

 

[Benson Gray]

The short answer is that bark canoes often don't age well. The longer answer depends on what you intend to do with it and how it has been built, used, stored, etc. The information at http://www.wcha.org/literature/penobscot/ is a detailed analysis of a bark canoe that is now nearly two hundred years old.

Benson

 

[beaver]

This 14' bark canoe I built in 1990 and is in Mint Condition. It has had little use over the years and was well taken care of by the owners. They just paddle it on the small lake they live on.

beaver