open Canoe Cruising 



I. — This article describes the open, canvas-covered canoe, 

 its economy in first cost and maintenance and its all- 

 around possibilities as a paddling, cruising and sailing craft 



By E. T. Kovsrr 



THESE wartime days have impressed 

 many with the fact which a com- 

 parative few realized years ago: 

 that the abiUty to travel comfortably 

 with light equipment, to keep dry and 

 comfortable in wet and cold and to be 

 able to cook a meal quickly and easily 

 with little fuel and few utensils is an 

 accomplishment. 



And this accomplishment, which it is 

 costing Uncle Sam months of time and 

 thousands in money to teach his recruits, 

 is what his first season of cruising gives to 

 the canoeist. 



The open canvas-covered canoe, con- 

 sidering its carrying capacity and cruis- 

 ing ability, is, both in first cost and in 

 maintenance, the most economical craft 

 built. It can be purchased so cheaply that 

 it is hardly an economy to build one's own. 



Give it a coat of varnish each season, and 

 a little paint each alternate year and the 

 canoe is good for an indefinite length of 

 time. 



For an afternoon on the w-ater, it 

 affords more enjoyment than a row boat, 

 as the paddler can see his course ahead 

 without the neck-twisting process re- 

 quired of the oarsman. As a cruiser, it 

 wull go almost anywhere that the small 

 launch or sailboat can navigate and into 

 many nooks and waterways where neither 

 may venture \vithout grounding. As a 

 sailing craft, it affords all the sport and 

 excitement of the small yacht at a frac- 

 tion of the expense 



For all-around paddling and sailing, 

 sometimes single-handed and sometimes 

 with a companion, a 17-ft. canoe is the 

 best. For a small boy who cruises alone, 

 a 15-ft. craft is better because it is easier 

 to handle under paddle in a beam wind, 

 while for continuous double cruising on 

 waters where carriers are absent, 18 ft. 

 is not too long. Generally speaking, 

 however, the 17-footer has been found to 

 be the best all around canoe. It is large 

 enough to accommodate a crew of two 

 vath their camp outfit, but it is not too 



large for one man to pull above high 

 water mark, and it is of sufficient size to 

 carry a satisfying sail area distributed in 

 a double rig. 



A model with a little deadrise (that is a 

 midship section coming down to the keel 

 in a slight "V" shape) holds up to the 

 wind better and at slight sacrifice of cargo 

 carrying capacity, as compared with the 

 fiat floored model. 



By all means choose a canoe with an 

 outside keel which takes the wear and 

 tear which the canvas covering would 

 otherwise receive when beaching the boat 

 or pulling it on and off the float. If pos- 

 sible, see that the craft has wide outside 



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Two layers of canvas sewed together in par- 

 allel lines making pockets for cork filling 



beveled gunwales which throw off a 

 choppy wave that would otherwise 

 climb aboard. 



On a 17-ft. canoe, 15-in. decks at each 

 end are long enough. Longer ones add 

 to cost and weight and decrease the seat- 

 ing and stowage space while adding very 

 little to the weatherlines. An open 

 woven seat, 10 in. wide at the bow and 

 one at the stern, should be hung just be- 

 low the gunwales; this allows one to sit 

 with the knees at a comfortable angle. 

 Some builders drop the seat lower, claim- 

 ing increased stability, but the first 

 lesson which the canoeist should learn is 

 that seats are to be used only in calm 

 weather. When things rough up one 

 should get down on the floor cushion. 



Paddles are made in two general types. 



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