I'm looking for a seaworthy, stable, large canoe to haul my wife and 2 preteen kids. I would like it at least 18 ft. long. The lighter, the better. Any suggestions? Thanks

Are you planning to buy or rent?

Do you want aluminum or composite?

Lake travel? River travel? Rapids?

I’d be able to offer some help if I knew this information.

FYI, if your in the Minneapolis area… Midwest Mountaineering has a canoe and kayak auction every April. I'm not going to make it this year but have picked up a few used boats there for cheap in the past.

Hex

Red Rock Outfitters east of Ely has Souris River Blems for sale. I bought one last year, a lot like what you are looking for... It was a Quetico 18.5. Big canoe, plenty of room and cargo capacity. I bought mine in Duralite... weighs aroud 58 pounds. I am a big guy, 6'5 and 275 and wanted a bigger canoe... I love the canoe and what it can do. Portages easy, just alittle long at some turns on portages... but with a bigger canoe you will have some trade offs. Kevlar in the same canoe is about 10 pounds lighter. Of course these are tripping canoes, not white water or river running...
Bruce

I agree with hex. A little more information would be good.

Here are a couple of options to look at without information.

Souris River Wilderness 18 would be one choice. Large and stable. Probably weighs about 45-50 lbs in Kevlar. Would take the 4 with gear for a week or maybe a little longer. You will be crowded with the kids and all the gear.

Wenonah MN 3 or 4. The MN 3 would be my choice, it glides nice, is stable (not quite as much initial stability as the SR), glides nice and weighs similarly to the SR. The MN 4 is longer at about 22 feet I think. Has four seats and room for gear. I have never paddled one so do not know how it handles. I would be concerned about a 22 foot canoe on rivers for turns and maneuvering.

Bell Northwoods is a little over 18' and could handle everyone and everything. Glides great and is similar to the MN 3 in stability-maybe a touch less. It makes up for it with good secondary stability, great looks and great glide.

I am a firm believer of getting in and trying a canoe before buying. Midwest will have some demos on Thursday of this week I believe as part of their spring expo. They carry Wenonah and Bell.

Piragis and Red Rocks have events the same weekend in Ely where you can paddle all three brands (Bell and Wenonah at Piragis and SR at Red Rocks) the weekend after Mothers day weekend (fishing opener). These would be great opportunities to find the canoe.

Bring the whole family and everyone get in the canoe. Even bring some gear to throw in to see how that feels. Most canoes for the wilderness feel different loaded then just with passengers. Does not help to paddle a canoe that does not replicate the conditions you will use it in. Many canoes may feel unstable with only passengers compared to loaded with gear.

One thought. Very soon the preteens will be teenagers and this canoe will not work great as they grow and leave for their own canoe or go off to school and life. Maybe renting for a couple trips and then getting a couple of 17-18 foot tandems that will give you more life would be an option. Just a thought.

I recently bought a used Souris River Wilderness 18' canoe from a place called Spring Creek in Mountain Iron, MN. They sell a lot of used canoes. Their website is canoegear.com I found them to be extremely helpful. Check out their catalog for neat accessories as well.

First of all thanks Hex, Bruce, bogwalker, and drdave for all your info. Sorry I was so vague on my first request. Here is a little background. My wife and I have enjoyed the BWCA-Quetico for the past 20+ yrs. We have 5 kids who are becoming part of the group. We have taken many trips to Iron Lk. in the BWCA and to our latest love the Russell-Chatterton Lk. area in Quetico. We wore out a heavywt. Aluminun 17 foot canoe and are now looking for its replacement. [I realize I can't treat a kevelar canoe like I did this one.] We also have an Old Town Camper in our fleet which I like alot, it's just too small. We took a trip with our 2 oldest kids [ages 7&8] to McCree lk. 2 yrs. ago. We rented a Mn II for the trip. I liked it alot, my wife was not so crazy about it. She said it was too narrow in the front and couldn't turn around to help the kids fish. I asked the outfitter [Andersons] why they use the Mn II instead of the souris river 18.5. They said stability was the main reason. The canoes I was most interested in were Souris River 18.5, Wenonah Mn III, Wenonah Itasca, and Bell Northwoods. Stability and being able to handle big water are my main concerns, especially starting out on a lake like Pickeral. [French River entry pt] My occupation, Dairy farming, prevents me from trying out many canoes, but I'll try to make it up to Midwest Mountaineering's sale this Sat. That was the reason for my Initial request. All your imput is greatly appreciated. Thanks again, Mark

This may seemed biased but I only really know wenonah's.... I have nothing against other manufacturers... I'm just a wenonah guy.

If you could do it with a MN II your no shabby paddler.

I love the Itasca. We usually pack (rent) one of these in our "fleet" for the food bag and "food bag guy". It handles big waves well. It keeps up with the others in MN II's.
The center is flaired adding to stability and will provide some additional space for the kids. This flair doesn't seem to effect the performance of the boat too much. The concern about being able to turn around to help the young ones fish is still probably an issue because the front and back are still fairly narrow.
If and when I buy another tandem canoe it'll probably be an Itasca.

MN III would suit you well also and it would be my second choice. It's basically the MN II only longer and I believe ever so slightly wider. Still an efficient canoe.

Just my 2 cents.

Good luck at the Auction! Wish I was going.

Hex

FYI if you don't find what you like there... a dealer on the missippi near Brooklyn Park... might be able to help you. He's very knowledgable and usually has some rentals for sale. Ketter.

Hex in da U.P.

Mark,
First I want to say, good luck in your search for the right canoe. The information Hex, and Bog have given you is correct and valuable. And each person has their reasons for loving the canoe they use. I looked long and hard and did a lot of research before I bought mine. And living in Arkansas, all the canoes you see here are for white water or rivers. In my trips before, the group I went with always rented aluminum, so that was my experience. But, I decided I wanted to be able to outfit my trips myself. So I looked for the right canoe for me. Like I said above, I am a large man, and I wanted a large canoe that would handle me, a friend and all of our gear. I looked at the Wenonah Champlain, the Itasca, and the Souris River Quetico 18.5. I finally settle on the Quetico 18.5. In your above post you said, the outfitter said he did not use the Quetico because of stability. If you get a chance, paddle the Quetico... I have never had a problem with stability... I even paddle it solo and fish out of it here at home with water bags in the front for ballast. Good luck in finding the right canoe for you and your family... All of the ones listed are great canoes, and have fun in the BWCA.
Good Paddling, Great Fishing, and God Bless All...
Bruce

Another good idea is to check out canoegear.com they have free water trials ...any day you can get there! Bring everyone and try any canoe we have in stock out. They want you to paddle the canoe before deciding what to get. Just a suggestion tho!