New to whitewater canoeing, looking for some advice. (2024)

I am new to this forum but I am enjoying it so far. I tried my hand at Kayaking when I was in my teens and enjoyed it for about a year but stopped paddling after I had a pretty good scare on the river. My brother and sister-in-law are avid kayakers and are on the river quite a bit. I love rivers and have always wanted to get back on them, I was just freaked out by kayaking. I have spent a lot of time in lake canoes (by no means do I think lake canoeing and whitewater canoeing are even closely related) and have become very comfortable with paddling and the posture it requires. Recently I have been getting an itch to get back on the river and decided that whitewater canoeing might be the way for me to go. I live in Hendersonville, NC so I have direct access to the upper and lower green (I have access to the narrows too but Ive seen enough guys run that to stay away from it for a VERY long time) and I can get to the pigeon and nantahala pretty easily. I don't have a boat yet but have been looking on craigslist and browsing the forum and it seems like there are some good deals out there. Does anyone have any suggestions for me as a beginner about gear to get and rivers to run to help myself get more comfortable in the boat and on the river. I also don't have anyone to paddle with so if there is anyone out there who would be willing to show me a few things I would be more than grateful. I guess I'm just looking for a push in the right direction with this new endeavor. Thanks for everything in advance and I am loving this forum so far.

Also, when I do start looking for a boat, what should I look for. I am about 6ft 3in and weigh in at about 220lb. I definitely would like a boat I can grow into because I would like to eventually be comfortable paddling III's and IV's, maybe some small drops and I would like something small enough that I can surf easily. I love the look of the shorter boats (esquif L'edge, Mohawk rodeo etc) but I fear they are too advanced of a boat for me right now. I want something as stable as possible to start out with.

Thanks

Cody

C-boats Moderator

"Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."

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I started WW canoeing this year as well, and have been paddling a Mohawk Probe 12. I like it so far. I'm almost your exact size/weight.

I also tried an older boat, a Dagger Impulse with a Perception saddle. I found it very forgiving and easy to paddle as a newbie. I instantly felt more in control of it. It's longer than some of the boats you mention, but is extremely forgiving. I almost traded my Probe for it, but my paddling companions urged me to stick with the Probe as they think I will grow into it.

Keep an eye on places like Gearscan & Sierra Trading Post for gear, and of course cboats & Craigslist. Get a good Craigslist search tool like Search Tempest and set up an RSS feed to Google Reader on your smartphone (if you have one). Good Craigslist deals on canoes go very fast, so with the RSS feed you can get instant updates on your phone or computer.

Also, you could make a road trip to Chattanooga to visit Mohawk boats and demo some of their stuff straight from the workshop. My first boat was an Odyssey 14 from the factory.

Local canoe clubs are great for instruction and paddling buddies. Carolina Canoe Club is in your area.

When in Doubt...Paddle Forward!
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