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Old 03-05-2015, 07:02   #1
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Does a canoe make a sailor?

Living in the desert I have access to a very large and windy lake. My cousin and I would often take the canoe out even with the wind because it always felt great to learn how to paddle with and against the waves. Learning how a boat acts in a wave spoke to me.

Until a squall hit, sudden and ferocious. Waves five feet tall if they were an inch. We rode the storm towards shore, keeping the canoe mostly perpendicular to the waves with a slight angle up or down. We were doing well, keeping it balance. The shore was only fifty yards away but we were still in thirty feet of water.

I still don't know how it happened. A rogue wave direct from hell I would guess. Before I knew what was going on I was in the drink! I watched my two expensive fishing poles fall towards the murky depths and my tackle box floating away too quick to rescue.

My cousin and I fought Mother Nature's wrath for what seemed like ten minutes, trying to paddle the capsized canoe towards shore. It wasn't until I took a large mouthful of slimy lake water that I realized the anchor we had tied to the ....bow? of the canoe was of course on the bottom now. We had been fighting the anchor for ten minutes.

I always carry a pocket knife clipped to my shorts so I cut the rope and had to listen to my cousin bitch at me about his ten dollar anchor while we carried our canoe the three miles to the truck.

Nature, you scary!

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Old 03-05-2015, 07:36   #2
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Ha ha ha! Great story and well told.

The answer is yes.

This time you learned that it is the sea (lake) state that wrecks havoc, much more than the wind does.

Welcome to the club!

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Old 03-05-2015, 07:42   #3
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Hobie Tandem Island.
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Old 03-05-2015, 07:48   #4
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

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Hobie Tandem Island.
Holy crap that looks awesome!

I need to start off with something like that on my lake. Should learn a lot.
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Old 03-05-2015, 08:48   #5
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Reminds me of Weta.

You may grow up to the IC10m2 one day ... ;-)

b.
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Old 03-05-2015, 11:08   #6
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

I learned a great deal about sailing in rough water by white water and rough water canoeing.
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Old 03-05-2015, 11:38   #7
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

My sailboat cruising grew from years of doing canoe and kayak expedition paddling.

Lucky of for you the water wasn't too cold.
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Old 03-05-2015, 12:19   #8
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

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My sailboat cruising grew from years of doing canoe and kayak expedition paddling.

Lucky of for you the water wasn't too cold.
Haha, yeah the water was warm. I don't do cold.
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Old 03-05-2015, 12:48   #9
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

That was a great story.

When you get a sail on it it becomes a sailing vessel and you become a sailor. You can be a waterman and a boatman or canoeist but until you sail or join the Navy you aren't a sailor.

I'm not being critical because I love canoeing too but unless you use a sail for propulsion you are not a sailor.

Just my opinion of course.
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Old 03-05-2015, 16:16   #10
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

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That was a great story.

When you get a sail on it it becomes a sailing vessel and you become a sailor. You can be a waterman and a boatman or canoeist but until you sail or join the Navy you aren't a sailor.

I'm not being critical because I love canoeing too but unless you use a sail for propulsion you are not a sailor.

Just my opinion of course.
I agree and I really meant "make" as in create the desire to sail. Nobody thinks or calls me a sailor, especially me.
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Old 03-05-2015, 16:18   #11
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

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Holy crap that looks awesome!

I need to start off with something like that on my lake. Should learn a lot.
We've had one since 2011. Have hit 11 knots with it several times. We love this thing.

You can stand up on them and cast, by the way.
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Old 03-05-2015, 16:50   #12
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Great story.

Like many here, my first boat was a canoe. I would occasionally set up a sail rig with lashed dagger board (paddle), but my best canoe/sail experience was paddling the Missinaibi River to James Bay. Once the river spilled down off the Canadian Shield we lashed the two boats together and rigged a stout mast. From there we used a tarp to create a reefable square sail. For the next 12 days we sailed downriver, even to the point of sailing/running the multiple class I-II raps that speckle the route.

There's nothing like sailing through a wilderness rapid to learn the joy of travelling by wind.
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Old 03-05-2015, 17:00   #13
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Quote:
Originally Posted by SkiprJohn View Post
That was a great story.

When you get a sail on it it becomes a sailing vessel and you become a sailor. You can be a waterman and a boatman or canoeist but until you sail or join the Navy you aren't a sailor.

I'm not being critical because I love canoeing too but unless you use a sail for propulsion you are not a sailor.

Just my opinion of course.
John,

Alas, on some WWII monuments sailors who went down with their destroyers are at times called sailors alright. WWII destroyers had no sails for sure.

What say you?

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Old 03-05-2015, 17:51   #14
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

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Originally Posted by barnakiel View Post
John,

Alas, on some WWII monuments sailors who went down with their destroyers are at times called sailors alright. WWII destroyers had no sails for sure.

What say you?

barnakiel
Reread the last sentence of his second paragraph.
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Old 03-05-2015, 18:06   #15
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Re: Does a canoe make a sailor?

Canoes are legit. You can cover serious distance on big water in a canoe. I was exposed to boating first by canoe on Canadian Rivers such as the magnetawan, French, patewawa and coulonge, sailing came later. All the spirit of sailboat cruising can be found in canoe tripping. Sailboats are just less work because you (shouldn't) have to paddle them.

I had a debate with a friend once who insisted canoes were not appropriate for open water and I took my 14' canoe to a beach on Lake Ontario and spent probably 40 minutes in 6' beach break, goofing around without ever swamping my canoe- with an open 6 pack between my knees.

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