All the local streams and rivers were flooded, and I was having a hard time finding a place to try out a solo canoe that I’d recently acquired.

I discovered the boat during Waterfest 2008 which was held in May in Carthage at Kellogg Lake. The Ozark Mountain Paddlers were there and had a solo canoe on display. I’d gotten interested in one after trying a friend’s the week before.

The canoe has a larger cargo capacity than my kayak, and it would be ideal for the multi-day Buffalo River float trip that I had coming up at the end of June.

While talking with the owner of the solo canoe, I found out that it was for sale. He said that he just carried too much gear these days and never used the smaller boat. I talked my friend Harry Rogers into buying half since neither of us needed it as our main boat.

It came home with me that afternoon and, since I decided that I should test it the next day, I left it strapped to the truck and ready to go.

I started out early the next morning. With all the high water, nearby creeks or rivers were out of the question. There was already a strong wind, and testing in white-capped waves didn’t appeal to me, so the lakes were out. I decided on the reclaimed mine pits of the Shawnee Trail Conservation Area. The longer pits would be perfect and with the high water, I could easily portage from one pit to the next if the fishing wasn’t good.

I selected one of the pits with a ramp and backed right down to the water. The solo canoe weighs only 54 pounds and it swung down easily from the top of the truck and into the water.

With my tackle aboard, the boat still seemed empty as I pushed off and began to work my way through the mass of lily pads. The canoe slid over them well without a problem.

With the higher seat in the canoe, it seemed much more unstable than my kayak. Compared with traditional tandem canoes, this one has a more rounded bottom and it flares several inches above the waterline. This provides great secondary stability. Which means it’s tippy right until it’s about to roll when the flared sides allow the canoe to easily be held right there without rolling on over.

The flowers of the lily pads were in full bloom and their perfumed fragrance masked the normal fishy smell of the pit. I could easily imagine all those bass and bluegill that were hovering just at the edges of the clumps of pads.

There was a storm moving in which made me sure that they’d be biting. I decided that it would be best to test how easy the boat was to fish from before continuing. The canoe passed with flying colors and over the next few minutes I caught a combination of small bass and bluegill about as fast as I could cast. Finally, I moved on.

I came upon a spot where several trees had fallen into the shallow water on my left and on my right was a long bluff where the water was much deeper. I slid the boat into a section of lily pads where I could cast to either side. I began to catch bigger fish than I had earlier. The largest bass caught was still under a pound but the bluegill and green sunfish were quite large. I’d found where my father and I could come to restock for the next family fish fry.

One of strong points of using a kayak became clear as I rounded a bend and the wind got a shot at the canoe. Those high sides that provide such good storage are like sails. The nose of the canoe swung quickly to the right. I straightened easily, but I began to think that a long trip with a wind would be substantially easier in the kayak.

The solo canoe test was successful, and I had the bonus of a great morning of fishing.

My wife and I plus several of our friends are planning to kayak the Mulberry River in Arkansas on the upcoming Saturday. The Mulberry has a large gradient and can at times be wild and woolly with whitewater boiling over large rocks. I’d planned on taking my kayak but what better test could there be of our new co-op boat? Don’t worry Harry, I’ll take good care of it.



Address correspondence to Silas Gray at ifish@silasgray.com.