The other day I decided to hit the lake and go fishing in the morning. The mornings have been foggy and pretty still with no winds. That’s always my favorite time to fish. Just a calm lake with loons floating by and the sound of fish jumping just out of reach of my line.
We have a regular boat and motor, a bigger kayak for paddling or putting on a trolling motor, a small kayak to carry into the lake and my Old Town Pack canoe. So when I go fishing, like most Minnesotans, I have a choice and decision to make as to what floating device to take.
I decided to take the canoe the other morning since it was so still and it was 48 degrees. I didn’t feel like hitching up the big boat and the kayaks get me a bit more wet with water coming in the scupper holes of the sit on top kayaks. So the little solo canoe seemed the most logical choice. I really haven’t used the Pack canoe for the past couple of years. It seems I always go for one of the kayaks. And this Spring I built a holder to put a little trolling motor on the big one. So that one is able to get anywhere I want to go on a lake .
But, back to the Pack canoe. Probably 15 or 20 years ago, I came across an Old Town Pack solo canoe. It was for sale up near Two Harbors and my Best Half hauled me up there to give it a look. To say the heavens opened and the angels began to sing is an understatement! I took one look at that little green beauty and without any doubts, it was loaded into the back of our pickup truck.
That canoe was perfect for me. It was only 33 pounds, but would hold 600 pounds of weight and gear. It was wide and stable and with a double paddle it went anywhere I asked of it. This was before we had any kayaks, so it was my only mode of water travel except for a 14 foot boat and motor on a trailer. We have had several different boats over the years.
The Pack canoe has been on many BWCA trips with me and my grandkids when they have gone with their parents. It has been the hauler of the food packs with a teeneager navigating it. It has gone down the river with a good current in the Spring and a grandkid paddling trying to keep it headed in the right direction. And it never let its paddler down.
That Pack canoe was a favorite to do a spur of the moment fishing adventure. Many years ago when the older grandkids were smaller, they would sit on the floor in the front of the 11 foot beauty and we would fish together. So many memories held in that little green canoe.
Back to the other day. I decided to take the Pack canoe out and do some fishing. So I slid it into the minivan and loaded up my gear and headed out to a nearby lake. When I got to the landing the shoreline was loaded with bullrushes that had blown into the shore on the previous windy day. They covered the landing and there was no real easy access onto the lake. Luckily the Pack is only 33 pounds, so I managed to hoist it and drag it over the rushes and into a few feet of water. I threw my gear in, put on my lifejacket and hopped in.
For the first time since last using the Pack I had some trouble getting my leg hoisted in. I was unsteady and feeling like it would tip. After a few tries and eventually holding onto the dock, I was in. I started to paddle and it felt tippy as I went side to side paddling. I braced my knees tensley on the sides of the inside the canoe and got my bearings that I was in a canoe, not on a kayak. It took a few minutes of adjusting and I was off to the fishing spot.
There was no wind and the lake was very still, so I just fished and drifted and got pulled by the fish I was catching. Always a relaxing time and this was no exception. Except I was still holding my knees to the sides to brace myself and keep from feeling like I was going to tip.I was tensed up and barely moving in the canoe. It was then that I realized how much I have come to enjoy a kayak over a canoe.
In my kayak, I can flop into it without the feeling of tipping or dumping all my gear out. Maybe it is being closer to the water level, or a different center of gravity, but I have never once felt like I would tip in my kayak. In fact, I squirm all around in the kayak, dangling my legs off the side, or sitting side-saddle when my back needs a break. And I have never tipped the kayak. Also being closer on the water it seems like my kayak paddles with less resistance. It glides across the water with a few strokes of the paddle versus really having to dig into the water to move the canoe. And when a speedboat flies by,in the kayak, I can just roll with the wake. But in the canoe I always feel a need to point into the waves coming at me for fear of dumping over sideways.
After fishing the other morning, I came to the realization that the Pack Canoe, while being an awesome vessel, no longer fits my aging body and needs like my kayak does. So after years of saying I would never sell it, I decided I was going to do just that. I put the ad on Marketplace. Within about an hour of listing it I had about 10 people wanting to buy it sight unseen. The Pack canoe is a well sought after canoe due to its size, weight tolerance and it is made from Royalex, a compound that is basically unbreakable.
The first person to respond came out early the next morning and put the Pack in the back of his truck. He pulled out the cash and gave me an extra $10 as he was grateful I let him buy it. That little canoe is now at a cabin in Wisconsin wIth lots more grandkids tooling around in it. It will more than likely outlive that generation of paddlers and move on to the next.
It was kind of a hard decision to sell the little Pack canoe, but after spending the day out on the lake with it, I was made aware of my limitations these days with arthritis and balance and the aging process that visits me at times. I no longer am a canoe paddler, but my kayak will do its best to get me out on the water whenever I am able.
I can spend hours floating along in my kayak, enjoying the warm sunshine, the gentle breeze and the frequent pull of a fish on my line. Sometimes even one big enough to haul me around the lake. And if needed, I can hook the trolling motor up to the bigger kayak or haul the boat out to a lake. Still so many choices on how to get on the lake for this Minnesotan. I’ll see you on the water, I’ll be the one with the lime green kayak, a fishing pole in my hand and a smile on my face. Stop by and say hi.
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