3 Person canoe

[Fdrye]

I am looking to purchase a 3 seat canoe and am wondering if anyone has any recommendations on which brand and model is the best.

[Canoe_Codger]

"Best" is a very subjective qualifier. Best for what? Price? Availability? Durability? Weight? Capacity? Novice or experienced paddlers? Kids or adults or a mix? Flat water, moving water or white water? Really need more information about your intended use and what your budget range is.

[Deuce]

And to add to what Codger said, there aren't that many three seaters out there. Plenty of two seaters that can handle three but that may or may not be good enough. Definitely need more info.

[Canoe_Codger]

As to a third seat, a couple of really low end recreational canoes come equipped with them. Like some of the poly canoes found at the big box sporting goods stores. They need the center seat to make the hull stiff. This is one such, a Pelican Colorado 15-6. Pelican is the newer owner of Coleman Marine. Note the seats have pedestals to brace the otherwise floppy floor.



This canoe is for sale cheap in the sale forum here.

A few higher end canoes come with them like my Bell Morningstar composite canoe. But it is rigged that way because it is primarily a solo canoe, capable of occasional tandem use (called a "crossover"). I wouldn't want a third person there because of weight capacity (freeboard) and balance considerations.



To carry a third person in a canoe, a permanent or temporary seat can be installed. Some snap in, supported by the gunnels. Some are like camp chairs that sit on the floor. Best is to install a permanent center seat. These can be bought from vendors like Ed's Canoes and Essex Industries, cut to fit and bolted in with drop plates or trusses. Not as difficult as it sounds. But if you are ordering a new canoe from Buffalo Canoes or Two Brothers, I would bet they can install a center seat for you on request. This would assure that it is positioned and mounted correctly.

[Richard]

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/69057?pa ... y-old-town

[Hawkayaks]

I bought an Old Town Saranac 146 at Dicks. It holds three people. Not a whitewater canoe but really good and comfortable on the mild stuff. I took my niece on her first canoe trip about a month ago in it. Worked great.


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[Cowper]

Like others, I feel I'm shooting in the dark without knowing more about how you want to use the canoe, whether it is for three adults or two adults and a child, etc. But I'll throw out a suggestion to go by OOO in Hot Springs and take a look at an Esquif Heron.

It is a relatively shorter canoe at about 14'-6", but very wide, so it has good stability and plenty of load capacity. It is made of ABS, so very tough, yet only 69#, so not too heavy to easily load by yourself. It's a square stern, which some wouldn't want, but if you have a trolling motor, (or buy a small one new for not much more than $100) that gives you some more options on how to use the boat.

The boat would do some mild whitewater, although it is not a whitewater specific boat by any means. Really the only concern I have in recommending this boat is that it is a top-of-the-line boat, thus expensive, with a list price checking in at about $1800.