Look again, 3 brown counterwieghts...

The stabilizers work great, just gotta be careful not to run em into stuff. Beats a February swim...

The trolling motor is nice also, had to lengthen the wires as the battery goes up in the bow. The gunwales on the Colorado dont have much of a lip, for the accessories to secure to, so I added 1"x1"x6" aluminum angles, and attached them with stainless steel hardware.

I appreciate the ideas posted here. I think once I learn how to drive it, the canoe will work great.

Still need to come up with some kinda rack for the Dakota 4x4, so I can put the toolbox back in, and have the bed back...

Those stabilizers look sharp, are you able to stand in the canoe now? How stable do they make it?

A lot more stable than without em...

Claude is that a blonde beaver I see in there? What do you figure your total weight is with those beaver included? I ask because it sure makes a big difference with that dead weight pulling up any type of incline. Of course, the lighter the better.

Nice set up Claude. I trap small creeks and rivers out of my 12ft Pungo kayak. Its fairly stable and carries what I need on small water. Beats toting big bvrs back to the truck. I have two canoes, one 16ft royalex and the other a 17ft square stern Grumman aluminum. The square stern will haul 900+ lbs but won't turn easily because of the keel. It is extremely stable; you can fall out of it but you can't turn it over. The royalex is a white water with no keel and will roll easily. Each has its own uses and flaws. Claude, Have you considered a plumbers or lader rack for your Dakota. Slide the canoe up there and you can still have the tool box and bed space freed up.

I like my old Sears jon boat. Super stable and light.
The stabilizers for the canoe seem to counter any advantage that the narrow design of a canoe would offer..Getting in narrow channels etc..The jon offers better stability, storage space without sacrificing on being lite weight.

"Does your canoe have a Keel? They make tracking much easier on open water."

Yes, and they are guaranteed to cause you to flip in moving water, eventually.

I wouldn't have a keel on any canoe I own! The remedy for tracking is to learn how to paddle.

Jim

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