Personal best!

[bignose]

I tested my new Old Town Pack Canoe today at a local pond.
The canoe was an attempt to downsize a bit. It's a lot lighter than my Old Town Camper but the lack of stability is worrisome to me. The initial stability isn't what I'm used to from my much wider Camper. I'm not sure how it will handle if there are boat wakes to contend with. A might bit twitchy.

Fishing crank baits, I caught several bass, one was very nice, 6 pounds or so. The water was still extremely discolored from last week's rain.

Somehow I hooked (snagged) a very big Carp. I was fishing light tackle, a 5 1/2 foot rod and 10 pound test.
It towed me around for a bit, the fresh water equivalent of the Nantucket sleigh ride. I didn't dare try to lift it up.
It was well over 36" long, probably closer to 40.
I figure 35 pounds at the least. I was able to remove the lure which had snagged him just behind his head.

(Just for reference, this fish was bigger than any of the Stripers we caught last year on the Charter Boat!)

[kevinfry]

Nice tale!
AS for the canoe, I think the length is more of a problem than width. 12' canoes are notoriously tippy...I ad one when I lived on the Columbia ....if I ran into sudden windy conditiins, if have to ditch it in the shore and walk the railroad tracks back to the truck......luckily they run the length of the river. That being said I never did tip over.....just felt like it was going to flip. Ultimately, it was probably just as safe as my 16'.

Sent from my SM-G360V using Tapatalk

[J.A. Veil]

Nice going Stu. Congratulations on the personal best.

[Mark]

Stu,

It has been a long time since I hooked a carp and I've never tangled with one that big.

You'll never forget that trip to your pond.

For what it's worth, I know precisely the canoe you paddled. I once contemplated one in lieu of my Old Town Discovery 174, a beast of a boat. I think you'd find more stability in a light kayak.

[bignose]

Hey Mark,

As far as the canoe is concerned (the fish is the least important part, hooking the beast was just dumb luck, not skill on my part) it's primary stability is "different" than my flat bottomed, wider Camper canoe. It's secondary stability should be O.K. It's supposed to have a 500+ pound capacity........

In my younger days, the rounded hull would be more maneuverable, as I've gotten older, my sense of balance isn't as good, so it feels twitchy, which is uncomfortable.
The difference is a 12 foot long, 33 pound craft versus a 16 foot, 60 pound craft. The four feet makes a huge difference, and I can only imagine how cramped I would feel in say, a 10 foot kayak. Yeah, it would be more stable......I was about ready to pickup a rigged out NuCanoe when the Pack became available for about 1/2 the price. But the weight difference was also a major deciding factor.

I have some clamp-on sponsons, but the idea was to simplify!

And I'm pretty much convinced that the electric motor is going to be reserved for the Camper-I'll just use the smaller boat on the tiny local ponds. I'm not sure how I'd feel about using this on the Severn, but I'll give it a try on the smaller creeks when things warm up a little.

[Mark]

Stu,

My Ultimate 12 (12 feet) has a unique hull feature that adds primary stability. I feel very secure in it. I would not choose it routinely to cross the Severn (because it has no scuppers) but I have on select days. It's perfect for Weems and ponds. I hope to see you again in Weems again with your new ride. Maybe you can find more big yellow perch like you did last year.