The Best Canoes for Tripping: Expedition vs. River (Our Two Canoe Setup)

When people ask us what canoe to buy, the honest answer is: it depends entirely on your adventure.

We’ve paddled with two canoes for a year now one for big water expeditions, one for rivers and everything else and the more time we spend out there, the more convinced we are that having the right boat for the right trip matters more than most people think. This is the breakdown of what we use, when we use it, and what we’ve learned along the way.

Our Two Canoes at a Glance

The Wenonah Itasca 19’ — Kevlar Ultra-Light

Best for: Multi-day expeditions, Big open water, Heavier loads, Portaging

Length 19 ft
Width  37” (34.25” at waterline)
Weight 45 lbs (Kevlar Ultra-Light)
Rocker 1.5”
Weight capacity: 1,400 lbs

The Itasca is the canoe we reach for when the stakes are high long portage routes, remote lakes, multi-day trips with a full load of gear and two dogs.

At 19 feet and 37 inches wide, it carries an absurd amount of gear without losing its composure. Loaded, it tracks like it’s on rails. In high winds and big waves, it stays dry and composed in a way that shorter canoes simply can’t match.

The Kevlar Ultra-Light construction is what sets this particular configuration apart. At 45 pounds, it is actually a lot lighter than our 16-foot Prospector (rotomolded plastic) which sounds counterintuitive until you realize that Kevlar’s strength-to-weight ratio makes the weight of a longer hull almost irrelevant on the portage trail. That structural foam core keeps the hull incredibly stiff, which translates directly to speed and paddling efficiency.

What to Know Before You Buy

Kevlar is UV-sensitive. It requires a cover whenever the boat is stored or transported. If you leave a Kevlar hull sitting in direct sunlight season after season, you will shorten its life significantly. We keep ours covered religiously.

The 19-foot length is also genuinely limiting on narrow, winding rivers. This is not the canoe for technical water or tight bends. It rewards straight lines and open water.

The Nova Craft Prospector 16’ — Rotomold SP3

Best for: Rivers, float trips, float hunts, day paddles, and solo paddling

Length 16 ft
Width 36”
Weight 94 lbs (SP3 Rotomold)
Rocker 2.5”
Capacity 1,000 lbs

Why We Love It

The Prospector is the canoe we started with, and it’s still the canoe we grab for everything that doesn’t call for the Itasca. Rivers, float hunts, day paddles, trips where you want a boat that can take a hit without a second thought the Prospector handles all of it.

The design itself is iconic. Nova Craft has been building their version of the Chestnut Prospector since 1984, originally designed to move goods across Canada’s vast river systems. The shallow arch hull gives you a confidence level in moving water that takes a while to fully appreciate. The symmetrical design means you can paddle it solo from the bow seat facing stern a practical feature that matters on shorter trips when you’re on your own.

In Rotomold SP3, this canoe handles rocky launches, scrapes, and hard use. That durability is the entire point of this material. It doesn’t need UV protection the way Kevlar does. You can leave it outside, drag it across gravel, and it will ask nothing of you.

What to Know Before You Buy

94 pounds is heavy. There’s no softening that number on long portages, it earns every complaint, although Kyle never does. If you’re going on a multi-day expedition with serious carries, you’ll want a lighter material. Nova Craft’s TuffStuff version of the same hull cuts the weight to around 56 pounds if portaging is a priority.

It’s also not a fast boat on long straightaways. The rocker that makes it so responsive and maneuverable on rivers works against you when you’re grinding out miles across a big lake. That’s a fair trade-off for what it does well but it’s worth knowing before your first long flat crossing.

A Note on Hauling: Why We Switched to a Roof Rack

We trailered our Prospector for a long time, even all the way to Alaska but with the recent purchase of the Itasca we switched to a roof rack, and we're never going back.

The trailer we used was actually from a smaller drift boat. it started to feel like another piece of gear that could go wrong at any point. It required maintenance like bearings and tires, and it limited us on parking while traveling.

Yes, you give up some storage space in the vehicle but it's worth it.

Both boats have earned their place in our fleet and we intend to continue to use each one as seen fit.

Have questions about our fleet setup? Drop them in the comments I am always happy to talk canoes.