![]() ![]() The carrying handles, seats, and the yolk were very sturdy and securely fastened to the rest of the canoe. We ran aground on the rocky shores of the Quemahoning reservoir with hardly a scratch to show for it. The price point was fair, ~$500, and the construction was excellent. ![]() I chose this canoe, over a kayak, because my girlfriend at the time wanted to go fishing with me, so I needed a two seater. I purchased the Old Town Guide 147 at Dunhams Sports for recreational use and fishing on local lakes in PA. It will make your canoe adventure a much better experience. I suggest if this is your first canoe that you spend a little more and get a better canoe. Even with a trolling motor in the wind it goes all over. In a wind the 174 becomes a beast to paddle. ![]() The 16's weighed about the same as the 174 but seem to plow through the water better. I have used other canoes that were 16 footers with keel so they tracked better than the 174. Since the price is low I could replace it when the bottom goes. The bottom gets scratched up, but it's tough enough to last a long time. The boat is to heavy for me to carry so I drag it to the lake. So I took the front seat out and moved it to the center, drilling required, making it useful for kayak paddling from the center. It is impossible for the front paddler to turn around and move to the center of the boat on the water. One problem is the seats are situated high and the front paddler has no leg room and the rear paddler when solo causes the bow to lift. If you keep your weight centered you should be okay. Luckily it was not deep so I just walked to the shore. I have fished with it several times on large lakes and have only turned it over once. I'm 70 years old and weigh to much, 195#. If the wind gets up when solo I just fill a dry back with water and push it up to the bow and it keeps it on track. Its a bit o the heavy side at 33kg but I can load it onto my van roof single handed and it's easier to carry solo by using the yoke but not for big distances. Even used it with a trolling motor and it fairly moves along. It tracks really well and is very stable, plenty of room for kit on multi day trips. I have used it mainly on lakes and lochs but also been on the sea and a few slow rivers. I also moved the bow seat further towards the stern to give more legroom up front but it also made a great solo seat. Test thing was getting rid of the plastic seats as they drove me mad, the seat backrests always banged on the car roof no matter how I tied them up so I put some webbed seats in from Cheshire Canoes, made a massive difference as it also lowered the centre of gravity. I have owned my Guide 147 for around 8 years and have done a few more to it in this time. ![]()
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