Langford Canoes Otter 15'3

Review Date
June 30, 2006

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by: les wilcox ,  Paddler

Price Paid:  $800.00 at centre canot kayak m

Summary:
In 2005, my wife and I decided to take a Thanksgiving weekend paddle on one of Quebec's resevoirs; the Kiamika. We have several canoe camping sites that we run in conjunction with Scouts Canada and wanted to have one last look before the snow arrived. I am an avid and capable canoer but my wife is not. We left our put in located in a protected bay and proceeded up the lee shore to enter the main lake. As we neared the point at the end of the bay we could see the ruffled surface and see the trees whipping about. We had a fair load (100 lbs) and our Otter was riding high enough for the first waves on the open lake. The wind was 25-30 mph and as we proceeded up the lake in open water, it really began to pick up. Being determined to reach our destination, an island about 2.5 miles away, on we went in the 1.5-2 foot waves. I am a strong paddler, but the combined wind and waves took a steady stroke with almost all I had. My wife is also a strong paddler and stayed calm and provided us with a steady pull on the lee side with me. Past the midway point the waves started curling with the tips blowing off in spray. We labored for one full hour before getting under the lee of another small island. The seakeeping qualities of this little craft are so good and she tracks so well that we reached that little island having barely shipped any water! The bow plunged and rose pushing aside the water aside. The rolling and wallowing was minimal and recovery was easy and predictable. In other words, I got in over my head, but got bailed out by the surprising performance of that sweet Otter ultralite!