Two-day canoe build

Canoe built in two days without much any prior woodworking experience, painted on the third, and on the water on the fourth. I tried to make it as cheaply as possible, within the short timeframe I had. The materials did cost more than I anticipated, but still under $200 or so -- so not bad. I spent the next seven days traveling in this canoe/pirogue with a group of friends down the Missouri River from Omaha to Kansas City -- a totally amazing experience.

Here are the designs that inspired this build:
I more-or-less used the dimensions of the smaller Cheap Canoe, but used the construction techniques of the Lazy Weekend Canoe, notably the use of chine batting instead of epoxy.

It was nimble on the water, and I could hold my own in a race with a kayak. It was a good size for a single person (me) and my gear. We camped out on the bank, so I brought along my tent. Since we didn't stop at towns every day, it was crucial to be able to carry a few days' worth of food and water, which was no problem. The larger canoes could lug around a lot more stuff, and fit three people, and had better primary stability.

Could definitely have done something better if I had a bigger budget and more time, but considering the circumstances I'm proud of what I was able to pull off. Was definitely better than an inflatable kayak, which is the nearest thing in this price range.

[nicholasheltzel]

Man that sounds like an awesome journey bro...

[DrFrankensteam]

Nice! A little nuts to decide to do that! But it sounds like something I’d try to do. The only different thing I would have done is put a pool noodle on that support you rested your feet on. And maybe make a quick pool noodle seat somehow. But totally awesome!

[Nitecrow]

Cool canoe 😎. I have had an inflatable Sevilor k79 for nearly 20yrs & I can see myself building something like this as a replacement, & my first foray into boat construction. ATB

[justinbrown]

Very nice, thinking about making one of these soon. Did you make the music yourself? Thanks for the vid!

[huxmetalworks]

Can you give dimensions of your boat I tried to open the links and they don't appear to be working I like your design thanks for sharing

[carlosgaztelucabral]

Did.you not.seal it.with fiberglass in.any way? How did you keep water from coming in through the seems?

[zookr]

- good job . . . I would have made it flat on one end so a motor could have been affixed to it.