Northwoods

This is the second canoe that I have purchased and by no means consider myself to be an expert. But, I can say that I love it and wish they were still in business so that I could buy a solo canoe as well and maybe even a 16' tandem later on when I have only two travelers but for know I'll keep using this as it is great for three with the additional third seat I installed by taking out the thwart.

Like I said, I can only compare this to my other canoe which is a M.R. Explorer, in royalex, and I think this canoe is far superior. I find it more stable, much faster and much lighter in the kevlight of course. It does scratch easy but I hope to use it more than save it. This makes for a fabulous family canoe as Bell's web site testifies.
I have seen on facebook that Bell is making canoes again and that they are available in Minnesota. If they are I hope that the molds are the same.

This is a fine canoe and is what a canoe should be. Not junk that turns people off.

I have paddled the BWCA for decades, but never in a canoe with as many attributes as this one. The BlackGold with wood trim is first a looker, then it proves itself. I shall not repeat the kudos of other reviewers, save that I enjoy thinking back with good riddance on the 80+ lbs. canoes of my youth as I easily trek my Northwoods and a pack along a portage in my fifties.

As a note of caution to buyers considering this gem, I did find it very difficult to paddle into the wind with an inexperienced bow paddler and only fishing gear. The slightest wind would push the bow away from the wind and I would have to dig mightily in order to right the course. I had the same problem with solo paddling while empty, (save for some fishing gear) even when paddling from amidships.

This problem may be true of any canoe, but all hull design involves compromises. The lightness of weight and stability while heavily loaded come at a price while traveling lightly.

I picked up a 2007 KevLight Northwoods with full wood trim late last summer.
I have a number of solo canoes, and my main tandem had been a Wenonah Sundowner 18. I really like the Sundowner, but wanted something that paddled better with a big load of gear in it and lighter (my Sunny is glass). I have not been a fan of wood trim and the associated maintenance and weight. I didn't care for the aluminum gunnels on the Northwoods I test paddled, and when we pulled down a wood trimmed Northy I was simply in love with the look of it. I continue to like the look and feel of the wood gunnels more and more every time we hit the water. After I added a bunch of Watco oil, the wood is amazing.

I find the canoe to be very easy to carry and load by myself. I am really happy with the seaworthiness of the Northwoods. We have been in some amazing conditions with it and have stayed dry every time. I suspect my Sundowner is a touch faster when empty, but the difference is very small. The Northwoods seems faster when paddled loaded though, and by a larger margin. It feels really secure with a load in it too.

The Northwoods is noticeably easier to turn than the Sundowner due to the slight rocker. It is also a bit more work to keep it moving straight, but it still tracks extremely well. I am not blindly in love with it though. A few things I don't care for is the lack of a sliding bow seat. I also wish a tractor type seat was an option. My legs fall asleep on occasion on the bench. I considered putting in contoured seats, but for now I have added an inflatable Thermarest style pads which have helped. I prefer the tractor seats in my Wenonahs and Sawyers (and my main paddling partner has an even stronger opinion on this). It also needs a footrest added in the stern. I have added a Wenonah adjustable brace last week, but haven't used it yet. I had been using a neoprene heel pad which helped a lot, but it needed a real foot brace. I have also replaced the rope loop at the bow with a plastic coated stainless cable so I can securely lock the canoe when running shuttles.

Overall it is a great canoe, and the build quality on mine is absolutely fantastic ! The way the cloth was laid in the mold was smooth and symmetrical. The trimming of the cloth and wood was very precise, much better than any of my Wenonah or Sawyer canoes have been, and that's not to say they were at all bad. But the Bell is exceptional.

My kevlar/carbon Northwoods is a real gem of a tripping boat. Several trips to the BWCA have proven to me that you can have a boat that tracks great and yet has good maneuverability. I've done trips in Wenonah Min II's and the Spirit II, and they match the Bell for speed and maneuverability, but not both in a single boat. My paddling partner is 100lbs lighter than I am, and even with an empty boat on Lake of the Isles, it tracks and handles great.

I have had a Bell Northwoods Black gold, wood trim for four years now. I paddle about 30 days per summer both flat water, moving water canoe, and kayak as well as sea kayaking. The Northwoods is one of many canoes I paddle. It is also the most stable, fastest, and the best tripper I have been in. My wife loves the fact that it does not rock back and forth but sits flat. She find this easy on her back. We paddled a two hundred mile trip on the Georgian bay with sea kayaks. We had no problem keeping up with the sea kayaks or handling the waves. In fact one day the waves were about 5 feet high and on occasion they were breaking. The Northwoods managed them very well even side ways. The cane seats however are not my favorite. This canoe can be paddled solo very easily holding it's line in wind and moving fast. It turns very fast when tilted and well when flat. Tilting it is fun due to the super secondary stability. It is manoverable enogh for swamps and small creeks. Two good paddlers can cover a lot of ground in this canoe and carry a ton of gear, dogs and kids. It is a breeze to portage. The hull is very stiff and strong standing up well to hidden rocks. I would buy another one and highly recommend it.

About two weeks ago me and my 7 year old son came from our second trip to Quetico. This year we went on our own boat Bell Northwoods balck gold. We did 90 miles on 28 lakes trough 30 portages. Northwoods exceeded my expectations. It is very fast even when you solo paddle it like did with a full load, my son and my dog. It has tremendous amount of glide on calm water. In waves and wind it has unbelivable secondary stability and thanks to differential rocker it has, keeps a bow on the course. The only drawback is that black gold layup that we have altough is the strongest it shows every little scratch on the hull. You really want to "wet foot" this boat on portage landings. In summary this is a top of the line wilderness tripper. I highly recomend it, especially to fathers with sons looking for great experience in the wilderness.

My wife and I have been going to the Quetico park in Canada for 11 years. We own five canoes; including our original used Mad River Discovery,two solos, a custom cedar strip 17 foot Kudros Navigator, and our two year old Bell Northwoods "Black Gold". This 58 pound kevlar and carbon fiber proprietary lay up is the best wilderness touring canoe we have ever paddled.

We take two weeks in September for our trip and cover about 15 to 20 lakes and many more portages. The weather can be pretty bad this late in the summer and white caps with wind bound days are not uncommon. This boat is the driest and fastest we have tried. We not only love it's performance, but you cannot beat the wood gunnals,wicker seats, and the black with gold hints of the hull. We recommend the Bell Northwoods to anyone who wants a dry, light weight, high volume wilderness tripper