Sunburst

When I was kid, maybe 6 years old, my dad would take me down the Flint River in the middle of Georgia. We had this Carolina Blue Blue Hole Canoe. That canoe was a beast! My dad would strap it to the top of whatever company car and we would take a ride to Yellow Jacket Shoals. Someone would load that Blue Hole onto the roof of a school bus and off we went. He always packed a lunch, which gave me assurance that we were not getting out of the canoe unless we wanted to. We would paddle for 2 or 3 hours and then always stop on this giant rock that lent itself to people wanting to eat and not get into the woods. Then we would load up and head on down the river. I was a scrawny little kid and my dad to me was huge. He would guide the Blue Hole through rapids and that's a feeling that I will never forget. I learned how to paddle from my dad, and apparently he knew how to paddle. We would take these 2 Feather Brand Paddles and spend the day out there. That was 36 years ago. Now I'm 44 and he is 78. I'm about to lose him now, but he always told me that a Blue Hole Canoe was a great canoe. I will get that canoe soon, and I still have both paddles. Here's to you, dad, for teaching me how to canoe in a Blue Hole Canoe.

I bought it used from a gentleman in Nashville Tennessee. I did not know much about the blue hole but found out quickly quiet right by it was. I’ve had it all through middle Tennessee on l and ll class rapids. My canoe is a white water tandem Roy lax canoe from the late 70s early 80s. At first I had trouble controlling it seems how it’s flat. Over 16 years I have learned how not to work hard at paddling this boat. She’s heavy she is ole and she has been Through Western NC middle Tn and now the PNW...

i had been searching for a blue hole canoe for 2 years at least one that decently priced.i was working one day and we had got some new hires i was talking to him bout canoeing cause i live 10 minutes away and i just loved it . then he said man i got this canoe in front of my house and i need it gone or taken to the dump i said i would. i drove out to his house after work and said where this boat, you needed hauled off? he didn't have a clue what it was and i told him bout blue hole canoes, oldtowns and buffalo canoes. well it was in his back yard and it was a blue whole, i told him man thats a blue hole he said man its yours my wife wants it gone. i don't have anywhere to put it i said you sure! 10 times and thats how i got my blue hole it swift it rough and tough, and steady!

Over the last fifty-some years I have owned about 50 kayaks and canoes, and the one that will always mean the most to me is the old Blue Hole that those Tennessee boys built in the 1970s, (and for competition in the memory lane, there is the Phoenix big man kayak made in an old school up in Tyner, KY).

I'm sure there are improvements on the Royalex boats today, but Blue Hole deserves the credit for giving us white water idiots one of the first boats that came close to being indestructible. It was just intelligently made and designed from one end to the other. Until Kevlar came along, I didn't think there would ever be a better river boat.
Thanks, Blue Hole, for the memories.

I have a Sunburst II model. I bought this boat for white water river tripping and outfitted it with a seat rather than saddle. This boat does what I expected it to do. Reasonably maneuverable, and tracks reasonably as well. A good compromise between something that can be played in and something that can go the distance too. I have little to compare this boat against but I'm satisfied with it.

It's been a long time since I've paddled mine, so let's see... I agree with the other guy, it is a pretty wet boat by nature. It is a docile boat, and will let you do what you can. I'm a big guy, so the boat and I fit pretty well. Could roll it if you wanted to. Also you could roll your boat into or away from wave, rock, tree, quite nicely and hold the angle really just leaning a bit on your paddle. Pretty low initial stability but very controllable to the edge secondary stability. Takes a beating. I pitoned something on the lower Gauley and twisted the boat a few inches like a rope, had significant dents and bumps over its lifetime, and the boat didn't care one bit. But, as long as it isn't TOO twitchy, I'd rather have a more nimble boat. I give it an eight because it gets you down the river, lets you play, and does so day after day.