Expedition Plus

This paddle changed my paddling experience. It’s lightweight but durable construction and incredible responsiveness let’s me go further distance, with less effort. It’s a dream in rapids, as the responsiveness easily maneuvers my boat, a 16ft old town canoe, through the chutes. I don’t know that I’ll ever paddle anything else.

I have had two of these paddles for a few years now and this model is my go to for running rivers that are deep and not overly rocky. It’s very comfortable, has just the right amount of flex, and has a thin but substantial enough blade to prevent fluttering. It’s only the middle of May and I’ve already gotten over 150 river miles with this paddle.

After breaking a few lesser paddles while paddling upstream on various stretches of the Missouri River, including tributaries and rock-strewn chutes, along with moderate whitewater on various smaller streams, I took Bending Branches’ advice and ordered a new Expedition Plus to use as my go-to paddle under conditions that would tax the carbon shaft bent paddles that I had been using 90% of the time. I have not been disappointed. This paddle is indeed a workhorse, with features like the power T-grip and the Rockgard® protection all the way from the blade tip to 6 inches up the shaft. Additional protection includes 4 oz. fiberglass wrap on the blade (most paddles have only 2 oz). Bottom line, this paddle will not only take all of the hard use that I can give it, but excels in efficiency for a straight shaft paddle. I have used it in up to Class II+ whitewater and it performed more than adequately. I believe that every serious canoeist, especially ones that paddle in a wide variety of conditions, should have an Expedition Plus in their boat.

Great paddles. Just did Black Canyon of the Colorado River. Paddled 8 miles up stream and 8 miles back with a good quartering headwind on the way back. I was in a 17 ft Nova Craft Prospector. This was flat water in current but no white water. The paddles did great and were able to maneuver the canoe anyway I wanted. I tried lots of different stokes. Sculling draws were powerful whether going sideways backwards or forwards and put the boat just where I wanted. Good paddles and beautifully made.