Pal 16

I bought a Nova Craft PAL as I was starting to get into canoeing, id like to say I bought it for looks performance etc but in truth I bought it because it was the right place at the right time and cheap. I thought it would be a cheap stop gap until I could find a prospector. I was wrong! Some paddlng over here in the UK seems different to the states and the technique and styles. My paddling is very general taking in grade 3/4 rivers and open waters in winds up to force 4. Open water is a dream in my PAL, put some edge on and it digs in to maintain a solid reliable line, it tracks lovely in open water, turns smoothly and keeps a decent speed in gliding. It seems relatively unaffected in wind compared to boats with higher freeboard and carries all my gear for over nighters up to 6 day trips around Scotland and Wales. I tend to paddle from a kneeling thwart behind the carrying yoke apart from when I’m solo sailing where I sometimes use the stern seat with my luggage up front. White water is fun! It’s predictable, it turns fast when needed and provided I’m committed it generally does what I want it to do. I was worried that the low sides (compared to prospectuers) would take on a lot of water but it really doesn’t. I paddle rivers with 60” airbags front and rear and it seems to ride over most waves and holes. It does take on water but no more than my peers do on the same sections with their higher sided boats. I’d still like a prospect for big rivers but until Nova Craft donate me one I’ll happy making do with my PAL. If I won the lottery I’d maybe have a prospector for river and a PAL in aramid for open waters. The Royalex seems very light and forgiving and although it covers every rock it touches in splashes of blue the hull doesn’t seem to be missing any! Just changed my gunwales from pvc to ash and wish I’d done it years ago, all my future boats will be Ash

Upgraded to a PAL Bluesteel layup for recreational use with my wife. The boat is stiff and with wood trim weighs 55 lbs making handling very nice. I much prefer this layup over our previous PAL Aramid light even with the seven extra pounds. Paddles very nice tandem with good glide speed and no flex. This layup has demonstrated much improved seaworthiness in waves. No oil canning period! This layup is solid. Solo, balanced with 70 lbs. of water forward is also very enjoyable paddled Canadian style. My wife enjoys our outings in the PAL and is starting to take a real interest in improving her paddling skills. This was my hope when buying the boat and my plan is proceeding nicely. In the near future we will retire and plan to travel and paddle the national parks in US and Canada. I'm confident our PAL Bluesteel will be a great companion for our future adventures.

Last year I purchased a Pal directly from Novacraft in Aramid Lite lay up with ash wood trim. I was looking for a light weight recreational boat for either tandem or solo use. I own a number of other solo and tandem boats (Bell Magic black gold, Mad River Rx explorer and Wenonah Rx Rendevous). However, I wanted a light weight symmetrical hull for use with the wife or solo when traveling.

The Pal has worked out well. When my wife comes along I can easily handle the Pal myself. She has some back issues that we don't want to aggravate. We use the boat for flat water recreation and birding. It paddles easily, decent glide and good all around performance. it has red topsides, sand bottom and tan interior. I really like the lines of the boat and have received many compliments. The tan interior is not to hot in the sun.

When I paddle solo I sit on the bow seat backwards, place two five gallon collapsible water containers forward and under the stern seat and lean the gunale well over to make paddling easier since the boat doesn't have any tumblehome.

I have to say I really enjoy paddling the Pal solo. I wouldn't have thought I would grab the Pal over the Magic when I new I was going solo, but I really enjoy paddling the Pal Canadian style. Trimmed with the ten gallons of water enables the Pal to handle light air (5-10 mph) no problem. The boat is also very comfortable and the Novacraft seats are just great.

It seems the more I use the Pal the more I like the boat. The boat has turned out to be exactly what I was looking for. Thanks Tim Miller and all the folks at Novacraft. Great canoe!

I own a Pal Kev/spectra - bought new last year. I paddle the canoe solo on flat water with 3 large dogs each weighing in the 70-90 lb range each.

The canoe is extremely stable, primary stability excellent. My dog managed to put the canoe practically on its side getting out without tipping the boat.

I had the bow seat removed for space, at 48 lb the Kev/Spec is not ultralight and that would be the only downside in my view.

The low-profile and low free-board is a dream in the wind -its an all round great boat and as a relative novice, I am very confident in this boat. It's sturdy and well made.

If it were available one day in Super ultra-light (under 40 lbs) that for me would be the perfect boat... as a woman solo paddler I'd like something around 35 lbs.

While I feel it is a bit presumptuous of me to write a review on a subject of which I know so little about, I am drawn to do just that because the Nova Craft PAL seems so delightful to me.

My only previous paddling experience dates back to the Eisenhower era with a few trips around a small lake in a heavy/noisy Grumman. In the interim, I've done a good bit of sailing, but of late have become more interested in slowly checking out what is going on along the bank with a paddled craft. Oh, those kayaks seemed so charming... but with my 260 pounds (and a strong desire for a slightly more normal sitting position) I soon started looking at canoes.

On paper, what I was looking for was a canoe with lots of secondary stability -- figuring that my sea legs could handle nearly any shortage of initial stability. With that as a criteria, it really didn't take very long to gravitate over to the Nova Craft website. After a few phone calls, I drove several hundred miles to meet the friendly, informative folks at Blue Mountain Outfitters and look at a Nova Craft PAL in Royalex Lite with White Ash gunwales. Now, this is a pretty boat: one glance down the sheer line explains why boats are always referred to as "she." The PAL seems almost eager to show off her maker's workmanship. All details point to a canoe that would be easy to live with and easy to maintain. Done deal.

I've paddled the PAL a few times now. It is a very nimble canoe, tracks well, and gives very good glide. This would certainly not be my first choice as a platform for time-lapse nature photography, but this canoe gives it's paddler a strong feeling that leaning over will be met by a reassuring amount of resistance. She is simply very well behaved---as one would expect given her fine reputation established long ago by the Chestnut Canoe Company.

The amount of time involved with oiling the gunwales (and the special winter maintenance made necessary due to the combination of wood and Royalex) seem well worth the effort – considering the beauty of natural wood. I hope to never own any boat that doesn't have at least a little wood to look at and feel.

I'll rate the Nova Craft PAL a 9 confident that I don't know enough about canoes to claim to recognize perfection after just a few dances.

I had a choice between the Pal and the Prospector so I called the manufacturer and talked with them at length about my intended use; river tripping with interspersed lakes and Class I-II about 15% of the time. They recommended I go with the Pal. It's lighter, faster on the flats, and turns well enough and sheds waves well enough to use it for moderate whitewater. It's lower ends and less rocker means it is less affected by the wind, too.

I brought the boat home and talked a friend of mine into entering a downriver race. We practiced an hour or two then showed up at the race and took third place in our division. Our time was 1 hour and 34 minutes for the 9.5 mile course, which had several Class II rapids. That is just under 6 mph. The winner only beat us by 7 minutes so I felt pretty justified in buying the canoe for fast wilderness tripping.

The fit and finish on the canoe is good, the seats are bootlaced and the rails are vinyl. The yoke is carved but tended to slip off my shoulders so I added a 1/4 inch minicell pad. I think the back seat is too far back for level trim. The front seat is already far enough forward and going any farther forward would cramp the bow paddlers legs. So I installed a minicell saddle about 2 feet in front of the rear seat and leveled the boat right out. There isn't much rocker so it takes some effort to make a snappy turn. Its important to line up early for the rapids and have a good line picked. Leaning helps. We did a few turns with an off side lean like in a sea kayak and the stern-skid turns were pretty impressive. No doubt the Prospector would be a better choice if the rapids are big and confused and long, but for most rivers that I travel the Pal is an excellent choice and the advantage of speed and ease of paddling outweighs the need for running an occasional tight rapid. I look forward to updating this review at the end of the season after I've put a good many miles on the Pal.