Guide 119

I have always liked canoes better than kayaks but wanted a smaller canoe that would be easier to load and unload because I have back problems. Someone stole my discovery 158 a few months ago and I wanted to try a solo canoe. I bought the 119 guide and have been very satisfied. It tracks well, it isn't tippy, it paddles with a single paddle very well and is extremely maneuverae which is great in the small cover choked creeks that I fish. I can see someone using a kayak paddle with it but I haven't tried it because I like the easy of getting a single paddle out of my way. The plastic seat is the only con. It would be great too if the front was elevated a little. Your bottom tends to slide forward some. Maybe a shim or something could be put under it. The back rest feels fine also. Plenty of room for gear, I cant say anything bad really, nice craft. The only thing I would like to see is a yoke for portage. I really like it and would have give 5 stars if the seat didn't let my butt slide forward.

I bought my guide 119 in the spring of 2012. I have paddle it over a 1,000 in MS, AR, LA, AL. My husband and I paddle all year round and do several camping trips a year. (3-5 days up to 50 miles at times) I pack my guide 119 to the max with camping gear and still have plenty of room. I have paddled easily in class 1 and class 2 rapids with my packed canoe. It tracks well and I use a single blade 4 foot paddle. I am 5' 7". I love my "Little Red Canoe" and I am refered to as "The Lady in the Little Red Canoe" My husband paddles a dugout canoe he carved out of a poplar tree. He is referred to as "The Man in the Dugout Canoe" He is the one that recommended the old town guide 119 to me. We log all of our trips on Fb The Man in the Dugout Canoe.

The 119 is relatively new to me. Bought used 2011 model. It is well-made and sturdy for the most part. The material is thicker and considerably more stiff than the flimsy-feeling Royalex on the Old Town Pack canoe. The Pack has tons of flex when on the water, like the entire bottom flexes up a lot, where the Guide feels fairly rigid. The "penalty" is that the 119 is a little heavier. The Pack has lower sides and is easier to paddle because of it. The 119 has more protection from waves, being a bit taller above the water.

Neither tracks well. Unless using a J stroke, you pretty much need to switch sides every stroke or two. Indeed , these boats are better suited for a double bladed kayak paddle. J stroke works fine, as long as you are happy to zigzag forward at a snail pace (which could be enjoyable if one is after after a rather slow and relaxed paddling experience). A double-bladed paddle needs to be quite long, mainly because otherwise it needs to be held more vertically, the top blade crossing over the open canoe, and dripping a lot of water inside. For this reason (and because of the somewhat taller than ideal for doublebladed paddling gunwales I prefer to use a single blade with the 119.

The 119 is short and wide, so it is not fast by any standard. But at slow speeds seems to glide nicely and goes straight when I stop paddling, so it is nice to paddle.

The factory seat is too low to allow my feet to go under it comfortably for kneeling (even barefoot). The front of the seat flexes down and causes sliding forward. A comfortable position that does not cause sliding is cross-legged. The high back rest is sturdy and comfortable. The bottom of the seat is also comfortable, but the front needs to be shimmed up to prevent the sliding. I plan to raise the seat an inch or two and rise the front maybe 1/2" higher than the rear to eliminate the sliding. And add kneeling pads. There is plenty of stability for me to raise the seat and not feel tippy.

I am 200lb, 6'4" and I can stand-up on flat water in the 119, but it feels a bit too lively to trust it to paddle upright or do anything else standing. Maybe a short person could be more stable standing. As a reference, I stand-up paddle board on a slightly narrower SUP that feels more stable. And I am comfortable paddling 19 " wide surfskis. I can see how a novice paddler might feel the 119 is a bit lively at first or even flip it by leaning to the side in a way a self-respecting kayaker would never attemput:). Sitting down, the stability is very good for me, both initial and secondary. When the weather warms-up I will test the tipping point and if I can paddle it standing up with a SUP paddle.

If stored upside down in the sun, the bottom will form a concave line along the keel front to back, so best to store this kanoe in the shade or handing down from the front and back handle to keep it straight. Careful heating with a heat gun and loading to straighten the bottom reduced that concavity, but it is hard to completely undo what several years in the sun had done to my particular canoe.

The gunwales are sturdy and do not flex much.

The stock seat position I think is about right for me, even though the trim is a little lighter in the front this way. Moving the weight forward, I think worsens the tracking as it rises the stern and let's it wander more than ideal. I only paddle the 119 unloaded, so with added weight this might change.

I had a chance to buy a Pack for a very reasonable price just after I bought the 119. Test-paddled both, and kept the 119 - feels sturdier, more freeboard for rougher days, not that much heavier. I felt the Pack paddled ever so slightly nicer due to the lower sides, but the overly flexible construction with bottom that popping-up forming a concave surface with the water was not confidence-inspiring and a put-off for me.

I have owned my Guide 119 for two years now. I've had it out on the water 7 or 8 times. Before the 119, I was solo paddling an OT Discovery 158. Since the 119, I've gotten a OT Camper 15 and a couple of kayaks. Now the 119 is kind of the odd-man-out. However, I do plan to take it out next time.

Initial stability is ok, secondary is pretty good. I had it out on the river and was casually chatting with my buddy as I looked over my shoulder. Well, the bow wasn't pointed directly downstream, the keel caught a rock just under the surface, and I got dumped. In shallow rivers, it's important to always stay alert in the 119.

I took the 119 out in some class III rapids. There was one wave train about 75 yards long. When I got to the end, the boat was 1/3 full of water and I had a hard time getting it to shore and keeping it upright at the same time. Fortunately, my friend was already on the bank bailing water out of his Guide 119. Mine was much worse since I had the cooler and I weigh about 50 pounds more than him.

Overall, it's a good boat and easy to paddle all day. I would keep it in the class I-II water, and preferably deep enough to keep the keel off the rocks, or at least keep it pointed downstream in shallow water.

Old Town is in the process of helping me with the guide 147. Old town is a great product and I will continue to use old town as my canoe of choice.

Three mods will make this boat a pleasure to paddle:
1) We-no-nah adjustable footbrace
2) a flat strip of wood cut to fit under the gunwale at the boat's widest point, serving as a center thwart and allowing for a solo lift
3) a wedge of wood or plastic lumber which will drop the seat back 2", making for a more ergo seat and better paddling posture.