Prospector 16

After the long winter of 2013-2014 waiting for My new Prospector 17, May 25 it arrived and was delivered by Mr. Bill Swift Himself to Our agreed pickup point in Saranac Lake, N.Y.. It was a delightful Summer of 100 miles of paddling and I learned a lot about having this very fine canoe. One apprehension I had early on was that for a solo paddler I might have bought to large a canoe. I really did want the larger 17 as I felt it would market easier if and when I ever decided to sell and one way or the other I would make this longer canoe work for Me. I has and I could not be more pleased.

I have the sage barracuda two tone with a white champagne bottom. The rails are carbon kevlar with the cherry trim tops. Because the canoe is symmetrical, it was a very easy thing to sit on the front sliding seat facing rearward. I adjust that front sliding seat so the nearby thwart is just under the bend in My knees and My seating position on the seat is right at the seats canter. There is absolutely no need to kneel and have a kneeling thwart put in, or heaven forbid, intall a canter seat which would not work at all. My solution is working very well.

I have had no problem at all reaching the water with My paddle and I would not change a thing. It seems to Me that it's all just exactly by design and that I'm not just making the best of things. I have a dry bag at the opposite end with about 40# of water in it and the Prospector is just a very small bit above level exactly where I want it. If You are a solo paddler and would like the 17# foot Prospector, this system works very well. Actually, I have removed the yoke and rebolted it in reverse. What I now have is a Prospector with a stern sliding seat. In 5 minutes the arrangement can be changed back to the way it was made and ready for tandem.

I had been using a 14' Voyageur fiberglass canoe, prior to purchasing the Prospector. The reason for the switch was looking for more stable canoe. I purchased a Kevlar canoe with wood seats, yoke and gunnuels.

Pros:-light weight, -stable, -handles waves well (1m)

Cons: -tracking requires close attention (to be expected no keel), -hardware (nuts and bolts) not water resistance. (suggest replacing with brass or stainless steel), -capacity

I was pleasantly surprised at how well it handled waves. I was in a large lake with waves over a meter and just ignored them when navigating across the lake. I was surprised (should not been) at tracking. The canoe does not have a keel, so tracking has to be paid close attention too.

Turning was neither a negative or positive, I found it to be good, nothing special. I was a little surprised at capacity. It is not able to carry more weight than my old 14' which was a surprise. I personally would like the seats to be a little lower. This is just a personal preference.

All in all this is a good canoe and the criticisms are all small.

My wife and I just spent 3 days canoe camping in the Adirondacks with the Swift Prospector 16 we special ordered through Mountainman Outfitters in Old Forge, NY. I want to take this opportunity to compliment the Swift staff for a well done job that produced an incredibly well built boat. The craftsmanship, attention to detail and level of quality that went into the construction of this boat is greatly appreciated. Also, David Yost deserves kudos for a boat design that more than lives up to the legendary Prospector’s reputation.

At 40 pounds, our Kevlar Fusion boat was a real pleasure to portage (if portaging could ever be a pleasure). The hull construction, especially in conjunction with the integral Carbon Kevlar gunnels, makes this an extremely robust and rigid boat. It has excellent tracking capability for a 16 footer and slices through water with the speed of a much longer boat. It's ability to turn on a dime worked very well on backcountry creeks and it has remarkable stability in the heavy waters on the open lakes, especially when loaded. Even though this boat has more than enough room for two people and a week's worth of gear, it is also a joy to paddle solo.

We are delighted with the purchase of this boat. While I know there is no such thing as the perfect canoe for all conditions, I firmly believe this boat comes close.