Solo Plus

The description tells you what is needed to know about this canoe. Here are some of my experiences. My friend and I use this canoe to harvest wild rice. I'm 6' tall ~150#s and she is 5'4" tall 120#s. There is enough room for me to stand flat footed behind the rear seat and use a push pole. It's also stable enough (25+ years of experience standing in tiny boats) for me to sit on a mini ice-cube cooler set behind the rear seat (legs over the rear seat) or even right on the stern deck. When propelled in the normal tandem configuration both of our seating positions are comfortable. However, taller folk may have issues with bent legs and high knees. In addition, wider folks may not enjoy the amount of tumblehome.

One major thing to note is the tradeoff you make between maneuverability and tracking with a canoe that has zero rocker. Two experienced paddlers will be able to go down a medium paced winding river with enjoyment but it's still difficult to turn the bow.

There aren't many reviews about the mid "solo" seat being used for a third paddler. I took a float down river with a similar sized adult in the front and a twitchy 8 year old (100+ pounder) in the middle. The lack of rocker was very noticeable paired with their inexperience but we never flipped! Our straight away speed was unmatched. Coordinated stopping, reversing and sharp turning was still relatively easy.

Have yet to take it out solo but I can only imagine with the proper trim it will maneuver well down river from the stern and track beautifully when desired.

Aramid is light and easy to load for me alone.

The Solo Plus is in a category that is hard to compare with other canoes. So I give it a 5 out of 5 for the versatility category. However, it's more like a 3 out of 5 if you try and compare it to a similar design. Just needs a little rocker...

Received this as a gift 15 years ago from my wife. I think I will keep her! I initially used this for canoe camping, heavily loaded with gear. It was OK for that, but a little narrow to haul huge loads. I found it to be on the tippy side, but after I lowered the seats 2 1/2" it was better. Not having a distinct keel it is difficult for beginner paddlers to track a straight line. I have laughed my head of watching the crew fight each other as they snake along. Eventually, this became my preferred solo boat. Leaving just the center seat it could haul sufficient gear, my 65lb. dog and me for a five day camping trip. Without a load it is a dream to paddle, although with the 16' 6" length it would struggle in high winds. Pros: -Versatile seat arrangements(nice solo boat) -Easy to paddle and glide -Manageable weight Cons: -Difficult for beginners to track straight -Seats too high for stability(fixable) -Marginal hauling capacity

When paddled solo with my 175lbs and gear (tackle, rods, small cooler) I know it is loaded well over 200lbs. My only complaint is that the stern tends to stick. I believe I have my cargo loaded in a neutral position, I have found I gain the most control with the center seat high in back, low in front, feet braced against the Wenonah footbrace. From this position, even with substantial side heeling, the stern makes a swooshing noise as it sticks in moderate current. I paddle with a 250cm kayak paddle, I will be going longer in the future.

The canoe paddles well upstream and handles dam tailwater waves easily. As a tandem it is adequate, it paddles nicely with with my 8 year old boy, loading properly to balance weight, J-strokes nicely in this configuration. I have 2 friends I fish with regularly and while a hair twitchy the Solo-Plus is acceptable for this use, they are of similar weight to me, and the craft is only suitable for downriver use as the load is too much for good upriver paddling. I have a third friend that has fused vertibrae in his lower back, with his inability to keep his upper body vertical with the movement of the canoe, this canoe is just to twitchy at this loading to be safe.

Overall I am happy with this canoe as I ask a lot from one boat. If it were designed just for me I would like a little rocker and some flare in the bow and stern (might not be possible in royalex)

All in all, a great boat for 1 or 2. We even canoe camp and take it thru the 1+ with 2 people and lots of gear 'cause canoe camping is about being comfortable!

As a tandem, I am fine with a rather lightish (130 pounder plus/minus) in front and with me in back, however, I have been in front with an inexperienced 230 pounder in back on a calm lake, and found the experience quite unsettling. The big guy can go solo in the middle seat, but don't put two together in this boat, in my opinion.

I like to use this boat to introduce people to canoes. The secondary stability is decent so that you can show them (soloing) about heeling the boat. It is also efficent enought that when your new paddler wears out, you are not too bogged down. I took two friends, my Solo Plus and my kayak on an 8 mile trip. I started in the kayak, I ended the last two miles paddling the canoe on my own and dragged the kayak with a friend in it, and I was still just cooking down the river (reletively with 300 LBS of dead weight and a kayak)

Mine is an Ultra Light and is an all around pleasure. The only thing I would want to improve it (in my eyes) would to be some rocker. I would easily recomend it to anyone with small children, or looking for a decent compromise boat. I am looking forward to haveing this boat for MANY years (I had better for the price I paid). The company's write ups on this boat are entirely accurate.

I bought a Solo Plus for my 7 and 9 year old boys late last year (ok, it's for me too). I thought it would be a good tandem for them since it is quite narrow at the ends and has no rocker making it easier to keep straight. The first time we had it out, I was in the center seat and they were in the ends. I did most of the "driving." I thought it would be kind of tough to turn with no rocker and each of them on the ends. I was surprised that it turned fairly easily (all things considered).

Next outing, I let them paddle by themselves in a fairly small class one creek. This is the first time they have ever been in a canoe by themselves. For those who would gasp, I knew what they were in for since just did it a few days before. We only did a few miles but they did absolutely great in the Solo Plus. There were lots of turns and a few small rapids and constant innocuous strainers along the banks. I was surprised at how well the boat responded to their strokes. At their weight, the bow and stern both responded instantly to their little draws and prys. They never hit a thing and were able to keep a very good line. It was really cool to watch.

I would recommend the Solo Plus for anyone who wants to introduce youngsters to canoeing. Not to mention, you have a decent solo for yourself as well. I can't really comment much about its solo ability yet since I only paddled it that way around 4 miles so far and am not used to it yet. But for youngsters going tandem, I'm extremely pleased.

The pluses: Overall it is extremely stable, especially with some weight in it. It is least stable with just me, most stable with me and 3 days of gear, and suprisingly stable with 2 people, 2 dogs and 3 days of gear. Wenonah does not recommend that much weight but I thought the Solo Plus handled it great! I did max out the waterline with that load. It tracks well but again, me plus some gear improves the tracking ability. (I am only 135 lbs. so I provide very little weight on my own.) It handles well on still water, especially when leaned, and adequately on moving water except in fast, imperative changes in direction. Very stable on choppy, windy water. Hull is very solid and stiff.

The minuses: Handles terribly in fast, emergency moves on moving water. I bashed several fallen trees that I could have avoided in my last canoe. But to be fair I am getting better with emergency manuevers as I practice more. The gel coat is VERY soft (I have Tuf-Weave) and in two major trips it already looks very worn and scratched. I really wish I had ordered the white instead of the green to hide some of these scratches. I will be putting skid plates on.

Nuetral: Weight-wise I do not find it too heavy or especially light. It was beautiful to look at but, as I said, is showing wear very quickly.

Overall: I really like this canoe; I think it is just as advertised. I remove either the center seat or tandem seats depending on the trip I'm taking and they are easy to install/uninstall. A great canoe for lakes and wide rivers but be prepared for some difficulty on narrow, twisty and tree-choked rivers.