Sandpiper

Great solo canoe! I've owned my Spruce Royalex for years and am completely satisfied. As a "senior" I appreciate the light weight which makes it possible to get the boat on and off the car roof easily and makes a portage simple.

Great canoe as is needs no modification's handle wind and class 3 and below rapids with ease. A highly responsive craft worthy of a top place amongst affordable ul kevlar hull

I just bought a sandpiper in Kevlar ultralight and had my first tour today on flat water, but stormy weather with changing winds up to 8 bf. My dealer said it would be too small for my 200 pd at 5'9", but he was wrong. The boat handled just the way I wanted it; much better than my prism kev., which would turn around like hell. If the wind grabs it, I can turn it back into direction with one single stroke (I used a werner ikelos kayak-paddle, which is an extremely powerful paddle). So I don´t know why wenonah stopped the production of this nice little boat. Try it, if you can get one.

First of all, the Sandpiper, it even says right in the brochure, is not designed for two things:- Carrying Gear- WhitewaterSo, if you are doing those things with a Sandpiper, wrong boat for the job. I have an older Royalex Sandpiper with the higher seat (Mines an 02, 03s have a much lowered seat and a thwart right behind the seat, similar to the Bell Rob Roy from what I gather), which I like because as you kneel in the boat Bill Mason 'Canoe Bad Ass' style, it provides more manuverability, and you can tuck in a bit under the seat. Also, sitting kneeling is more comforatable with the higher seat if you have big feet. I've also tried the Sandpiper with the new seat, and much prefer the 'old' style. The boat simply performs. When leaned up on edge, I can keep up with 14'-18' Kayaks being paddled by competent paddlers, because the water line of the boat is so tiny. (Literally 4-6" wide, an inch or two deep, and 12' long) Granted, in wind and waves this position is not possible, but it is more fun on flat water than could possibly be legal. When the going gets tough I shift back into the seat, knees out and I've got a rock solid platform. I don't even hesitate to stand up in this boat, if you've got the balance, it's a stable craft.I never thought I'd own a canoe, but after trying dozens as I learned solo\\freestyle technique, I came back to this boat over and over, and had to have one. If you stay in the seat more than not, you probably want to consider the Vagabond; more weight carrying capacity, more speed, and it will take whitewater better. However, I found the Vagabond simply does not perform when leaned up on it's edge... It was a combination of me not being able to find the 'sweet spot' and the boat not wanting to stay edged. Finally, if you are a canoeist considering purchasing a kayak, give a Sandpiper a shot! 38lbs, much lighter than most poly kayaks, a great price, easy to handle, and if you're older, a breeze to get in and out of. Not only that, but you can paddle it with a kayak paddle in high winds to help yourself along! (But don't admit it to any of your friends.)

Well I wanted to wait until I spent some time in my sandpipper before I gave a review.I have been canoeing for over 25 years lakes,rivers,etc..and never been dumped, but I came very close the first time I tryed to paddle this one [ first solo boat] it was very tippy until I droped the seat down 2.5 inches, this helped alot.I use a wood yak paddle and this little boat moves!It is fast and turns on a dime,easy to stay on track with a yak-paddle it gets in and out of tight spots with ease.Im glad that I gave it chance before I took it back to [oak orchard canoe] I just needed time to get used to a skinny canoe. It's a very fine looking boat and I love passing kayak's and small powerboats on the lake. the light weight roylex lay up makes portaging a simple and easy task.I will update after a light weight trip down the Allegany river- (c:I-II) this summer.

Since I've only paddled it a few times in the 3 weeks since I bought it I can't give a total review of the boat. But I marvel at the light weight and low cost of the boat. This is the third royalex boat I've had and I'd like to warn people that the sandpiper's outerskin is very thin and prone to scratching, unlike the other two I've owned. What I would advise is that you select the alaskan ivory (offwhite) color rather than the green. The lighter boat will not show the scratches nearly as much. I know of no other boat that sells in the neighborhood of 600 bucks that weighs so little and performs so well.

A nice little canoe. I was looking for a solo canoe to use when I couldn't drag a family member out of bed to use our tandems (a Spirit II and Jensen). I test paddled several canoes including a Kevlar Mad River Independance and a couple other Wenonah boats -- this was going to be my last resort (I thought that for it's price, it wasn't going to be all that great). I was wrong. It's stable, easy to paddle and amazingly manuverable(and I had never soloed before).

Three cheers for Wenonah -- another great canoe to add to it's ranks!