On 19-Apr-2004, John Smith wrote:

BTW, I should admit that I haven't canoed in years, since sea kayaking has
taken over. I don't miss canoeing much - or at least, I don't miss the
idiot in the front seat :-). The only thing I miss while sea kayaking
is the ease of portaging my way away from the crowds (and power boats).

To be honest, I haven't done extensive solo in any canoe
recently, but I figure that a 17' (or more) may be a handful at time, at
least more so than a shorter canoe.

It can depend on the canoe. I did a lot of solo paddling in the old days
and found that a good 17' canoe is easier to handle than a poor 15-16'.
If you are talking about a solo canoe (i.e. single seat like the Osprey)
then 15-16' is standard. But for a double, even 17 is not too much
to handle solo if well designed.

It seems very light, although it doesn't seem
like it would appreciate being banged into a rock.

If Kevlar, it can be quite tough even though light.

This canoe has no keel,

Keels affect tracking, not stability. Many canoes get their tracking
stiffness from the bow and stern shape, so the keel is not critical.
The advantage of this design is that they track well but still turn
easily.

so when I first used it, I thought it felt 'tippy'. After awhile,
I got used to it and find the canoe much more stable than the red one,
especially when you lean over the side, say, to unhook a fish! I guess
that's the Primary/Secondary stability.

Correct. Good secondary is more important than high primary.

Mike