I love that you bring us along and share these experiences for others to learn from. Not everyone has a happy Paddlin shed in their neighborhood, and that makes these videos invaluable.
Great evening on the river, and great canoes, Ethan. Thank you very much again for making the test paddle work!!! The Phoenix fit me like a glove! Northstar calls it good for rivers and lakes. I suspect there isn't much give one arena to the another. I have paddled many other canoes, and I would put the Phoenix pretty much at 50/50, or good for whatever you through at it. Great mix between agility and speed! For lighter weight paddlers that travel with nimble gear, the NW Solo might be a smidge easier to handle, but I don’t fit in that category, and I appreciated the higher kneeling position.
Hi Ralph, Thanks for the great comments. Ya have a heck of a strong paddle stroke. Was fun watching these canoes jump off the line when you hit the forward button! Appreciate you starring in this one!
Wish I'd seen this video 6 months ago! I had a chance to buy a 3 year old Northwind Solo for $950 but the owner describes it as tippy. Enjoyed watching your client paddle…'tis always good to see someone with a refined stroke that seemed very similar to what we here in Maine call a North Woods style.
So I badly want a solo canoe before next summer, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be either Northwind Solo or a Magic. Still very curious about Swift Keewaydin and Placid Rapidfire. Question - that NW Solo with Blacklite and E6 is BEAUTIFUL. Is it worth the added cost? How much more structurally rigidity does BL give you, and does the E6 make it weight competitive with the SL? Worth the price?
The E6 does shave a couple lbs off and gets back to StarLite Alum weight but with the stiff feel of double Carbon. You feel the difference between StarLite and BlackLite on the water for sure. I love wood trim too. A personal long ownership solo of mine is not going to have alum trim…just my preference. I don’t mind Alum trim on my utility tripping tandems or ww/river-runners. But for my touring solos I like wood or the no maintenance/light weight E6.
Curious, why the phoenix over the northwind? Thanks for the replies and content, I have been going through pretty much every video you have related to northstar. I found you via your echo review, then you answered a question of mine and mentioned ixp. An ixp search led me to northstar and what a coincidence, that led me back to you. Appreciate you and your content
Bear from Northstar says it best the Phoenix is for rivers and lakes (the first/rivers being the priority). And the Northwind solo is for lakes and rivers. More rocker in the Phoenix. A bit more stable. And easier in small rivers to manage and maneuver. The NW Solo could work too if your rivers were bigger with less quick moves required.
Durability question Ethan- I’ve got a white gold NW Solo, before they stopped doing them. How aggressive or not should I be with river paddling? Im tracking that Cl 3 is no place for it. But I think I’ve seen you in some maybe Cl 2 stuff with a starlight….
StarLite, BlackLite and Whitegold will all see damage (but in a slightly different way) if you take a loaded impact on sharp rocks. The outer skin coat resins will chip or get little fractures first. Then, with heavier impacts, you can flex the lamination and you see some light colored “stretch marks” on the inside. StarLite will do this first and Whitegold is less likely to do so (I think it may be stouter than BlackLite under some hits). Pretty unlikely to fracture all the way through a Whitegold unless you pin and fill/strain. The outer resin hits are easy fixes so I basically don’t care about those (as you saw in vid w StarLite). Bigger flex hits might need a little glass reinforcing which is easy but a bit more noticeable. So…if I’m on a class 2/3 run and I see deep water routes I know I can hit then I would run Whitegold. But, if I’m not sure, I’m carrying. And, my comfort level with the sound of my canoe slamming into rocks may be a bit higher than yours after having trailer flips and airborne canoes in windy parking lots. My first Bell…I babied it!
@@HappyPaddlin great, thanks, that makes sense. I have an old Royalex Old Town Hunter (14ft) that I often take on the river so I don’t beat up the precious Solo😁. But I suspected that I was babying it slightly. Heck, if I’m going to put my nerves fully at ease, just gonna need another boat…
@@carllamb1565 IXP = Me never paddling a plastic canoe again ;) The stuff is amazing and stronger than Royalex and definitely more fun to paddle. I've split Royalex boats open right at the bow and stern with good impacts. But....always good to love the canoes you have too! Have a great season!
Do you mind sharing how much Ralph weighs? He looks to weight a bit more than you. I'm 250 lbs during Quetico/BWCA season and am investigating solo options. Also, I'll look on your channel but I've never been able to kneel in a canoe due to my knees, but that padding you have on the bottom along with the padding you have on your seat looks interesting. If you have not done a video (I'll look) on that yet, could you?
I have a Firebird in StarLite and have paddled it hard in moving water w lava rocks here. It’s doing pretty well. I like it light and am prepared to have to touch up later if need be!
I love that you bring us along and share these experiences for others to learn from. Not everyone has a happy Paddlin shed in their neighborhood, and that makes these videos invaluable.
Thank you for this, I’m on the east coast and have the solo canoe bug. This has helped me in my research.
Great evening on the river, and great canoes, Ethan. Thank you very much again for making the test paddle work!!!
The Phoenix fit me like a glove! Northstar calls it good for rivers and lakes. I suspect there isn't much give one arena to the another. I have paddled many other canoes, and I would put the Phoenix pretty much at 50/50, or good for whatever you through at it. Great mix between agility and speed! For lighter weight paddlers that travel with nimble gear, the NW Solo might be a smidge easier to handle, but I don’t fit in that category, and I appreciated the higher kneeling position.
Hi Ralph, Thanks for the great comments. Ya have a heck of a strong paddle stroke. Was fun watching these canoes jump off the line when you hit the forward button! Appreciate you starring in this one!
Wish I'd seen this video 6 months ago! I had a chance to buy a 3 year old Northwind Solo for $950 but the owner describes it as tippy. Enjoyed watching your client paddle…'tis always good to see someone with a refined stroke that seemed very similar to what we here in Maine call a North Woods style.
I have the Phoenix in IXP. Great boat! The design of this is ideal for what I use it for ( primarily in local river ). I
Great review Ethan...and thanks to you I own the Phoenix and totally love it...!!
Thanks for the video. It answered my question about tracking.
My pleasure, thanks for watching. NW solo has better glide too. Phoenix has a bit more kneeling room and fuller around the paddler imo.
I'm gonna have to try more cannoeing this week
So I badly want a solo canoe before next summer, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be either Northwind Solo or a Magic. Still very curious about Swift Keewaydin and Placid Rapidfire. Question - that NW Solo with Blacklite and E6 is BEAUTIFUL. Is it worth the added cost? How much more structurally rigidity does BL give you, and does the E6 make it weight competitive with the SL? Worth the price?
The E6 does shave a couple lbs off and gets back to StarLite Alum weight but with the stiff feel of double Carbon. You feel the difference between StarLite and BlackLite on the water for sure. I love wood trim too. A personal long ownership solo of mine is not going to have alum trim…just my preference. I don’t mind Alum trim on my utility tripping tandems or ww/river-runners. But for my touring solos I like wood or the no maintenance/light weight E6.
Which would you recommend for fishing small lakes and small rivers? No whitewater, just typical riffles and fast spots on some areas.
Phoenix!
Curious, why the phoenix over the northwind? Thanks for the replies and content, I have been going through pretty much every video you have related to northstar. I found you via your echo review, then you answered a question of mine and mentioned ixp. An ixp search led me to northstar and what a coincidence, that led me back to you. Appreciate you and your content
Bear from Northstar says it best the Phoenix is for rivers and lakes (the first/rivers being the priority). And the Northwind solo is for lakes and rivers.
More rocker in the Phoenix. A bit more stable. And easier in small rivers to manage and maneuver. The NW Solo could work too if your rivers were bigger with less quick moves required.
Thanks for the feedback and watching the vids. More coming now that the busy busy summer is behind me.
Durability question Ethan- I’ve got a white gold NW Solo, before they stopped doing them. How aggressive or not should I be with river paddling? Im tracking that Cl 3 is no place for it. But I think I’ve seen you in some maybe Cl 2 stuff with a starlight….
StarLite, BlackLite and Whitegold will all see damage (but in a slightly different way) if you take a loaded impact on sharp rocks. The outer skin coat resins will chip or get little fractures first. Then, with heavier impacts, you can flex the lamination and you see some light colored “stretch marks” on the inside. StarLite will do this first and Whitegold is less likely to do so (I think it may be stouter than BlackLite under some hits). Pretty unlikely to fracture all the way through a Whitegold unless you pin and fill/strain. The outer resin hits are easy fixes so I basically don’t care about those (as you saw in vid w StarLite). Bigger flex hits might need a little glass reinforcing which is easy but a bit more noticeable. So…if I’m on a class 2/3 run and I see deep water routes I know I can hit then I would run Whitegold. But, if I’m not sure, I’m carrying. And, my comfort level with the sound of my canoe slamming into rocks may be a bit higher than yours after having trailer flips and airborne canoes in windy parking lots. My first Bell…I babied it!
@@HappyPaddlin great, thanks, that makes sense. I have an old Royalex Old Town Hunter (14ft) that I often take on the river so I don’t beat up the precious Solo😁. But I suspected that I was babying it slightly. Heck, if I’m going to put my nerves fully at ease, just gonna need another boat…
@@carllamb1565 IXP = Me never paddling a plastic canoe again ;) The stuff is amazing and stronger than Royalex and definitely more fun to paddle. I've split Royalex boats open right at the bow and stern with good impacts. But....always good to love the canoes you have too! Have a great season!
Do you mind sharing how much Ralph weighs? He looks to weight a bit more than you. I'm 250 lbs during Quetico/BWCA season and am investigating solo options. Also, I'll look on your channel but I've never been able to kneel in a canoe due to my knees, but that padding you have on the bottom along with the padding you have on your seat looks interesting. If you have not done a video (I'll look) on that yet, could you?
I'm looking on your site and I see the seat pad with saddlebags. I have zero experience in using those with a padding for kneeling.
Essential Canoe Gear and Hacks for Your New Boat with Happy Paddlin
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I’d guess around 210-220lbs. Taller and bigger than me for sure.
@@HappyPaddlin Thanks!
Phoenix in starlight? Must be flat water paddling. IXP has been bomb proof for me. Not that much heavier either. Feels light compared to my Delphin.
I have a Firebird in StarLite and have paddled it hard in moving water w lava rocks here. It’s doing pretty well. I like it light and am prepared to have to touch up later if need be!
But understand each to their own! And IXP is awesome and my Phoenix is in that lay-up.