With no moving parts, canoes seem simple and the same but for color and length. After a while it is evident that hull materials and dimensions influence how these structures respond to the forces we apply and the environments we use them. In a day when devices with algorithms interface with and conform to you, the canoe is an implement that forces you to interact with and conform to it.
In the verbal alchemy of the English language, I have discovered the phrase "polyethylene canoe" to be a byword for undesirable. With this understanding, Dottie and I drove to Rockport, Texas, on January 1, 2022 to look at a used Mad River Journey 167. After a test run we paid for it, put it on the van and drove home.
I wanted to get to know this boat before posting an article about a polyethylene canoe. With specifications of this model and opinions on polyethylene canoes available elsewhere, I decided to use fewer words and more pictures in my review.
The picture above and below are of the initial run in January 2022. Dave and I used the Armand Bayou system. This day the tide was low. On this water, tidal flow determines the stream direction. If you want to see alligators, the best time is when the tide is out. To minimize interaction with these socialized creatures, hit the Armand on the high tide.
February 2022 I took two of my kids down a small Texas stream: the South Llano River. Images from that enjoyable trip are below.
Small streams can offer surprisingly big experiences. Sometimes small waters are more remote and isolated than larger streams.
Like many small streams this river is frequently shallow. The hull durability was appreciated on the rocky South Llano River.
Our put in was the South Llano River State Park. Take out was the Flatrock Lane Bridge in Junction, Texas. This class 1 rapid river is action packed!
In April Dave and I took the Journey on another small Texas stream, the upper San Bernard River. There are no rapids on this piece, or probably any other part of the San Bernard. On this river my acquaintance with this canoe grew.
Lining as much as we paddled we didn't make many miles, but it was a great trip. Getting in and out of the canoe many times, the Journey's stability became apparent. We didn't fear of loss of life or gear, but the stability was a comfort!
Also in April, Geoff and I made a trip on the South Llano. On this second trip we started about eleven river miles upstream from the state park. Still a class 1 stream, this part was more technical. This was about as much whitewater as our skills and this canoe were comfortable with. The pictures below are from the second trip.
The Journey has the durability for the white water but is happiest in flatter waters.
Due to a bridge and the streams smallness we lined and portaged the canoe several times.
In May, Dave and I took the Mad River back to the brackish flatwater of Armand Bayou.
We went to the lower part of Armand Bayou. The tide was up. I wanted to see how the canoe behaved in the larger, open waters of Mud Lake. It did fine.
For the Columbus Paddling Trail the Journey 167 was ideal. A more dynamic water than Armand Bayou and larger than the South Llano or San Bernard, the Colorado offered another testing opportunity. The pictures below are the run Dave and I made in August 2022.
During the 2022 drought this part of the Colorado remained staged in the mid to low nines. That made for a boney run. I guess some of the riffles could be considered a non technical class 1? Maybe? As on the South Llano the low waters of the Colorado sometimes converted the Mad River from a canoe into a sled.
In crunching over gravel bars and knocking the crests off sandbars I don't worry about this boat. Rocks and stumps only lightly scratch the Mad River.
October that year Bob and I made a tour of the same paddling trial. Those pictures are below. The river was a bit lower than in August.
The pictures below are of Spring Creek, April of 2023. We launched at Carter Park and landed at Jessie H. Jones Park. Staged in the mid 73s, we skipped over sandbars, skidded across some gravel patches and ground to a stop several places. We lined the canoe a half dozen times.
Lunch on Cypress Creek with a homemade stick stove. We were just upstream of the confluence into Spring Creek.
I outfitted this canoe with a lashing system. The low cost of the used canoe allowed me the courage to drill the holes for the laces.
The lashing system has grown on me. When I take a canoe without the tie downs, I miss them. Maybe I'll add some D-rings. I'll figure out what I like and don't like and install them on my other canoe.
Mostly I casually use the lashing system. I clip my cell phone or secure my back pack to the paracord stretched across the laces. Recently I used this canoe on an overnight river camping trip.
I plan on improving my tie downs and river luggage.
I am learning a specialized canoes are not usually not required. The notion of lining or portaging a class 2 or 3 rapid in a flat water canoe and continuing the trip is refreshing. This is in the context of using gear in diverse environments, not a misuse of equipment or an excessive application of ignorance. It comes from more experienced canoeist than me.
Sometimes days after a canoe trip I realize I experienced a quintessential moment. In those moments I was striving for a milestone, admiring a wildflower, thrilling at the sight of a bald eagle, coyote, beaver, catfish or gar. On my last overnight trip, I spent the second day listening to the pelt of rain on the trees and water. Near continuous thunder heightened my awareness of the environment. When the storm intensified thoughts of the Journey canoe were drowned by the rain, wind, rolling waves and cracking trees. A bald eagle guided us through the worst of the storm. Believe it or not I was studying that bird's movement and pattern more than anything else in the moment!
I have a few observations on the Mad River Journey 167.
This canoe has low peaks. It catches less wind in gusty situations.
This canoe has no rocker I can measure. It tracks straight.
These canoes have a single brace, the carrying yoke. I like that.
This the the stiffest plastic canoe I have paddled. It does not oil can.
This canoe is the toughest canoe I have paddled.
The canoe is heavy. Some videos taught me new ways to pick up and set down heavy canoes.
This is a comfortable and stable canoe.
My takeaway?
For me, it's an excursion canoe. Part of the Dictionary.com definition of excursion is,
"a short trip or outing to some place, usually for a special purpose and with the intention of a prompt return: a pleasure excursion; a scientific excursion."
My canoe trips are excursions. They are outings with special purpose, including plans to return to society. Someday I will enlarge my orbits and make an odyssey. Maybe I will use a exhibition canoe for those trips. Or maybe I will extend the service of the Journey 167. In the meantime my excursions will continue.
I've had over a year to figure this canoe out. If there was ONE thing I could change, it would be to make it turn easier.
Thanks for reading!
Scott Moore
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