Portage at Chute du Calcaire, Rivière Caniapiscau. Prospector 16' (red)

and  SuperNova (green). 50 days of pure pleasure with great expedition canoes.

Thanks Nova Craft!        -Martin Gagnon & Louis-David Durocher

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My wife and I have been enjoying our 16' Prospector in a Kevlar/Spectra

layup since June. We bought our Nova Craft Prospector at the Paddle Shack here
in Ottawa where we live. We've gone on two medium length expeditions into  

Algonquin park and many day trips with the canoe now and I must say she is the
finest handling canoe I've ever paddled. 
            In appreciation for the great job Nova Craft does in making such fine
 canoes I've attached two images of the canoe in action one image was taken

just last week (Sept. 09, ’09) in the Achray region of Algonquin Park. The

second image is from our first expedition in June to  Big Crow Lake in Algonquin Park.

Thank you again for such a wonderful canoe.           - Mark Dalpe

Photo 1 2

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Reported on Nova Crafts 17' Blue Steel Prospector Canoe back in June.

Since then my wife Barbara and some friends paddled two of them for 45 days

and 1000 km down the Dubawnt River and Thelon River to Baker Lake in Nunavut.

We ran rapids, paddled big lakes, dragged over ice and every landing the heavily

loaded canoes were dragged over rocks, gravel and sand. The scratching looks

horrific but in no way is the integrity of the canoes compromised. Their handling

qualities were superb both in rapids and storm tossed lakes. They are singularly

the best tripping canoe that Barbara and I have ever paddled. Blue Steel made

with Nova Craft’s  Infusion Process is definitely the way to go. They are both light

and incredibly strong.    They are aptly named.         -George D

web site

             In the summer I am a back country ranger in the Grand Tetons National

 Park in Wyoming.  I paddle the Cronje on patrol over Leigh Lake which is a three

 by three mile lake in the back country at the mouth of two  steep canyons.

The top of those canyons is 12,000 feet and wind out of the West can

come up at very high speed with very little notice.  The Cronje sheds the wind

better than any tandem canoe I have used and tracks nicely with the speed

sufficient to get our work done in a timely fashion. Sometimes we have to be

somewhere fast and the Cronje gets that done better than any other canoe we

have used.  A very nice workhorse lake canoe with nice style making it fun to work

in and with.  You have a satisfied customer in the Tetons who shows your wares off

 daily to the various campers in back country sites that we patrol by water.  So many

other boats going slowly or getting blown around.

Just one Cronje getting there safely, on time and with style.  Nice!        -Peter

I'm totally impressed with my boat, as is my canoeing partner, and

anyone who happens to see it. When we landed at the French Lake takeout

after a week in Quetico last September, the park warden was there.. He took

pictures of my boat and then was kind enough to open the visitor's center to

let us see the Centennial Cronje you donated to the park.

By the way, he thought my boat was prettier!  :-)             -Ed De Young

Photo 1  2  3  4

We love our Cronje.  Trim is perfect when I paddle in the rear and my

girlfriend and the dog ride up front.  Here is a picture from the St. Croix River

on the WI-MN border, June 2009.                 -Scott Peckham

Photo 1   2 

Just finished my first season with my new Haida canoe, and I'm very

impressed. I purchased the canoe in the new Blue Steel material, which is a

Carbon Fiber/Kevlar/Spectra composite. I highly recommend spending the extra

bucks for this material. The canoe weights in at only 50 pounds (I added the

optional skid plates which add about 5 pounds), and the resulting lightness,

rigidity and strength, not to mention beauty, are well worth it.

As one of the few canoe designs (from any manufacturer) with a flat

bottom, this is easily the most stable canoe I've ever tried, so it's perfect for a

family with a 22 month old! The straight keel and 17' length also contribute to

the stability. I was surprised, however, at the maneuverability - not as easy to

turn as shorter canoes with a more pronounced rocker, but quite good nevertheless.

I'm sure I wouldn't have trouble in any kind of water. Due to the lightness of the

canoe, the wind definitely affects the tracking when it's lightly loaded, but I found

it very manageable, even in the stiff breezes on the inland lake that I spent time on.

The asymmetrical design and rigidity of the material make for a very

fast canoe. I had test-paddled both the Tripper and Prospector before trying the

Haida, and was surprised when the Haida beat both designs in stability and speed

(it's maneuverability that suffers with this design, but as I said, it's a very fair trade

for me).

I purchased my canoe with the optional wood (ash) trim. Against the blue/black

hull material, this makes for the most beautiful canoe you'll set eyes on (not especially

important, I know, but a nice bonus). The wood trim does require additional maintenance

(periodic oiling), but it's not a big deal unless you use the canoe every day. The yoke,

as advertised, truly is comfortable without any padding. Due to a recent shoulder injury,

though, I also purchased the yoke pad, but found it unnecessary except for longer portages.

Finally, the people at Nova Craft were wonderful to work with. I bought the canoe

directly from them - they custom built the canoe on pretty short notice, and allowed me a

chance to try the final product out before committing to the purchase. I even received email

photos of the canoe in production the week before I went to pick it up. These are people

that are dedicated to producing an excellent product for a fair price, and they work hard

to bring you back for future business. I highly recommend them, and the Haida.

                                                        - Jonas M 

 I have a royalite Pal. I previously had a 16' Novacraft Prospector.
For my use, the Pal fits me much better. I don't do heavy whitewater, and

 for everything else I like the Pal better. It's noticeably lighter, narrower

which makes faster and easier tandem and solo paddling, less freeboard to

be caught by the wind. It has less rocker and has a flatter bottom, so it's not

quite as good at extreme heals and spins. I installed a slanted kneeling seat

behind the front seat facing backwards and paddle it Canadian style a lot

that way. Paddled that way it could be a good high capacity solo tripper.

 It also poles well. I think it is an excellent choice for an all around canoe,

particularly if you want to solo a lot.                   - rblturtle

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