Sanborn Canoe - Gunflint Paddle Review

The sheer number of choices you have when choosing outdoor gear has grown to staggering heights. In a time where science and technology have invaded every facet of our lives, there is something refreshing about handling a product made from natural materials. Carbon fiber, Kevlar and fiberglass all promise increased strength and durability while reducing weight. These are all good things, but they seem remarkably alien when against the rugged backdrop of canoe country.

The guys over at Sanborn Canoe get this, while yet taking advantage of the advances available today, when appropriate. I had the opportunity to try out their Gunflint paddle this summer and it did not disappoint. This 14 degree bent-shaft paddle, designed to provide powerful strokes, helped me battle through some of the nastiest weather I have seen from inside a canoe.

When you first pick up the Gunflint you can’t help but notice how light it is. At just 18 ounces, it’s nearly 20% lighter than similar paddles from the major competitors. Strength was not an issue for this stick either. I banged it off of rocks and logs, pushed off boulders in the Horse River and used it as a third leg while trying to drag myself up a muddy rocky portage, all without any significant damage. An Epoxy blade tip, 4oz. fiberglass wrap and sparing use of epoxy add toughness without weight.

More importantly it still looks and feels like a wood paddle. It is not drenched in epoxy or marine varnish, allowing it to keep a warm natural feel. Made from red and white cedar, the color contrast in the laminates is great. Every inch of this paddle has been worked by hand and you can tell.

Not in love with the Gunflint design? Choose from any of Sanborn’s four other designs, or for a little extra you can get a custom paddle made just for you. They even have one for the kids…

MSRP: $125.00

Specifications:
Length: 48", 50”, 52", 54"(Custom lengths available upon request)
Average Weight: Avg. 18oz.
Blade Dimensions: 8 1/2" x 18"
Blade Thickness: 3/16”
Shaft Style: Bent Shaft: 14 Degree bend Indexed: 1 ¼” x 1 1/8”
Grip Style: Dedicated T-Grip
Grip Width: 3 1/2”
Wood Type: Western Red and White Cedar Laminated blade, 5-piece laminated shaft
Extra 1/4" epoxy blade tip
Blade is sheathed in 4oz. fiberglass and has three coats of epoxy
Entire paddle is coated in epoxy
Finished with SPARurethane to entire paddle
'Sanborn Canoe Co.' is branded onto one face of blade

Read More

New Balance 921’s – Water shoes built for the back-country

Always on the lookout for new footwear, I spotted the New Balance 921’s and I was instantly intrigued. Water shoes have always seemed like a great idea, but until recently they have been unable to deliver as one would hope. I have long been a fan of the New Balance Outdoor line of sneakers; they have been my cross-trainer of choice for as long as I can remember.

Navigating the steep, rocky portages and boulder lined waterways of the Boundary Waters would seem to be more than any shoe can handle. These are Hiking Boot conditions, right? Not necessarily. I wore a pair of 921’s for 5 days, in every condition imaginable, and only once did I wish I had waterproof boots on.

As my brother-in-law found out the hard way, most water shoes require you to wear socks to avoid blisters. I went both ways in the 921’s without even a sign of skin irritation, and I’ll tell you why. These things are never wet for more than a few seconds once you step out of the water. New Balance’s H2Flow water evacuation/drainage system gets rid of nearly every drop. The lining feels like a neoprene wet-suit and retains virtually no water. Wearing socks, when you are going to get wet, kind of defeats the purpose of wearing water shoes in the first place.

Razor siping and gnarly tread provide excellent traction on even the slickest creek beds. Your foot is fully protected from the elements, unlike the mesh upper construction of many water shoes. Where I did miss my hiking boots was on the muddy portage trails when there wasn’t a pool of clean water in sight. If you get mud and rocks in these, it will rinse out no problem, if you can find any clean water that is.

All-in-all I loved these shoes in the BWCA. I sat comfortably by the fire watching several of my fellow travelers trying to dry out their “waterproof” boots. They were fully capable of handling all the terrain we encountered and were light, which is nice at the end of a 280 rod portage. So when keeping your feet dry is practically impossible, grab a pair of the New Balance 921’s and go ahead, get wet.

MSRP:   $89.99

Weight:

330 grams (11.6 oz)

Read More

Sanuk Scurvey

I have been wanting a new pair of boat shoes for a couple of years now and every time I tell my wife I want to get a pair she rolls her eyes and says, “No way!” Apparently, she doesn’t want me looking any dorkier than I already am. I decided to look for a shoe that was similar to a boat shoe, but is a bit “cooler” and trendier. So, I checked out the Sanuk website and came across the Sanuk Scurvy. Right away I liked how they looked. They looked like a boat shoe, but cooler! One problem I saw right away with Sanuks is that they only come in whole sizes. I wear an 11 ½, so I was a little worried about what size to get. I decided to go with a 12 and the fit is perfect! I got these shoes in early May and I have not stopped wearing them. They are simply awesome! When I told my wife what kind of shoe I got she was worried, but when she saw them she liked them right away. In fact, I have gotten more compliments with these shoes than any other shoe I have owned. Even the middle school kids I work with thought they were cool! One of the things I like about these shoes is that you don’t have to break them in at all! They come ready to wear and they look and feel great on your feet. The only problem I can think of with these shoes is that they make my feet a little smelly. My feet sweat a lot and I don’t wear socks with these shoes, so that might be why that happens. The surprising thing is that even though my feet might have an unpleasant odor the Sanuks do not stink at all. That is a HUGE plus in my book and I think they are pretty amazing. Overall, I love my Sanuks and I cannot wait to get another pair. I recommend Sanuks to everyone!

Cons
Make your feet stinky (no socks)
Only whole sizes

Pros
Lightweight
Stylish
Very comfortable
Affordable

Read More

Performance Sunglasses without the Price Tag

There are three things I grab every time I leave the house; my keys, my wallet and my sunglasses. I can manage without pretty much everything else. Keys and cash are obvious to most people, but shades may not make your list. I, on the other hand, find those first. I am blessed/cursed with relatively light sensitive eyes. This is great when hiking through the woods on a moonless night, not so great while paddling a canoe on a sunny July afternoon. I am practically blind without a pair of sunglasses under those conditions.

Quality sunglasses do more than just make things darker; blocking specific ranges of the light spectrum, enhancing your vision for certain activities, and protecting your eyes from the elements. In order to get lenses that are more than dark grey plastic, you normally need to drop some coin. The problem with that is, the last thing you want to do is face-plant wearing a $300 pair of shades.

Enter Ryders Eyewear. Ryders puts out a line of frames that covers a huge range of styles and lens compositions. Choose their incredibly vivid polarized lenses to reduce glare, photochromic that adjust to current light conditions, or their photo-polar that combine the benefits of both.  They even have a handy chart to help you decide what lens would be best for  you.  Surprisingly, there is NO sticker shock. You can get into Ryders frames for as little as $39.99 and not a single pair break the $100 mark. Feel free to face-plant in peace.

I have spent the bulk of the summer wearing a couple different pairs of Ryders frames. The Zephyrs and Rockslides; both are sporty enough to hang with me no matter what activity I am into at the moment, yet stylish enough to wear as my daily shades. I love these glasses and I can get about 6 pairs for the same price as one from the other guys.

Read More

Cajun Custom Rods - Fish slaying pieces of art...

I would guess that the majority of your gear decisions are based on the performance qualities of the particular item you are looking for. Function before form is a requirement when trusting your enjoyment, if not your safety, to a piece of equipment. Thanks to Jaesen at Cajun Custom Rods I have seen that the two are not mutually exclusive.

Cajun Custom Rods builds heirloom quality rods that will perform at least as well as their G.Loomis or St. Croix counterparts. Jaesen has a passion for building YOUR rod like no one I have ever met. We started by discussing where I fish and what I fish for, that was the springboard for everything to come. What came next however, was not what I expected.

I was asked to play on the CCR website. At first I didn’t think much about the idea, four hours later I had designed over a dozen different rods. How did I spend 4 hours designing rods online? The answer is; the CCR website is SWEET! As a visual person, being able to see images of the components you are looking at made all the difference in the world. I got a real idea of what my rod would look like and I couldn’t stop trying to build the “perfect” rod.

The end result proved to be better than I had dreamed. I got a fish slaying stick that looked like it should be in a glass case at the Louvre. The cork handle and ergonomic reel seat made holding the rod incredibly comfortable. The tread work was far beyond function, it added a level of artistry that I have never seen in custom rods. I could cast a country mile and I felt even the slightest bump by the finicky Walleyes. An amazing all around rod, and one that my son will inherit one day, but only after I catch my share of fish on it first.

CCR prides themselves on their customer service and warranty. I got to find out why first hand. When I received my rod, via a popular shipping company with brown trucks, the blank was broken in half about 6 inches from the tip. I called Jaesen and he immediately had me ship the rod back to him. I was a little concerned because we were leaving for our BWCA trip in about a week. 5 days later I had a completely redone rod in my hands, this time delivered by a different company in a shipping tube you can drive a truck over. While on my BWCA trip, the rod took quit a beating, crushing one of the eyelets. Once I was home, I shipped the rod to CCR and again 5 days later I have a pristine rod back in my hands.

So, if you are in the market for a new rod for yourself, or as a gift for your fish-o-holic father, look no further. Visit CajunCustomRods.com and start building the rod of your dreams. As a member of the Paddle Junkie Nation you get $25 off any rod; just enter promo code PADDLECCR at checkout.

Read More

GoLite Eden 2 Tent - A 2 person camping fortress

I have a fondness for the simple, especially in my gear. The more complex, the more moving parts, the more likely something will go wrong. When I took a first look at the Eden 2 from GoLite, it looked anything but simple. Unlike the tents I have used in the past this was not a free-standing set-up. It took me and a buddy about 15 minutes to get the poles, which had a curve built in (initially concerning), fed through the proper channels and it just flopped down on itself in a pile. But then, with a little tension on each end, the tent popped into shape.

Once staked down this tent was like a house. After just one test run with a buddy I was able to set up my tent in the back country, by myself, in under 10 minutes. It is literally 3 poles (which are actually color coded for guys like me) and 2 stakes and you are loading your gear inside. If you are preparing for serious weather; utilizing its 8 stake points and roughly 12 guy points make this tent ready for anything mother nature can throw at you.

An integrated rain fly, waterproof floor, awnings and ventilation scoops mean that once it is up, you’re done. Redefining Easy!!! During our BWCA gear test, my buddies were a bit jealous. They were getting even more drenched while fighting with their rain fly and I was relaxin’ by the fire.

I have been using this as a solo tent, but it is plenty big for 2 adults. It is just so easy to use and light that there is no reason to bring anything else. Yet another innovative design by the folks over at GoLite.

Shelter Specs
type: 2 person
height: 48 inches
area: 51 sq. ft
4.7 sq. m
main body weight : 60.7 oz / 1665 g
pole weight: 16oz / 510g
stake weight: 6oz / 170g

MSRP: $425.00

Read More