We design compact canoes for exploring with ease
Solo camping on Georgian Bay with the electric Mycanoe. 18 mile range at 2.5 mph without paddling with the new, 23 lb, LFP battery. This trip was 6 miles total. Mycanoe has a huge volume capacity compared to a kayak and many canoes. Especially at the front and rear.
For solo travelling heavy items are placed at the front to balance my weight. In the picture it's sitting on a rolled up tarp to protect it from the rocks. Get in and out when it's floating in shallow water so no scraping.
Video of the trip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsotE9LAR4M
I am very satisfied with this purchase and foresee getting a whole lot of use out of My Solo2 Canoe for years to come. It is a genuine portable boat--very stable on the water, even with an antsy 35lb dog on board and a heavy dry bag full of gear. That being said- I think you need a little experience to begin with in kayaking/ canoeing basics to really enjoy this boat properly. Keep all of the weight balanced and know your own tipping point. Folding and unfolding is easy peasy as long as you follow the directions. If I could change anything about this design I would have thrown in a backrest at no additional cost as part of the package.
If you are a paddler who wants a convenient, portable boat, don't think twice!
I have the 12 foot portaboat, tucktec, my canoe two man, and the green thing I got few years ago.
They all take to long to build. When it's 80 to 100 degrees outside no way. Yours is easy and seems pretty durable. I have been to over 80 lakes in nebraska and i will test in some of these. I am sure I will get many questions from spectators. A backrest would be nice.
The MyCanoe Solo2 is amazingly lightweight and portable. I do a lot of travel with a pop-up camper, and I can take this canoe with me and not have to deal with any racks or other attachments...it simply fits in my camper or in the bed of my truck! It was a little difficult to set up the first time, but it is surprisingly rigid for an origami canoe and tracks quite well for its size! I have been canoeing for over 40 years and have done everything from serious whitewater canoeing to flatwater canoeing for flyfishing. The MyCanoe Solo 2 is a great new addition to my canoe collection!
Very well constructed. High tech pieces. My only issue is not with the product. It is about shipping fees and duty for Canada. Our fault. It cost more for shipping and duty for a refurb item than the price of the item itself! Returning to the item, I will use it to design a platform to mount an electric motor! Looking forward!
I am a long-time canoer. A 19 lb. canoe that folds to fit in my small car allows this old timer to get back on the water. Short canoes wiggle a bit, but after a little practice, I was able to control the direction. I encourage MyCanoe to consider adding a pre-folded service for an additional fee. Hire some athletic young people to unfold and refold the boat a couple times. At 72, I have pretty good upper body strength (I'm a lap swimming) but still found the folding a physical challenge, especially that little seat flap. Also, I was unsure as to some the folding directions and hesitated out of fear of folding the canoe wrong direction. I helped build my own home in my 50s, so I'm not clueless, but I feared I might damage the canoe My first voyage was an enjoyable one. This is a clever design. I would buy it again-if I didn't have to fold it! Thank you. Susan
Watching the folding-canoe/kayak market evolve since that first "Mycanoe" prototype in Knoxville TN has been a wonderful experience, and with this latest version, Mycanoe absolutely has a winner! Took me 5 mins to get from folded-up "suitcase" into the water my 2nd time out, and she handles great, packs up well, and is MUCH easier to carry around on commuter rail, bus, and subway than other folding boats I've tried. And she has the easiest build of all of them (I've tried three brands of folding boats, plus an inflatable.)
Mycanoe, you have a winner! Congratulations.
I just purchased 2 Solo2 canoes. It really does only take 3 minutes to put together! Also very easy to disassemble.
Highly recommend adding a trolling motor. Less than $150 CAD at Bass Pro. Easier to handle alone in a bit of wind with a motor and the battery as ballast in the middle. To turn sharp drag a paddle. When it's too windy to paddle use the motor to go upwind then retract it and drift back. Silently. No sore arms or shoulders the next day. No blisters. Go out every nice day to a different spot and change of scenery. We use Coleman stadium seats with back support that roll up. Effortless way to watch the fall colours slide by. Have gone on trips over 7 miles with a 53 lb AGM battery.
Bought a DC House 100 Ah LFP battery now for 18 mile range without paddling. Only 23 lbs instead of 53 lbs. Far easier to carry. $100 LESS cost than AGM as well. Only $250 Cdn including tax on sale and promotion.
The 30 lb reduction in battery weight is most of the weight of camping gear.
We plan on going camping with this rig.
Added a 30 lb thrust trolling motor for near silent, effortless gliding along at 2.5 mph for 2+ hrs with a sealed AGM battery. Very zen. 4 mph top speed. Motor can be mounted on either side.
Motor bracket is made from 1x4 (0.75" x 3.5") 48" long red oak from Home Depot. Cut 7" off and cut in two for clamps. Motor block is 7"x3.5"x1.75". Marine varnish on wood. Galvanized angle brackets are 3"x.75" cut and bent into a U shape to clip below gunwales diagonally. 5/16" threaded rod, nuts and loctite to wingnuts tighten motor bracket to gunwales. Threaded rod contacts and presses on 1.5" square mending plate on top of wooden motor bracket.
Regular canoes are tough to transport and handle alone. Mycanoe is no problem at all. Fantastic way to enjoy the water. The battery weighs more than the canoe. May get an LFP battery that is half the weight and over twice the energy for over twice the endurance. 5-10X the life of lead acid. LFP is much cheaper per energy stored and much easier to handle with half the weight. Will not overheat or catch on fire even if punctured. Long life is much better environmentally.
Bought a DC House 100 Ah LFP battery now for 25 km+ range without paddling. Only 22 lbs instead of 53 lbs. $100 LESS cost than AGM. Only $250 Cdn including tax on sale and promotion.
Canoe is assembled on grass and the motor bracket attached. Check the angle brackets are clipped under gunwales all the way. Then lift the canoe and bracket and put it in the water beside a dock so your feet don't get wet. Load the battery first to counteract the weight of the motor on one side then the motor and the rest from the dock. Outrigger floats aren't needed.
I'd been looking for over a year for a portable canoe or kayak that would hold two adults and a medium-sized dog. The MyCanoe Duo is better than I had hoped! Each time I set it up it goes a little faster; at this point having done it 5 times, I think my wife and I have it down to about 7 minutes. It's convenient to fit in the trailer storage of our 5th-wheel, and it handles just like the aluminum canoe I grew up paddling. We've been on lakes and even an ocean inlet in northern California, and even with some choppy water, it handles like a rigid canoe. My only regret is that I didn't find this sooner!
Shipped out fast but UPS let it sit at there transfer point in my state for 5 days. Got it in time for our camping trip with our small gasser Class A
To my shock I was able to stow it over a pass through with no wiggle room or any tolerance. Took a bit of figuring without reviewing the manual or utubes but that's my way. Was a long hike to and from the boat launch but we made many stops to and from and less effort to pull across the thick grass. I will making a strap on wheel set. The rowing clamps are a amazing design as the boat. Using the ores as canoe paddles are good but as rowers I was able to pretty much double the speed with muck less effort. The connection holes in the ores seem to be too close to the hand grips and smack together every stroke so it's a timing issue to keep pace. It will be difficult to retrofit the adjustment. Overall after countless small boat hours umder put seats both my wife and I beyond happy with this great addition to our RV'n adventures.
Received it yesterday and had to try it - so after I put it together at home to learn, I went down to the place to canoe and went on a careful paddle even though it was windy and the water was choppy.
Stability isn't perfect but it's not bad - I didn't get the extra seat attachment, so it will be an adjustment to get used to where the center of gravity sits in this.
It feels like sit on top kayak but sitting up higher.
Legs got a bit tired in the positions possible- can't switch to kneeling with the seat in. More stable when sitting cross legged.
Used a kayak paddle. Got wet/water in the boat, but not a big deal.
The wind/sideways choppy waves felt a bit more thrilling than ideal - the material is very light. But it wasn't worse than a sit on top kayak.
It's not hard to put together but the folding makes some crunching noises that I hope don't mean it will wear out!
If it holds up well, this thing is going to be incredibly fun for my casual paddles. I don't have a roof rack or big vehicle, and I'll often go alone on short paddles without easy vehicle access, so this is really simple. Can't wait to take it to Lake Louise!!
I'm not sure this is the #1 item for a die-hard multi-day scary river kayak paddler or someone who wants the most serene canoe ride on earth. But if you want something that isn't inflatable and just is tons of fun... as long as this is durable (time will tell), then woo. Wish the warranty was a little better after folding it a few times but I'll try to be gentle. This is a massive lifestyle upgrade for me.
Note: I shipped it to Calgary, Canada. Shipping was fast but customs broker fees & tax cost $147 CAD and that was a bit of a shock.
Considering the fact that I have not had a day off in two and a half months, and I was only able to pick up the package from the mail room, this is the review as I see it now.
Pros;
Clean, straight edges
Nice square corners
Structural integrity seems adequate
Nice color scheme
Cons;
Does not like water
Now, I have seen my share of boxes, a lot of boxes! But this box seems to be superior to most of them. I. Love. This. Box!
When I actually get some time to open my lovely box up, and see what the product inside is like, I may revisit this. But until then, I highly recommend this box!