What is the Best Whitewater Tripping Canoe?

by Iori Miller

What makes a canoe good for whitewater tripping? Indigenous peoples paddled wild rivers in canoes built of natural materials that couldn’t weather the storm of most rapids, hence the many portage routes they bequeathed us all. Unlike them, no one today carries pine pitch and extra birchbark to make repairs on a backcountry trip.  We want canoes that will take a lot of abuse and allow us to explore wilderness routes while keeping portaging to a minimum.  This requires a good whitewater tripping canoe, one fit to take on wild rivers. What does that look like today?

A simple definition would be: “A good whitewater canoe features a durable, flexible hull (like plastic), high rocker (rocker refers to the hull curve from bow to stern) for maneuverability, and significant depth to handle waves and stay dry.” In the latter part of the last century these canoes were typically 14-16 feet long, reinforced, and were made of Royalex. They were designed to shed waves and have good secondary stability.

The Miracle of Royalex.

Royalex is a multilayer ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) plastic laminate developed in the 1970’s by Uniroyal Corp. It was a game changer. The fibreglass and airplane aluminum boats that preceded were outclassed immediately when suddenly a half dozen or more canoe manufacturers began producing canoe hulls made of Royalex. No other plastic had its performance because it’s lighter and far more forgiving when it smashes against rocks. It literally takes a beating; when wrapped on a rock its plastic has a memory and if heated a little it returns to its general former shape. It literally affords a learner the flexibility to learn with less consequence (generally — it’s not indestructible).

Until it was gone.

Uniroyal sold the Royalex division to Spartech in 2000, and in 2013 Spartech sold it to PolyOne. Within a calendar year PolyOne decided Royalex had too narrow a market and they shuttered its production. 

Opportunity Breeds Innovation

For organizations that needed a lot of durable canoes that are cheap, and can take a lot of abuse, many have pivoted to polyethylene rotomolded canoes. These also are plastic, but they are single layered and easier to manufacture. But for the backcountry paddler these boats are far heavier than Royalex: ‘pigs on a portage’.  

Many other companies pivoted in a different direction. They’ve worked hard to produce composites (layered woven fabrics ― aramid/kevlar, or carbon fiber ― built in a mould and impregnated with a resin) that they argue are suitable for whitewater tripping.  These canoes are lightweight, rigid, and efficient, but do they really replace the performance of Royalex? 

As some companies had formerly only produced boats out of Royalex, they had all their irons in one fire. Many folded when they had nothing further to build with. Yet one company decided to really go out on a limb and sought to make their own ABS substitute for Royalex. The Esquif Canoe Company of Frampton, Quebec, had only formed in 1997, and when Royalex was no more in 2014 the owner and founder, Jacques Chasse, spent 4 years developing his own proprietary ABS substitute. He called it T-Formex. The production of this was no simple task. Key equipment for this involves: Sheet Extrusion Machinery to make the component sheets, then a large Autoclave/Oven for the baking and bonding together of the component sheets into the ABS laminated product. Esquif argues that T-Formex perfectly mimics the performance profile and strength of Royalex. Others argue time with tell on this.

Another further technical aspect of ABS canoes is that each model requires a custom ABS sheet for each canoe model’s unique performance. It’s apparently not ‘one sheet fits all.’ Esquif knows that their Prospecteur (Prospector) canoes do not need to stand up to the beating that a Canyon canoe does.  The Esquif Canyon is probably the biggest selling whitewater tripping boat today.    

With the demise of Royalex many companies moved on from using the ABS plastic approach to building a great tripping canoe. Beginning with the composites used in flatwater paddling, these companies looked to develop a similar product that was arguably, ‘durable under the rigours of backcountry travel.’ One answer to this is Expedition Kevlar.  Using a slightly more robust, or thicker, Kevlar than the fabric used in flatwater Kevlar canoes, these companies have produced a product that they argue can endure a pin, or wrap, on a river … and still be paddled afterward. They claim the damaged canoe might look structurally compromised but once retrieved from the river it can be returned after to its original shape and be watertight.  These composites are far superior to the fibreglass composites of years past. 

Yet are they truly a performance match to the ABS plastic canoes? 

The Design is as Important as the Skin.

The physics of a tripping canoe’s aqua-dynamics are as important as the chemistry of its hull. All it takes is one visit to Canada’s Canoe Museum in Peterborough to see the myriads of designs possible for canoes. Successful design requires experimentation, trial and error, and attention to detail. Some of the aspects of design are speed in the water, the ability to spin easily in whitewater, the tendency to stay dry in high waves, and as already said carrying a significant load effectively. In truth, no one canoe design is perfect for all whitewater trippers.  

There is an argument to be made, however, that one design has taken hold of the imagination of the market. Considering hull chemistry and design, what has become ‘the best whitewater tripping canoe?’  

 History of the Evergreen Starburst

by Matthew Eberly

It is hard to imagine that Steve Scarborough went to work thinking he would end up designing a legacy for himself. As a whitewater slalom paddler, he was just an interested party when he asked Bob Lantz and Roy Guinn if he could design some models for the Blue Hole Canoe Company of Sunbright, Tennessee. This was in 1983, and there is no evidence that he had any meaningful education relevant to making canoes.

Sometime around 1985 Steve designed what was named the Cumberland at first; a large hull at exactly 16 1/2 feet with wood trim. Canoes made from the same mould with vinyl gunwales were sold as the Starburst. This turned out to be a much better boat than Blue Hole’s flagship OCA model.

As a serial entrepreneur Steve went on to found the Dagger Canoe Company with Joe Pulliam, Roy Guinn, and Peter Jett. Several of his subsequent designs were also successful, including the Rival and Caption.

Blue Hole went bankrupt in 1988.

Bob Lantz had offers for the entire business but apparently elected to sell his assets instead.

I have never been able to find out the name of who started Evergreen since he seems to have been a fairly private person. 

Anyway, Evergreen Canoe Company used several of Blue Hole’s original moulds, and for twenty years produced a relatively wide product range. The Royalex hulls were manufactured in Quebec, and finishing was at their headquarters in the building at 919 Oxford St. in Toronto. Until recently, this building continued to be occupied by The Complete Paddler, a business operated by Kelly McDowell, who was a former employee of Evergreen.  

The classic Starburst was made of Royalex with vinyl gunwales and deck plates, ash thwarts and yokes. At 16 feet 6 inches with a beam of 33.5 inches and depth of 15.75 inches, this is a large capacity, highly rockered, whitewater canoe, that is very capable in Class three rapids and big water in general. It is especially well suited to expedition length tripping on large volume rivers and is even quite good at surfing when used as a playboat. With 4 to 4.5 inches of rocker, it is very responsive to sweep and steering strokes. Its factory weight was roughly 75 lbs.

They could be delivered with complete outfitting, and there were also fitted spray decks. These hulls are still highly valued on the used market and are well worth restoration.

There is no way of knowing exactly how many Starbursts were made, but they sold very well to fleet buyers and are often encountered on the river, since so many in Ontario bought one through the Mountain Equipment Co-op.

As of 2007 with Mike Yee Outfitting, they retailed for $2100 Cdn. This was several hundred less than the most relevant competitor model, the Esquif Canyon, which at that time was still being made with Royalex.  

Evergreen went bankrupt in 2010, due to financial reasons.

To some extent, Kelly McDowell assumed the operation of what remained, and for years Evergreen moulds hung from the rafters in The Complete Paddler showroom. Unfortunately, the original Starburst mould was destroyed in a warehouse fire.

To say that this design was successful is an understatement, and there is no greater evidence of this than the fact its basic lines are still being copied. 

What has followed Evergreen? 

Some say that imitation is the highest form of flattery.  Some also say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Starburst design by Canada’s Evergreen Canoe company was made in the same mould created and used by Bluehole of Tennessee. The Starburst’s design was an excellent whitewater tandem open boat … for play and tripping.  

After Evergreen folded, several companies created their version hoping to have a piece of the market.  Nova Craft created their composite Moisie, and Esquif created their T-Formex Canyon, although the latter is perhaps more of a derivative as its bow shape is blunter to shed waves better. 

Swift canoe produced their Dumoine canoe to compete with Starbursts, but really it is more of a traditional Prospector in design, and it is ‘wetter’ with significantly less freeboard to shed waves. 

In fact, most companies today market their tripping canoes more off a classic Prospector design. Esquif, recognizing this, produces their own Prospecteur model to compete in this tripping niche of the market.

An important question might be asked: was the Bluehole Starburst just a direct variation of the classic Prospector?  It is the opinion of this author, from various discussions with experienced paddlers and canoe builders, that the answer to that question is a clear No.  The Prospector is a workhorse, with a shallow arch hull, it’s mostly designed to carry heavy loads and track well on flatwater.  The Starburst and its descendants have a more rounded hull (significantly more rocker), high secondary stability, have a dryer ride in big water, and yet they are an acquired taste as they don’t track as well on flat water.

Lastly, two canoes that are still in production merit significant mention, and they are both considered copies of the Starburst.  Echo Paddles makes an accurate replica in composite materials that they call the Starlite. It is not mass-produced and so there aren’t many to be seen. The Nova Craft Moisie also is essentially a composite Starburst copy. As many whitewater paddlers ‘age out’ and find the heavier Royalex/T-Formex canoes too heavy to portage, they look to buy a more manageable composite whitewater canoe.  If they’re good paddlers and avoid the rocks, the Starlites and Moises perform exceptionally well. These manufacturers argue they’ll survive a pin or wrap and still get you back from your trip.  Yet perhaps the main point is these canoes are about 20 lbs less than the Starbursts and Canyons.  

The one criticism I’ve heard about a new Echo is it moves so quickly, with so little effort, that it requires learning how to slow it down! This is where new hull chemistries have taken a good design even a step further. 

This author has no experience of this … he is still paddling his first love, a well-traveled banana yellow Evergreen Starburst.