Removeable canoe yokes

[Grey-Jay]

For smaller pack canoes like the Hornbeck, many have posted here showing their external pack frame setups for the carries. Some heighten their internal frame packs for the canoe to rest on. But has anyone made or purchased a removable yoke, fitted with pads? (perhaps silly to add the weight of a yoke on a lightweight canoe carry)

[yellowcanoe]

Yes. Because my solos have a standard seat. I tried the Knupac long time ago and in dismounting the boat in a very remote area (no people for two weeks) the horns jammed between the seat and the yoke, severely injuring my neck.

For balance a separate yoke was necessary..the seat was in the wrong place to act as fulcrum

So I went back to my tried and time tested (twenty years old) clamp on portage yoke.

http://www.boundarywaterscatalog.com...fm/4,7876.html

Grade VI makes a strap on yoke for light pack canoes. It is essentially a fabric sling.

[Grey-Jay]

I tried that fabric yoke on a 30 pound Bell Bucktail and hated it. It would slide off, stretch out, and put weight on neck instead of shoulders.

[yellowcanoe]

Originally Posted by Grey-Jay

I tried that fabric yoke on a 30 pound Bell Bucktail and hated it. It would slide off, stretch out, and put weight on neck instead of shoulders.

It has been redesigned with grippy surface. Not that you would like it any better. I don' know that I would.

I agree the weight winds up on the wrong place..at least on the old one.

[Grey-Jay]

Originally Posted by yellowcanoe

Yes. Because my solos have a standard seat. I tried the Knupac long time ago and in dismounting the boat in a very remote area (no people for two weeks) the horns jammed between the seat and the yoke, severely injuring my neck.

For balance a separate yoke was necessary..the seat was in the wrong place to act as fulcrum

So I went back to my tried and time tested (twenty years old) clamp on portage yoke.

http://www.boundarywaterscatalog.com...fm/4,7876.html

Grade VI makes a strap on yoke for light pack canoes. It is essentially a fabric sling.

In the photo , what are those thick blocks between the yoke and pads?

[cgill]

Originally Posted by Grey-Jay

In the photo , what are those thick blocks between the yoke and pads?

The thick blocks raise the boat higher on your shoulders, I think there are mainly for kayaks where they function to get your head out of the cockpit. I have a set that don't have the thick blocks and they work fine on a canoe.

[Adk Keith]

Before you go and buy a yoke, try what I use. A single line from the bottom of my pack to the stern of the boat.



Here you can barely see the string as it goes from the pack past my yellow boat towel to the stern. With my 10.5 black jack and my friend's 10.5 Carbon Kevlar this is all we need.

The back of the seat sits on the top of the pack, most of the downward force is transfered to pulling back on the waist belt. Very little weight ends up on your shoulders. Changing the length of the connecting line changes the angle of the boat.

[Grey-Jay]

I am not getting the concept of the line from pack to stern. Is it attached only to the pack or to your waist belt?

[ADKpete]

It keeps the canoe at the pre planned angle, you can attach it to the frame if you like.

[Wldrns]

Originally Posted by Grey-Jay

I am not getting the concept of the line from pack to stern. Is it attached only to the pack or to your waist belt?

Generally you hold the rope in your hand, length sized to be tight when it is at your waist for comfortable holding. A faxtex buckle at your hand is sometimes handy if you get the rope hung up, or to separate the rope into bow and stern lines when not carrying. If the canoe is well balanced on your shoulders, it takes very little force on the rope to tip the bow up or down. Useful for angle adjustment in going up or down hill, or for getting a better view ahead.

I use a fixed rigid tubing to go from the bottom of my knupac to a point on the gunwale near the stern of my Hornbeck to make a very stable rigid system that I find the best method for me when bushwhacking. But for any longer canoes I use the rope tip/tilt method.

EDIT: I missed the point of your question of pack to stern. My reply was for a line from bow to stern. I believe that the pack to stern line is because in that case the canoe is being yoked at a point significantly stern of center, therefore unbalanced, and thus the fixed line to stern keeps the bow from pivoting to the ground.

[yellowcanoe]

I use a bow to stern line with a quick release buckle ( its there so you don't choke yourself if you fall) in the middle with an ordinary detachable yoke.

That allows you to walk with your arms at your sides and avoids tensing your trapezius muscle which allows for less pain, less tiring and better circulation to your hands and fingers.

I never cared for the Knupac having fallen 25 feet in Woodland Caribou and the horns lodged between seat and yoke. It was dicey for a while..till I determined that I did not have to activate PLB. I prefer to roll out of any danger and have the canoe "throwable". ( its happened since in Temagami where vertical climbs of 100 m over 300 m are common)

[Grey-Jay]

Originally Posted by yellowcanoe

I use a bow to stern line with a quick release buckle ( its there so you don't choke yourself if you fall) in the middle with an ordinary detachable yoke.

That allows you to walk with your arms at your sides and avoids tensing your trapezius muscle which allows for less pain, less tiring and better circulation to your hands and fingers.

I never cared for the Knupac having fallen 25 feet in Woodland Caribou and the horns lodged between seat and yoke. It was dicey for a while..till I determined that I did not have to activate PLB. I prefer to roll out of any danger and have the canoe "throwable". ( its happened since in Temagami where vertical climbs of 100 m over 300 m are common)

Yoke used?

[yellowcanoe]

Already posted the web picture above. I do not have the risers as visibility is fine.

Also use the same line system on tandem canoes that have portage yokes installed already.

[Wldrns]

Originally Posted by yellowcanoe

I never cared for the Knupac having fallen 25 feet in Woodland Caribou and the horns lodged between seat and yoke. It was dicey for a while..till I determined that I did not have to activate PLB. I prefer to roll out of any danger and have the canoe "throwable". ( its happened since in Temagami where vertical climbs of 100 m over 300 m are common)

I know that YC and I have differed on this before... but I really like the knupac very much. I actually strap the "horns" onto the yoke, and the whole triangular package of backpack, Hornbeck, and rigid rear tubing fastened from the bottom of the pack to the stern form a tight system (see http://www.adkforum.com/showpost.php...2&postcount=11). I have fallen over, rarely, but more often than not in those situations planting the ends of the canoe has saved me from a serious topple to the ground. If I am fording a stream of shallow rapids or elsewhere where a potential fall presents special dangers, I do unstrap the hip belt and sternum strap for ease of exit.

My style with Hornbeck most often takes me bushwhacking through some pretty rough terrain and blowdown, and this is by far the easiest and most comfortable system I have found to push and twist my way through. I feel the canoe protects my head and upper body, and best of all I can maneuver easily with both of my hands completely free without having to use hands to control a floppy canoe overhead. But I do not tie myself into a larger canoe in the same way, nor do I tend to be as extensively bushwhacking with a larger canoe.

[Adk Keith]

The line runs from the center of the bottom of the pack to the stern. A waist belt on the pack is necessary to keep the pack tight to your back, otherwise the canoe pulls the pack away from your back and the weight is transferred to the front of your shoulders via the pack straps.

I don't use a line from the bow. If I need any extra stability I just reach one hand up and steady the canoe.

Really it's much easier to try it than explain it.

Unlike Wldrns, who it sounds like, keeps the boat on his pack when the going gets thick, (which makes more sense with a rigid system) I drag the canoe on the ground behind me using the same line. Since it's unloaded you will pick up some surface scratches, but no deep gouges, plus the dead branches scraping screeching along the canoe as you move throught the woods are not as close to your ears.

Everyone works out their own system. My goal was to keep mine as light as possible and still have a fairly steady system. My system's downside is that it doesn't work well with windy conditions. Over the years there have only been a few times when this has caused problems for me.

[LynnLynn56]

Sorry for the late post, removable yoke for a Hornbeck weights about 4 oz, has about 100 miles on it without incident, and you can select the float tube cushion color of your choice.

[nutmeg creeker]

Originally Posted by LynnLynn56

Sorry for the late post, removable yoke for a Hornbeck weights about 4 oz, has about 100 miles on it without incident, and you can select the float tube cushion color of your choice.

Interesting idea--What's the source of this item?

[LynnLynn56]

Home depot for the aluminum rod, Metal supermarket for a piece of 3003 aluminum, and Walmarts for the swim tube and an hour or two in the garage.

[nutmeg creeker]

Originally Posted by LynnLynn56

Home depot for the aluminum rod, Metal supermarket for a piece of 3003 aluminum, and Walmarts for the swim tube and an hour or two in the garage.

Thanks--It seems simple enough!

[EagleCrag]

Lynn: What prevents your yoke from sliding fore and aft? I can see there is a stop toward the back rest, but what about the other direction? Nice design. Simple, cheap, and functional--can't beat that. As a fisherman, I also like the modification for rowing your canoe. Great ideas. The canoe I use is heavier than yours so I am thinking a piece of conduit may suffice for me in place of the aluminum rod. Will have to give it a go. Thanks for sharing.