Huron Cruiser

Product Description

The lines for this traditional but sleek canoe were taken from an original Huron built by the Peterborough Canoe Company in cedar/canvas. The Huron canoe was one of their Cruiser models, which were optimised for speed and manoeuvrability at the expense of some carrying capacity and initial stability.

They have good carrying capacity while retaining a light draft, and are an easy paddling craft that can be handled well in rough or swift waters. The gunwale line is straighter in these models and is lowered at bow and stem, thus offering less wind resistance. The rounded bottom shape may reduce carrying capacity but the paddler may expect a quick and responsive craft.

Peterborough Canoe Company catalogue, 1929

Two types of optional keels were offered: the shoe keel (½″ thick × 1¾″ wide) for added protection or a lake keel (⅞″ thick × ¾″ wide tapered to ⅜″) for a small increase in directional stability.

This version of the Huron Cruiser, from Bear Mountain Boats, is built using modern wood-strip construction for a lightweight and durable hull without internal ribs.

Ted Moores of Bear Mountain Boats is the author of Canoecraft, the standard reference book for wood-strip canoe building. The book is recommended to accompany the kit or plans. It is packed with tips and techniques and has inspired countless first-time canoe builders around the world.

Length

4.8 m (15′ 9″)

Maximum beam

825 mm (32½″)

Beam waterline

770 mm (30¼″)

Beam gunwale

790 mm (31″)

Bow height

560 mm (22″)

Centre depth

345 mm (13½″)

Displacement

152 kg (335 lb)

Optimum capacity

82-204 kg (180-450 lb)

Draught

102 mm (4″)

Wetted surface

2.37 m² (25.5 sq ft)

Weight to immerse

121 lb/in

Prismatic coefficient

0.543

Weight

20-25 kg (45-55 lb)

Watch us build a Bear Mountain canoe in this one-minute overview video:

Kit

We manufacture our kits to the highest standard using European-grown Paulownia for the planking strips. Uniquely, the strips in our Bear Mountain Boats kits have not only a bead-and-cove profile but also a pre-cut finger joint at each end, making the neat joining of strips even easier for builders at home.

The kit includes:

• Plans
• Instructions booklet
• CNC-cut building forms
• Paulownia strips with bead-and-cove edges and finger joints on both ends
• Ash blanks for decks
• Ash stem strips
• Ash gunwales (inwales and outwales) with scarf joints machined for joining
• Ash thwart
• Ash yoke
• Cane seats
• Waterproof glue for the strips
• Epoxy resin and activator
• Dispensing pumps
• Digital scales
• Epoxy fillers
• Woven glass fabric on a roll
• Free technical support from a competent builder

Please note that the kit does not include the box beam strongback for mounting the building forms on. You can either use a straight length of suitable timber or order the box-beam strongback we supply.

What else do I need?

Strongback

This strongback is made up of CNC-cut MDF panels that fit together to form a strong and stiff box beam measuring 200 mm × 200 mm and long enough to build the boat. You'll need a pair of trestles or sawhorses to raise it to a comfortable working height.

Plans and Instructions (not required by kit purchasers)

The plans contain sufficient information to make it possible to build the boat from scratch rather than a kit. The plans are printed in colour and include scale plans and full size drawings for all the forms.