C-Forum

Has anybody used a Mohawk XL 13 as a tandem? I'm thinking about getting a river tripper for me and my wife. Would we need something bigger if we're packing for a long trip?

Andrew

You CAN pack for a trip in a 13' boat. Won't be the best though. I wouldn't. Depending what you pack it might be tight, forcing you to pack in smaller bags instead of convenient larger packs. If that makes sense.

Pretty much every trip I go on will have a 60L barrel, 30L barrel and a pack or wannigan. The 30L might change to a 60L for more food on longer trips.

I'm comfy in a Dumoine or Prospector which are both 16' boats.

Dave

Personally, I think the Mohawk XL 13 is too small for 2 people and a considerable amount of gear. For a solo river tripper, sure.

XL 13 is a big boat for a solo, but you need way more boat to carry 2 adults plus a long trip's worth of gear. Think 16', not 13 - Dimension, Canyon, Legend, Prospector, Appalachian, etc. For reference, one of the local colleges does a 2 week trip on the Dumoine every summer, and they use Explorers.

Has anybody used a Mohawk XL 13 as a tandem?

No, but I've done some short tandem tripping in my OT Cascade (14'6"). With two people (~360lb total) and gear (~50lb) the weight really starts to affect how the boat handles. It's fine for a night or two, but I would take a longer boat for longer tandem trips.

If you and your wife are light, and you pack light (i.e. you are already into lightweight backpacking), then you might be OK with a 14-15' boat, but I would say the XL13 is too short.

I'm thinking about getting a river tripper for me and my wife. Would we need something bigger if we're packing for a long trip?

I would say yes, you need a longer boat for longer trips. I've taken some week long tandem trips in 16' boats, and that works well.

You need to define what you mean by tripper. What do you want to do. A 13' boat is not a tandem tripper, 17'4" is a tandem tripper, in Canada anyway.
Rand

Tandem River Trippers? For whitewater tripping, investigate:

Old Town Appalachian
Esquif Canyon (or for light tripping, the Pocket Canyon)
Nova Craft Moisie
Mad River Legend (formerly Dagger Legend--this is a barge, but great for long trips in in class 2/3 water)
Two Brothers Arkota
Plus the many Prospector designs there are out there

Mohawk doesn't advise it. They don't start outfitting tandems till you get to the 14s.

I worked at a camp for years that had a decent livery of Probes and xls. When we would paddle tandem with a teenager in the front, the 14s and 15s behave pretty much the same way.
With an adult in the front, however, there was a noticeably difference in handling in the 14s. That 50 to 100 pounds was significant, not a deal breaker, but certainly the boat was slower and slightly less responsive.

I would think with gear (we only used them tandem for day trips) it would be about the same.
The 13s we had were great for solo, so were the 14s and 15s. Tandem, I will always want a competent adult paddler and very little gear.

Hope that helps,
Geoff