I picked up a Morris today at an estate sale..." writes an enthusiastic Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) Forum user. Photos of a wood-and-canvas canoe with sweeping lines illustrate his entry.“Nice find!” responds a voice from New York."“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s stuff, but I’m going to anyway. Seriously nice boat,” rings another.
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I am not sure how you maintain your paddling position, or transfer any power to the water when kneeling behind the centre thwart as pictured here. Standard practice with the symmetrical Chestnut and Peterborough canoes that I grew up with here in Canada, would be to paddle it “backwards” in a kneeling position with the thwart aft of the front seat to support your bum. With most designs this places the centre of gravity just aft of the centre of the boat (from the paddler’s perspective) , producing a slightly bow-up trim that still gives you good control.
Rollin Thurlow is supporting his bum on a kneeling thwart located more or less the same distance from the stern that the position you describe from the stem (actually the “new” stern of this double-ender).
This big canoe once fitted with oar locks would row marvelously…