Mission Complete – It was quite the productive (and expensive!) day here, in the blaqenedwyte household. It began with the long drive to central New Jersey to participate in the annual PaddleSport 2006 show, where I took major advantage of some spectacular discounts to purchase a Thule roof rack, 2 Astral PFD’s, 2 bent-shaft BB paddles and a schweet OR “Seattle Sombrero” with some birthday money (Thanks B & B!!). Kate’s laughing at me because I’m wearing the hat while blogging…

WeNoNah AdirondackWeNoNah AdirondackWeNoNah Adirondack

Now, most of that stuff would be more-or-less useless without an actual canoe… The canoe I got is a burgundy We-No-Nah Adirondack 16rx. It was one of the first boats that caught my eye weeks ago when I first began my research. As I widdled down my choices, this boat seemed to always make the cut. Ironically, my local (and favoritist!!) outdoor store (in the whole wide world!!), Campmor, had just gotten an Adirondack 16rx in stock… and in the color that I wanted. I still waited to see what would be at the PaddleSport show and even talked to some of We-No-Nah’s competitors like Bell and Mad River (keeping my options opened till the very end). I decided Campmor had the boat I wanted at the right price and so I called the store from the show and had them put it on hold for me. I picked it up tonight from Campmor.

I can’t articulate how happy I am to own this canoe and how excited I am to get it out on the water. Thank you, Kate, for the best birthday present ever. It made turning 30 much less painful.