Silverbirch Broadland kevlar canoe review

Whenever I have had the chance, I have hired or borrowed a Kevlar canoe for flat water trips.  In both the Boundary Waters of Minnesota and Algonquin Park in Ontario, I hired the lightest canoe possible.  Portaging gets to be a lot easier.  But back home, I have almost always paddled Royalex, T-Formex, and Polyethylene boats.  I loved, and still do love, my Venture Afon, which is brilliant for white water and can take the knocks. But now in my 70s with a heart condition and broken knees as well as plans still to do, I need to go lighter.  I no longer felt confident throwing the heaviest canoe from the ground up onto my shoulders.  Plastic was now making me reluctant to go out for days alone.

Step in Silverbirch. Well-known amongst British paddlers, Silverbirch now wanted to produce a Kevlar canoe. Would I be interested? Do bears poo in the woods? From my Canadian experience, I knew the answer to the latter. So yes.

I was to get the Broadland at the Open Canoe Association’s event, Paddlefest. Steve and James were all set up to outfit it there and run repair workshops for others. My first impression was awe. Like all Kevlar canoes, the hull is slick and stiff. I got to choose the positions of everything from the kneeling thwart to the sailing seat and mast foot. They even rigged the side loops for me.

First impressions
So, first impressions: We took it down to the water. The moment I got in, I was playing with the stability. The ability to go onto its edge easily and be stable is essential to my paddling style.Whether it’s pulling graceful moves on flat water or slicing into an eddy, I want a boat that is good on its edge. Within seconds, I was confident in its shape and was putting it through its paces. I was delighted. It was very much in a prospector style, and its performance was stellar. Kevlar changes the feel of a canoe; the movement is crisper, and the acceleration is faster because of its weight, stiffness and sheen (at least, it feels that way to me).

Steve and James were keen for me to push it with the boat and not limit it to flat water.  It’s been on numerous rivers, including two four-day expeditions of the River Spey. It carries an expedition load well.  A few scratches have been made to the hull, but the material has worked. I can manoeuvre it well on rocky rapids. I have sideswiped the occasional boulder but to no ill effect. Kevlar is good.

Limitations
Are there limitations? Yep. Some of the places I paddle have really ledgy drops; on those, the stern can snap down on the lip. I found this out the hard way paddling Royalex boats, so it’s not just Kevlar. But I am more than happy paddling rivers like the Spey in it.

Weight:
Mine weighs 25kg but is a preproduction model and a try-out of ideas. The final version should weigh just over 20kg. Even with mine, the difference is staggering, with Polyethene canoes being 10 to 15 kilograms heavier. With a T-Formex canoe, it is closer, with a weight of around 30kg. Once the production weight is achieved, the savings are massive. I can now easily get the canoe from the ground to my shoulders.

So would I buy one?
Oh yes. It has extended my paddling life and added further joy to it. The Kevlar Broadland moves beautifully and dances its way across the water. I feel privileged to have one.

PS: The 20kg version with pink sparkles sounds good to me, guys.