Know How
NO YOKE, NO PROBLEM. PHOTO: CONOR MIHELL
[ EXPERT TIP ] A LITTLE BIT OF LEATHER GOES A LONG WAY THE PERFECT TUMP
Seventeen feet of old-school canvas and cedar makes you think dif- ferently about portages. I’ve carried relatively lightweight Kevlar and Royalex canoes for hundreds of kilometers, but my big green pros- pector is different. It weighs an honest 82 pounds bone-dry and con- siderably more after a few days of travel. Luckily, the legion of trippers who’ve lugged such waterlogged beasts in Temagami and the North Woods of Maine have come up with a clever way to bear the weight—one that’s equally effective on lighter contemporary canoes. Maybe you’ve discovered the advantages of the tumpline on your
favorite portage pack (see next page)—the way it transfers weight from shoulders to spine and enables you to move massive loads. Rigged on the center thwart or carrying yoke of a canoe, the tumpline has similar advantages: A properly adjusted tump positioned just above your forehead actually lifts the canoe off of your shoulders and eliminates the pressure points of portaging. When your head and neck become fatigued, slipping out of the tump moves the weight back onto your shoulders, providing some respite on long carries. Traditional outfitters sell leather tumplines that are designed for
carrying canoes. Look for one with a two-inch-wide head strap mea- suring about 15 inches long that’s securely riveted to five- to seven- foot tails. It’s also possible to build your own with leather, canvas or nylon webbing.
On canoes with carrying yokes, wrap the tails of the tumpline on either side of the contoured portion of the yoke and secure them with a simple hitch near the gunwales. The tumpline will only work if it fits tight; for me, this means fastening it to the yoke as close to the headpiece as possible. It’s easy to use your paddles to create a carrying yoke on canoes equipped with straight center thwarts. Tie a thin cord permanently to the thwart with spaces for the paddle blades and enough room for your head in between. The blades should be aligned with your shoul- ders. Loosely secure the grip ends of the paddles on a seat or thwart. Then attach the tumpline, wrapping the tails so that the paddles can slide in and out of position without the need to remove the tump. Once you’ve lifted the canoe (unfortunately a tumpline won’t help
you there), slip the tump over the crown of your head and feel the weight of the canoe levitate from your shoulders. It helps to hold the tump near your jaw with one hand; use your other hand to keep the canoe resting level. Conor Mihell is a writer and amateur wood-canvas canoe restorer based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
www.canoerootsmag.com 29
PHOTO: BRAD BADELT
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56