2007 Loon

Specifications

Here's what Monte wrote about his trip through the New York canals:

The Loon Travels Down The Historic Rideau Canal

Loons are traveling birds and what better trip to take than along a 150-mile, 174-year-old waterway chock full of scenic places to explore? The Rideau Canal spans from Kingston to Ottawa, Ontario and was originally built to enable the British government of the day to swiftly move troop ships between Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. Although it was never used at it was intended (thankfully) the canal evolved into a recreational boating paradise instead, meandering through dozens of sleepy little towns and areas of interest.

Boating traffic along this canal, like many waterways, has steadily decreased for years now, to the amount of 16% in 2006 alone, many attributing this to the increased cost of boat travel largely due to high fuel costs. Now imagine doing the same trip in a boat which only required $3.00 in fuel for the same 6-day journey! Many cruisers would require well over $1,000 to do the exact same trip. Approximately half of the energy required for this journey was provided by the sun and half was provided to us from the shore power available from the lock stations and marinas where we overnighted, just like the gas-powered boats. The electrical infrastructure along this waterway, like most waterways, was more than adequate to relieve any concerns one may perceive from operating a boat which runs on clean, quiet electricity, rather than gasoline. We ended every night with about half of a charge still left in the batteries and would wake up to a fully charged pack, ready for the day's adventure.

The Loon used for this journey was a fully-equipped version, complete with a modern galley (with sink, microwave oven, fridge and barbeque), full weather protection for overnighting and sleeping accommodations for my family. With on-board AC power, most creature comforts from home were brought with us and little was left at shore prior to our departure. It is the sixth Loon produced by the Tamarack Lake Electric Boat Company and to date, the most innovative in every respect. The trip was completely enjoyable and the people we met along the way, many fascinated by our vessel, were very impressed with the capabilities, functionality, fit and finish of the boat.