Ive been looking into getting a canoe soon. I go camping a few times a year and figure it will be fun to mess with one.

Now I just need to figure out the best way to haul it. I think it will be 14-16ft long and I know I cant put it in the bed with one of those bed extenders because I will need bed space for other camping gear. So I think carrying it on the roof is the best bet. Ive seen those racks that go in the hitch so it can carry the back of the canoe while the front sits on a roof rack. I was just wondering how you guys are hauling yours and maybe could lead me in a better direction from your experience.

It will be hauled probably a max of 3 hours when we go camping, and there are a few places nearby that I'll be using it.

 

The hitch rack type is new since I stopped hauling a canoe around, but a bit of ingenuity can also work for you. For almost a decade, I tossed a wooden pallet in the back of my truck and tied it to the tailgate...worked like a charm...plus I had the advantage of being able to lash things to the pallet...BUT, if that's not your style...

http://www.instructables.com/id/Buil...ruck/?ALLSTEPS

If you have access to your stake pockets in the bed, you can always modify some 2x4's to fit and build one for that as well.

You'll need ONE of these (unfortunately, usually sold in a set of two) for the cab:

http://www.prolineracks.com/proline-...roof-rack.html

Then either the hitch mount...or something you build yourself.

Which ever route you take, be sure to tie it down well. V-rope in the front and back for stability, two ropes/traps over the main body for strength.

BoomerD is cheap and doesn't like to spend money needlessly.

FWIW, I hauled my 18 foot canoe all over the western US in such a manner and never lost it...even in an accident that totaled the vehicle hauling the canoe. The canoe survived without a scratch.

 

Just a thought, have you considered a folding/collapsible kayak instead ? Something like

http://www.orukayak.com/oru-kayak

 

Ladder Rack

 

Trailer? Biggest canoe-type thing I've ever moved was probably a 10-12 foot kayak maybe 5 miles, but the idea of having a boat as large as 16 feet hanging above my head attached to a rack is just something I'd personally be worried about. I wouldn't enjoy the drive with it there, even though I'm sure it'd be completely fine 99% of the time. I see them like that all the time, just wouldn't like driving the trucks with them.

 

I have a T post type canoe loader that I used to use with my Ranger. My canoes are both 14' 6" and with the extended cab F150 with the 6.5 foot bed the hitch deal puts the bow too far into the roof to be useful.

I have since made a pair of ladder rack type hoops out of ripped 2x4s that are connected front / rear with 1x6 and braced against racking. The rear hoop is shorter than the front, front hoop is 12" over the cab roof. The top bar extends 6" each side of the bed sides and I can load both boats on at the same time and haul them. I use ratchet straps to the hulls, and then criss crossed to the cargo hold down loops at the front of the bed, sterns ratchet strapped to the hitch safety chain hoops, and the bows ratchet strap to the top hoop / upright of the brush guard...

They don't budge even at 70 mph which I KNOW I shouldn't be doing with canoes on board...

 

Sounds like something I could build, and would be a lot cheaper and useful. Do you have any pics of your setup?

Thanks for all the help guys, lots of help.

 

My poor sad canoe has been sitting in a barn for at least 20 years. It's a 16 footer. I had a camper shell on the truck it last rode on. I just had those 4 foam pads that slip on the gunnels of the canoe. One tie-down at the bow & stern, plus a strap wrapped over the top, wound around the cross thwarts and through the truck cab.

 

I put mine over the top of the cab and angled down over the bed extender and strapped it down.. I hang the john boat out the back. I don't haul my little boats enough to buy any tools for it.