Coleman Journey Open Canoe
The Coleman Journey was my first canoe. My canoe use has been restricted to Lochs in generally fair weather. A bit windy on occasion but nothing too scary. Also I have only been using open canoes for two years. This all in mind on with the review.
Tha manufacturers specifications are
Length - 472 cm 15ft 6ins,
Beam - 94 cm 37 ins,
Capacity - 363 Kgs 800 lbs,
Weight - 32 Kg 70 lbs
Hull -
Ram-X.
What does that mean? Well it means it is big enough for three adults, or two adults and two children with some camping stuff. Or two people and enough camping stuff for an extended trip. It is also small enough to be paddled solo.
The Ram-X hull takes a real beating. It would be very difficult to imagine it getting breached in any normal situation. It is not very bouyant in itself though. The bouyancy in the canoe is provided by the seats. These are foam filled plastic. The hull also has a slight keal to it and this is stiffened by a metal tube that runs the length of the hull and is held in place by the seats. The robust nature of the hull does come at the price, weight. This is not a very light canoe. In saying that I do not find it particulary heavy. I 
have no difficulty getting it on to the roof of my Landrover, a high and awquard roof to put a canoe on. Also I ahve never had a problem carrying it to the waterside but I would not like to portage it very far. Even a light canoe would be no fun to carry a long distance. I tend to think that the fuss that is made about the weight of canoes is overrated. Once in the water it really does not make a huge difference. Some but not a huge amount.
In use the canoe is generally very capable. This is not a speciallist boat it is a jack of all trades but for that it is still pretty capable in most situations. Certainly it is a good boat for your first craft. It handles well on open water and tracks well. It is pretty forgiving of the common mistakes a beginner will make, indeed for all the mistakes I made in the early days I have never fallen out of this canoe. This is in a large part due to the stability of the canoe as well as an indication of the conditions that it has been used in. Even with two young girls in it or on occasion a dog jumping about on board it has remained upright. The only time it has put anyone in the water is when a friend was climbing in and fell over as he turned to sit down.
I have made only two modifications to the canoe. One is I fitted small "D" rings round the inside edge of the canoe for fixing kit into the canoe. I also fixed the fittings that alow me to fit oar locks. Now in heavy winf I can fit the oar locks and row the canoe into the wind, if I am struggling to make progress with normal paddling.
Good Points
The canoe is excellent value for money. There are few if any other canoes in this price range of this size and this and quality.
The three seats give you a lot of flexibility in how you use the canoe. As well as the obvious person on each seat it gives you plenty of options for adjusting your trim when paddling solo. Also the seats are very comfortable and do not leave you with a cold bum like you can get on a nippy day with a cane seat. The middle seat also makes it quite comfy to carry. With the middle seat going across your shoulders it spreads the weight well.
Robust. You do not need to worry about damaging the canoe. You are more likely to damage what you hit. One of the worries with your first canoe is that you it will get punctured by accident. With the Coleman Journey it would need to be a pretty serious accident before it did any real damage.
Stable. The shape of the hull gives the canoe a stable feel in the water, well as stable as any open canoe. There is obviously a trade of in maneuverability but not too much.
Bad Points
Comparitively heavy compared to other canoes (although not in the same price range)
Tends to catch the wind a bit. This can make steering a bit of a job when windy but again is likely to be a factor in any canoe of this size. This has been most noticeable when paddled solo and was one reason I bought my other canoe, the Old Town Pack.
This review was first posted on our Forum and can be found HERE if you have any further questions or comments.