Our ten foot trailer with an extended neck worked great on a 5300 mile trek to and from the ferry to take us to Alaska. I would only go with 3200 lb capacity and large 14-15" wheels for a long trip such as that. The Dirigo survived and did well on the Alaska trip. 4 foot waves handled no problems!

Mr. Bill, congratulations on the successful trip to Alaska & back! I'm glad the Dirigo got a chance to see more of the world and to amaze the locals.

I've sent you a Private Message also.

Carl

Wow, Mr. Bill!
I've always wanted to bring my Dirigo17 to AK. That must have been great.
Where did you go in AK?

Hey Frank, Did you buy the boat??
If not, where is it??

Bill

Went to Ketchican, and went about 75 miles around the island. Had an awesome time. We managed 4 ft waves very well and wondered...how much more can these kayaks handle and still remain so stable? I am sorry to report the Dirigo was the slowest of the group, but its stablility came in handy when being drug around by a 12lb Salmon and a 60+ lb Halibut! My friend caught the Halibut, and I had to drag him and the fish into shore to land it! The barnacles were brutal on the boats, but the plastic kayaks had the worst wear. I was glad I put a layer of fiberglass down the bottom, because a lot of the center wore off.

Also, the water taxi people that dropped us off said the only fleet kayaks they used to use were Dirigos. Now they only use Siroccos(fiberglass model, Current Design).

Sounds like you had a good time! That big Halibut story is cool! I got towed across Narragansett Bay, R.I. by a 32lb. Striped Bass one night, I know the feeling.
I've never been to S.E. AK. yet. I guide on the Aleutian Peninsula every Sept./Oct..
Its a wasteland compared to S.E. AK., but I like it.
I wonder what happened to the Dirigo fleet up there? I can only imagine.
I've been looking at Delta 18.5 kayak. (Big cockpit) If I can't find another Dirigo17 in good condition in the next year or so I think I'm getting one.
All the best- Bill Stahl

I believe that if you were to snoop around Ketchikan, you could find your Dirigo you are looking for. Usually everything I own is always for sale,but I would be hard pressed to sell my Dirigo. The thought of wrestling myself in and out of a standard cockpit,and doing as much fishing as I do in mine, where would I find another roomy space for my fishing gear. I would like to go again next year in the beginning of June to pan for some more gold, maybe further North around Glacier Bay? Anybody want to go? We could stop in Ketchican on the way to hunt Dirigo's? I want to go in early June because the bears aren't starving yet having just waking from hibernation, and the Salmon haven't started running yet so you would have little competition with the bears at the stream bases.
All the best in kayaking,fishing,and panning! Mr.Bill

A friend took my Dirigo down the Missouri River for a day and wants one..anyone have a good or rebuildable one for sale?

Hey Guys- Just got back from 2 mo. guiding in AK.
We gotta find the molds for the Dirigo 17!!
I know a lot of duck hunters/fisherman who would buy them.
Until then, I'm still using mine till it sinks.
Then I'm buying a Delta 18.5. (Maybe sooner!)
Bilnik

After the recent cold wave here in New Jersey, I've put away the Patuxent 17 that I paddle Spring/Summer/Fall, and gotten the old Dirigo, "The White Whale", out of the garage, ready for the Winter paddling season. The drysuit is ready to go, also. Paddle On!

I am considering making a mold of my Dirigo over the winter to make some duplicates. A formidable task I am sure, but do you really think there is market for them? Every time I go out with the local kayak club it creates a lot of questions. Also, the cowl would really be hard to duplicate.

I thought about that myself. Thats as far as I got. It ain't easy. Cool project though, if you have the time, space, and patients to do it right. I don't have any of that right now.
As far as the marketable question goes, that all depends on who sees it.
Big duckhunters and fisherman would enjoy them. Think olive drab. No wood.
I'd buy one.
Bilnik

I have the time, space and patience, persistence and craftsmanship quality are my biggest obstacle. Plus my boat is beat to hell, so it would be a challenge to get a nice smooth mold off of it. Marketablility wise I think that a blurb in Sea Kayaker would be all you would need to get the word out. I still habe this guy trying to talk me into selling mine, so I am looking for another.

Gary, you should try to find out about whether the original molds still exist. The last Dirigos were made somewhere in your neck of the woods (Iowa, maybe? Missouri?), as I remember, by a guy named Wigglesworth (I think) who had a pre-existing fiberglass business of some kind, and who wanted to branch out. So he got the molds from the original Dirigo people in Blue Hill, Maine. I've tried getting something via a Google search, but no luck. The final photos used in Dirigo ads showed Wigglesworth paddling along what could easily be a Missouri river shoreline.

GOOD thinking, finding people and things like that is right up my alley. I will let you know if and when I find him.