Floating/ Camping Advice?

Question

My boyfriend and I are taking our Dog for the first time on a float trip, does anyone have any advice on how to shade part of the canoe for him not to be in direct sunlight the whole day? Any ideas are welcome :o) He's a pug if that helps...

Answer 1

Dogs and canoes don't mix. Be prepared to flip the canoe.

Answer 2

Don't worry about shade for the dog. He'll be fine.. Before humans had dogs living in houses and sleeping in beds they would make it on their own just fine. Take plenty of snacks for yourself and bring some treats for the dog to try to keep it settled down and not jumping out the canoe every 5 seconds. If your worried about the dog getting too hot just put it in the water for a few minutes to cool it off. It can swim and won't drown.

Answer 3

A pug is kind of small. I think you could just run a couple of bungee cords from gunnel to gunnel(gunwales) spaced apart, or between the thwarts and cover those with some canvas, a small folded tarp or even an old light sheet or big towel, put a few more bungees over that to keep it in place and he can go under there if he gets hot. You could make it pretty sturdy if you are creative enough. The bottom of the canoe should be cool from the water that should help.

If you wanted something higher you could buy one of those  umbrellas that have a clamp to attach to a folding chair and just attach it to a thwart. But the shade would move around with the movement of the canoe.

Good luck and have a great trip!