Model: Length: Hull Weight: Beam: Max Payload: Cockpit Size: Paddler Weight:
Sassafras 16 15' 7" 68 lbs. 39 in. 500 lbs. Open Cockpit 250 - 400 lbs.

See Other Canoes  Sassafras 12  Mystic River  Nymph

Sassafras 16 Configurations:
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Standard Configurations:
Complete Kit
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$1549
$1394
Alternative Configurations:

Wood Parts Only Kit
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$1125
$960

Full-sized Plans and Manual Only
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$119
$101

Canoe Rowing Rig
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$81
$77

Manual Only
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$25
$22

Manual Only - Emailed PDF
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$20
$18

Study Plans - Emailed PDF
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$2
$2
Materials List for Plans Builders:
» view the Sassafras 16 materials list and order a la carte!
Popular Accessories:
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Supplies List for Kit Builders:
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The lapstrake canoe is an ancient craft. In its recreational form it had already reached a very high pitch of refinement by the 1880’s, in the hands of artisans like J. Henry Rushton. Something about the combination of lightweight utility and easy, graceful lines makes the lapstrake canoe a very desirable creature, indeed.

Chesapeake Light Craft first introduced the lapstrake Sassafras canoes in the late 1990’s.  Named after a placid and scenic river on the upper Chesapeake, these handsome canoes are at home in rivers, lakes, and bays, able enough to surmount wind chop and powerboat wakes, and to carry a good load.

Lapstrake canoes built the way Rushton did it require extremely sophisticated skills and equipment. Using CLC’s exclusive LapStitch™ process, assembly is accessible to beginners.  There’s no mold, no lofting, no spiling, no tricky joinery.

The Sassafras 16 in Popular Mechanics
As seen in September 2015
Popular Mechanics!
Build this Boat in a Week!

    2025:

    The Sassafras 16 Mark II also boasts an entirely rewritten and vastly expanded builder's manual, with 115 pages and 400 photos and illustrations. Plans builders, too, will appreciate the detailed instructions for parts fabrication. Along with improvements to the kits, which include pre-drilled wire holes, puzzle joints, and computer-indicated bulkhead locations, the manual makes this kit extremely friendly and accessible to first-time builders.

    Convert your Sassafras 16 to a rowboat using our Canoe Rowing Rig. We also offer a drop-in sliding seat rowing rig

    Builders also looked at:

    Mill Creek 16.5 | MicroBootlegger Sassafras 12