Skip to main content

Trekking: Sanborn paddles are as functional as they are handsome

Man isn’t meant to stay indoors — our weekly “Trekking” column can attest to that. It’s a column dedicated to the adventurer inside of all of us, the one pining to ditch the office humdrum for a quick surf session or seven-week jaunt in the Grand Tetons. One day we may highlight an ultra-light stove and the next a set of handmade canoe paddles. Life doesn’t just happen inside the workplace, so get outside and live it.

Recommended Videos

Nostalgia is a funny thing, particularly when it goes directly against convenience and practicality. However, although aluminum canoe paddles might win when it comes to durability and artificial plastics when it comes to sheer weight, there’s something that’s just right about skimming over a glossy lake in the wee hours of the morning with nothing but a dog by your side and a wooden paddle in your hand. Fortunately, the Minnesota-based Sanborn Canoe Company hand crafts some of the best around.

Related: Norquayco’s paddles let you skim with style

Sanborn is no stranger to making paddles, either. Cousins Zak Fellman and Todd Randall have been putting out their elegant wears from a small woodshop on Fellman’s family land for more than six years, continuing to capitalize on a venture that once began as a mere hobby between buddies in a garage. The company’s line of artisan-painted paddles make use of a traditional blade shape, one representing a laminated combination of western red cedar, aspen, and black walnut. Fellman and another local artist hand paint each offering to reflect the heritage of the surrounding region and that of the canoe, and afterward, finish each with a durable varnish dip for longevity. The sheer variety of the designs only compliment the quality.

Last year, Sanborn Canoe Co. even partnered with the folks at Jack Daniels to release a limited line of paddles salvaged from spent bourbon barrels. It may seem like a bit of a gimmick, sure, but the white oak used in the aging process remains one of the most resilient hardwoods in all of existence. Now, if only we could muster the courage to tear the gorgeous paddles from the wall and actually use them as intended.

Check out Sanborn’s line of artisan paddles online to make a purchase ($180), or to peruse the company’s excellent selection of knives, apparel, and other outdoor goods.

Brandon Widder
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Brandon Widder is a journalist and a staff writer for the Manual and its brother site, Digital Trends, where he covers tech…
The first trailer for I Know What You Did Last Summer proves that no franchise is truly dead
Almost 30 years after the original, we're following a new group of hunted teens.
Jennifer Love Hewitt in I Know What You Did Last Summer

If you were one of those people who was wondering when we might get a third I Know What You Did Last Summer movie, then you're in luck. The first trailer for the new film is here, and it features Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze Jr. reprising their roles as Julie James and Ray Bronson from the first two films in the franchise.

The film, which is somewhat confusingly called I Know What You Did Last Summer, was directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and will serve as a direct sequel to the original 1997 film. In that film, a group of friends are hunted by a killer with a hooked hand one year after they killed someone in a hit-and-run accident.

Read more
Max is following Netflix’s lead and cracking down on password sharing
The move will generate some additional revenue for Warner Bros. Discovery
The Max logo.

If you've been sharing your Max account with someone else, Max is trying to make your life harder. Variety is reporting that Max just added an Extra Member Add-On feature in the U.S., priced at $7.99/month. This lets the primary account holder share their account with someone outside of their household. These additional members will be able to create a separate account that is linked to the primary subscriber.

Warner Bros. Discovery had previously said that they plan to notify users about new restrictions on sharing accounts outside of their primary household. This move by Max follows similar efforts by Netflix and Disney+, and are obviously designed to generate additional revenue from users who are currently sharing accounts across households.

Read more
Everything we know about the four Beatles biopics
Get ready for Beatlemania
The Beatles sitting together

As if there aren't enough musical biopics that have been released in the last decade, director Sam Mendes is adding a quartet of Beatles movies to his filmography. A unique set of films that connect into one greater whole, the upcoming Beatles biopics have to be watched together to get a full appreciation of the band's story. Much like Marvel fans who watch all of the superhero movies to get the best experience out of the story, this set of films will work the same way. Whether making an expanded Beatles universe of films is a good idea or not remains to be seen.

Each film will give equal screentime to Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr. They will come out around the same time to encourage fans to see all of them. This is made possible by a simultaneous filming schedule in which all four movies will be produced alongside each other. The estimated release date is sometime in April 2028, according to Gold Radio. Sony hasn't decided yet whether all four movies will come out on the same day or whether there will be slight differences in release, whether that be one a week, etc. We have everything you need to know about the four Beatles movies right here, from the actors in the films to each Beatle's importance today.

Read more