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Writer's pictureTim Morch

The Story Behind Brent Bateman’s Asian Canoe Building Business

No loon call from the middle of Khao Laem Lake as Brent Bateman slips his canoe into the water and pushes off toward the Buddhist temple across the lake.


Sangkhlaburi is a Thai frontier town near the border of Myanmar, also known as The Country Formerly Known As Burma. It’s full of Burmese refugees, Buddhist temples and soldiers—not the place you would expect to find someone launching a Prospector canoe; let alone a canoe-building business.

Wood strip canoe on Khao Laem Lake, Thailand.
Brent Bateman paddling one of his hand crafted wood strip canoes on Khao Laem Lake, Thailand.

Calgary-born Bateman arrived in 2003 on a break from a life of academia in Bangkok and decided to set up camp.


“I fell in love with the area,” Bateman said, “so I built a shop.” Before the end of the year, Bateman’s new company Sanghalei Canoe and Kayak was shipping canoes.




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