Canoes and Kayaks

For other uses, see Canoe (disambiguation).

Canoe at El Nido, Philippines

A canoe is a relatively small boat, typically human-powered, but also commonly sailed. Canoes are pointed at both ends and usually open on top.

In its human-powered form, the canoe is propelled by the use of paddles, with the number of paddlers depending on the size of canoe. Paddlers face in the direction of travel, either seated on supports in the hull, or kneeling directly upon the hull. In this way paddling a canoe can be contrasted with rowing, where the rowers face away from the direction of travel. Paddles may be single-bladed or double-bladed.

Sailing Canoes (see Canoe Sailing) are propelled by means of a variety of sailing rigs. Common classes of modern sailing canoes include the 5sqm and the International 10sqm Sailing canoes. The latter is otherwise known as the International Canoe, and is one of the fastest and oldest competitively sailed boat classes in the western world.

Ambiguity over the word Canoe

Confusingly, the sport of canoeing, organised at the international level by the International Canoe Federation, uses the word canoe to cover both canoes as defined here, and kayaks (see below for a brief description of the differences between a kayak and a canoe). In fact, the sport of canoe polo is exclusively played in kayaks. This confusing use of canoe to generically cover both canoes and kayaks is not so common in North American usage, but is common in Britain, Australia and presumably many parts of the world, both in sporting jargon and in colloquial speech. In these circumstances, the canoe as defined here is sometimes referred to as an open, Canadian, or Indian canoe, though these terms have their own ambiguities.

A 'canoe' in this ambiguous sense is a paddled vessel in which the user faces the direction of travel.

Design and construction

The parts of a canoe

1. Bow
2. Stern
3. Hull
4. Seat
5. Thwart (a horizontal crossbeam near the top of the hull)
6. Gunwale (pronounced gunnel; the top edge of the hull)
7. Deck (a compartment containing a foam block which prevents the canoe from sinking if capsized)

Some canoes, particularly those used for extended trips, are equiped with a yoke across the center of the boat. It is designed to allow one person to carry the canoe, and is sometimes molded to the shape of shoulders.

Canoe hulls are generally open on top. However, slalom canoes are closed in with a spraydeck, like many kayaks.

Canoe materials

Canoeing on the Concord River.

The earliest canoes were made from natural materials:

• Early canoes were wooden, often simply hollowed-out tree trunks. This technology is still practiced in some parts of the world. Modern wooden canoes are typically strip-built by woodworking craftsmen. Such canoes can be very functional, lightweight, and strong, and are frequently quite beautiful works of art.
• Many indigenous peoples of the Americas built canoes of tree bark and sap. The Amazonians commonly used Hymenaea trees. In temperate North America, birch was the preferred tree, with tar mixed into the sap.

Modern technology has expanded the range of materials available for canoe construction.

• Wood-and-canvas canoes are made by fastening an external canvas shell to a wooden hull. These use of canvas for this purpose was invented by Union scouts during the United States Civil War.
• Aluminum canoes were first made by the Grumman company in 1944, when demand for airplanes for World War II began to drop off. Aluminum allowed a lighter and much stronger construction than contemporary wood technology. However, a capsized aluminium canoe will sink unless the ends are filled with flotation blocks.
• Composites of fiberglass, Kevlar and carbon fiber are used for modern canoe construction.
• Royalex is another modern composite material that makes an extremely flexible and durable hull. Royalex canoes have been known, after being wrapped around a rock, to be popped back into their original shapes with minimal creasing of the hull.
• Polyethylene is a cheaper and heavier material used for modern canoe construction.

Depending on the intended use of a canoe, the various kinds have different advantages. For example, a canvas canoe is more fragile than an aluminum canoe, and thus less suitable for use in rough water; but it is quieter, and so better for observing wildlife. However, canoes made of natural materials require regular maintenance, and are lacking in durability.

Rounded and flat bottoms

A rounded-bottom canoe exhibits poor resistance to tilt. Its initial stability is poor, but its final stability is better. A flat-bottomed canoe has excellent initial stability, but if tilted beyond a threshold, becomes unstable and will capsize. Round-bottomed designs are also able to go over obstructions more easily, due to a small area of contact with the obstruction, though they do have a slightly greater draft. Many canoes are symmetrical about the centerline, but some advanced designs are asymmetrical.

Rounded-end canoes are able to turn easily. Angled-end canoes are somewhat resistant to turning, but have greater tracking ability. Tall ends serve little purpose other than catching the wind.

Keels

Keels on canoes will slightly increase the ability to 'track' in a straight line, but decrease the ability to turn quickly to avoid an obstacle. The hull, moving through the water, is much larger than the keel alone, and has considerably more effect on a canoes path through the water. "Shallow Vee"-bottom canoes have an integrated keel-like protrusion of the hull, which increases initial stability. Some sort of keel is beneficial when traveling on open water with crosswinds, but the associated increase in draft is undesirable for whitewater.

In aluminum canoes, keels are manufacturing artifacts, where two halves of a hull are joined. In wood-and-canvas canoes, keels are rub-strips to protect the boat from rocks and as they are pulled up on shore. Plastic canoes feature keels for stiffening the hull and allowing internal tubular framing to be flush with the sole of the canoe. Hull shape, particularly the manner in which the hull flows to the bow and stern, along with paddling technique , determine how well (or not) a canoe will track.

Types of canoes

In the past, people around the world have built very different kinds of canoes, ranging from simple dugouts to large outrigger varieties. More recently, technologically advanced designs have emerged for particular sports.

Modern designs

Junior Women's War Canoes (C-15) come across the line at the 2005 Canadian Canoe Association Championships, held at le bassin olympique in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Sprint canoes are purpose-built racing boats for use over short to intermediate distance races (200m to 6km). To reduce drag, they're built with a very long and with anarrow beam, which makes them very unstable. A 1-person sprint canoe will be roughly six metres long; a traveling canoe of a similar length would be suitable for 2 to 3 people with gear.

On the other hand, slalom canoes are built for maneuverability in rapids. A slalom canoe is covered on top with a spraydeck, which is usually found on kayaks.

Traditional designs

Early canoes in many parts of the world were dugout canoes, formed of hollowed logs.

In the Pacific Islands, dugout canoes are fitted with outriggers for increased stability in the ocean. These canoes can be very large, and were once used for long-distance travel, such as the very large waka used by Māori who ventured to New Zealand many centuries ago. In Hawaii, canoes are traditionally manufactured from the trunk of the koa tree. They typically carry a crew of six: one steersman and five paddlers.

In the temperate regions of eastern North America, canoes were traditionally made of a wooden frame covered with bark of a birch tree, pitched to make it waterproof. Later, they were made of a wooden frame, wood ribs, other wood parts (seats, gunwales, etc.) and covered with canvas, sized and painted for smoothness and watertightness.

Other boats that are not canoes

• The main difference between a kayak and a canoe is that a kayak is a closed canoe meant to be used with a double-bladed paddle, one blade on each end, instead of a single bladed paddle. The double-bladed paddle makes it easier for a single person to handle a kayak. Kayaks are more commonly enclosed on top with a deck, making it possible to recover from a capsize without the kayak filling with water, although there are also closed canoes, which are common in competition. The deck is an extension of the hull, with a special sheet called a spraydeck sealing the gap between deck and the paddler.
• A rowboat is not really like a canoe, since it is propelled by oars resting in pivots on the gunwales. A single rower works 2 oars, and sits with his or her back toward the direction of travel. Some rowboats, such as a River Dory or a raft outfitted with a rowing frame are suitable for whitewater.
• The Adirondack guideboat is a rowboat that has similar lines to a canoe. However the rower sits closer to the bilge and uses a set of pinned oars to propel the boat.

Use

A dugout canoe in the Solomon Islands

Canoes have a reputation for instability, but this is not true if they are handled properly. For example, the occupants need to keep their center of gravity as low as possible. Canoes can navigate swift-moving water with careful scouting of rapids and good communication between the paddlers.

When two people occupy a canoe, they paddle on opposite sides. For example, the person in the bow (the bowman) might hold the paddle on the port side, with the left hand just above the blade and the right hand at the top end of the paddle. The left hand acts mostly as a pivot and the right arm supplies most of the power. Conversely, the sternman would paddle to starboard, with the right hand just above the blade and the left hand at the top. For travel straight ahead, they draw the paddle from bow to stern, in a straight line parallel to the gunwale.

A trick called "gunwale bobbing" allows a canoe to be propelled without a paddle. The canoer stands on the gunwales, near the bow or the stern, and squats up and down to make the canoe rock backward and forward. This propulsion method is inefficient and unstable.

Steering

The paddling action of two paddlers will tend to turn the canoe toward the opposite side that on which the sternman is paddling. Thus, steering is particularly important, particularly because canoes have flat-bottomed hulls and are very responsive to turning actions. Steering techniques vary widely, even as to the basic question of which paddler should be responsible for steering.

Among experienced white water canoeists, the sternman is primarily responsible for steering the canoe, with the exception of two cases. The bowman will steer when avoiding rocks and other obstacles that the sternman cannot see. Also, in the case of backferrying, the bowman is responsible for steering the canoe using small correctional strokes while backpaddling with the sternman.

Among less-experienced canoeists, the canoe is typically steered from the bow. The advantage of steering in the bow is that the bowman can change sides more easily than the sternman. Steering in the bow is initially more intuitive than steering in the stern, because to steer to starboard, the stern must actually move to port. On the other hand, the paddler who does not steer usually produces the most forward power or thrust, and the greater source of thrust should be placed in the bow for greater steering stability.

Paddle strokes

• Advocates of steering in the stern often use the J-stroke, which is so named because, when done on the port side, it resembles the letter J. It begins like a standard stroke, but towards the end, the paddle is rotated and pushed away from the canoe with the power face of the paddle remaining the same throughout the stroke. This conveniently counteracts the natural tendency of the canoe to steer away from the side of the sternman's paddle. This stroke is used in reverse by the bowman while backpaddling or backferrying in white water.
• A less elegant but more effective stroke which is used in the stern is the Superior stroke, more commonly referred to as the goon or rudder stroke. Unlike the J-stroke in which the side of the paddle pushing against the water during the stroke (the power face) is the side which is used to straighten the canoe, this stroke uses the opposite face of the paddle to make the steering motion. It is somewhat like a stroke with a small pry at the end of it. This stroke uses larger muscle groups, is preferable in rough water and is the one used in white water. It is commonly thought to be less efficient than the J-stroke when paddling long distances across relatively calm water.
• Another stroke which may be used by either the bow or stern paddler is the pry stroke. The paddle is inserted vertically in the water, with the power face outward, and the shaft braced against the gunwale. A gentle prying motion is applied, forcing the canoe in the opposite direction of the paddling side.
• The running pry can be applied while the canoe is moving. As in the standard pry, the paddle is turned sideways and braced against the gunwale, but rather than forcing the paddle away from the hull, the paddler simply turns it at an angle and allows the motion of the water to provide the force.
• The draw stroke exerts a force opposite to that of the pry. The paddle is inserted vertically in the water at arm's length from the gunwale, with the power face toward the canoe, and is then pulled inward to the paddler's hip. A draw can be applied while moving to create a running or hanging draw.
• The cross-draw stroke is a bowman's stroke that exerts the same vector of force as a pry, by moving the blade of the paddle to the other side of the canoe without moving the paddler's hands. The arm of bottom hand crosses in front of the bowman's body to insert the paddle in the water on the opposite side of the canoe some distance from the gunwale, facing towards the canoe, and is then pulled inward while the top hand pushes outward. The cross-draw is much stronger than the draw stroke.
• The sweep is unique in that it steers the canoe away from the paddle regardless of which end of the canoe it is performed in. The paddle is inserted in the water some distance from the gunwale, facing forward, and is drawn backward in a wide sweeping motion. The paddler's bottom hand is choked up to extend the reach of the paddle. In the case of the bowman, the blade will pull a quarter-circle from the bow to the paddler's waist. If in the stern, the paddler pulls from the waist to the stern of the canoe. Backsweeps are the same stroke done in reverse.

Complementary strokes are selected by the bow and stern paddlers in order to safely and quickly steer the canoe. It is important that the paddlers remain in unison, particularly in white water, in order to keep the boat stable and to maximize efficiency.

Canoeing on the Shenandoah River, Winchester, Virginia

There are some differences in techniques in how the above strokes are utilized.

• One of these techniques involves locking or nearly locking the elbow, that is on the side of the canoe the paddle is, to minimize muscular usage of that arm to increase endurance. Another benefit of this technique is that along with using less muscle you gain longer strokes which results in an increase of the power to stroke ratio. This is generally used more with the 'stay on one side' method of paddling.
• The other technique is generally what newer canoeists use and that is where they bend the elbow to pull the paddle out of the water before they have finished the stroke. This is generally used more with the 'it is ok to switch sides' method of paddling.
• The Stay on one side method is where each canoeist takes opposite sides and the sternman uses occasional J-strokes to correct direction of travel.
• The It is ok to switch sides method allows the canoeists to switch sides frequently (usually every 5 to 10 strokes) to maintain their heading. This method is the fastest one on flat water and is used by all marathon canoers in the US and Canada. The method is best performed with bent-shaft paddles.

Setting poles

On swift rivers, the sternman may use a setting pole. It allows the canoe to move through water too shallow for a paddle to create thrust, or against a current too quick for the paddlers to make headway. With skillful use of eddies, a setting pole can propel a canoe even against moderate (class III) rapids.

External links

• Canadian Canoe Museum
• Wooden Canoe Heritage Association
• Canadian Canoe Association
• Rideau Canoe Club
• YMCA Canoe Camping Club

References

• The Survival of the Bark Canoe ISBN 0374272077, by John McPhee
• Path of the Paddle ISBN 155209328X, by Bill Mason
• Song of the Paddle ISBN 1552090892, by Bill Mason
• Thrill of the Paddle ISBN 1552094510, by Paul Mason

For the Dutch rock band of the same name see Kayak (band)

Two whitewater kayakers running the "Numbers" section of the Arkansas River.

A kayak is a type of small human-powered boat; a covered variant of a canoe, which is often called a canoe in Great Britain and Ireland, typically used with a double-bladed paddle instead of a canoe's single bladed paddle.

The user or paddler sits down in the kayak with feet facing forward. The top of the kayak is covered with a deck. The paddler sits in a hole in the cockpit which may be sealed off with a spray skirt (or spraydeck). This stops water splashing over the boat from entering it, and makes it possible that, should the kayak (capsize), the kayak will not fill with water, and the paddler, with skill, can right the kayak again without taking on water. This manoeuvre is known as an Eskimo Roll.

In modern times kayaks have been further developed into several types including: whitewater, playboats, surfing, sea kayaks, flat-water racing, downriver racing, slalom, canoe polo and recreational. These types may also be subdivided. Modern kayaks are made of plastic, fiberglass, kevlar, carbon fiber, canvas, other fabrics, or wood. They come in one, two, and occasionally three person models. Some sit-on-top boats are also called kayaks, as the paddler propels the boat with a double-ended paddle.

The design of different types of kayak is largely a matter of two types of trade-offs. The first trade-off important to all kayaks is between directional stability ("tracking") and maneuverability. As a general rule, a longer boat is faster while a shorter boat may be turned more quickly. A longer hull creates a smoother transition from the narrow bow to the widest part of the boat and so "cuts" through the water with less resistance much like a sharp knife cuts more easily than a dull one. Longer boats also have a higher maximum non-planing hull speed, but the effect is largely offset by increased friction, and only becomes a significant factor at racing speeds. Kayaks that are built to cover longer distances such as touring and sea kayaks are themselves longer, generally between 15 and 18 feet. Flat water racing kayaks, which are built for maximum speed and efficiency, may be over 20 feet in length. Whitewater kayaks, which generally depend upon river current for their forward motion, are built quite short, to maximize maneuverability. These kayaks rarely exceed eight feet in length, and some specialized boats such as playboats may be only six feet long. The design of recreational kayaks is an attempt to compromise between tracking and maneuverability, while keeping costs reasonable; their length generally ranges from nine to fourteen feet.

Although length is an important feature of directional stability, length alone is a poor basis for guessing at the maneuverability of a kayak. A second design element that should be considered is rocker, or the curvature of the kayak from bow to stern. A heavily "rockered" boat curves more than a boat with little or no rocker, meaning that the effective waterline of the rockered boat is less than for a kayak with no rocker. For example, imagine a hoop 30 inches in diameter. When set on its edge on a table, only a small portion of that hoop touches the table. Although kayak hulls are not so extremely curved as a hoop, it is analogous to what happens when a kayak with rocker is sitting in the water: although the overall length of the boat may be 18 feet, the length at waterline may only be 16 feet. Similarly, although a whitewater boat may only be a few feet shorter than many recreational kayaks, because the whitewater boat is heavily rockered its waterline is far shorter and its maneuverability far greater.

After directional stabilty, the next most important design difference among kayaks is the tradeoff between primary and secondary stability. Primary stability refers to the feeling of "tippiness" one has when seated in the kayak on flat water. Although every kayak will have some amount of side-to-side rocking, a wide kayak normally feels less likely to capsize than a narrow one, and a flat-bottomed boat will feel more stable than one with a rounded or V-shaped hull. However, if one plans to take his or her kayak into rough water, secondary stability may be more important. Secondary stability refers to the ease of righting a kayak once it has been put off balance. The same boats that have lower primary stability will generally be easier to right once they are tipped too far in one direction. Thus, sea kayaks, which are meant to be taken into open water and rough conditions, are generally narrower (22-25 inches) and less stable feeling than recreational kayaks, which are wider (26-30+ inches) and have a flatter hull shape. Until recently, whitewater kayaks had very rounded hulls. Radical changes in design philosophy, however, have lead to whitewater kayaks with very flat hulls that allow them to sit on top of the water (planing hull) rather than in the water (displacement hull) like most other boats.

There are, of course, many more elements of kayak design— see the external links for more information. Most kayaks are rigid hulled, although folding kayaks that can be transported easily, and inflatable kayaks are not uncommon.

A special type of kayak using pedals allows the kayaker to propel the vessel with underwater "flippers" .

A greenland paddle, 7 foot in length, and much narrower than european paddles.

Origins

Kayaks were originally developed by the Inuit, the indigenous peoples living in the Arctic regions of North America and Greenland. The word "kayak" means "man's boat". These first kayaks were constructed as a wooden frame covered by an animal skin such as seal skin. Kayaks were originally built by the man who would use them (with substantial assistance from his wife, who would typically sew the skins). The skin jacket of the hunter is then sewn into the skins of the kayak, to create a waterproof seal. The man would measure the frame for the kayak based on his forearm, and a typical kayak is about 19ft long. This measurement style confounded early European explorers who tried to duplicate the kayak because each kayak was a little different. Kayaks were used to hunt on the coastal and open waters of the Arctic Ocean, usually with harpoons and lances, but also with bird hooks. Because the user was sewn into the boat, it was almost like a piece of clothing, 'worn' by the boater. This meant that what is now known as a 'wet exit' (getting out of a kayak that has overturned, righting it, and getting back in) was impossible, leading to the importance of the eskimo roll manoeuvre, where the kayak is righted without leaving the cockpit. For the Inuit, without modern floatation devices or cold water protection, being thrown into the freezing waters of the Arctic Ocean was almost certain death in any event. Greenland style boats are typically narrower, and are paddled with greenland paddles, typically wooden, long and narrow.

Skin on frame kayaks

Often an umbrella term for several types of kayaks, Skin on Frame boats are primarily considered a more traditional boat in design, materials, construction, and technique. They are often the lightest kayaks, and traditionally made of drift wood pegged and or lashed together and seal skin stretched over it, as those were the easiest materials to source in the arctic regions.

The Dutch were some of the first Europeans to take interest in the indigenous American boat design, spelling the name for these Inuit & Aleut boats, Qajaq. This spelling of the word kayak has evolved to be synonymous with “traditional kayak” and often encompasses three sub categories of boats separated by development local:

Baidarkas, from the Alaskan & Aleutian seas, and are a much older design. Their more rounded shape and high number of chines give them an almost Blimp-like appearance.

West Greenland kayaks are what most neo-traditional polymer boats are modeled after. Possessing often fewer chines they are more angular in shape, the gunnels rising to a point at the bow and stern.

East Greenland kayaks appear similar to the West Greenland boat, but are often more snugly fitted to the boater and possess a steeper angle between gunnel and stem. Lending maneuverability traits more adapted to the local environment.

Folding kayaks

A special type of skin-on-frame kayak is the folding kayak, the direct descendant of the original Inuit kayak. A folder is a modern kayak that uses a collapsible frame, of wood, aluminum or plastic, or a combination thereof, and a skin, of some sort of water-resistant and tough fabric. Many types have integral air sponsons inside the hull, making the kayaks virtually unsinkable.

Folders are known for their durability, stability, and longevity: The Klepper Aerius I, a single-seater, has been used successfully for white-water kayaking, due to its durability and excellent manouvrability, while many Kleppers have been in frequent use for more than 20 years.

Folding kayaks exhibit many of the same paddling characteristics as the original skin-and-frame vessels of the circumpolar north. Of all modern kayaks, they are closest relatives to the skin-and-frame boats of the past.

Whitewater kayaks

Whitewater kayaks are generally made out of high impact plastic, usually polyethylene. They are shorter than other types of kayaks. The size usually ranges from 6 to 10 feet/2 to 3 metres long; the trend was toward the shorter boats, but this is now reversing slightly to longer boats of around 7 to 8 feet that can become airborne more easily. Whitewater kayaks are among the most maneuverable types made, however they are much slower than many other styles of boat. Whitewater boats, however, do not need inherent speed. Their speed comes from their ability to ride the crest of flowing river. In "freestyle" competition ("kayak rodeo"), whitewater kayakers use features of rapids to do tricks, typically while remaining in one place on the river.

Ultra-low-volume kayaks that are designed to be paddled both on and below the surface of the water are used in Squirt Boating.

Surf kayaks

Surf Kayaks are similar in design to whitewater kayaks, except they have a planing hull (flat side to side) to carve into a wave face, like a surfboard. While typically seven or eight feet in length, competition surf kayaks can be nearly twelve feet long to increase both planing speed while on a wave and to provide faster paddling speed for catching waves.

A variation on the closed cockpit surf kayak is an open cockpit design called a Waveski. Although the waveski utilises similar dynamics, in terms of paddling technique and surfing performance on the waves, construction can be very similar to surfboard designs. Elite waveski surfers are able to more closely imitate surfboard manouveres.

Recreational kayaks

Kayaking in a double on Lake Union in Seattle, USA

Recreational kayaks are designed for the casual paddler interested in fishing, photography, or a peaceful paddle on a lake or flatwater stream; they presently make up the largest segment of kayak sales. Compared to other kayaks recreational kayaks have a larger cockpit for easier entry and exit and a wider beam (27–30 inches) for more stability on the water; they are generally less than twelve feet in length and have limited cargo capacity. Using less expensive materials like polyethylene and including fewer options keep these boats inexpensive ($300–$800). Most canoe/kayak clubs will offer indroductory instruction programs in recreational boats as a way to enter into the sport.[1]

Flatwater racing kayaks

A typical racing K-2 design, at the Canadian Masters Championships, 2005. Note the extremely narrow beam.

Flatwater racing kayaks are generally made out of lightweight materials, and as such, are somewhat weak; they are not intended for anything other than flat water on a relatively calm day. They are thin, extremely unstable, and expensive, with a competitive boat running in the $4000 range. They require a good level of expertise to paddle well, but are extremely fast in the hands of proficient users. The beam of a flatwater boat is typically barely wider than the hips of the person who paddles it, allowing for a very long and narrow shape to reduce drag. The most common types of flatwater racing kayaks (sometimes termed 'sprint boats') are K-1, K-2 and K-4. These boats are raced at the Olympic level by both men and women, over courses of 200m, 500m and 1000m.

Due to their long length (a one person sprint kayak will be on the order of 17 feet long), sprint boats come equipped with a rudder to help with turning. The rudder is controlled by the feet of the paddler (the foremost paddler in multiperson designs). In spite of this, these boats still require fairly large areas to turn.

Flatwater racing kayaks are closely related to flatwater racing canoes, and are usually paddled out of a common club or team, although it is rare for paddlers to compete in both canoes and kayaks.

A highly specialized variant of flatwater racing kayak called a Surf Ski has an open cockpit and can be twenty-one feet long but only eighteen inches wide, requiring expert balance and paddling skill. Surf Skis were originally created for surf and are still used in surf races in countries such as New Zealand, Australia, South Africa.

Inflatable kayaks

Another special type of kayak is the inflatable kayak. Inflatable kayaks usually can be transported by hand using a carry bag. They can be inflated with foot pumps, a variety of hand pumps, or electric pumps. The pressure sounds low, almost always below 3 psi.

They are made of hypalon (a kind of neoprene), pvc, or polyurethane coated cloth.

Besides being portable, inflatable kayaks generally are stable and easy to master, but they take more effort to paddle and are slower than traditional kayaks.

See also

• Canoe
• Royak
• Canyoning
• Playboating
• Squirt Boating

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Kayak

• Boater Talk An international whitewater paddling forum.
• Kayak design
• KayakDude.com Kayaking portal with news, articles and links to kayak related sites.
• Kayakwiki, A wiki site devoted exclusively to kayaks and kayaking
• The Kayaking Journal
• KayakInstruction.org, A non-profit organization providing whitewater kayak training
• http://www.mountainbuzz.com A site for Colorado kayakers
• NSW Sea Kayak Club (New South Wales, Australia) - a top-resource on all things sea kayaking: From skills and technique to nutrition facts, from preparation for expedition kayaking to trip suggestions.
• paddlepedia - Another newer wiki about paddling
• Paddling.net A site dedicated to all paddle related sports including kayaking.
• purepaddling.com - An online community of surf ski paddlers, sea kayakers and other paddlers
• Qajaq USA, A non-profit comitted to promoting Greenland style kayaking
• ThamesWeirProject Community and information for Thames Paddlers in the UK
• WaterTribe A non-commercial site devoted to small, human powered boats and expedition racing