Canoeing, You Of The Well Known Basics

A typical canoe is a narrow boat that commonly has a pointed bow and stern. They are open boat types, although, they can also be covered. It is usually maneuvered and propelled by paddles.

Canoe paddling can be differentiated from boat rowing in that the former involves the paddlers facing in the direction of travel while the latter involves the rowers facing away from the direction of travel. Canoe paddles can either be single-bladed or double-bladed.

The thing about the word "canoe" is that it is often times used to refer to both a canoe and kayak. Actually, the International Canoe Federation uses the word "canoe" to that effect especially during sporting competitions. It was the Europeans who first adopted the term canoe from the Arawak word "canoa" in the Caribbean Sea. It was Christopher Columbus who first discovered its meaning. Later on, Garcilaso de la Vega used the word to refer to an open boat.

Regardless, if it is used to refer to a canoe or a kayak, this type of boat has seven typical parts, most of which are really common in all kinds of boats. A canoe has a bow, stern, hull, seat, thwart which refers to a horizontal crossbeam at the top of the hull, gunwale which refers to the top edge of the hull, and the deck which can be used to help stabilize the boat to prevent if from going under.

Canoes, nowadays, also have a yoke which is a molded part located at the center of the canoe which provides a comfortable shoulder rest when one carries a canoe for transport and the like. Some other optional devices include flotation bags which protects the canoe during white water rapids. There's also a spraydeck which is just a cover put over the canoe to prevent water from entering the canoe.

The early canoes were, of course, made from hallowed-out tree trunks. Some were constructed using bark of trees and reinforcing and waterproofing them through applying resins.

Meanwhile, modern canoes can also be made of wood but these aren't the hallowed-out kinds from years ago. Newer canoes use wood strips or wood-and-canvas materials. Stitching and gluing the materials together are used to reinforce the boats.

Other materials used today include composites of fiberglass, Kevlar and carbon fibers, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene or ABS synthetic composites, polyethylene, and even graphite With newer materials, the canoes can be very light yet are stronger, more durable and flexible than its older counterparts.

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Canoeing 101 

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