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Canoes: Description and Construction

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What is a Canoe?

A canoe is a small narrow boat, usually powered by paddling, although it can sometimes be powered by sails or small motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top.

Photo © by Jeff Dean

The paddler or paddlers face in the direction of travel, either seated or kneeling directly upon the hull. Paddling differs from rowing, where the rowers usually face away from the direction of travel and use mounted oars (though some canoes can be fitted with oarlocks and rowed). Paddles can be single-bladed or double-bladed.

The oldest recovered canoe in the world (about 10,000 years old) is the ‘Pesse canoe’ found in the Netherlands. This canoe is exhibited in the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands.

Materials

Wooden Canoes

The earliest canoes were made from wood, often simply hollowed-out tree trunks (known as dugouts). These are still used in some parts of the world. Modern wooden canoes may be wood strip, wood-and-canvas, stitch-and-glue, glued plywood lapstrake, or birchbark.

In North America, white cedar was used for the frame and bark of the Paper Birch for the exterior, with charcoal and fats mixed into the resin. A few modern canoe builders have revived and continued building birchbark canoes.

Aluminum Canoes

Aluminum canoes were first made by the Grumman company after World war II, when demand for airplanes began to decline. Aluminum allowed a lighter and much stronger construction than the wood construction. However, capsized aluminum canoes will sink unless the ends are filled with flotation blocks, and they are noisy.

Modern Composite Canoes

Composites of fiberglass, Kevlar and carbon fiber are used in synthetic canoe construction. These materials are light, strong, and maneuverable. Because they can be aasily portaged, these canoes allow experienced paddlers access to remote wilderness areas. Kevlar and Carbon Fiber are generally very expensive, but are usually more durable than other materials. Fiberglass retains the light weight, but cracks easily upon impact. On the plus side, Fiberglass can be very easily repaired, unlike almost all other materials.

Kevlar canoes

ABS, or acrylonitrile butadiene styrene,  is another synthetic composite material that makes an extremely flexible and durable hull, making it ideal for whitewater canoes. ABS canoes have been known to pop back into their original shape with minimal creasing of the hull after having been wrapped around a rock in strong river currents. Although very unlikely that the hull would be punctured, they are very difficult to repair. Additionally, they must be protected from continual sun exposure to prevent degradation of the plastic by ultraviolet light.

HDP (roto-molded high density polyethylene) is a cheaper and heavier material used for synthetic canoe construction. Its superior abrasion resistance and very low friction make it a popular choice in whitewater canoes. This material can be repaired with a hot air welding process if punctured.

The different constructions have different advantages depending on the intended use of the canoe. The wood-and-canvas canoe is more fragile than an aluminum canoe, therefore not as useful in rough water; but it is much quieter—making it better for observing wildlife. A wilderness canoe trip will require a canoe that is light yet durable.

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