The best solo canoe may be a touring kayak.

[Idiot Savant]

You can argue the pros and cons of paddling solo with a single bladed paddle vs. a double bladed paddle all day long.
I've made my choice. I'm not a suffering is good for the soul kind of guy. I can go faster with less concentration and frustration with a double bladed paddle.
Most solo canoes are compatible with a double blade, but ones that are narrow at the gunnels and have low freeboard, work the best.
You know what works even better? A touring kayak.
Next time you are shopping for a new solo canoe, do yourself a favor and include touring kayaks in that search.
I'm a fan of the Old Town Castine series. Coming from a canoe, you might find them more user friendly than most.
I recently purchased a crossover kayak. Holds enough gear for an overnighter and can handle up to easy class IV rapids.
Some of the higher end recreational kayaks are a good choice for some. I like the Pungo and Loon series.

 

[Mason]

Sorta like going to a Ford website and saying "buy Chevy".

 

[ppine]

Where do the dogs sit?
Where does the 2 burner stove go?
How do you get your gear out for a portage?
I built a kayak and sold it.

 

[riverstrider]

I've paddled many miles in both canoes and kayaks, over all sorts of water, day-tripping or loaded down with a week or two's worth of gear and food, and the only time I would prefer a kayak over a canoe is in large open waterbodies on windy days or for whitewater playboating (but only because I don't have a lot of experience in whitewater solo canoeing). Full disclosure: I have little interest in paddling fast in most cases.

Canoes especially excel in carrying gear that is conveniently accessible on the water, as well as navigating narrow, forested rivers with low overhanging vegetation or fallen trees to get over. I can sit, kneel or stand whenever I want...can't do that in a kayak. Many canoes are lighter than equivalent kayaks, and in my advancing age weight is an issue. And gawd, how I hate carrying a kayak any distance.

I still have my river-touring kayaks, but they get little use these days. YMMV. -rs

 

[recped]

Holds enough gear for an overnighter

I'm glad you included this disclaimer!

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

"The best solo canoe may be a touring kayak."

I think that sentence would be more accurate if reformulated as: "The best solo watercraft for some people under some circumstances may be a touring kayak."

That would be self-evidently true. For other paddlers in other circumstances, the best solo watercraft may be a whitewater kayak, a sit-on-top fishing kayak, a paddleboard/SUP, a raft, a surf ski, a decked canoe, an outrigger canoe, or any of the many varieties of open canoes. For those reasons, many eclectic boaters here own different types of watercrafts. I, for example, own an outrigger canoe and three kayaks including a crossover touring/whitewater kayak.

However, just as some vehicle discussion sites focus on pickup trucks, and others on sports cars, and others on dune buggies, etc., this site has a watercraft subject matter focus—namely, paddling, tripping, building, restoring, outfitting, camping out of, and otherwise discussing various types of canoes. While there's no rule that says other types of paddlecrafts or boats can't be mentioned here, they are not our communal focus. Canoes are.

I know the OP know all this, and I hope he continues to enjoy all his boats as we all do, but I just thought I'd give a short mission statement reminder for other readers in the future.

 

[GeoBoy]

A pack canoe would be a better choice. You sit low in the boat, like a kayak, you can carry gear, pets, etc. with greater accessibility, very efficient with either a double or single blade paddle and much lighter than a solo canoe or kayak.

 

[yknpdlr]

Not a chance for this paddler to do the "dip, swish, and drip". You will not ever see me in a kayak or using a kayak paddle in my solo canoes. The very rare exception is when I have a couple of times raced in the Adirondack 90 miler in the solo-rec class when use of the double blade paddle is required by the rules. And yes, it is faster than a single blade in that case.

However, in my mind and for my overall paddling enjoyment, nothing beats the pleasure of fine accurate control possible in a solo canoe by use of a well made single blade paddle. Windy days? Learn the single blade strokes that are effective. No, I am not a well accomplished demonstation free style fancy stroke paddler, but I do use many of the same advanced stroke components of freestyle in my every day paddling. They just work.

Yes, most here know that I am also a marathon canoe racer, using a carbon bent shaft single blade for long hours at top speed in multi-seat canoes. But I do have a fleet of solo canoes that I love to paddle, sometimes I paddle them in training mode with my bent shaft carbon single blade. Other times, especially when tripping in flat water pleasure mode with my favorite well balanced straight wood single blade paddle placing my canoe exactly where I desire it to go.

 

[SouthernKevlar]

Both vessels have their place, and I have, and have had, models for each of their places.

I have been in the ocean and whitewater with a kayak where I would not want to be in a canoe and I have been in tripping in a canoe with portages where I would not want to be toting a kayak.

It's kinda like taking a a road trip and deciding between a fun sports car and a pickup truck for your gear. We can enjoy some of the qualities of both, but usually one is better than the other for a particular job.

It is interesting that Swift makes the Adirondack 13.6 in both a kayak and an open pack canoe. I guess that if you like that hull, you can have a choice.

 

[ScottS]

Have fun carrying your kayak and pack on that upcoming 1/2 mile portage, not to mention the 1/2 hour on either end unloading and loading your gear into the kayak cargo bays.

 

[ScottS]

The best solo canoe would be a 35 foot motor yacht with a jacuzzi and bar.

 

[SouthernKevlar]

"The best solo canoe would be a 35 foot motor yacht with a jacuzzi and bar."

That would be a tough vessel to portage, unless you used the same portage techniques as the Pharaohs!

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

The best solo canoe would be a 35 foot motor yacht with a jacuzzi and bar.

That would be a tough vessel to portage, unless you used the same portage techniques as the Pharaohs!

You haven't seen a portage until you've seen Fitzcarraldo.

Trailer:

Full movie:

 

[Idiot Savant]

Sorta like going to a Ford website and saying "buy Chevy".

I'm not saying buy Chevy, I'm saying take it for a test drive.

 

[Idiot Savant]

I'm glad you included this disclaimer!

That's just my crossover kayak. My touring kayak holds a couple weeks worth of gear.

 

[Idiot Savant]

Now hold on guys (and any gals).
I didn't say touring kayaks are better.
I didn't say you should buy a touring kayak instead of a canoe.
What I said was you should, at least, consider them next time you are shopping for a solo boat.
I'm not selling my Northwind solo or my Echo. But now I have two touring kayaks in my quiver too.
And a crossover kayak for more serious whitewater than I'd ever attempt in a canoe.
I'm just starting a conversation. That's all.

What are the downsides of touring kayaks?
The biggest ones, for me, are you can't take a cooler or river toilette. Don't want the two burner stove.
On multiday trips on rivers where you normally carry all your water, room can be a problem.
Getting in and out can be a pain, especially as you get older. I'm almost 70.
Fear of entrapment is an issue for some, including me. I buy touring kayaks with large cockpit openings.
Portaging is an issue.

What are the pros?
Seating is lightyears more comfortable. My Castines are like sitting in an easy chair at home.
Less affected by wind. What made me really think about touring kayaks was a trip down the Upper Missouri with a strong headwind.
With a spray skirt, no issue with water coming in. That Upper Missouri trip would have been dryer.
If you use a double bladed paddle, less dripping on your legs, even without a skirt.
No need to strap in gear as it's under a deck.
Depending on the boats, most likely faster. Many years ago, when I was still young and strong, I was paddling down Stillwater Canyon, in my Wenonah Encounter, when I got passed by a couple seakayaks. I switched to my double bladed paddle and picked up the pace to see if I could keep up. I couldn't. I paddled Lake Powell in both very fast canoes and seakayaks and I could cover more ground in the seakayak.
Every time I buy a canoe I have to spend hours, and quite a bit of money, getting it ready for tripping. You buy a touring kayak and it's ready to go right out of the box.
I belong to a big canoe club. Yes, canoe club. Most of the solo paddlers are now in touring kayaks. A big change from 20 years ago. Partly a reflection of advances in touring kayaks. Today's touring kayaks are pretty nice.

Am I always going to use a touring kayak instead of a canoe?
No, but I like having that option. For some trips the canoe will be more suitable. For some trips the seakayak will be more suitable.

 

[stevet]

To each his own....own trip, own hull, own paddle, own reason for choice of all. My choice and 2¢...canoe.

 

[BWCA66]

For me the biggest downside, and it is a deal breaker, is sitting. I need my options to sit or kneel or stretch out my legs or fold them under me. I can last about an hour in a kayak. Portaging is a deal breaker too. The boundary waters CANOE area is one of the last places where you hardly ever see a kayak, probably because of the portaging and no wheels rules.

 

[PaddlingPitt]

Kathleen and I, early in our paddling lives, tried a kayak for a couple of hours. Didn’t like it at all, because we had no options regarding leg position. I share your sentiments exactly, BWCA66! But, everyone has their own preferences.

 

[MyKneesHurt]

I have no dog in this fight. I'm not even sure why it's contentious. Canoes are cool. Kayaks are cool. Building them and paddling them is a chance to learn and do and have fun. Reading up on how and why different forms of boats developed is fun.
One thing kayaks have done for me recently is made me get back into yoga and flexibility. That's something I really like, when a hobby helps me better myself in other areas of my life.