It is the invention of the canoe which first made the discovery of Canada and settlement in that territory possible. Its structure is ideally adapted to the needs of sailing on lakes and rivers. Its simple and coherent construction still serves today as a model for synthetic material variants which offer other advantages such as requiring little maintenance and allowing mass production.
The best–known canoe structure type is the birchbark canoe. The bark of paper (or “canoe”) birches is sewn with spruce roots into the shape of a canoe. Afterwards, the boat frame is embedded into that structure. The canoe builders also knew the Inuit kayak–building technique, with the frame first set up and skin subsequently stretched on.
On the basis of that technique, using tear–proof canvas and solid, long–lasting lashing material, we can nowadays build light and strong boats. Such canoes are best suited for trips with or without luggage on rivers and lakes. Depending on their construction, they can accommodate 1 to 4 paddlers.
