Kayaking originally used by the Inuits for hunting and fishing, a kayak is propelled from a sitting position using a double-ended paddle. Most commonly these boats have enclosed decks (closed cockpit) and are designed for a single person.

Open boats have been used for thousands of years by many different cultures, but it was native North American Indians who pioneered the craft as we recognise it today, making them from wooden ribs and bark and using them to navigate the vast river networks of the continent. When European settlers arrived, early explorers used canoes to chart their New World. Today they are often known as ‘Canadian canoes’.