Sea kayaking or sightseeing kayak is a kayak developed for paddling in the open waters of lakes, bays, seas and ocean. Sea canoes are small seaworthy boats that have a covered deck and can include a spraydeck that prevents water from entering the canoe. Compared to river canoes, the carrying capacity, ease of rowing and the comfort offered for long journeys are higher.
Seakayaking can be done wherever there are large open bodies of water to explore: lakes, bays, calm rivers, estuaries, or the ocean. Seakayaking is open to people of all skill levels, from renting canoes and paddling around a small lake to long journeys in harsh sea conditions for months. It also provides access to hard-to-access wildlife areas or hard-to-reach fishing grounds. Canoes are a popular vehicle to be carried while traveling on a boat. Allows seafarers to disembark or gain access to areas that would often not fit larger boats.
There are many different types of canoe – sit-in canoes, recreational canoes, inflatable canoes, fishing canoes, river canoes, tandem canoes, and tour canoes – each designed for the type of canoeing you want to do. Sea canoes are used worldwide for cruises from a few hours to weeks, as they can accommodate one to two or, very rarely, three rowers along with camping gear, food, water and other supplies. A sea kayak usually ranges from 3.0-5.5 meters for single-person and 7.9 meters for tandem boats. Width can be as small as 53 cm and up to 91 cm.
Contemporary sea kayaks have their origins in the indigenous boats of Alaska, Northern Canada, and Southwest Greenland. Eskimo hunters developed the kayaks as a fast watercraft for hunting seals and walruses. The ancient name of the sea kayaks is Aleut and Iqyak, meaning ‘hunter’s boat’ which is especially used by Inuits. The earliest models were made of a light wooden frame (tied together by a sine or bale) and covered with a marine mammal (sea lion or seal). Archaeologists have found evidence suggesting that the canoes are at least 4,000 years old. Until the 1950s, when fiberglass boats were launched, wooden canoes and fabric canoes with wooden frames dominated the market, while modern plastic canoes first appeared in 1984.
As mentioned above, kayaking in ancient times was mainly used for fishing, but even today many fishermen prefer to use kayaks more than any other way of moving in the water. During this time, many canoe designs were developed and different versions were used according to various needs. In modern times, canoeing is considered as a sport, and various activities have become possible with the redesign of canoes, such as river canoeing, where a smaller and wider canoe is used instead of sea kayaking, where long and narrow canoeing is much more appropriate. According to the style of the cockpit, there are sit-in canoes where a person sits and turns the canoes into a completely closed system using the spraydeck, or sit-on canoes where the person is not closed and can jump from the canoe at any time. The benefits of canoeing encompass all these styles of kayaking.
Canoeing is one of the best exercises for upper body and basic strengthening. As you mainly use your arms throughout the canoeing exercise, these body parts become tighter. The effort you put into kayaking works your upper body muscles, such as those in your back, shoulders, and chest. While the benefits of canoeing are more pronounced on your arms, shoulders and upper back, they also have significant effects on you and your legs. Leg muscles are still used while kayaking. In fact, canoe-related movements are effective in the lower limbs as well as in the upper parts. As you canoe, your legs apply pressure to keep you balanced. Your obliques, lateral abdominal muscles and waist also come into play during this exercise. With each pull, you contract your abdominal muscles as you stretch forward, and you tighten your lower back muscles as you pull back. Also, rowing itself helps improve hand-eye coordination. If done correctly, you can see the changes very quickly.
