Double Paddling

Why double paddle canoes and kayaks "work".

(And why conventional canoes don't.)
In a double paddle canoe (DPC) you sit below the level of the water. Your body serves as ballast, greatly stabilizing the boat. The hull can be built narrower and lighter, and as a result, faster.

 
In a conventional canoe you sit well up above the level of the water. Unless you have gear or rocks on the bottom of the boat, there's nothing to keep you upright except your balance and a wide, slow hull.
With a double paddle, a blade is in or near the water at all times, ready to pop you upright. Narrow hulls will feel tippy at first, but when rolled up on edge they have a lot of final stability.
In a DPC or kayak, you sit low in the canoe and with the boat's smaller profile, it is less sail area for the wind to push you around.

In a DPC or kayak you sit low in the boat. This -- and the boat's smaller profile -- add up to less sail area for the wind to push around.
In a conventional canoe you will have an unwanted 9 to 12 sq. ft. sail pushing you where you don't want to go.
DPCs are outfitted with contoured seats, backrests, and in the larger boats, footrests and sometimes thigh and hip braces. You're comfortable and when you move the boat, it will instantly respond.
In a conventional canoe there's usually no backrest. You slump in a seat that isn't high enough or low enough to be comfortable. You feel like a passenger waiting for the slug to react.
With a double blade paddle every stroke is a power stroke. No correcting is needed -- it encourages balanced exercise using all muscle groups. Powerboaters see the windmilling action at great distances.
With a single blade only one side of the boat is propelled. You must constantly compensate for this, otherwise the boat will go around in a circle -- you can't back up -- you can't stop without "yawing."