Why are canoes and kayaks pointed at both ends?

It seems like you could trim a couple feet off the back end and have it flat. That would make the boat lighter in weight and shorter - easier to transport to and from a waterway. Is there some advantage to having both ends points on these kinds of boats?|||Canoes and kayaks are designed to be efficient in the water. As for being easier to transport to and from a waterway, they have those; inflatables in both kayak and canoe styles.





Yes, tapered ends does make displacement hulls more efficient through the water, but not everybody paddles flat-water. In faster moving water, by having a pointed stern, it lessens the effects of the following water. (The water coming from behind.) It doesn't push nearly as much as if it were a flat stern. Watch a kayaker come to a complete stop while water is racing through a rapids underneath them. A flat back wouldn't permit it.





Also, Viking ships had a tampered stern so that in heavy seas, they wouldn't get pushed as much.|||The double-ended canoe or kayak with the pointed stern (back-end) helps reduce the drag and allows the boat to slip through the water cleaner.





There are times where you might like a longer boat, for instance if your are traveling lakes or large bodies of water often. The longer the boat, the straighter it tracks through the water and thus you can concentrate on paddling and less on your line. Also, the longer the boat the more it will "glide" in the water. You will travel further on each pull, thus reducing effort over the long haul.





There are some kayaks and canoes which are shorter and lighter and designed quick turns. The river canoe will have little or no keel and the white water kayak will be short, light, and easy to turn.





In short, if you are tripping and paddling a lot of lakes trade the weight for the tracking, it pays off in the long run.|||Having the "back-end" pointed makes it more efficient cutting through the water; the water, after having passed alongside the hull, joins back behind the boat gradually and smoothly, eliminating drag. It's kind of the same reason that the rear window of modern cars slopes back gently to the trunk of the car instead of going straight down from the rear of the roof. It reduces drag and turbulence in the water just as it does on a car.|||Many other types of boats, particularly certain sailboats are 'double ended', or have a canoe stern.





Yachts with canoe sterns:





http://www.superyachttimes.com/articles/鈥?/a>





http://www.yachtforums.com/forums/attach鈥?/a>





Sailboats with canoe sterns:





http://helloworld.smugmug.com/photos/269鈥?/a>





http://www.hillyardyachts.com/images/Mis鈥?/a>





Not all canoes are double ended.





http://joe.imageg.net/graphics/product_i鈥?/a>|||So the water doesn't slam shut after the canoe passes through it.|||yeah good idea, you could hinge the back end so it lifted up when you didn't need it for not going backwards