For instance, if you would like to improve seaworthiness and increase carrying capacity of your canoe, raise the sheer line. That can really be a problem on windy days. Let's look at some more of the ways that hull design can influence the performance of your canoe. A lot of the graphics on this page were stolen from the WE NO NAH catalog and web site. A link to this fine web site will be found on Heritage Canoes Links Page.
Secondary stability describes the hulls reaction when loaded, leaned or in waves.
In studying the graphics above, we come to better understand why the flat bottom canoe will feel more stable in flat water and the arched bottom is more stable when the going gets rough. Comparing two canoes that are the same width, the longer one is more streamlined than the shorter one. Even though it's larger, the longer hull travels faster with less effort and glides farther for each stroke. However, for this gain in speed and ease of paddling, we tend to lose some maneuverability. Maximum width at the waterline has the largest impact on overall performance.