Kathy D'Errico wrote:
I have a 16 foot hybrid canoe that I can use solo or tandem. It
really takes a lot of work paddling solo and I was wondering if
a kayak paddle would work better for me? or what would better than
the traditional lightweight paddle?

The canoe paddle serves as both paddle and rudder. Kayak paddles don't
do the rudder job well. They don't need to because kayak paddlers sit
amidships and on flat water turn by heeling the boat while paddling,
and in white water use radically different hull shapes that turn but
don't hold a straight course as well.

A kayak paddle will allow you to extert more force at the cost of more
effort. It's the same canoe and nothing is free.

A kayak is typically 2 feet wide. A canoe is typically 3 feet wide.
There are small canoes only 2 feet wide and there are open kayaks with
large cockpits which resemble narrow canoes. (Empty canoes paddled solo
should be paddled sitting amidships, heeled over.) In some circles the
point at which a canoe becomes a kayak is determined by the type of
paddle used rather than the shape for the hull. Long. extremely narrow
dugouts on the Amazon are canoes because they are paddled with canoe
paddles. A tiny "wee lassie" style canoe is actually an open kayak if
it is paddled with a kayak paddle.