Open Canoe Sailing
There are some who may consider the use of a sail in an open canoe as cheating but there is a lot to be said for it. It is still a graceful and elegant way to travel and the saving in time and energy are considerable. I have to admit that I used to think of it as cheating but someone pointed out that you do not think of it as cheating that you get to free wheel down the hils on a bike and this made sense so I am a real convert now.
Many may simply wish to rig a couple of poles and a tarp to give them a free run when heading with the wind. Thus saving their energy for the paddle back into the wind. More sofisticated options include an arab style sale for solo use or a specialised sail like the blue and yellow one pictured.
From here you can work you way up to quite sophisticated rigs, some of which may require considerable modification to your canoe.
The first non sail addition is a lee board. This is used to prevent side slip and allow you to sail at an angle to the wind. If fitted properly and usually with the aid of a rudder you may even be able to sail into the wind, however, at this stage you are probably closer to a sailing boat than a canoe.
A good place to get information about open canoe sailing is the aptly named Open Canoe Sailing Group. They have an excellent page showing some sample riggings first some fairly simple ones HERE and then a few more sophisticated HERE. Another link HERE
As always if you want more information about rigging your open canoe to take advantage of the wind or anything else have a look on our forum pages or post your question there.