On multi-day, class II river floats, I never want to be in a kayak! Of course a canoe can carry a whole pile of stuff, but the main thing is that you aren't locked into basically the same position for hour after hour after hour. I can do a heck of a lot of sprawling and moving around in canoe!

Paddling around on a lake is a bit different than letting the current do most of the work, and, there, a kayak will often have superior speed and rough water ability over a short solo canoe - though, of course, the paddler has a lot to do with that!
Anyway, carrying a passenger in a single kayak is problematic, and doubles are often way too big to singlehand. Plus, getting a water moccasin (common in Alabama) out of a canoe seems much easier than getting one out of a kayak.
Just a thought.

Chris Kulczycki (founder of CLC) designed his 14'glued lapstrake "Sassafras" canoe to be used either solo, with a double paddle, or as a two person craft -depending on which end you call the bow. This might be the best compromise. A 10-12" solo seems a bit crowded for two . . . .
CLC offers plans and kits for the 12' and 16' versions of the Sassafras, but plans for all three are in Chris' book "The Canoe Shop." Be aware there's a errata sheet for those books, with corrected measurements.

But why not build a nice wooden canoe, and also indulge yourself with a quick and easy to build skin-on-frame kayak? Best of both worlds! They really do go together pretty darn fast, and mine have been very cheap to build. Check out Tom Yost's site, for complete instructions and designs - all for free! http://yostwerks.com/

Good luck!

: OK, please don't think this is blasphemy!! But I have started to do some soul
: searching and I not sure of the answer why I want a kayak over a double
: paddle canoe. Yes I have paddled both and I prefer a kayak but I am not
: sure if it is really best for my needs.

: My primary use is a day boat for paddling. It will be a mix of big lake and
: small streams. No open water paddling. If I had a kayak, I might take to
: the Ocean on vacation but it would be rare. We do have a big lake and big
: waves, but big is 3 to 4 foot and that is only in really nasty times when
: I wouldn't be out on the lake. (Unless it was to play in the big waves).
: It takes a lot of wind to create waves like that for us.

: I want to do some camping with my niece. So I need the to be able to haul
: some gear. This will take place on mostly flat water. Some of the rivers
: around us have shoals and maybe a couple of class 2 rapids. Not real white
: water where we would go.

: The advantages I see are that a canoe could be lighter (no decking) and
: probably a bit more convenient to camp out of. Quicker to build but that
: is really an issue. Kayak being a closed boat is nice because it keeps
: unwanted water and animals and insects out. It can be rolled and a canoe
: can not. Of course she will probably never learn but the first 180 degrees
: anyway. :-)

: I will build me a kayak regardless, Maybe her a canoe and me a kayak. But I
: am serious in asking what advantages the kayak has for someone who spend
: their time on flat water and does a little camping? Not stirring the pot
: either!