I know, I know, too much theorizing, just start cutting some wood...

Anything is possible. In the brain.

What people who don't have experience with tools and materials don't understand is the extent to which the tools and materials themselves, shape the end result.

A canoe or kayak had a certain shape because of the materials available and how the natural properties of these materials were shaped by the skills, knowledge and desires of the builders.

Like our discussion on wood. When you work with wood you learn about working with the grain and against the grain. We build stripper boats using the natural quality of a clear thin strip creating a fair curve when bent. If I want to bend wood into tighter curves I must learn about grain run out, quarter sawn wood, and varieties of wood which bend most easily.

It's like Mike said, "Then this guy who is in his late 60s looks at his line, kind of scratches his beard, and takes like 4 strokes, then two on one side and makes it to the spot where the other guy stopped, then takes another two strokes to get past the rock upstream from there, then then next, then ferries across upstream, and slips up the next drop on the other side. He probably didn't use as many strokes as the other guy did to get to the first eddy."

The man was a paddler who knew his tools and the water and where he wanted to go.

So you can have an idea and fight and beat materials into conforming to that idea, or you can have an idea know it will be changed and shaped by tools and materials. Different boat building methods will shape the end result.

Solutions to problems are easy. Coming up with a solution that doesn't create three new problems is the trick!

Knowing materials and tools are a huge part of the dance.

And that is why you look to someone with experience for guidance.