Then I’d be turned around, not seeing where I’m going! Haha…this solution is not for the question I have I don’t think. Cool contraption though!
I like square stern canoes and for transporting loads and people quickly or for fishing and actually feel it is the best all purpose style of canoe if it is at least 15 feet long. Well designed ones paddle NEARLY as well as good tandems and if there are no rapids, you should have no problem paddling DOWNstream even with that canoe, but It is SHORT, WIDE, and HEAVY. It will not paddle like a proper tandem canoe and going UPstream will be a bear with or without a passenger. You’ll have to work within that canoes very real limitations but look at Esquif or Wenonah for proper square stern canoes.
Alright folks the canoe is coming to its final stages to be ready to get back on the water. I think I’ve decided that if I do want to go the oar route, I would want to orient the boat like this, with the bow facing upstream and me rowing from the front or middle seat.
That way, when I have to turn the boat into the current to get out of a situation (as is done with drift boats), I will have the bow cutting through the water, instead of the blocky backside of the stern.
The keel on your boat is going to make it very difficult to maneuver in moving water. It will be fine with small motor. You can row it on a lake. Rowing it stern first is not going to be very satifactory. Then your transom is taking the waves. Your keel will be going first and making the boat totally squirrely.
For rivers, I would trade it for a canoe made for moving water, no keel, some rocker and pretty deep. Good luck.