Kind of depends what you want to do. Want to be like the frontier's men of past, exploring the nook and crannies of the local river, go for a canoe. Want to join the local brigade and drive around with a kayak that never see any water but looks cool sitting on top of your VX or what ever, then get a kayak. Want something that give you a real workout, something you can do indoors in the winter with a ergometer. Something that will give you a real workout that is non impact, then try a rowing shell, either scull or sweep. But I guess you can tell by my user name where my Sentiment lies.