any particular paddle I should by for my new canoe or is some wood ones from fleet farm for 15.00 a pop good enough.

Wow this could be a can of worms. It all depends on how much paddling you do. Carlise make a relatively cheap paddle that most of the outfitters use because they are cheap and pretty tough to break or bend.

It all depends on how much paddling you want to do. A cheapie straight paddle is all most recreational users will need or want to buy.
If you do a lot of flat, straight paddling bent shaft paddles are very nice. They are more efficient and usually lighter since they are shorter than a comparable straight shaft.

Straight shafts are great for manuevering in tight spaces or curvy creeks.

I've had a couple cheap wood ones and they usually split or crack if not maintained. For my everyday paddling, especially on local creeks or when the kids are involved I use aluminum paddles with plastic blades. They've lasted a long time, but they are heavier than most.

I think I might have gotten those same wood paddles you mention from fleet farm. Pretty light, not bad in my experience. And I've used bent shaft, some nice bending brances straight paddles, carlisle plastic ones, some nicer composite ones, etc.

Those $15 are a great deal. I don't worry about beating them up or losing one either, which is nice.

If your looking for a great selection of great touring paddles check Midwest Mountaineering. Or the Northwest Canoe Company in St.Paul would be a great option.

But if you are just looking for a paddle for occasional use that the kids can beat up, the $15 plastic deal from Fleet Farm is the way to go.

I used to buy the cheap ones at Holiday. Guess it's been a while since I've bought a canoe paddle. They worked just fine for me. I was never afraid of breaking them since I had only paid ten bucks for them. Last year I bought a telescoping paddle for my daughter to use. Wasn't too bad in price but still more than a cheap wooden paddle and definetly heavier. For myself, I've been using a kayak paddle. Picked up a cheaper one at Gander two years ago since I wasn't sure how I'd like it. I Liked it so much that I went and bought another one this spring for my bow paddler. Much more efficient than a canoe paddle, in my opinion. However, they seem kind of flimsy for pushing off of rocks. I guess I need to stop doing that but I doubt I will. The ones I have are from Bending Branches and can be taken apart to fit in a small cars trunk.

So what is a fair price for a good paddle? My friend bought a bent paddle (paddle is bent at almost 45 deg, not the shaft) last year and he paid around $100.00 for it which seems high for a paddle to me.

It would be hard to find a bent shaft paddle for less than $60. Bending Branches makes a good paddle for about $70. I splurged this spring and got a very nice Sawyer for about $115.

Has anyone every used the Whiskeyjack paddles? It sounds the the gf is getting me one as a birthday gift.

How do they hold up? I've heard they are supposed to be awesome.

the wife i use BB sundowners they are around 100 bucks but are very nice to use. the shaft is slimer than most, witch i like for my stuby fingers. i have never had a problem with srtength with the BB paddles. my .02