[Verse 1] I found a canoe behind the school At the town's old summer sale The seats were sound, the paint was worn The paddles needed fixing My friend came by with yellow paint And sandpaper in her hands We worked until the porch light came And made a Sunday morning plan [Chorus] The canoe with yellow oars Is headed out beyond the shore No finish line, no prize to claim Just a little lake and a sunny day Paddle left and paddle right Keep the island tree in sight The canoe with yellow oars Can take us where we haven't been before [Verse 2] We packed two pears and peanut butter And a blanket for the ground The canoe leaned toward the cattails Till we learned to balance out We reached the little island safely And found a bench of smooth flat stone I wrote our names inside the logbook Then watched the clouds go drifting home [Chorus] The canoe with yellow oars Is headed out beyond the shore No finish line, no prize to claim Just a little lake and a sunny day Paddle left and paddle right Keep the island tree in sight The canoe with yellow oars Can take us where we haven't been before [Instrumental - banjo and fiddle trade, eight bars] [Bridge] On the way back we got the timing Each small stroke began to match The boat went straight without a struggle Like it finally knew its path [Final Chorus] The canoe with yellow oars Is headed back toward our shore No finish line, no prize to claim Just a little lake and a sunny day Paddle left and paddle right Next time we'll bring the wider map The canoe with yellow oars Can take us where we haven't been before [Outro] We hung the paddles in the shed With yellow paint still on our sleeves.
