Will be used mostly for beaver in swamps. What are some recommendations, canoe or kayak, and which brand/model?

Neither, if I had to buy again it would be a pirouge.

I have a canoe and a kayak. I think the kayak would be hard for setting traps. It might work good for something like cruising around checking traps. They're fast & ez to maneuver. If you think of a way to pull something behind a kayak to float your stuff, let us know.

Hard to pack many beaver In a kayak. But you could float them along side.

Canoe. Aluminum.

i made a 2 man into a 1 man kayak and can carry about 200 pounds of gear in it.

I'm trying to visualize how I would carry traps, t bar, & stabilizers on a kayak.

X2 Still use a 10 ft fiberglass one I bought 35-40 yrs ago that already had a lot of use on it. Hauled a lot of beaver out in it as well as a bunch of catfish. May be partly my limited experience, but I've found it to be much more stable than the kayaks and a lot more maneuverable than the canoes I've tried. Travels well in a foot of water, can get around good in tight, swampy places. Weighs about 40 lbs, loads and hauls well in my lwb Tacoma with just a tie-down rope. Got $35 and a minor patch job in it. 'Course, I'm mostly a snare man, which simplifies a lot of the problems that people have with other watercraft in conditions similar to those where I work. A paddle, No BS trappers bag, one small bucket, my .22 pistol and a tater fork are about all I take with me. I usually wear knee boots, and seldom put both feet in the water or on shore when hanging
a snare. There's some places in La. that make good pirogues, some even have electric motors with propellers molded in the back end bottom. Prices are fair, thought about buying one, but what I've got will probably outlast me, and a little paddling is good aerobic exercise for an older guy. A lot depends on what kind of water you'll spend most of your time in, but you might do a google search before you decide. Good luck!

I wore knee boots once in mine, but decided never again, at least not in certain situations that might require swimming any distance to shore if you fall out of it. I figure swimming in knee boots would be tough

OK u guys have me entrigued. I was all ready to get a kayak this summer til the wife was sent home unpaid, now anythjng considered frivolous im limiting. I looked up pirogues (never hesrd if them) and found one company down south that makes aluminum ones for 1100. Not a ton on them. Id primarliy use this for small lake fishing but recently became interested in cattin on the river with a kayak, even tho i have a flat bottom. Ill likely never use a boat to trap unless coon on the river someday when prices bounce back then i know ill use my flatbottom. Are these 800+ superior to kayak?

I kayak quite a bit, but not hauling much. They are fun to get around in, quick, easy, maneuverable, and comfortable. A canoe will comfortably haul a lot more. I HAVE hauled a camp in a kayak, and spent most of the time thinking how much nicer a canoe would have been. On most kayaks the only place to put stuff is around your legs. Some are built better for cargo, and also cost more. I think a canoe is also more comfortable to get in and out of.

So I guess it comes down to your application:
how tight/technical is your water? Does maneuverability matter?
How much gear do you carry? How often are you climbing in and out? How many beaver do you expect to haul back at a time?
Do you launch once and paddle all day, or do a road line where you’re loading/unloading several times a day? Some kayaks are lighter and easier to launch by yourself, but a canoe is easier to throw your gear in. You can use milk crates, buckets etc.

A few variables to consider but I would lean toward a canoe for trapping.
A pirogue is a boat I’ve always wanted to try, but there aren’t many around here.

I could never manage to stay dry in a kayak. Water running down your arm, everything you pull in the boat is going over your legs. Fine for bluegill fishing in July, but November or March trapping it's less ideal. You're sitting in the bottom of the boat, much colder in my opinion. Harder to change you're sitting position for comfort. In a canoe you can kneel, sit with you're legs bent at the knee, stretched out, etc.

In addition, there's the space issues mentioned above. Canoes are the pick-up truck of the water, you can haul a load of fur or game out with a good one. You're always going to be more limited in the kayak.

I don't know what a pirouge is. Sounds like something my wife tells me she's going to cook when she's got some time on her hands.

I think ill go to a kayak. No one knows what this parogue thing is and i can gwt
Them fir 1/4 less

pirouge is a flat bottom canoe. i dont know how hard you plan to trap but any style of canoe would be better than a kayak for trapping.

X2 and at least 16'

x3 still using the Alumacraft canoe from the 1980s. Lots of miles on it. Should be able to find one on Craigslist for reasonable.

What are the advantages of a pirouge?

https://gatortraxboats.com/inside-gator-trax/

Found this one

A good one will float on a heavy dew. Excellent shallow water boat. They're best for flatwater paddling.