Thanks for the replies, I guess I should have clarified a little more. Ive been kayaking for over a decade, but the wife feels more comfortable if we're in the same boat, literally, so last year I picked up an Old Town Discovery 158 at a block sale for a song. It came with a pair of aluminum paddles about our size, and some smaller feather brand paddles that needed filling and refinishing.
I had always intended on replacing the aluminum paddles, because the plastic blades were slightly out of true, they are cold, and are much better suited as spares. With my significant other it is mainly recreational paddling, and I would never take her in anything above a class 1, that I know I could safely maneuver myself. She will do overnights with me, and likes the idea of a multi-day trip, but that has yet to be explored. She sits fore and is a good motor(rowing classes and such) and listens to direction well. We mainly sit, but occasionally kneel to change up position on long days. I paddle it solo a lot on Friday mornings when she works, and kneel or rest on the thwart and get along fine with a c-stroke. I do go with a friend, who is an adept paddler himself, on longer, more challenging outings in the Adirondacks, but we usually take his canoe, a 17 footer, and he has some CavPro beavertails.
I know my style varies from the recreational to adventure, and I know I'm not going to find that happy medium, especially at my price range, which sits at around $125 for a pair. A responsive paddle, made of decent wood, adequate for deepwater, that doesn't double as an anchor is really all I'm looking for...