Bayou Boatsman

The current of the waters that flow through the Cerulean Bayou out into the sea are somewhat charitably called sluggish. Some people even joke that the water seems to run away from the sea and back up the river, as if afraid of something. A significant portion of the trade for Fiera must pass through the bayou if it is to make it into the sea and to the ports of the world and that is where the Bayou Boatsman come in.
Large boats with sails and even oars struggle to make it from the river that cuts down through Fiera into the bayou due to its sluggish current, narrow curves, and false channels. Long ago it was determined that if Fiera was going to trade via water that they needed to find a way to bring goods down through the bayou and, short of dredging, narrow boats were the only realistic option. The shipyards of Fiera began producing hundreds of the narrow boats with a shallow draft. The boats made use of almost all of their limited space for cargo and only a small space in which the boatsman could stand and paddle.
The longboats have changed a bit here and there over the years but the boatsman remain the critical component. They are strong, lithe individuals who must be able to row for hours at high speeds without breaks and without slowing or getting stuck on the numerous obstacles that one might find in the bayou. While unsung in the grand scheme of things, being a boatsman is a mark of pride amongst commoners in the bayou and it tends to be a hereditary trade where sons and daughters follow their parents into the trade.