Why did the boat crossing the river go around a big bend instead of going straight?

The faster the ship is, the better its maneuverability is. When the ship goes ashore against the current, the relative speed can be formed by the current, which increases the stability and safety;

Because of the current, the result of the ship sailing on the opposite side is washed downstream by the current. If you want to walk straight on the opposite side, the ship must walk sideways (the actual direction of the ship has a certain angle with the hull). If the angle is too large, it is not conducive to the operation of the ship, and the area impacted by the current is also large, and the water erosion to be overcome is also large.

Theoretically, the distance a ship has to walk across the river is equivalent to the distance between the two banks plus the distance that water flows in the process of crossing the river (the ship is washed downstream and then turned back), and the distance around a bend is similar to this distance, which can also solve the problem that the bow is too biased and land against the current.

So the boat crossed the river around a bend.