Canoeing Mistakes to Avoid

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Canoeing can be simple. All you need to do is follow some basic instructions and practice, practice, practice. Paddling techniques aren't that many and are not that hard to execute.

The common perception that canoes are unstable boats came from inexperienced and poorly instructed people who climb on canoes without an inkling of what they need to do thus ending up capsized and drenched. There are things that you need to remember; things that you need to look out for in order to have a trouble free canoeing experience.

According to experts, there are actually only a few common bad habits or mistakes that a canoeist tends to make, regardless if the canoeist is a beginner or advanced. If not corrected, these habits will become common practices which can affect the way the paddler navigates and move through the water. We will be discussing some of these common paddling mistakes that experts have so keenly observed.

When you pull your paddle grip, you don't do so in a manner that puts the paddle grip inside the canoe's gunwale. This puts your blade at an angle when ruddering which is counterproductive to your muscles and the canoe movement. What you should do instead is to extend your upper hand out so the grip is outside the gunwale.

Another paddling mistake is when you try to draw or sweep the bow against the current in order to change the canoe's direction. The correct way to change direction is to pry or draw the stern downstream.

Also, when doing solo paddling or paddling stern in a tandem, you shouldn't be doing a rudder to finish off a power stroke. Moreover, people oftentimes make the mistake of stern prying with the paddle blade touching the side of the canoe at the stern. Then they go off prying the paddle until it is far off the sides of the canoe. These movements will slow or even stop forward momentum and thus should be avoided.

Some other mistakes include changing paddling sides to steer the canoe, not holding the paddle in a vertical direction when doing a power stroke, leaving eddies that have a great angle when starting an upstream ferry, using the blade inappropriately oftentimes not burying it deep enough under the water surface when executing strokes, unable to produce forward momentum when using eddy lines, and of course, if the paddler attempts to maneuver a canoe with a paddle that is too short.

Although, these are just a few pointers, avoiding these mistakes can improve the way you handle your canoe and constant practice will make your experts soon.