Canoeing Basics

     Basic Power Stroke: An efficient forward power stroke can propel your canoe for hours without killing your back. Most people work too hard at this. To make a forward stoke (right-handed), rotate your upper body slightly to the left and lean forward as your bring the paddle forward. Bury the paddle blade in the water, and let your upper body rotate back to the right as you draw the paddle back toward your hip in a straight line parallel to the side of the canoe.

     By the time the paddle is past your hip, the power stroke is over. If you apply power beyond that point, when the paddle starts coming up at a rearward angle, you'll be lifting water instead of pushing the canoe.

     J-Stroke: When paddling solo, each repeated power stroke will turn the canoe slightly to the opposite side. That's when you need a J-Stroke for correcting your course to a straight line. It's basically a power stroke with a curved tail. The stroke looks like a reversed capital letter J when viewed from above (if your're paddling on the right side of the canoe), which may help you visualize the process.

     Make a regular forward power stroke. As the paddle goes past your hip, rotate the paddle 90 degrees away from you so the flat blade is parallel to the canoe instead of perpendicular to it. Push slightly outward (to the right) at the same time. This is the curved tail of the letter J and has a rudderlike effect as it swings the bow of the canoe back onto your desired course.

     C-Stroke: This is the easiest and fastest way to make a sharp turn. C-stokes can be done as either forward or backward strokes as needed. Here's the forward version:

     Rotate your upper body and lean forward as if to make a regular forward power stroke. But instead of coming straight back with the paddle, carve a broad C-shape away from and then back toward the canoe. This will spin the canoe around its midpoint, giving you a quick turn.

     The most important thing to remember is that most of your power should be applied in the first, outward portion of the C-stroke. That's where most of the turning effect is gained.