Canoe paddle strokes are the means by which a

paddle A paddle is a handheld tool with an elongated handle and a flat, widened end (the ''blade'') used as a lever to apply force onto the bladed end. It most commonly describes a completely handheld tool used to propel a human-powered watercraft by p ...

(or paddles) is used to move a

canoe A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ' ...

through the

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

. Strokes are generally designated as flatwater or

whitewater Whitewater forms in the context of rapids, in particular, when a river's Stream gradient, gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that foam, froths, making t ...

strokes. The strokes are also combined or modified. Some commonly known and used strokes are in the table below. Names for strokes can vary between geographical regions and even between paddlers with similar backgrounds.

List of paddle strokes

In these illustrations, the bow (front) of the canoe is on the left side of the illustration and the stern (back) is on the right. The red arrow shows the paddle position at the beginning of the stroke.

Variations

There are some differences in techniques in how the above strokes are utilized. One of these techniques involves locking or nearly locking the

elbow The elbow is the region between the upper arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and t ...

, that is on the side of the canoe the paddle is, to minimize

muscular MUSCULAR (DS-200B), located in the United Kingdom, is the name of a surveillance program jointly operated by Britain's Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) and the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) that was revealed by documents release ...

usage of that arm to increase endurance. Another benefit of this technique is that along with using less muscle you gain longer strokes which results in an increase of the power to stroke ratio. This is generally used more with the 'stay on one side' method of paddling. The other technique is where they bend the elbow to pull the paddle out of the water before they have finished the stroke. This is generally used more with the 'switch sides often' method of paddling. There is also the Maine Guide stroke which is like The Pitch stroke but the blade is feathered as it leaves the water with a kick.

Stay on one side method

The stay on one side method is where each canoeist takes opposite sides and the stern paddler uses occasional J-strokes to correct direction of travel. The side chosen can be based on the

wind Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...

and/or

current Currents, Current or The Current may refer to: Science and technology * Current (fluid), the flow of a liquid or a gas ** Air current, a flow of air ** Ocean current, a current in the ocean *** Rip current, a kind of water current ** Current (hydr ...

direction, so the stern paddler's forward strokes are pushing the boat in the opposite direction the

and/or

is, reducing the number of J-strokes required to keep forward

momentum In Newtonian mechanics, momentum (: momenta or momentums; more specifically linear momentum or translational momentum) is the product of the mass and velocity of an object. It is a vector quantity, possessing a magnitude and a direction. ...

; or sides can be chosen based on the paddlers' stronger side, since this is more comfortable and less tiring. A combination of methods for picking sides can be used, and some canoeists will switch sides after twenty to thirty minutes or longer as a means of lessening

muscle fatigue Muscle fatigue is when muscles that were initially generating a normal amount of force, then experience a declining ability to generate force. It can be a result of vigorous exercise, but abnormal fatigue may be caused by barriers to or interfer ...

, when changing the direction of the boat, or in response to new weather conditions. Paddlers must paddle on opposite sides from each other except when trying to turn the boat quickly, or in high winds or strong currents.

Switch sides often method

The switch sides often method, also called ''sit and switch'', ''hit and switch'', ''hut stroke'', ''

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

switch'' or ''North American Touring Technique'', can be described as the paddling technique where one uses the switching of paddling sides to go straight or maneuver. The spoken command "Hut!" is sometimes used by the stern paddler to alert the person paddling the bow to switch sides, giving rise to the term "Hut stroke". This technique is intended to avoid correction strokes after the forward stroke to make a very high stroke frequency possible thus enabling paddling with high speeds for a long time. Maneuvers are generally performed by switching paddling sides (e.g., for a turn to the left, the solo/stern paddler paddles on the right side of the canoe and vice versa.) For this method, in certain situations, two tandem paddlers may paddle on the same side. This method is one of the fastest on flat water and mostly used by marathon canoeists in the US and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Canoe Roll

Like in the case of a

kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...

, a properly outfitted canoe can be kayak roll, rolled: that is, righted from a capsized position without the paddler exiting the craft. The

American Canoe Association The American Canoe Association (ACA) is the oldest and largest paddle sports organization in the United States, promoting canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. In some parts of Euro ...

teaches the low brace roll, where the back face of the paddle is used to push against the surface of the water to provide resistance for the hip snap to act against.

References

{{Reflist Canoeing