Kayak skills
From Trail-Finder -- Dedicated to getting you outside
Contents |
Overview
Kayaking doesn't require a lot of skills to start, however there are a lot of skills you can add to make your kayaking more efficient, faster, and easier.
Entering Your Kayak
There are three main ways to enter a kayak.
Wade In
- Wade into the water with your kayak
- Straddle the kayak, just behind the cockpit
- Sit on the rear deck, just behind the cockpit.
- Use your paddle to stabilize your boat on the ground
- Pull one leg into the cockpit. This should be the the leg on the same side as your paddle is stabilizing.
- Slip your other leg into the cockpit and, at the same time, slide down into the seat.
- Attach the spray skirt, being sure the loop at the front is on the outside.
Seal Launch
- With your kayak on the shore, follow step 2-7 above. You are now sitting in your kayak on dry ground.
- Pushing with your hands and scooting with your body, slide the boat into the water.
The seal launch can be done down a beach, or even sliding over small drops.
Dock Launch
Whether you're launching from an official dock, a sea wall, or even just a handy log, the dock launch allows you to get into your boat while staying dry.
- Place your boat parallel to the dock
- Lay one end of your paddle on the deck just behind the cockpit. Some kayaks have special groves molded into them for this purpose.
- Lay the other end of the paddle on the deck.
- Sit on the deck, parallel to the kayak, legs facing in the direction of the front of your kayak.
- Reach behind you with one hand on the paddle and your deck, the other hand on the paddle and the dock.
- Keeping most of your weight on the paddle, leaning into the deck a bit, slip your legs into the cockpit.
- Slide into the seat and pull the paddle over your head so you can use it to balance, if needed.
Exiting Your Kayak
The easiest, but clumsiest, way to exit your kayak is simple to roll over and get out. If you do this, either intentionally or not, don't panic.
- Reach forward along the cockpit to find the loop at the front of the spray skirt.
- Pull on the loop. This releases the spray skirt from the cockpit.
- Place your hands on the sides of the cockpit at your waist.
- Push with both hands, exiting the kayak just as if you were taking off a pair of pants.
If you have an option, rolling your kayak to get out really isn't the best option. Instead, just reverse the steps above which you used to get into your boat.
Paddling Skills
Kayak paddles can propel you forward, backward, or even sideways! They can also help you to maintain balance. For more information, see: kayak paddling
Navigation
Take all your normal navigation skills, add in waves, wind, and current, and you get kayak navigation. For rivers, and even most coastal kayaking, basic skills, as described in navigation, are sufficient. If you do open water crossings, you'll need to add specialty skills, as described in kayak navigation.
Rolls
When you roll over while kayaking, the best thing to do is to perform an eskimo roll to return to an upright position. When you're proficient at this, you may find you're even doing it just to cool off!
Kayak Re-Entry
Ideally, you'll never need to do a kayak re-entry. If you roll over, just use one of the roll techniques above. Unfortunately, rolls take a lot of practice, so there are times where you'll need to get out of your boat and re-enter the kayak using one of the methods described above.
Shallow-Water Kayak Re-Entry
If you're in shallow water, the easiest re-entry is likely to be just dragging your boat in a bit, then entering the kayak as described above.
Deep-Water Kayak Re-Entry
There are several different methods available for deep-water kayak re-entry. Different methods are available, depending on whether you're alone, with one other person, or even with two or more others. Also, waves, flexibility, skills, and even what gear you have on your deck all impact which method is easiest, or even possible. For more on these complex skills, see Deep-water kayak re-entry.
