Techniques in Canoeing

Canoeing in the surf can be as thrilling as the roughest and fastest white water. Going out and coining in through even a light surf is something not soon to be forgotten. The thrills of surfboarding and outrigger canoeing can be enjoyed with a standard canoe. One of the greatest water thrills is to guide your canoe down the front of a wave with the spray and foam leaping past your face.

If you live near the shore it is a good idea to know how to use your canoe in the surf as a safety skill and even a means of transportation. A canoe can be used, and has been, to perform rescues in the surf when other boats were not available.

The important canoeists’ skills for surfing are the sweep, push and draw strokes, and the J stroke and ruddering. The ability to “feel” your canoe and change your balance with its movement can mean the difference between being part wet and all wet. It will be necessary to change paddling sides without losing strokes, sometimes repeatedly, and very rapidly.

One of the first things you will notice as you look at the surf will be the fact that the waves do not come in at constant intervals, but in groups or sets, each one seeming to be larger than the last one. Then there will be a lull or a relatively calm spell before another set comes in. Also notice that the waves very seldom come in straight at 90-degree angles to the shore, but are angled from one side or the other because of the wind.

Watching the surf, you may notice that some spots look different from others. The waves will not be as large; may not even break; the water may be a different color; there may be a jumble of little waves, or even churned-up sand and debris moving seaward. This is a run-out, rip, sea-puss or offshore current all different names for the same thing. These currents are caused by the returning action of the waves as they roll back down the beach out to sea through a hole in the bar or reef. They are extremely dangerous to swimmers, but an aid to a boat or canoe in getting offshore.

The location of bars or reefs is indicated by breaking waves or light-colored water somewhat offshore, with rolling waves and darker-colored water nearer shore. Sometimes the only way to get over the reef or bar is to follow the run-out or rip. On most beaches the tide rises and falls approximately twice in 24 hours, giving about 6 hours between high and low tides. This can be important to the canoeist because the surf at high tide may be entirely different from what it is at low tide.

Wind is the other major factor to take into consideration. A light offshore wind, one blowing from land to sea, will make the water smooth, with small waves, ideal for canoeing. However, in a few hours the tide may pick up considerably and a canoe too far out may have a serious problem in getting back. If the wind is light onshore from the sea toward land, the surf will generally be moderate with not too many bad spots. However, if the wind is quartering off the beach, blowing at an angle toward land, a rough, choppy sea can be expected. The set or drift, which is a current parallel to the beach, is caused by the wind. It is important to take this current into consideration when going out and coming in.

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