How to Paddle a Canoe: "J" Stroke vs. Canadian Stroke 

Absolutely Todd.

@@KevinOutdoors I saw a clip of a guy paddling a heavily laden tandem, choppy open lake, gear spread out throughout the canoe, had a trolling motor, and paddling. Inexplicable what he was thinking or any kind of significant experience he mighta had. He lost it, and all his gear and canoe sunk. He was lucky to make it alive. Had he been moderately experienced with a brace, he probably woulda been able to a counter the small shift that turned him open. My mentor, 20 years my senior & I am 59, highly stressed getting ahold of a solid brace asap. I owe him tremendously. It's made all the difference in the world.

Yeah I saw that video too. No life jacket, too small a boat for that kind of water, not a strong paddler, didn't move to a lower centre of gravity when things got rough. And, way too much clutter in the boat for my liking.

When i hear that something was used by indigenous peoples, I basically assume its the best way to do it. Think front-crawl swimming though citation needed on that origin

Glad you enjoyed it! The underwater angle was a challenge.

Thanks for sharing. Great memories!

Thanks for the comments Jay. I may do more of these paddling instruction videos in the future. We'll see.

LOL, close, it's "eh".

Cool, thanks!

Thanks Mason! Glad you found it useful.

Exactly. Also from La Belle Province.

Thanks Wade! Nothing better than being the Captain of your own boat :)

Sometimes I wonder if we need names for these things. Some people get hung up on it. Thanks for watching!

Kevin Outdoors true that! All the best and thanks for the videos, they’re all awesome.

Thanks!

Thanks Adam! Give it a try!

Well thanks!

Good, I am glad.

Glad it was helpful!

Thanks J!

He did mention one aspect, the finish is with the thumb up, not down.

Thanks 👍

Hope you enjoy it!

Well there you go.

Mind over matter.

Glad you enjoyed it!

Thanks.

Glad it was helpful!

Have fun!

Thanks man!

Thanks!

Thanks

Glad it was helpful!

Thanks!

Have fun!

Thanks so much!

My pleasure!

LOL, thanks.

Hi Barleytone, I would say it is just as much effort but there is less stress on the wrist - especially of the upper hand as the motion is played out over a longer period but not as aggressively as the short pry at the end of the J. In practice I switch between the two without really thinking about it.

It isn't, nobody does it when efficiency is the key, but it provides superb control, is quiet, and with a responsive boat, you can creep along an edge in total control.

Thanks for the comment!

@@KevinOutdoors your welcome

Canoes are awesome!

Thanks for sharing!

I thought if it’s good to pry in my inflatable canoe, grabner adventure. I realised overtime I would have to add protective fabric (EPDM- rubber equivalent) patch to protect rubbing. Learning to avoid prying now. It’s exciting to learn all these techniques.

We should only judge ourselves against our former selves. All the best. :)

Glad you like it!

@@KevinOutdoors it was good to see that as I had always been confused by the book diagram of the j-stroke, which was all the training i had had in it. I thought i'd been doing it wrong, 'turns' out i was doing it just fine!

Blisters on a canoe trip can really suck. On a long trip I try and hold the paddle in different ways and of course chance sides from time to time.

Bring some bicycle gloves to cover the insides of your hands if needed. Just in case. ;⁠-⁠) I normally only need those when kayaking with a double paddle though. Also you dont need to grab your paddle with your thumb wrapped around it all the time. When you don't need that extra grip just put your thumb next to your index finger.

Moleskin is an essential piece of equipment on any long camping trip.

@@wizardsuth what does moleskin mean in this context? I know of moleskin as a certain kind of extremely durable textile fabric. But I guess that's not what it means here...

@@dereinzigwahreRichi moleskin is an elastic soft fabric with a strong adhesive to cover blister. Used mostly in hiking or ski boots but would work on you hands. Down under, they use a bit of sheep’s wool in their boots. I found cheap fabric gloves with a heavy weave so they drip dry help and also will help if canoeing in cold weather😁

Yeah it is a nice and quite stroke!

Thanks, you are the master paddler, so I take that as a great compliment!

Much appreciated!

Always!

Yes, it is!

The thumb doesn't stay all the way down on the Canadian stroke. After you push back the paddle comes forward in the water and you lift up on it rather than prying out as with the J. The correction of the boat is made while the paddle comes forward in the water. I hope that makes sense?

Thanks for the comment.

There were traditionally all kinds of kayaks and canoes, just as we have many different cars and trucks. But in the modern world, most high efficiency, touring type canoes have o immersed beam to waterline to length of .14375 ish. Or in other words, moderately fat. The ratio at which a boat does not try to mount it's bow wave is closer to .125 or better. What this means is the faster you push a standard canoe, the more it is basically going uphill. But unlike speedboats we can't normally plane the canoe. I gather some strong paddlers can, for fun, it is insanely energetic. But there is a category of canoe, the double paddle canoe, that was typically very short, slightly fat, and was propelled by a double blade paddle. It was basically an inefficient kayak, but easy to portage in the Adirondack mountains. That was the key, portaging in mountainous areas with small lakes. These are popular in the east, because even when people don't get why they exist, they are cheap (because they are small), they are light, and don't seem to require much skill, until you run into their limitations. The problem with short fat kayaks, as most these days are, is repetitive stress injuries, as kayak paddling is a high stroke activity that depends on the boat gliding. This can be a problem particularly with large bladed paddles. But they are great boats for some activities, like fishing. I have one myself.

Yeah, I did this while on a backcountry trip, it was a sur of the moment idea. I was happy about the underwater footage and not so happy about the above water shots, but that's RU-vid and my learning curve.

I went through a bent shaft phase, the J stroke is a little less natural with a bent shaft but it still works.

I am hearing this mostly called the 'C' stroke now but have also heard the hunting stroke and the stealth stroke.

Rest assured no wildlife were harmed in the making of this video ;)

For tandem paddling you are referring to the 'Hut Stroke' much faster for sure but I am not convinced it is more efficient.

@@KevinOutdoors nope. Bow person can paddle whatever they feel unless I need the extra power on one side or another due to waves or wind or whatever. They set the pace, I paddle the opposite side and switch from time to time to keep it straight. We paddle 8 hours a day or more like that. Hard to do the control strokes with a bent shaft anyway. In that style the power is mostly from your back.

I presumed you were referring to the 'hut stroke' it is very common by paddlers in the U.S. Boundary Waters and has been adopted by Quetico Park Wardens as it is fast and you can catch up to other boats if necessary. The 'hut stroke' uses frequent switching of sides. Bow and stern paddlers match their strokes usually three in a row "1, 2, 3" then they say "hut" and switch sides. It is efficient in that it requires little steering and it is fast but it is challenging to keep up all day long. The style usually involves a narrow canoe, tractor seats and bent shafts.@@neilgendzwill3260

@@KevinOutdoors as I said we don’t switch that much and we don’t say hut. If the bow person gets tired or bored on one side they switch and I follow. Guilty on the gear. We like Clipper Trippers in our crew, we have tractor seats and use bent shaft paddles. Mostly paddling on the Churchill River in northern Saskatchewan.

There you go.

Well, a kayak uses a double blade, so you shouldn't have to use a j stroke? It's more intended for canoes.

Thanks, much appreciated!

Thanks Adam! Eh? 🙂🍁

Good stuff!

LOL

Ha, yep. I could go much faster with either a two or four stroke! :)

Lol

It what you do when you’re out of go juice for your 2 or 4 stroke

What a great compliment, thanks!

Agreed, it needs a name upgrade to be more with the times.

Absolutely 🍁

I guess we laid claim to it for some reason. Like geese and bacon? ;)

The 'J' stroke is actually defined by most experts by the position of the thumb. If you watch the old Bill Mason videos that's how he defines it and so does Ray Goodwin. See his video on the subject. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qmExaexsCAQ.html

Yes, I am actually sitting in this boat backward. The bow seat is closer to the centre than the stern seat and the boat balances better in this direction when there is only one paddler. But, not all boats are symmetrical and have the same shape going in either direction.

Also, the front paddler in a two person canoe is the motor and the rear does the steering. So a lot more muscle work for the front and more brain/decision work for the rear.

Thanks 😊

The difference is that the correction is made with the power face of the paddle rather than the opposite side.

Switching sides takes time and reduces the frequency of your strokes. it matters on a long trip, but not so much for a short recreational paddle. I normally switch sides every half hour or hour.

It is super relaxing.

For sure.

Turbulence is an indication you are moving. Ever see a motor boat without turbulence?

Closer to the centre is best. That is why I am actually sitting in the bow seat and paddling the boat backward. Another foot forward would be even better but there is no seat there, and I have never been able to kneel in a boat for very long.

You have better control from the back. Your gear should be placed in the bow for weight distribution.

Agree with Kevin here. Closer to the centre provides better control especially for pivoting the canoe for tight turns. Also, you can better distribute the gear for balance or sit/kneel in that same spot when you have no gear. The only time I position myself in front of the centre thwart is when paddling into a strong wind. This brings the bow down lower than the stern and the weathervane effect keeps the canoe going straight. Good video, Kevin.

@@mcakey1648 I paddled my Mad River Slipper all day against a strong wind in the Boundary waters by sitting in back with the gear in front. I have tried both ways and found that the J-type strokes do not work very well when in paddling from the middle. To each his own I guess, but I'll stick with the back paddle position when I have 60 lbs. of gear to counter-balance the boat.

It is quite relaxing.

No, they didn't, the canoe predates north american colonization by Siberian-adjacent peoples by many thousands of years.

Yep.

Pretty much! :)

A lot of people think that. Simply put, you were taught wrong. Take a look at Bill Mason's early films on the subject. He is probably the most expert paddler ever and he pushed off the gunwale all the time. Get a good hardwood paddle, I have two that are 20 years old and and I am about to retire them only because they are fraying on the edges. Many, many experienced paddlers will also whip their paddle shaft with cordage to prevent wear on the finish.

I live in Ontario.

LOL, rowing works!