KAYAKS-4U

SELECTING A KAYAK PADDLE

When selecting a paddle you will have to know what kind of paddling you will be doing. There are paddles designed for touring, white water, kayak fishing, or recreational paddling. They come in different shapes lengths and weights. Also take into consideration your height and body strength. If you’re shorter say five-foot tall, you may require a shorter than average paddle. If you’re over six feet tall, you may require a longer paddle. The width of your kayak must be taken into consideration. A wide kayak may need a longer paddle while a narrower kayak may be able to use a shorter paddle.

Other things to consider in a paddle are its blade length and shape, shaft length and shape, and the materials used to construct the paddle.

Touring paddles usually have a long, narrow, asymmetrical blade. They will take more strokes than a larger paddle to move through the same amount of water but the paddlers will be less tired after paddling. They are usually built lighter with greater efficiency on long trips. Many break apart into two or more pieces for easy storage.

Whitewater paddles are built heavy duty to withstand the abuse the river bottom and rocks. The blade shape is usually symmetrical, but not always. They are usually shorter and the ends are sometimes protected from breakage.

Multi use paddles usually have good but not great designs that make them generic which is good for all around paddling. Some of the Multiuse paddles use unfeathered blades (blades parallel to one another) or Feathered paddles (blades turned at an angle to one another). This feathering allows for a easier paddling stroke as the blade that is not in the water is pointing into the wind with its narrow edge instead of the flat side, causing much less wind resistance. Beginning paddlers sometimes find that the extra wrist-turning of non-feathered paddles a little too much and decide on an unfeathered paddle which can be more comfortable.

A possible good paddle for the beginning kayaker is a collapsible paddle that can be adjusted for either feathered or unfeathered. They use a sedge ball to lock the shaft in and you can adjust the feathering angle according to how much wrist movement you like and how much wind resistance you like.

See Kayak Paddles on E- BAy