Henderson - Sea kayaking: basic skills, paddling techniques, and expedition planning

SEA KAYAKING

Basic Skills, Paddling Techniques,
and Trip Planning

Dan Henderson

THE MOUNTAINEERS BOOKS
is the nonprofit publishing arm of The Mountaineers, an organization founded in 1906 and dedicated to the exploration, preservation, and enjoyment of outdoor and wilderness areas.

1001 SW Klickitat Way, Suite 201, Seattle, WA 98134

2012 by Dan Henderson

All rights reserved

First edition, 2012

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Distributed in the United Kingdom by Cordee, www.cordee.co.uk

Manufactured in the United States of America

Copy Editor: Laura Shauger
Cover and Book Design: The Mountaineers Books
Layout: Jennifer Shontz, Red Shoe Design
All photographs by author unless otherwise noted.
Cover photograph: Fotostock
Back cover photograph: Explore beautiful destinations with friends.
Frontispiece: With skill, even rocky waterways can be navigated with ease.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Henderson, Dan, 1955

Sea kayaking: basic skills, paddling techniques, and trip planning / Dan Henderson.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-59485-340-1 (pbk.) ISBN 978-1-59485-345-6 (ebook)

1. Sea kayaking. I. Title.

GV788.5.H46 2012

797.122'4dc23

201104297

Printed on recycled paper

ISBN (paperback): 978-1-59485-340-1
ISBN (e-book): 978-1-59485-345-6

From my perch at the south end of a small bay on Jones Island, in the San Juan Island archipelago of Washington State, I gaze northward into the slate gray water extending to the horizon. Cedars and madronas cling relentlessly to volcanic crags that plunge steeply into the sea. Cloudy skies with accents of blue stretch to distant peaks. Bright sunlight dances across the landscape; it highlights hills, water, and mountains in turn.

During my voyage to Jones Island, sea lions and seals popped up from a safe distance away to see their neighborhood visitor. Dahls porpoises danced across the water in symmetrical arches. Eagles, ospreys, great blue herons, and innumerable other waterfowl soared above me in a display of variety and magnificent colors. I paddled close to shore to see brilliant orange and purple sea stars clinging to rocky outcroppings and tiny crabs scurrying along the beach.

When I kayak, I love the rhythmic surge of the boat as it glides across the water. I feel the power of my body interacting with my equipment and the environment. The exercise increases my fitness, strength, and health. The entire experience cleanses my soul.

Sharing paddling with friends, through trips or just short exercise sessions, is more than special. At times, paddling alone lets me enjoy solitude too.

Kayaking is a great way to get on the water with some basic skills and moderately priced equipment. Next to canoeing, kayaking is the most modestly priced boating activity. You can spend years refining your forward stroke and other technical skills, or you can just go out and paddle. Whats most important is that you have fun, and that you pursue the technical and skill development thats appropriate for the environment in which you paddle and that is meaningful for you.

Sea kayaking is a term used synonymously with kayak touring. Essentially its hiking on the water, and the kayak carries all your gear. And like hiking, it can encompass a short day trip, a longer multiday adventure, or a grand expedition. Kayak touring can take place on a calm lake in the middle of town, the wild exposed ocean, and everything in between. It can be quiet and introspective, can give you an adrenaline rush, or can be a combination of these and many other things.

Your sea kayaking experience will be what you decide you want it to be. It will depend on what you want to do, where you want to go, your level of fitness, the skills you develop, and the equipment you acquire. It will depend on where your friends want to paddle with you and where you feel comfortable kayaking alone.

Those who are new to kayaking may view it as strictly an upper body activity, but that assumption significantly limits paddling opportunities and increases the possibility of injury. Kayaking involves not only arm motions but torso, hip, and leg actions as well. Kayakers who engage their entire body extend their endurance, increase their paddling power, manage a wider variety of conditions more readily, and improve their physical health.

To a large degree, kayaking uses core or abdominal strength, from how you sit in the boat to how you apply power by paddling. All kayaking forces are transmitted through the paddlers trunk, as the kayaker applies power to the paddle blade in the water to move the kayak. The more effectively the kayaker transfers that force, the less effort she will expend and the greater endurance she will achieve.

The kayaking community contains a wide range of information and opinions about how to kayak. Some are valid and others are simply made up. Its difficult to track how many of these concepts and techniques came to be, but in large part it seems that some people watched great paddlers, especially Olympians, in an attempt to understand what was effective.

But without a solid foundation in exercise science and an understanding of the underlying principles of biomechanics (the applied physics of human movement), sometimes these observers made the wrong connections. There probably was no intent to deceive or guide others along a false pathjust an attempt to understand what worked best. At the same time, some kayaking researchers are incorporating the scientific method with the greatest possible rigor. Ultimately, what is most important is what makes sense to you. Try different approaches, give them a thorough good effort, and choose what works best for you.

Because I have studied graduate-level exercise science (biomechanics, neuromechanics, exercise physiology, training methodology, and kinesiology, among other subjects) with a significant focus on paddling, I have incorporated scientifically based approaches to paddling technique, skill development, and physiology in this book. From examining the forward stroke mechanics to understanding equipment design features, to learning to enjoy a variety of water conditions, to developing endurance, I have made every effort to present scientifically based principles in an easy-to-read style.

Throughout this book, I have brought other experts into the discussion, to include additional views on a wide variety of topics. These other voices (in sidebars) offer deeper knowledge and understanding. I am very thankful for each contributors enthusiasm about sharing his or her paddling expertise.