Canoe Trade Show Blog

The Draw Stroke
by Red Rock Wilderness Store

Ok, this is the other main canoe stroke that you absolutely need to know.

It is, for all intents and purposes, the exact opposite as the J Stroke. The J stroke pushes the back of the canoe away from the paddle and the Draw Stroke pulls the canoe to the paddle.

Using the two strokes together allows you to stay on the same side of the canoe and change the canoe’s course of direction without switching sides on the canoe after every two strokes.

 We do this because switching all the time has “pilgrim” written all over it. Sure, everybody has to start somewhere, but, if after 25 years, you are still making the canoe go forward by paddling willy-nilly (see definition), I’m sorry but you STILL don’t know how to paddle.

And, yelling at your poor wife in the bow about how “she isn’t a very good paddler” is just plain wrong.

The guy/gal in the back of the canoe is the person entirely in charge of where the canoe is going, period.

All responsibility for the direction of the canoe is with the person in the back.

Take more online canoeing lessons - How to Paddle a Canoe - The Draw Stroke -  from the expert at Red Rock Store!

“Execute it exactly like I’m doing it in the pictures.”