How to Get Into a Canoe Properly

Thank you.

You're videos help me feel confident getting on the water

I am a Solo Canoer. I use the paddle method from a dock. That is where you lay the paddle on the dock and over the support. you close your hand grip over both the paddle and the canoe center support. You step in off of the dock with your foot in the center of the Canoe. The paddle is pressed against the dock and the Canoe cannot role toward the dock. Your weight and center of gravity is toward the dock more so everything is stable until you release your grip.

When I launch from the shore I have both hands on either side of the gunnels and one foot in the center.
I step forward while pushing forward and drop to one knee as I pull the other leg in and forward.

I am a large frame Swede so my weight helps to stabilize the Canoe once I kneel. My Canoe is a 17 old Towne , it weighs about 90 lbs. The more weight I put in it the more stable it is. I have a 90 lb. pack that I throw into the front with a 10 foot rope tied to it. I also have a 5 gallon water jug that I tie up front as an air filled buoy. It is their to help keep the front end floating and help with turning the Canoe back over in an emergency. I keep a cut off old bleach bottle as a bailer and a large car wash sponge to help. It is stuffed into the jug and tied on as well.

How do you get to the seats after that? How do two ppl get in?

I just get in. Never had an issue and I’m 270 with a muuuch smaller canoe

How to move around the canoe once in it

Thank you! Can you please explain the best way to enter a canoe from within water, say, you should fall out

Seeing gods wonder of nature,The most important part of being out!😊

step 1: sell your Canoe
step 2: buy a kayak

Maybe you could show handicapped people how they can get in a Canoe?

I flipped my little solo canoe twice last time out getting in. Only one place to launch and you have to step out a couple feet to the floating canoe and down about a foot. Hard for an old guy to hit the middle. Any tips? There’s gotta be some nice trout in this little lake. Maybe get a float tube?

Interesting that to a newbie like me 👍 fun to watch to 👌

What boat is this? I have a Clipper Mackenzie 18. No problem for newbies getting in that one but am considering a Swift Prospector 16. Thinking that may have similar tippiness to the boat you're demonstrating here...

I would like to see a video on how you move around in the canoe front to back

Thanks , very helpfull.

I think that the problem people have is that when one leg is on the deck and the other in the boat then the boat gets away from you and you end up with a split.

Very helpful! Thank you.

You mean I can’t step in like it’s a bass boat lol

Awesome demo I still use a variety of tippy techniques good stuff sir

Pete, I really appreciate your "nothing is too basic to cover" approach to your how-to videos; they are immensely helpful to boost confidence in the hobby. One topic I've rarely seen posted on the internet is how best to lower a canoe into and lift one out of the water to minimize stress on your own body and reduce risk of damage to the boat, particularly from a dock or rocky shoreline setting. I've always rented canoes before, where the boats are mostly already set up, or it's an easy beach launch. This is the first year I'll be going out with my own canoe, and water entry/exit is definitely something I'm still trying to work out.

Hi Pete. Very recognizable, I see it happening all the time.

I usually stand when getting into my canoe, with the aid of my setting pole, which I never go out in the canoe without. I also side slip to the shore line and step out onto dry land whenever possible. I get a kick out of many paddlers that ram the bow stem onto shore and then step out into knee deep water and wade in. Tips on exiting and entering the canoe when encountering a beaver dam is always welcome. On the fuller side of the dam I side enter, on the lower section(the more trick side) I just step into the center of the stem end just past the deck and hope for the best, most often balancing with the setting pole stuck firmly into the mud below.

Perfect timing. I'm knew to canoeing and was just getting ready to search for this exact content. So glad I subscribed to your channel last week. Keep looking up and enjoying God's creation. Perfect words

Lol!! This was spot-on accurate! The over confident guy was perfect 🤪