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boonie
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quote jwartman59: "starting today I will be bringing a spare paddle. i've been pushing my luck."
The older I get, the more I get that feeling :). The odds may be catching up to me :).
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Merganser
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I have never broken or lost a paddle but always carry a spare per canoe. On a solo trip one of my paddles will be bent and the other straight. I will paddle bent most of the time but on a twisty river or if I just want to go paddle some freestyle I will use the straight.
I don't have a fancy 10oz paddle like kanoes, I have to make due with my BB Cruiser Plus paddles :)
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mwd1976
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I bring an extra, but not necessarily because I'm worried about breakage. I'm more worried in rough water a wave or something catches me off guard and I drop my paddle. Or more likely, I drop it because I'm a klutz and I float helplessly away from it. It's never happened to me, but when you're by yourself you need to be prepared for the worst.
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SunCatcher
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I have a friend, on this site. He took a spare paddle on a solo. Left his main paddle at a portage. forgot it at a portage and did not go back for it. Then he got caught in a 40 mph wind on a lake and broke in half his spare paddle. Long Story short, He was out in the middle of the Wilderness in WCPP without a paddle. He had to hit 911 on his SPOT and be rescued (by helicopter in CANADA). Much more to story than this, but this is the long and short of it.
Always take a spare paddle, always.
SunCatcher
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kanoes
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hey sun? was he ever billed for the rescue?
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SunCatcher
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didnt ask him... (I will ask him sometime)but his canoe is still up there last I talked to him this fall. He still had not gone in and got the canoe.
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Jeriatric
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I take two paddles on my solos but the second one is not really a backup paddle. I use a kayak paddle for traveling and a bent shaft canoe paddle for trolling. It is just a happy coincidence that one can also function as a backup.
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jwartman59
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starting today I will be bringing a spare paddle. i've been pushing my luck.
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whiteh20
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I have broken several paddles in whitewater and always carry a spare. I would never do a solo trip without a spare paddle.
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canoe212
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Never while solo, but I have broken 2 paddles. One when I was pushing off of a portage, half the blade stayed under water wedged between two rocks. The other we noticed a split in the blade very early in our trip. From that point I only used it in open water. I used the crappy spare close to portages and in shallow water.
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jwartman59
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i never bring a spare paddle unless i know i will be paddling a lot of whitewater. if you use proper canoe technique, never let the blade of the paddle come in contact with land, especially sand, never use your paddle as a pushing ram, you should never have any problems with a high quality paddle that has been properly maintained. in forty years of canoing, with lots of whitewater, i have never broken or split a paddle. i do bring duct tape though, boy scout training, i guess. whitewater canoing is a whole different matter though. you can count on your blade whacking into rocks, countless times, but if you are whitewater paddling you probably aren't portaging as much so the extra paddle is not quite the inconvenience.
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kanoes
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nope, ive never broken a paddle but i will continue to take 2. i prefer the straight for moving water. the second paddle is a 10 ouncer too so not alot of extra weight there.
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butthead
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I bring 2 but not necessarily a backup. Explorer Plus is my moving water/beater paddle, Foxworx Classic is my open water/traveling paddle (might replace with a Zaveral 14 degree).
2 different tools for different purposes, yet interchangeable if needed.
I have broken a few paddles in local river systems, but none in the BWCA.
butthead
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tony
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I religiously carry a spare paddle when soloing but have never ever had to use it. Last may on the portages I kept asking myself why I bring it. The portages were pretty bad and of course I had over packed. I probable always will bring a spare but have any of you ever considered leaving the spare paddle at home?
tony
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bstrege
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We always bring one spare per canoe unless we have three people per canoe. I've never had to use it, though.
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dl
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My last trip, last day - broke a custom made paddle from Holz Paddles - a gift. My canoeing partner (daughter) at first felt bad for me and then had that panic look because she hadn't realized that there was an 'extra' tied in the canoe. The Holz paddle is hanging in my office now as a reminder to tie in that extra paddle for each trip.
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moosedrool
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i always lash my extra paddle to the canoe and it stays on the canoe during the portages. i can cut weight other places.
Note, if conditions are less than ideal, i will make the spare more available (just in case).
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SevenofNine
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I've never broke a paddle but I did learn to bring a canoe paddle last year.
I did a river trip with some friends. I have a kayak paddle which for me works wonders.
However, the rive was choked full of grass. That grass made a drag on a mostly horizontal entry kayak paddle. I would pick up grass and be bothered by it as I paddled.
When a friend allowed me to use his canoe paddle my problems were solved.
It made me realize I need to bring both.
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wetcanoedog
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i take two but don't think of one as a spare.both are used as walking sticks on the carrys,i triple portage.one is a lighter weight with a square blade that is my main open water paddle.the other is a a beaver tail, and a bit heavy and longer.i use that working around rock and poling in creeks.i also swap paddles back and forth on long days.i find that i use my arm and back muscles in a bit different way with each one and don't strain them as much as doing the same movement with the same weight and shaft length over and over.plus is the busting one issue also but i have never done that
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