Convince me to spend money on a new paddle

Many people suggest that the correct length of a Greenland paddle is such that you should just be able to curl your fingers over the blade when standing alongside of it. If you feel another length works better for you, then go for it.

A Greenland paddle is slightly less efficient and aggressive than a Euro paddle due to the relatively gradual way that it enters the water. However, because of this most people find it less stressful on the shoulders. It will have a little less acceleration, but once you get moving it’s not that different. Many people also feel that the additional length combined with the inherent floatation of a GP makes it easier to roll with. GPs are becoming increasingly popular with people in our Club, with most people making their own. You can’t beat the price.

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If your former coworker was sliding his hands while paddling he had a too short paddle – I have one that is INTENDED to be used that way, a 72" “storm” Greenland paddle (which came with my skin on frame). In fact I often carry it as my backup “spare” paddle on the deck. The reason to switch to a storm paddle is when conditions get really windy you have very little blade surface up into the wind while paddling – similar principle to some people switching a two piece Euro paddle to a 30 degree offset in wind: the narrow edge of the Euro blade faces wind on the up end of each stroke instead of the flat face. You use a sliding stroke so that you have the full depth of the blade in the water on the stoke side but little sticking up on the high side. With a properly sized regular GP your hands stay on the loom without sliding while paddling.

My cedar one piece GP was custom made for me by a craftsman out in the San Juan islands who specialized in them. He took a number of measurements from me (of both me and the kayak I was going to mostly use the paddle with, or at least I expected that at the time) . I chose a horizontally laminated model based on his ratings of relative flexibility and strength, He made paddles from solid cedar, horizontal cedar and Douglas fir laminates of 3 or 5 layers and also 5 layer vertical laminates (the stiffest). I chose a shoulderless design where the shaft gradually widens into the blade – some GP’s have a squared off shoulder where the shaft loom transitions to the blade portion. The loom is the portion where you place your hands. Your natural loom measurement is one of the metrics for making a paddle, as is the diameter of your grip. I’m on the smaller size as a person (5’ 4") but have relatively long hands, fingers and thumbs so my oval shaft diameter is pretty standard.

Since over my active lifetime I have broken both wrists (right one still has 3 screws) and my left elbow and proximal humerus, I have learned that I do best with narrow bladed paddles. I have Werners and Aquabounds with relatively slim blades – sorry, no model names on these because they are older and several were obtained as parts of package deals on used boats but the blades are 19’ x 6" . I have one Cannon (a 4 piece carbon shaft I bought for packing one of my smaller folding kayak kits for airline travel) that has a slightly wider blade than the others (19" x 7.5") – don’t much care for it for any extended outing or one where I need sustained speed over distance – it was fine for poking around narrow winding British rural rivers during my trip there in 2017. Too much strain on the assorted upper body joints with larger blades.

AI also have a vintage Bending Branches two piece wood paddle, vertical 5 layer laminate that is made of some kind of very fine grained blonde wood (maybe white cedar?). It has very long narrow blades of 23" x 5.5". I do like the feel of it but at 230 cm it’s a little long for usual preference with my kayaks (which are mostly Greenland style with 20" to 23" beams). I do use it with my 26" beam solo canoe.

Back to Greenland paddles. I had a Northern Lights 3 piece carbon GP for a while but never liked it that much. It was shouldered and the loom didn’t feel right to me so I sold it to another folding kayak owner who needed a breakdown GP for air travel.

The carbon GP I have now is a GearLab Akiak model, which has almost exactly the same dimensions and weight as my beloved original cedar/fir GP. I do like it and it’s great for travel (I found it fits perfectly in a padded rifle case). It feels very much like the cedar/fir GP but not exactly.

So, by far my favorite paddle is that wood Greenland and the one I use most often I had it at one of the 4 day Greenland training camp events where the participants enjoy swapping gear with each other to get the feel of other designs. Quite a few long time GP users and instructors there tried it out and highly praised the feel and performance so I guess it’s really as nice of a paddle as I have always felt it to be. Unfortunately the paddle maker, David of Friday Harbor Paddles, quit the business many years ago due to chronic stress damage to his hands and joints from woodworking. There are still some folks out there who make custom wood paddles to order. I feel like I really lucked out finding him for my first GP. I’ve loaned it to a couple of people to take measurements off of it to duplicate the lines. That paddle is in need of some restoration right now – I used it paddling along Maine coastal inlets two weeks ago and scratched up the ends a bit levering out of rocks . It’s due to be sanded down and resealed (tung oil and varnish mix). I have never had any joint pain or fatigue using this paddle, no matter how long I was out or in what kind of conditions. But I am not often out in extremely challenging waters, nor am I much interested in speed.

By the way, wood is really buoyant and my wood paddle has proven helpful in learning to balance brace and in rolling practice. It is the one paddle I would never give up. I mostly keep the others to use as loaners, spares or for specific functions (like with the canoe or for airline travel).

You’d have to register (free) on the qajaqusa.org Greenland style kayaking site to post on their forums, but you could “lurk” and find endless exchanges on the making and merits of GP’s and other trad paddles.

You should never switch your paddle angle as conditions change. You want to be able to rely on muscle memory when you paddle and especially if you suddenly have to brace. If you change paddle angles when the time comes to show off your awesome acceleration or brace into a wave to impress the crowd at the Tiki Bar, without this muscle memory, you are eventually going to have your blade slice cleanly through the water. Then you can practice your wet exit, or roll (if you get the paddle angle right).

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I do tend to disagree with the “reach up and curl your fingers over the blade” method of paddle sizing. Human body metrics are far more complicated that that. I have long legs and a short torso for my overall height. My lower body length is irrelevant to paddle size so using that method yields a paddle length that is too long for me. Plus I use a high angle stroke with narrow beam boats. And the width of the boat you are using figures in. So while the “reach up” method may be useful for choosing gear at a kayak or ski rental place, it’s not the best way to determine optimal size for gear you are going to invest in for personal use.

I sold cross country skiis for years and that “reach up” method was common but even a worse method for determining ski length. Putting a stringbean thin 6’ 3" “Ichabod Crane” type guy on a 220 cm ski for which he didn’t have the mass to compress the camber out of in the kick part of his stride was as bad as sticking a 5’ 6" stocky bodybuilder on a pair of 190 cm skis that would have no glide under his weight. So we developed a gradation chart that took weight and fitness level into account along with height and, combining that with knowledge of the relative camber performance of the various ski models, we were better able to tailor skis to the individual buyer.

That said, there are many resources on the internet for sizing Greenland paddles using multiple body metrics and taking into account paddling style.

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Appreciate your wisdom on that (about feathering). I’ve never cared for feathering but have run into plenty of people who live and die by it, even for everyday paddling. I long ago quite arguing with them. Their usual justifications are “it cuts the wind better” and “it gives my stroke more power” (I fail to see why, but since I am using a GP 95% of the time none of them would listen to me anyway.)

I think it is more of an ingrained habit for some (i do notice it is more prevalent with folks who come from a WW paddling background). I agree with your points and also feel it puts undo strain on the wrists from the constant rotation to orient the blade face on each stroke.

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There have been a number of exchanges on Greenland paddle sizing and types on this forum that you can find on “search”. Here is one from a few years ago that has links to some good surveys of what sizes and styles of GP’s a range of users has. A couple of amusing digressions as well.

Oops and sorry – Qajaqusa has not archived those links. But you can search the site for related discussions.

The first GP I made for myself was a 240. It is now a 220 in use by a friend. I think the fingers over the blade method gives you a paddle that is too long. But, each of us is different and it takes experimentation to get it right.
I use an adjustable paddle and sometimes change the length and feather as I paddle.

I’ve never seen the sense of using a feathered paddle due to wind resistance. This would seem to suggest that you are always paddling directly into the wind (I know it often seems that way). On very windy days I just use a lower angle style with the blades closer to the water. Using a feathered paddle because it is more comfortable for some paddlers or seems easier on the wrists is a perfectly valid reason.

I paddle with an unfeathered Euro paddle. The advantage is that paddling unfeathered I can paddle with essentially any paddle, factory or homemade. You’d have to look very hard to find a paddle with a sole fixed paddle angle other than 0° these days.

I started out trying various feather angles and finally settled on an unfeathered paddle. I was most comfortable with that.

My solution for sizing Greenland Paddles is very simple.

15 paddles
5 of three different widths
the 5 all having one inch difference in their actual blade lengths from each other

All with adjustable loom lengths
all built off modifications of the same plug for complete uniformity

My method is …try what you think…

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I have been in rare situations when the wind could blow an unfeathered euro out of my hands. Usually cured with a death grip.
Those situations were in the ocean or a saltwater bay.

Here’s a photo I dug out of the dusty archives showing both the Friday Harbor 5-lamination GP and the vintage 2-piece Bending Branches “standard” blade (has a different label because BB made them for Walden, an extinct company that made boats of recycled plastic for a while.)

To explain the lamination difference: with the vertical versions that Dave Smith made the 5 layers were oriented 90 degrees to the blade face so the appearance was one of longitudinal stripes of cross grained wood across the blades and shaft. Stiffer construction.

I also did the same sort of thing in kids sizing…not as many sizes but all made with a smaller width blade than the other 15 paddles.{so that makes 4 different widths}

Tell me these are all just for you and you will be my hero. Lie to me if you have to.

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I started this project many years ago because I was teaching paddle making at several different colleges for their outdoor clubs.

These were to determine what size each person needed so they could make one from wood and have it actually fit. I also have several for different blade styles {but not as extensive} to determine how they wanted their paddle to load during the stroke.

Many are in a 4 piece configuration so that shoulder could also be changed

So sort of yes…these are all for me. it is a set

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That’s very cool! I hope you will chime in with advice if, down the road after I replace my sea kayak, I decide I need to shorten my single piece CF GP

You will never know what size actually feels like an extension of your body …until you actually paddle with “THE” paddle.

It makes you dance on the water…

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This paddle always did that, but I hope to find a narrower boat that I am (hopefully) able to have ride in the water at the proper level. I was too little and too light for my current boat, so I imagine the extra length helped in that regard.

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If it make the dance…does it have wing tips? {This paddle sports wing tips and also the ancient symbol of renewal, the Greenman } built for dancing…

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I let you catch up. Big difference. :kissing_heart:

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That’s gorgeous! Did you make that?