If you use a paddle leash Danuu is great.

One of the natural results of practicing self and assisted rescues is the next step “hey, I want to learn to roll … it would be way easier”. Then you have the whole package - if your roll fails then you can rely on your self and assisted recovery techniques. As Allan suggests, a partner for rolling in safe water is the start. Then rolling with no pre-capsize setup, reentry and roll, both sides etc. I have a one-side ‘semi-bombproof’ roll as of this year and still have a long way to go, but I am already safer. It took me a very long time to get a consistent roll, but at age 76 I take solace in the saying "you can’t teach an old dog new tricks’.

@bnystrom said:
I quit using leashes after a couple of years of paddling, right around the time I switched to Greenland paddles.

Same here, though I’ll add getting a leash snagged on a tree I passed going down a small river. It ripped the paddle from my hands and severed the cord at the clip. I’m thankful it did too, as I’m not sure what would have happened if it held! A few seconds later when I realized what happened, I grabbed the paddle from my deck and started to assemble it. At the same time, another inexperienced kayaker attempted to free the paddle from the tree and ended up capsizing during the attempt. Fortunately we weren’t in a particularly dangerous spot.

No leash makes entries, exits, and reentries soooo much easier when you aren’t trying trying to avoid or untangle yourself from the leash.

Though I always carry a spare, if I were on an extended solo trip in a very remote location I may consider using a leash again. In theory it would increase my chances of always having a primary and a spare throughout the trip. I’d hate to lose one paddle near the middle of the trip and have only one. If that were lost, I’d be down to MacGyvering one to get me home.

@Allan Olesen said:
Whenever I hear someone bragging that they have never had an involuntary capsize, I tell them that they need to try harder.

Find yourself a paddling buddy. Make sure you both have a good partner rescue. Train some technique together where you take turns in going to the limit of your abilities. It can be as simple as turning 360° turns with sweep strokes and a lot of leaning. And then handle whatever happens. That is how you find out what you will do when you find yourself under water.

Agreed 100%. However, I’ll add that this became much easier for me once I could roll proficiently.

@rsevenic said:
One of the natural results of practicing self and assisted rescues is the next step “hey, I want to learn to roll … it would be way easier”. Then you have the whole package - if your roll fails then you can rely on your self and assisted recovery techniques. As Allan suggests, a partner for rolling in safe water is the start. Then rolling with no pre-capsize setup, reentry and roll, both sides etc. I have a one-side ‘semi-bombproof’ roll as of this year and still have a long way to go, but I am already safer. It took me a very long time to get a consistent roll, but at age 76 I take solace in the saying "you can’t teach an old dog new tricks’.

All good advice, but there’s an assumption that everyone has access to a paddling partner of equal or higher ability. Or easy access to competent instruction. For many, that’s simply not the case. RikJohnson stated he would have to drive from Tucson to San Diego for professional instruction. That’s a six hour drive.

Location, location, location.

@Rookie said:
there’s an assumption that everyone has access to a paddling partner of equal or higher ability. Or easy access to competent instruction.

Very true! I’m in semi-remote North Idaho, but luckily have a friend who is an excellent roller. That is very fortunate; otherwise I would have been out of luck. Occasional lessons are not the same as practice, practice, practice. Especially for us old folks who learn more slowly.

There are plenty of self-teaching rolling resources available. Jay Babina’s “First Roll” video is excellent and it’s based on learning in shallow water. There’s no reason to work on learning to roll in water that you can’t just stand up in; 3-4 feet is plenty. As long as you don’t do something dumb like putting your spray skirt’s release strap inside the boat, or getting tangled up in a paddle leash, you can safely practice rolling alone.

As bnystrom says “you can safely practice rolling alone”, but a partner is nice to have. Nowadays I often practice rolling alone, but it is very helpful and efficient at the start of this journey to have a knowledgeable partner. The partner can help you after a failed roll so you don’t need to wet exit. At that point, even with shallow water you may not yet be agile enough to always right yourself with a bottom stab - a septuagenarian speaking. But even without that benefit you can get very useful comments on things you can’t see or do not notice e.g.
“your head came up first again”
“you’ve got a diving angle on that blade”
“your torso rotation stops way early”
“that one was great, do it again”
etc.