I’ve backed INTO eddies but it dawned on me that I’d never backpaddled while peeling out. Gave it a whirl recently. It’s a little bit of a mindf*ck but after a few times I got it. There was one combat roll in the process of learning 
Is this a silly thing to practice? When might one need to backpaddle into the main current instead of just peeling out as usual?
If nothing else, it’s fun to work it out during these times of low flows.
When we paddled the Yukon…
and it’s ten MPH current, we went from eddy to eddy to avoid the numerous whirpools, and we back paddled as well as every other type maneuver to get from one to the next.
Jack L
Not silly at all
Anything that gets you more in tune with the feel of the interaction between boat and water is a worthwhile exercise.
Backwards
Many people practice backwards ferries and backwards surfing.
yes and no
Reverse peel outs in and of themselves are probably not of great utility. But I find that back ferries are immensely useful.
If you lose your angle on a reverse ferry and get blown downstream, you are in essence doing a reverse peel out, so practicing for that eventuality probably makes sense.
I find that with reverse peel outs, reverse eddy turns and back surfing I tend to become dyslexic and lean the wrong way, however.
Very usefull skill
Use it for scouting rapids. Use it to avoid rocks that suddenly appear. Use it to slow down going through rock gardens. Use it to have fun surfing a wave.
was just doing a bunch yesterday
you’re so right about the messing with the mind. I was getting drawn backwards about 15’, then going into a violent spin coming off the eddy by the pourover. 13’ canoe, mind you, spinning me so fast I thought I was going to barf. Two 50 somethings acting like kindergarteners…
How about a reverse hanging draw…
for a disorienting stroke…still trying to figure THAT one out!
Sure
Getting comfortable doing things backwards is good practice and you can use that same setup for doing stern enders in a wave/hole. Just start your peel out and lean back as you hit the eddy line – great fun (as long as it’s deep and you have a roll).
Try it on flat water
– Last Updated: Sep-15-11 3:14 PM EST –
I practice that one regularly. On flat water, it's not hard; don't need to mind your edging.
Haven't tried it in current yet. Heck, why not...
Very useful in canoeing
"Setting in" to an eddy (eddy out) backs a canoe into and eddy so that it remains facing downstream and you do not have to spin it to eddy in. Particularly useful on narrow streams where you do not have the luxury of being able to spin the canoe around due to the width of the channel. Here is a video of the opposite, “setting out.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6YxxTIl9gI
different things are being discussed
A peel out refers to exiting an eddy into the main current while simultaneously turning downstream 180 degrees. A reverse peel out would refer to doing this stern first.
That is not the same thing as a back ferry or back surfing, nor is it equivalent to a reverse eddy turn out of the current into an eddy, nor is it the same as back ferrying into an eddy from the main current.
details details//have fun NM
Not really
A backwards peel out and a backwards ferry involve many of the same skills. The whole package of backward paddling is important and fun. So a precisely focused narrow answer to the question is “when you want to practice paddling backward in current and learn not to flip over”. I have, however, seen eddies which were small enough that turning around was difficult if not impossible and a reverse exit was required.
Lot of fun in tandem canoe
My old tandem partner and I used to like to run backwards for long stretches on the Dead River in my Millbrook ME – eddy turns, peel outs, ferries, everything backwards. The backwards cross moves are exciting the first several times.
Nicely done…
I need to work on my bow pry, although in that situation, I would just peel out of the eddy - result would be the same.
Trying to think of when…
you would need to peel out backwards. If my intention was to leave the eddy with my bow upstream, I’d just ferry out. I suppose if you set into an eddy that was too small to spin around in, you could peel out backwards and then start your ferry or surf. Spinning around after a backsurf is almost the same thing. My backsurfing stinks, but I’ve had a lot of practice spinning out after.
Whatever, its all fun to practice.
I can’t either
– Last Updated: Sep-16-11 8:58 AM EST –
Only if one deliberately planned to run a rapid stern first would they use a reverse peel out to exit an eddy.
A neat trick, perhaps, but not of any practical value. (I do understand the value of becoming comfortable with back paddling and turns in general. The edging and weight shifts required are very similar to what happens when completing a 360 while side surfing a hole, or during a flat spin on a wave). In nearly every case it would be preferable to simply paddle forward out the tail of the eddy, or back ferry out of the eddy, then proceed downstream bow first.
I have a hard time imagining an eddy in which one of the above would not be possible, but if I found myself in one I would simply allow the stern of my boat to cross the eddy line sufficiently to catch some downstream current, spin 180 degrees on the eddy line, and paddle back into it bow first before exiting.
The converse of a reverse peel out, a reverse eddy turn is, on the other hand really useful if you can do it well. If you get turned bow upstream unintentionally in a rapid, a reverse eddy turn allows you to eddy out and turn back around in one fell swoop.
Not me …
Just found it to illustrate the point, but I agree, nicely done.
Reverse eddy turn?
maybe I’m not very adventurous, but ferrying into the eddy, and then peeling out normally seems like it would be easier than a reverse eddy turn. Of course, it doesn’t include the “one fell swoop” part