InStyle The
Silent T
Stroke
he silent stroke is a wonderful variation on the J-stroke that, once mastered, allows you quick, quiet passage through the
water.The key to the silent stroke is the recovery. Following the J, the blade is sliced back to the catch position in an underwater
recovery.Roll the grip in the palm of your hand so that the backface now becomes the powerface. From stroke to stroke, the blade does not leave the water at all. The beauty of the silent stroke is just that — the silence.You can paddle along a stretch of shoreline at dusk with the only sound of your passing being the small rippling wake slapping the rocks.A beaver swims across your path, carving its own silver V in the dark waters. Every sound of the forest is crystal clear: a creek burbling, the distant hooting of an owl, a frog
croaking.Gary and I love to get out the solo canoes on a warm summer evening and explore Rabbit Lake’s little bays and inlets.We know where the loons nest and where the beavers build their lodges, and occasionally we’ll see a mink,an otter or a
moose.Traveling in silence takes practice but the rewards are well worth the effort.
1
The silent stroke is a forward stroke with an underwater recovery where the powerface alternates on each stroke. In
this photo, the paddler is in the corrective phase of the J-stroke, using the dark backface of the paddle as the powerface.
2
Gary and Joanie McGuffin live, paddle and ski in the Algoma Highlands on the north shore of Lake Superior.
www.adventurers.org
8
Move from one blade face to the other by rolling the grip in the palm of your control hand while the blade is in the recov-
ery position. Slice the blade forward in a complete underwater
recovery.As the blade slices back to the catch, the blade’s leading edge turns toward the hull instead of away from it as in a for- ward stroke.
www.rapidmag.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33