1. Paddle Away to Canoeing Camp
Whether you're a beginner paddler or experienced at white water canoeing, attending a camp helps you obtain white water canoeing skills. Canoeing camps. such as those hosted by Wausau Kayak/Canoe Corporation in Wisconsin, teach beginner paddling skills like mastering the forward stroke, answer technical questions and teach racing and recreational skills. Advanced classes include rescue training clinics and white water slalom classes. Some camps also provide free-style training. Look for camps that employ professional canoers as guides or instructors.
2. Take an Outdoor Course
If you don't have time for a week-long or summer-long camping session, the Nantahala Outdoor Center offers a variety of instructional courses with options for 1-, 2- and 4-day excursions. You can learn to paddle a canoe by yourself or with another person. Refine basic skills on class 2 or 3 white water courses. If you want to gain confidence to handle class 3 and up white water, take an advance class, which assigns an instructor to watch over you. For people who don't like groups, some companies provide private tutoring for individuals.
3. Start With Quite Water Canoeing
Many places with lakes and rivers host canoe liveries, which rent all the equipment and schedule pickup points. Quite Water may have a current, but it won't be strong enough to register as class 1. You can go by yourself, but most paddlers recommend taking a friend along. You can paddle separate canoes, but it's good to have someone with you in case something goes wrong. Experienced paddlers can show you the ropes in a nonthreatening environment. Once you master the basic skills, you may want to move on to quick water before hitting white water.
4. Run an Enhanced White Water Course
Enhanced white water courses transform natural runs into training courses. Developers may place boulders and rocks along the route to create "natural" berms or add pools, drops and holes to increase the difficulty. In some places, such as the Wausau Whitewater Raceway, a dam controls the flow of water to create different class levels. These courses may include gates for slalom racing. The benefits to running an enhanced white water course include being able to stop or reduce the flow of water in the event of trouble and being able to look at a map of the course before you go. While most white water routes with a class of 1 to 4 have maps, class 5 white water rapids often won't.
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