Canoe Side Slip Strokes

Side slips move your canoe laterally like when you need to pull away from a dock or the shoreline.

Solo Side Slip 

If you're sitting in the center of the canoe, the solo side slip simply involves using the standard draw or pry strokes that we looked at previously.

If you're sitting in the bow seat and facing the stern, you'll have to reach forward a little so that your draw and pry happen as close to the center of the canoe as possible, otherwise you'll turn your canoe instead of moving it sideways.

Tandem Side Slip 

To side slip a tandem canoe, one paddler will take draw strokes while the other paddler takes pry strokes. Who does which will simply be decided by the direction that you're trying to travel. As always, the strokes should be taken in unison with the bow paddler leading the way.

Something to keep in mind is that the draw is a more powerful stroke than the pry. This means the person doing the draw stroke may need to ease off on the power of the stroke so that the boat moves to the side more evenly.