How to Become a Paddler

Quit Watching from Shore—It’s Time to Get Wet

BY MIKE BEZEMEK

IT HAPPENS EVERY SUMMER AT WHITEWATER rivers across the Southeast. A group of rowdy kayakers passes through. They’re laughing. Waving. Playfully splashing water with their blades. One flips over to cool off. While upside down, they orient their paddle near the surface. In a sudden and bewildering movement, they roll back up, dripping wet and grinning like a kid. These people are paddlers. A unique species of motivated misfits who are more comfortable in boats than a company meeting, where they might sit around awkwardly while dreaming about the next trip.

And each sunny day, while paddlers are navigating churning rapids and floating treelined rivers, curious observers gather and watch with a variety of reactions, including concern, skepticism, and exhilaration. A guest in a guided raft might ogle athletic kayakers nimbly zigzagging between waves before launching off a rock into the air. Or friends in an idling vehicle will stare at a pair of synced-up paddle-cat rafters, dipping their single-blades into froth and putting those pontoons in spots that seem impossible.

How do I get into that, some observers wonder. How do I become a paddler?

Two Paths to Paddling: Connections and Communities

One option is to see if you have any connections to an experienced paddler. This might be a relative or a family friend. Asking around could lead to an invite. Lots of paddlers enjoy sharing their passion, and this is a great way to get started. And since many advanced paddlers have G.A.S., or Gear Acquisition Syndrome, they may have a dozen spare boats you can try.

This is what happened to Tosh Arwood, manager of the paddling school at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Wesser, N.C. While living in Raleigh, he became friends with an expert paddler and former whitewater slalomist, who helped Tosh get started and offered advice on techniques.

“Then I moved to the mountains,” Tosh told me during a recent chat about paddling. “And I had a complete life redirect.”

Tosh’s experience brings up another great option. If your life allows it, you could move to where the water is. This will not work for everyone, but living in a community—like Asheville, N.C., or Knoxville, Tenn.—with a lot of paddlers can be a stroke in the right direction. Once arrived, keep an eye open, and you’re bound to make a connection with a potential paddling friend. Alternatively, you could visit a paddling area on vacation and book a whitewater rafting trip or kayak rental. During that trip, you could ask the guides for more information about classes or other guided trips.

Paddling Instruction

Another great option is to join a paddling clinic, take a class, or hire a private instructor. Paddling clinics are usually held in the spring or summer by various regional paddling organizations, including canoe clubs or kayak clubs. One example is the Carolina Canoe Club, based out of Raleigh, and you can search for something similar in your area. Another option is to sign up for a group introduction class or private lesson, which are typically offered by outdoor stores, like private shops and REIs, or river outfitters, like the Nantahala Outdoor Center where Tosh is an instructor.

At the NOC, Tosh offers a variety of intro to whitewater kayaking courses. The basic premise is you start on a lake, where you get a feel for the boat, and then you head to an easy section of class I-II river to ease into moving current, typically an easier section of class II water on the Nantahala River. The NOC has one-day, two-day, and four-day beginner classes that let a person progress at a rate they feel comfortable with.

Start with Rafting

I learned to paddle by attending a raft guide school. This requires some commitment, usually a few weekends or a week on the river. But guide school isn’t just for early twenties kids hellbent on a life of adventure. It’s certainly true that many of these youthful folks will apply to join a full-time guide crew. But people of any age can usually pay for a spot in a guide school, typically held by various commercial rafting companies, including the NOC and other companies in the Southeast. Nationwide, another option is OARS, which runs guide schools on rivers in Utah or California. You can go to guide school to learn the basics, and become a DIY rafter, or to become a weekend warrior guide while keeping your full-time job. Once you’re part of the rafting community, you’ll find fellow adventurers curious about all types of paddling: rafts, cats, oar rigs, kayaking, and paddleboarding. Which leads to the last option. Some adventurous people teach themselves to paddle simply by buying a boat and going for it. That’s what many of us raft guides did; or as Tosh calls it, and I definitely agree, the school of hard knocks. When learning to kayak, I gained intimate knowledge about the texture and solidity of many rocks in the river. (I was also 20 years old at the time, and I might do it differently now.)