Canoeing & Kayaking Activities

Blowing in the Wind

Skill Level: Intermediate
Skill Learned: Manoeuvering
Precautions: Watch for tipping as teams collect balls
Equipment: Ping pong balls, canoes, paddles, PFD's 

Game: Throw a number of ping pong balls on the water and let them blow around. Each canoe tries to collect as many balls as possible. To make the game more challenging, put different point values on the balls. Each canoe can try to collect as many points as possible.

Crows and Cranes

Skill Level: Basic
Skills Learned: Sideward displacement
Precautions: Paddle on opposite sides; beware of finger jams
Equipment: Canoes, paddles, PFD's

Game: Canoes line up side by side. Half the canoes are "crows" and the other half are "cranes". When the leader calls either "crows" or "cranes", that group displaces their canoes sideways (using draws and prys) to try and catch the other group that are trying to get away from them, also using sidewards displacement. The leader can call the other group's name at any time to reverse direction.

Enter/Exit Challenge

Skill Level: Basic
Skills Learned: Entering and exiting from a dock or beach
Precautions: None
Equipment: Canoes, paddles, PFD's, an empty margarine tub per canoe.

Game: The tub is filled with water and placed on the center thwart of the canoe. The canoeists are challenged to enter or exit without tipping the tub or spilling any water.

Paddle Parts Game

Skill Level: Basic
Skill Learned: Names of paddle parts
Precautions: None
Equipment: 2 paddles, names of paddle parts on cards (e.g., blade, tip, throat, shaft, grip)

Game: Game cards are laid upside down near each paddle. The players are split into two teams. As a relay, the first person from each team runs up to the paddle, picks up a card and lays it on the proper paddle part. As a beginner game, you might let other team-mates help tell where the proper parts are if the runner doesn't know. Play continues until all the parts of the paddles are labelled correctly.

Parts of a Canoe

Skill Level: Basic
Skill Learned: Parts of a canoe
Precautions: If the canoe is on land - none; if in the water - watch that the person doesn't fall in.
Equipment: 1 or 2 canoes (depending on number of players), blindfolds, parts of the canoe on cards (e.g., deck, bow, stern, bow seat, stern seat, thwart, yoke, gunwale, freeboard, keel) 

Game: One person picks a canoe part card. After they see what the part is, they are blindfolded. They can be guided to the canoe by their team-mates. They try and place (or stick) the card on the appropriate part of the canoe by feeling the canoe with their hands. Players take turns being blindfolded and labelling parts. The game is over when the entire canoe has been properly labelled.

Pass the Ball

Skill Level: All
Skill Learned: Balancing
Precautions: The game needs to be well supervised with the canoes spread out in case one tips. You may wish to have leaders in the water helping to balance the canoes.
Equipment: One ball per canoe

Game: Place 3 or 4 canoeists in each canoe. One by one they stand up with their legs spread apart, until everyone is standing. They then try to pass the ball over the head of one person, under the legs of the next, etc. etc., up and down the length of the canoe.

Caution: When having the participants stand up and sit down in the canoe, ensure they do so in the following order: stern person, bow person, middle person. This will help to keep the canoe balanced.

Simon Says

Skill Level: Any
Skills Learned: You can test numerous skills with this game, including paddling ability, parts of the canoe, etc.
Precautions: Know the paddlers' abilities to ensure you give them appropriate challenges.
Equipment: Canoes, paddles, PFD's

Game: Adapt "Simon Says" to canoeing. Example: Simon says 'stand up'; Simon says 'paddle 3 strokes forward', etc. Try to eliminate canoes out of the competition until you have a winner.

Tug of War

Skill Level: Any
Skills Learned: Team work; back paddling
Precautions: Canoes may dump!
Equipment: Strong rope per every 2 canoes; canoes, paddles, PFD's

Game: Two canoes face each other (3 or 4 people per canoe). One person holds the rope while the others try to paddle backwards. One side needs to get past a marked point in order to be declared the winner.