

Canoeing in Swift Water 



going upstream to the Tobeatic Country. I took 

 H. J. Frost, of fishing-tackle fame, in my canoe with a 

 load of dunnage, and poled up over Little Kempton 

 Falls as nonchalantly as the rest of the guides, to say 

 nothing of the mile and a half of the meanest kind of 

 swift water, known as Pollard's Falls, and numerous 

 lesser runs. We had no accidents. 



That was a great many years ago. 



Since that time there has hardly been a season when I 

 have not spent many weeks handling a loaded canoe in 

 swift water, often far in the interior where a capsizing 

 accident would mean wet grub, spoiled ammunition, 

 and serious if not fatal loss. I have yet to have my first 

 serious accident. 



You can handle a pole while kneeling in the bottom, 

 nearly as well as in a standing position, and it is a much 

 safer posture for the amateur. This position necessitates 

 a shorter pole, shorter strokes with the pole, and a shorter 

 climb, or run, on the pole, and there is not so good a 

 leverage as in the standing position. 



In summing up the poling of a canoe either from a 

 standing (or kneeling) position, remember the following 

 rules, and you can be quite successful with a little 

 practice: 



1st. Stand a little sidewise in the canoe with both feet 

 over the keel, and knees slightly bent. Load your canoe 

 for upstream work so that the bow will draw less water 

 than the stern. Place your load in the canoe so that she 

 will trim properly when you are standing in the space 

 between the stern seat and the next thwart forward, 

 with your left leg just touching the after side of the 

 thwart. This will help you maintain your balance, and 

 will give you a brace to push against in strong water. 

 If the canoe is not loaded, stand two-thirds of the way 

 back from the bow to make her trim right. 



