Canoe Paddle Making

The warmth and beauty of a hand-made canoe paddle cannot be beat, and winter is a wonderful time to create one!

In this class, you’ll make your own straight-shaft canoe paddle, and you can select which type of wood you will be working with:

• Basswood (with accents of western cedar; excellent for creating almost any paddle shape or style).
• Cherry (a rich reddish-colored wood; excellent for making traditional beavertail or ottertail-shaped paddles)

Note: Basswood is significantly easier to work with than cherry.

On our first day, we’ll start building your paddle by gluing the blade and the grip onto a prepared shaft. We will discuss characteristics of various types of paddles, materials, and how to size a paddle to an individual person. The following sessions will be spent paring down the wood with hand and power tools.

Registration Includes

Instruction and all materials. By the end of class, you’ll have a smooth and shaped paddle. You’ll need to varnish it before dipping it in the water.

Skill Level

No prior experience needed

Best for Ages…

18 and older.

You should bring…

We’ll have all the tools and materials you’ll need. However, some people prefer working with their own tools. If you’d like to bring your own tools, bring along:

• For Day 1: 2 pipe clamps, 2 C-clamps
• For Day 2 and 3: Block plane or smoothing plane, spoke shave, rasp, jig saw, belt sander and/or spindle sander, pipe clamps, etc.

Wear clothes you don’t mind getting dirty. Some folks like to bring an apron.