For the stern the paddle should be longer than for the bow. Paddles are
made of red oak, maple, ash, spruce, and cherry. Some authorities prefer
spruce for ordinary usage, but in rough water and in shooting rapids a
harder wood is best. The weak part of a paddle is where the blade joins
the handle, and this part should not be too slender. If you use spruce
paddles keep them smooth by trimming away all roughness and keep them
well shellacked, else they may become water-soaked. Paddles range in
price from one dollar and fifty cents to three dollars.
[Illustration: Canoeing on placid waters.]
=Accessories=
A strong, healthy girl will no more need cushions and canoe-chairs than
a boy, but a back rest is not always to be despised. It is well to
have a large sponge aboard for bailing and for cleaning.
At a portage or "carry," the canoe is carried overland on the shoulders,
and though some guides scorn to use a carrier, others are glad of them.
There are several styles, one being the neck-yoke carrier, another the
pneumatic canoe-yoke. The pneumatic yoke, when not inflated with air,
can be rolled into a bundle three by six inches, and when inflated it
can also be used for a canoe-seat, a camp-seat, and even for a pillow.
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