Launch Your Kayak

Lots of trips start off with a launch from a gradually sloping shoreline. remind that prevent dragging the hull, especially on sandy, rocky or cement surfaces:

• Find a friend to help you move the boat to your put-in point. Put it down in shallow water, vertical to the shoreline. For a vertical launch, the bow should face away from the port and the stern should keep close to the port.
• Put one of your paddle blades under the deck line in front of the cockpit.
• Stand on the kayak, straddling the cockpit.
• Try to grab the cockpit and set your buttock down on the seat. Lift your legs and slip your feet into the cockpit.
• Put your buttock firmly stick with the seat and settle both feet onto the footpegs comfortably.
• Take the paddle and use it to move your kayak past incoming waves and boat wakes.

(Wells, 2018)