Paddling Education

Canoeists everywhere—especially wilderness canoeists—will appreciate reading Gunflint Falling: Blowdown in the Boundary Waters by Cary J. Griffith. It'll hit home, whether we’ve been anywhere near that type of event or not.

Canoe camping is a marvelous way to enjoy wilderness areas, rivers and parks. How can we help protect these areas from negative human impact for future generations of canoeists?

Bending Branches’ mission is to inspire meaningful outdoor experiences by offering premium products worth bragging about. Having an innovation mindset plays a vital role in carrying out that mission.

The Complete Paddler (TCP) has been North America’s largest paddlesports shop since 2005. Its Toronto headquarters is just minutes from Lake Ontario and just a couple of hours from some of Canada’s best canoeing destinations.

If you’re new to canoeing, new to your area, or simply ready for a new adventure, there are several avenues you can explore to find the best canoe trip options close to you.

If you love canoeing but prefer to rent canoes, it’s still absolutely worthwhile to invest in buying your own canoe paddle. There are several reasons for that…

Naming the 6 top canoe destinations is sort of like naming the 6 best ice cream flavors. It depends who you ask!

Here’s our list of 6 top canoe destinations in North America…

La Maison du Canoë is a canoe and kayak shop that serves paddling enthusiasts of all skill levels in beautiful southeast France.

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in northeast Minnesota is America’s most-visited wilderness area. Several Minnesota-based organizations have arisen to help protect this important environment along with tens of thousands of concerned citizens.

Whitewater the Canoe Centre (WWTCC) is a paddlesports specialty shop near London, England, located on the banks of the River Thames. It’s been serving canoeists and kayakers in their region since 1954.

Ashley Bredemus and her husband Victor Pilon own and direct Birchwood Wilderness Camp in northern Minnesota. Canoeing and canoe trips are core to the programming of this small boys’ camp.

Bending Branches Prostaffer and long-distance canoeist Martin Trahan wrote an Instagram post about the pros and cons of smartphone use on wilderness canoe trips. “Toxicity or an essential tool?”

Minnesotan Rob Bossen has his hands in several paddling-related ventures including Bending Branches, Greg Duck Outdoor and US paddling’s newest trade coalition. We were able to catch him for an interview recently. Here’s what we learned from Rob…

Kristen Elgo has been a volunteer with San Diego Girl Scouts for more than a decade. She and other adult volunteers have gotten ACA certified so they can pass on their love of canoeing and kayaking to the girls they serve.

Camp Manito-wish YMCA is one of the top wilderness camps in the country. 2023 staffer Dave Scott co-led a 45-day canoe trip in northern Canada and shared his experience with us.

Thousands of you read our blog! We thought it’d be fun to highlight your favorite canoeing and kayak fishing content of 2023.

Lake Superior isn’t known as an ideal canoe camping lake because of its vast size and unpredictable weather. But Canadians Jon and Erin took 11 days in 2023 for such a trip along some of its northern shoreline.

You might think our underlying purpose at Bending Branches is to craft world-class canoe and kayak fishing paddles. But our Why goes deeper than that—it’s to inspire YOU to have memorable outdoor experiences on the water!

Today’s paddlers and anglers have technology at our fingertips we could only dream about a few years ago—thanks to our handheld GPS and computer systems (commonly known as smartphones).

Do you have a furry best friend you want to bring kayaking or canoeing with you? Some of our readers graciously gave us their best tips for how they trained their dog(s) as paddle partners.

Ready for a fun canoe video or two? The Okee Dokee Brothers canoed the Mississippi River from Minneapolis to St. Louis, writing the songs for their album Can You Canoe? along the way (you might recognize their paddles!).