Kayaking looks simple: sit down, pick up the paddle, off you go. But anyone who has tried it for the first time will tell you that a few mistakes can turn a fun paddle into an unpleasant adventure. Below are the five most common mistakes we see among beginners, and how to avoid them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most common mistake: dressing as if you were going for a walk. But conditions on the water are different. Even when the air is +20 degrees, the water in Lithuanian lakes in spring can be just +8 to 12 degrees. If you fall in, cotton clothes soak up water and chill your body very quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What to do: in warm weather, synthetic sportswear (not cotton) works well. In cooler weather you need neoprene or a drysuit<\/a>. And always wear a life jacket<\/a>, even if you can swim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Enthusiasm before the first paddle often exceeds what you can actually do. People plan a 15 km route and after 5 km realise their arms are tired, the seat is uncomfortable and they still have to get back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What to do: for your first time, paddle on a calm lake, not a river. Plan a route of up to 5 km or 1 to 2 hours. Better to come back wanting more than exhausted and hating the whole experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phone, keys, food, water bottle. They all end up on the deck or in your pockets, and the first bigger wave or careless movement sends them sliding into the water. Sunglasses and phones are lost especially often.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What to do: use a dry bag<\/a> (dry bag) for documents and your phone. Keep your sunglasses on a strap. Clip your water bottle on with a carabiner. Fishing kayaks such as NuCanoe or Galaxy Kayaks models<\/a>have dedicated mounting points for gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not knowing where you will paddle, what the current will be like, how long it will take and what will happen if the weather changes. This matters especially on rivers, where the current can be stronger than it looks from the bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What to do: before you set off, check the weather forecast (especially wind speed and direction). Tell someone where you will paddle and when you plan to be back. Carry a fully charged phone in a dry bag. If you are paddling an unfamiliar route, check for dams, obstacles or currents. You will find the best places for beginners in the article Where to kayak in Lithuania<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The biggest mistake of all: thinking nothing bad can happen on the water. Relaxed on a calm lake, people paddle without a jacket, take no signalling device and go out alone far from shore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What to do: always wear a buoyancy aid<\/a>. Even experienced paddlers wear one, because accidents happen suddenly. If you paddle alone, use your phone's location sharing feature. Carry a whistle (most jackets have one built in). And do not paddle further from shore than you feel comfortable with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Always wear a life jacket when kayaking. For recreational paddling, light and comfortable WALLYS buoyancy aids<\/a> are a great choice: they do not restrict movement and are affordable. We offer sizes for children and adults based on body weight. More about safety gear: life jacket comparison<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n Yes, but for the first time we recommend paddling with someone experienced, or at least on a calm, small lake close to the shore. Do a few practice sessions before setting off on a longer route alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For kayaking on Lithuanian waters a 50N (Type III) buoyancy aid is right. It is compact, does not restrict your arms when paddling and is enough for calm waters. We wrote more about choosing a jacket in the article Buoyancy aids for water sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With a sit on top kayak, capsizing on calm water is almost impossible, but if it happens: do not panic, your jacket will keep you afloat. Hold on to the kayak, flip it back over and climb on from the side. With the models we sell, this is easy even for a beginner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n Most beginner mistakes come from the wrong or missing gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kajakas atrodo paprastas: atsis\u0117dai, pa\u0117mei irkl\u0105, nuplaukei. Bet kiekvienas, kas tai band\u0117 pirm\u0105 kart\u0105, patvirtins, kad kelios klaidos gali paversti smag\u0173 plaukim\u0105 nemaloniu nuotykiu. \u017demiau penkios da\u017eniausios klaidos, kurias matome tarp pradedan\u010di\u0173j\u0173, ir kaip j\u0173 i\u0161vengti. 1. Netinkama apranga Da\u017eniausia klaida: apsirengti taip, tarsi eitum pasivaik\u0161\u010dioti. Bet ant vandens s\u0105lygos kitokios. Net kai oras +20 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[500],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kajakai"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t2. Too long a route for the first time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
3. Unsecured gear<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
4. Plaukimas be plano<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
5. Underestimating safety<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Safety on the water<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Can a beginner paddle alone?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Which life jacket is right for kayaking?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
What do you do if the kayak capsizes?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
What helps you avoid mistakes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Read also<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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