The key to properly lifting your canoe is multi-faceted but easy. All you need to do is handle a canoe that reflects your ability to lift it and practise on the front lawn or some other grassy surface. If you are a body-builder, lifting an 85 lb. Old Town Tupperware Special will require exactly the same steps as those needed by a 98 lb. weakling to shoulder a 37 lb. Souris River Carbon Tec Quetico 16. In any case, the term "no pain - no gain" does not have to apply to canoe lifting. Generally, avoiding pain through proper movement & a little bit of planning, is the preferred method.
Every step you need to lift a canoe is pictured on these pages. Review them and realize that proper lifting involves more pausing & planning than grunting. When you are lifting your canoe, follow the photos (steps) and plan where your feet, hip, arms, thumbs, and head should be to get that canoe up on your shoulders. The same applies to putting the canoe on the ground. The biggest hurdle to overcome in canoe lifting is the feeling that one must throw oneself into the lift and use momentum to get it up on those shoulders (for heavy aluminum and Royalex canoes this may be the case). Almost everybody I've ever instructed in canoe-lifting has done this on their first lift without paying attention to the important details such as a wider foot stance and body position relative to the canoe. Usually after watching me go through the moves, they forget everything they saw and move with unstable vigor and mediocre results. Don't do that. Do the first step and pause.Do the second step and pause.Do the third step and pause.Do the fourth step and ... you get the picture. The idea is to prevent back strain and get the canoe from point A to B without dropping it like a ton of bricks. Souris Rivers are incredibly tough but why beat them up unnecessarily? And those other Brand X kevlars with the wimpy polyester resin...they will not survive a drop without substantial damage.
Remember to practise on your front lawn 2 -4 hours per day for one year... or at least do a couple of lifts now and then before your next canoe adventure. It'll make a world of difference!
