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There is more to Kona than coffee

Woohoo! This evening I finalized the details of a custom guided kayak trip with the Kona Boys. We will be paddling along the south-west coast of the Big Island of Hawaii starting in Ho'okena. They have many different kayaks, we have bagged their longest and thinnest...

Spicing things up

Once you have learned a roll don't stop there. Almost every technique we learn can have variations. I saw this variation first performed by Freya Hoffmeister at a pool session. I have also seen some (women) be able to perform this without a paddle. I can hold the...

Roll of the day – Side Sculling

I realized this morning that I had jumped over Side Sculling in the Roll of the Day series. I personally am a proponent of side sculling as the very first thing everyone should learn if they want to be able to do the standard Greenland Roll. Initially you can learn...

Bonus Roll of the day – Reentry and roll with a norsaq

I am a firm believer that every paddler should try to learn to roll. My second belief is that everyone's second roll should be a reentry and roll. It has to be one of the best self rescues out there. Possibly the fastest way to get out of the (cold) water (bar...

Roll of the day – Under the Paddle Roll

I was first introduced to the Under the Paddle roll by Helen Wilson. She uses this roll as the way to teach forward finishing rolls. It has the advantage of easily being able to use a paddle float on the far right end. You can gain incredible power from this roll by...

Swimming the kayak

Every now and then we all screw up a roll, drop the paddle. Or just find ourselves in need of some assistance. Swimming the kayak is a great skill to have in your portfolio. It can allow you to reach another kayak or a fixed object or even to retrieve your paddle at...

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Qajaq Rolls is dedicated to passing on the traditional art of Greenland kayaking. Greenland kayak rolling can be a relaxing, yoga-like exercise. Rolling is also a tremendously valuable self-rescue technique, and should be the go-to recovery for any serious kayaker. Greenland kayak rolls are steeped in the history of the Inuit people, whose very survival depended upon their ability to roll up and recover while hunting. But Greenland kayaking encompasses much more than just rolling, qajaq building, paddle carving, throwing the harpoon and rope gymnastics are just some of the many skills that make up this ancient subsistence culture. If you are interested in learning more about all aspects of Greenland kayaking consider supporting Qajaq USA and Qaannat Katuffiat:

Qajaq USA is a nonprofit membership organization that is officially recognized by Qaannat Kattuffiat (The Greenland Kayaking Association). Qajaq USA is committed to supporting Qaannat Kattuffiat and their efforts to preserve, study and promote the traditions and techniques of Greenland kayaking while seeking to further the appreciation and development of Greenland-style kayaking in the United States.
Please consider joining Qajaq USA and supporting the organizations efforts.

If you are looking to prepare yourself your equipment and then learn your first roll please follow this link to a series of articles put together to help people get started: Getting your first roll. Nothing beats in person training, especially one-on-one training. If you are looking for mentoring check out the Qajaq USA Events where you can become immersed in the culture of traditional paddling.

Free Guidebook and DVD

Rolling with Sticks® started as a project to document the progress I was making as I learned the different Greenland style kayak rolls. This work evolved into the water proof guidebook and DVD. The project has paid for the costs of production so I decided to make them freely available for download in English, español – Spanish and 中文 – Chinese. Please download and share them with your paddling friends, and help to promote the art of Greenland rolling.