BE WATERWISE #17 – EDGE IT: LEAN, TURN, FLOW

Watch Sandra Hyslop, owner of West Coast Packrafting, in a game-changing lesson in packrafting: edging, ferry gliding, and reading river flow. Whether you're a nervous beginner or looking to level up your moving water skills, this episode breaks down the fundamentals that unlock everything else. What You'll Learn: It all starts with balance— the foundation of every move you'll ever make on the water. The secret? Decoupling your upper body from your hips. When you can keep your torso stable while your boat tilts beneath you, you stop fighting the river and start working with it. In this episode: Eddies— those calm pockets of water hiding behind rocks and obstacles. Learn how to read them, enter and exit with confidence, and use them to rest, scout, and plan your next move downstream. Eddy hopping — a brilliant way to build skill progressively, moving from eddy to eddy as you travel downstream, then challenging yourself with smaller, trickier micro eddies as your confidence grows. Ferry gliding (aka ferrying)— the art of crossing a river without being swept downstream. Point upstream at the 11 o’clock position, paddle hard to get moving, tilt your boat to resist the current, and adjust your angle as the flow changes around you. Always have your target eddy locked in before you commit. Most beginners reach for their paddle the moment things feel unstable. But the real skill is in the tilt — letting the water move beneath your boat rather than muscling against it. Tilt, don't paddle harder. A huge thanks to our sponsor ‪@WestCoastPackrafting‬ for making this series possible. Miss Episode 1? Watch it here →    • Be WaterWise #1 - Your Best Friend: PFDs, ...   Follow along for micro clips, gear tips, and behind-the-scenes prep Subscribe so you never miss a launch #BeWaterWise #BeRiverReady #LevelUpSafely #Packrafting #WhiteWater #PaddlingSafety #AdventurePrep #PackRaft #cultureofsafety BE WATERWISE #17 – EDGE IT: LEAN, TURN, FLOW Learn more about the #BeWaterWise series here: https://www.packraft.org/pages/educat... Which of these clicked for you first — eddies, eddy hopping, or ferry gliding? Tell us in the comments.