All you need to know to understand kayaking lingo

If your other half or family are always a bit confused about what you’re saying when you get back from your latest kayaking trip, try giving them this to help decipher the lingo you didn’t even know you use!

Boof (verb) – a technique used to lift the bow of a kayak over a rock or ledge which will help land the kayak flat on it’s hull.

Booty (noun) – the penalty for swimming out of your kayak. The most appreciated form of thanks to the people who rescued you and your kit is this public show of humiliation of downing a dirt-cheap beer out of your stinky paddling shoe.

Beater (noun) – someone who is often getting trashed on the river and ends up swimming a lot.

Chasing rain (verb) – In line with your partners obsession with checking the weather, this is the act of figuring out which rivers will have enough water in to kayak after rainfall, and acting upon this information as soon as humanly possible so that they can kayak before the river level drops too low to paddle on again.

Dawn patrol (verb) – This is when you get to the river and organise shuttles etc before dawn so that you’re ready to start kayaking the second it’s light enough. This is more often than not performed by kayakers who have to be at work (or other commitments) straight after paddling.

Gnar (adjective) – abbreviation of gnarly. Used to describe a difficult rapid or section of white water.

Huck (verb) – the act of kayaking a waterfall.

Send it (verb) – often used as encouragement to another kayaker to paddle something they're not necessarily capable of.

Stout (adjective) – refers to a big rapid or drop. If a kayaker runs the stout, it makes them feel like they’re awesome.

The Zam (noun) – slang term for the Zambezi river. Again, makes kayakers feel cool.

Chicken legs (noun) – the typical physical appearance of kayakers who spend most of their time sat in a floating plastic kayak, leading to their leg muscles disintegrating leaving them with skinny chicken legs.

Weekend warrior (noun) – a select group of society who generally have 9-5 jobs in the city but live for the weekends paddling antics.

So after all that, hopefully this will enhance the enjoyment your family and friends will get from you talking about kayaking all the time, because they might stand a chance of knowing what on Earth you’re talking about!

You’re welcome :)