They're strong and have large blades for fast acceleration. They are quite short with a typical length of 190 cm (woman) or 205 cm (man). The blades are about 20 cm wide and slightly concave like a spoon, so that the "power face" of the blade grips the water when the kayaker takes a stroke. They are easy to buy, short enough to carry inside your vehicle, and give fast and powerful acceleration in surf. They used to have square ends, now they are all asymmetric. It's a fashion thing. In use, a white-water paddle is usually held in quite a high paddling position with the top hand in front of the shoulder or even higher.

Sea kayakers who keep a decent distance away from breaking waves, jagged rocks and high winds use touring paddles, which are longer and lighter, or racing paddles which are lighter yet. They tend to have longer, slightly narrower blades of asymmetric shape. The power face is concave and often has a longitudinal rib to minimise blade flutter. Some touring paddles borrow design features from marathon racing such as concave "Wing" blades and/or cranked shafts.

Racing paddles are very nice for long trips in calm conditions but not for surf or rock-hopping. Their behaviour during emergency brace and support strokes can be unpredictable, and they break too easily. Most racing blades will chip if you hit a rock. A really light racing / touring paddle may snap in half if you have to roll your kayak in difficult conditions. Typical length 205 cm (woman) or 220 cm (man).

There are also some longer, slimmer paddles aimed at touring sea kayakers and intended for use in a low paddling position. This represents a move back towards the traditional Greenland paddle. The overall length of such a paddle may be 205 cm - 225 cm (woman) or 215 - 235 cm (man), with blades 15 cm wide. Longer is not necessarily better, especially in windy conditions at sea.

We recommend that your main paddle be in one piece, not jointed.