Top Requirements for the Boy Scouts Canoeing Merit Badge

Think about the Boy Scouts of America and you may likely picture a variety of outdoor activities, including canoeing. Canoeing is among one of over 100 activities within the BSA merit badge program. Getting merit badges helps Scouts move forward in rank while getting to know the fundamentals of a rewarding exercise. To gain a canoeing merit badge, a Scout need to demonstrate his training within the shore as well as on the water.He must demonstrate his skills to the merit badge counselor, a canoeing professional chosen by your Scoutmaster.


The Scout need to be able to speak authoritatively about canoes and canoeing, including canoe parts, materials, size and shape, along with the different disciplines of canoeing. He must detail the various paddle types, how to use them and the way to select a paddle size. The Scout is required to adequately load a canoe and demonstrate the several sorts of knots put to use for securing a canoe. He must outline the various types of personal flotation devices, how to use them and just how they are sized and worn.

A Scout must show his ability to pilot a with a partner. Accompanied by a partner, the Scout needs to carry the canoe to the water and launch it, and later land the canoe and put it away. He needs to show his counselor that he can paddle kneeling and sitting, and that he can recognize and do all paddle strokes and various canoe maneuvers. The Scout and his companion need to get outside the canoe in deep water and get in without tipping it around. Later, they must tip over their canoe, allow it to fill up with water, tow it to shallow water, empty it, get back together in and keep on canoeing. They must rescue boaters using a capsized canoe.

Working on it's own, the Scout roll-outs his canoe and exhibits a variety of paddle strokes. Then must pilot the canoe along a 50-yard course, paddling on just one side of the canoe. Next, he must paddle on the other side of his canoe and do it again. The course includes one turn and the Scout need to switch directions one or more times. The Scout has to get out of the canoe and get into it again without tipping it over, after which he needs to land the canoe and put it away.

Knowing CPR is known as a must for earning the canoeing merit badge. The Scout has to know when you should give CPR and how to give it. Additionally, the Scout must be informed about different illness and injury cases achievable in canoeing, and the way to respond to them. As canoeing is a water sport, the Scout must pass the Boy Scout swim test, consisting of 100 meters of continuous swimming followed by resting in the water. Lastly, the Scout must demonstrate familiarity with the Boy Scouts' Safety Afloat policy, which sets out skills, equipment and awareness required for safety in all water activities.