Kayak Skeg
Principles and Techniques of Use
The skeg is used to trim your kayak in winds and to correct for unbalanced loading.
Use of the Skeg by Robert Finlay of Kayak Lake Mead
Many paddlers have expressed to me a desire to know, "exactly what is the skeg for" and "how can I
use it", hence this article. It's use is simple but often misunderstood.
The kayak skeg is not a rudder. It is not a steering device.
It is a trimming device. With a skeg you can add variable amounts of lateral (sideways) resistance to
the stern of your boat. That is a good thing, here's why...
Its thoughtful use allows the paddler to track (go in a straight line) in the variable conditions of wind
and in various loading configurations of your kayak.
Your kayak, floating around out there on the water, is very susceptible to wind. In the wind your
kayak will tend to spin on its vertical axis like a wind vane. Your kayak's vertical axis lies at its center
of gravity right where you are sitting.
Like a wind vane your kayak will align itself with the wind. Every kayak will do this. But empty, some
kayaks will tend to weathercock (point into the wind) and some kayaks will tend to leecock (point with
the wind). The effects of the wind on an empty kayak will be more pronounced because more surface
area is out of the water and therefore, there is more boat to be blown around.
And the way you have your kayak loaded will influence whether you are weathercocking or
leecocking. A properly loaded kayak will be less effected by wind. A properly loaded kayak has the
loads down and center. Down, meaning towards the bottom of the boat and center, meaning towards
the cockpit. The kayak will be sitting lower in the water and therefore will be less effected by the
wind. And in all cases your kayak will be more stable when loaded down and center.
Read the following three paragraphs carefully because they define the use a kayak skeg:
1) If the rear of your boat is heavier, or more loaded than the front, then the rear will have more lateral
(sideways) resistance to the wind and the front will have less lateral resistance to the wind. Therefore,
your kayak will point "with the wind", because your front end, or bow, is lighter, more out of the
water, and will be the end of the boat being blown around.
2) If the front of your boat is heavier, or more loaded than the rear, then the front will have more
lateral resistance to the wind and the rear will have less lateral resistance to the wind. Therefore, your
kayak will point "into the wind", because your rear end, or stern, is lighter, more out of the water, and
will be the end of the boat being blown around.
3) Putting the skeg down adds lateral resistance to the stern giving the bow comparatively less
resistance, therefore your bow will blow around and your kayak will point with the wind.
Just remember: Skeg down: Run downwind. Skeg up: Run upwind.
Again: With a skeg you can add variable amounts of lateral (sideways) resistance to the stern of your
boat. This is called trimming your boat with a skeg.
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