Parts of a Paddle – Canoe and Kayak Paddles, Labeled

All 7 parts on the diagram

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Canoe paddle 5

Blade The wide flat end. It goes in the water and pushes against it.
Shaft The long round handle of the paddle. The lower hand holds it above the blade.
Grip The shaped top end of a canoe paddle. The upper hand goes over it.
Throat The place where blade and shaft meet.
Tip The far end of the blade. It takes the knocks, so many paddles have a guard round it.

Kayak paddle 2

Ferrule The joint in the middle of a two-piece kayak paddle. On many paddles it also sets the angle between the two blades.
Drip rings Small rings on the shaft, one near each blade. Older books call them drip cups.

How this list was compiled: Part names checked on 2026-09-30; a name is kept only when two independent sources use it. (1) Wikipedia, Paddle, text only, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paddle (the shaft, the blade, the handle; kayak paddles with a blade on each end, made in two pieces that snap together). (2) Hasenfus, Canoeing for Summer Camps and Recreational Programs, a 1948 Boston University service paper, https://archive.org/details/canoeingforsumme00hase (the hilt or grip, the shaft, the blade, the throat, double-bladed paddles of the ferrule type, drip cups). (3) A canoe and kayak maker's owner's manual, https://archive.org/details/manualsonline-id-69781fc9-7f94-e6f4-09d5-a8dfc23c46b3 (the top grip, the shaft, the blade). (4) A paddle maker's articles, https://www.bendingbranches.com/blogs/resources/how-size-canoe-paddle and https://www.bendingbranches.com/blogs/resources/kayak-paddle-feathering-what-it-and-why-does-it-matter (grip, shaft, the throat where the blade meets the shaft, the blade's tip, the ferrule that joins the two pieces of a kayak paddle). (5) A second paddle maker's product text, https://archive.org/details/12.-grey-owl-pathfinder-canoe-paddle (grip, shaft, blade, the reinforced blade tip). (6) For drip rings: a kayak maker's parts guide, https://archive.org/details/manualsbase-id-554659 (paddle drip ring), with source 2 and Miller, The Boys' Book of Canoeing and Sailing, 1917, https://archive.org/details/boysbookofcanoei00mill , which both call them drip cups. No maker is named. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; own work, no maker's model copied. Licence: own work

How it works

The parts of a paddle, drawn on two kinds. The first view is a canoe paddle, with one blade and a grip. The second is a kayak paddle, with a blade at each end and a joint in the middle.

Read the full guide

The parts of a canoe paddle

The grip is the shaped top end, under the upper hand. The shaft is the long part the lower hand holds. It widens at the throat into the blade, the flat end that goes in the water. The far end of the blade is the tip.

The parts of a kayak paddle

A kayak paddle has no grip: it has a blade at each end and is held by the middle of the shaft. On a two-piece paddle the halves join at the ferrule. The small rings near the blades are drip rings.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a paddle called?

On a canoe paddle: the grip at the top, the shaft, the throat where the shaft meets the blade, the blade and its tip. A kayak paddle has a shaft with a blade at each end, and often a ferrule and drip rings.

What is the throat of a paddle?

The throat is where blade and shaft meet. Paddle makers use it as a mark when fitting a canoe paddle to a paddler.

What is the ferrule on a kayak paddle?

The ferrule is the joint that holds the two pieces of a kayak paddle together at mid-shaft. The most common kind locks with a snap button, and many ferrules also let the blades be set at an angle to each other.

What is the difference between a paddle and an oar?

A paddle is held in the hands and is carried wholly by the paddler. An oar is fixed to the boat at an oarlock and pivots there.