Kayaking is easy — simply hop in the cockpit, dip one end of the paddle in the water, pull, then dip the other end in, pull, and off you go.

Really, it’s not rocket science.

Oh, wait — you want to be able to turn, back up, avoid capsizing, or climb back in the boat if you tip over? Well, I guess you’ll have to learn a few basics after all.

The other day I enlisted my pal Phil Warner, a certified instructor, champion racer and owner of more kayaks than most people have socks, to present a paddling tutorial, ranging from Kayaking 101: The Forward Stroke, to Post-Doctoral Thesis: Mastering the Eskimo Roll, the Hand of God Rescue Drill and Other Complex Maneuvers.

With just a few minutes of practice, you’ll be able to barrel through The Futaleufú River’s Terminator Rapids in Chile or plunge down Lava Falls on the Colorado River in Arizona’s Grand Canyon.

All right, I exaggerate; there are entire books devoted to paddling technique, so in this space we’ll cover a few basics and touch on some advanced skills.

If you do want to consult an excellent book, check out “Sea Kayaking and Stand Up Paddling Connecticut, Rhode Island, and the Long Island Sound,” by Dave Fasulo of Essex. Loyal readers may recall I wrote a few years ago about one of Dave’s epic voyages, part of which I tagged along. He started paddling on the Connecticut River before dawn in Agawam, Mass., and already covered nearly 40 miles by the time I met him at Middletown. Then we paddled another 30 miles to Old Saybrook. 

Anyway, Dave’s new book is a terrific compendium for local paddlers, describing more than 40 itineraries for beginners as well as experts, and offering a slew of advice on all aspects of the sport. 

Another great way to perfect technique is to paddle with others, and every Tuesday night from April through October a group heads out at various places along the eastern Connecticut shore. Anyone can join for free, but you have to register online at http://tnp.kayakforum.com/

Organizations such as Connecticut Sea Kayakers, a.k.a. ConnYak (connyak.org) and the Rhode Island Canoe/Kayak Association (ricka.org) also keep paddlers informed about group outings and other paddling opportunities.

Meanwhile, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth at least 10,000, so thanks to my friend Betsy Graham working the camera, and editing by Peter Huoppi, The Day’s multimedia director, you can access footage of Phil’s tutorial here if you’re reading this online or visit www.theday.com/videos, if you’re reading the print edition. Incidentally, from here on, I’m suspending attribution; all helpful tips come from Phil. Any suggestions that result in a wet exit are my own misguided, misapplied or misconstrued understanding. 

— Let’s start with holding the paddle. Your hands should be below your shoulders, or slightly closer together. If they’re too far apart you’ll tire sooner — if they’re too close together you’ll lose power. Keep your knuckles pointed up.

— Next, we move on to the forward stroke. Extend one blade until it’s about even with your feet, submerge it vertically, and then bring it back as far as your hips by pulling with the hand holding the blade in the water, pushing with the hand holding the opposite blade, and twisting your torso.

Rather than envisioning moving the blade toward your body imagine yourself moving toward the blade, a zen-like suggestion similar to Bill Murray’s imprecation, “Be the ball” in “Caddyshack.”

— Then we must learn how to go backward by using the reverse forward stroke, which is exactly as it sounds. First, though, you need to drop a blade in the water, first on one side and then the other, in order to stop. Then place one blade in next to your hip and push it forward, and repeat on the other side.

— As for turning, you can maneuver easily by dipping a blade and holding it steady on the same side you want to head, or execute a sweep stroke on the opposite side. The sweep is just as it sounds — a wide arc rather than the straight line of the forward stroke. You can also turn by leaning on an edge with your hips, making sure your upper body stays upright.

— Now, let’s say you want to go sideways, either to pull closer to shore or to raft up to another boat. You can use either a draw stroke to pull the blade toward your hip on the side facing the direction you want to head, or use a sculling stroke on the opposite side, a rapid twisting back and forth that resembles the motion of slathering peanut butter on toast.

However, even if you master and diligently practice these techniques, there’s always the chance one day you’ll find yourself upside down, which is why it’s a good idea to rehearse various rescue drills. Rule No. 1: Don’t panic. Take a moment to orient yourself and think of what you need to do to either to right yourself or to get out of the boat safely.

— The simplest response is the wet exit: If you’re wearing a spray skirt, unsnap it from the coaming (the lip surrounding the cockpit), and make sure your sandals don’t get snagged in the foot braces.

Slide out of the cockpit and let your personal flotation device help bring your head above the surface of the water. Once you’re out of the boat you have to flip it over, and then there are a couple ways to climb back in — straddling the stern cowboy-style and edging your way forward, or lying face down on the stern and sliding back into the cockpit legs first, then twisting upright.

— With help from a second kayaker you can employ a T-rescue, in which the upright paddler maneuvers his vessel to a perpendicular position, pulls the bow of the flipped-over boat onto his deck and helps turn it upright. Then he brings the two boats parallel to one another and steadies them by holding a paddle shaft in place over both decks while the rescued kayaker climbs back in.

In such advanced techniques as the bow rescue, the Hand of God rescue and the Eskimo roll, the flipped-over paddler stays in the cockpit and leaves the spray skirt on to prevent water from flooding the cockpit.

— In the bow rescue, the upside-down paddler uses the bow of the upright bow to pull himself upright, after first sounding an alert by thumping three times on the hull of his overturned kayak.

— The Hand of God rescue starts the same way with three thumps, but this time the upright kayaker paddles parallel to the overturned paddler, reaches across the hull and pulls him up by the hand.

— Then there’s the Eskimo roll, an unassisted technique for righting a capsized boat.

There are numerous ways to accomplish this maneuver involving proper orientation of the paddle blade, sweeping it in an arc from bow to stern and following through with a sharp snap of the hips, but by far the most important rule is the hardest to master: Don’t raise your head out of the water until you’ve completed all the other steps. Noseplugs, earplugs and goggles also can expedite the learning process.

— Finally, there’s the ever-popular but inelegant carp maneuver, which I’ve employed on more than one occasion: After failing to execute an Eskimo roll, frantically position just your lips above water and gasp for breath.