Picking up the Discard Pile  

When the discard pile begins to fill up with cards and starts to resemble a card deck of its own, the game can shift dramatically.  Any player who can pick up that pile will likely be able to not only start quite a few canastas, but they will probably complete some of the ones they already have on the table. 

Everyone knows this. A chill is in the air, silence replaces chatter, hands are moved closer to people's chests to keep them secret, and eyes begain shifting back and forth to pick up every detail in the behavior of other players. The pile is the prize - and it's a race to get it.

The Discard Pile, now a small tower of cards, isn't easy to get. Each player has to be especially careful to avoid discarding a card that might allow the player to their left to pick it up. Hands grow larger as every player holds cards to make pairs in the hope that the person to their right will throw away exactly what they need. 

These are some of the strategies you'll want to consider when, not IF, you find yourself in this situation.