It only seemed five minutes since I was looking at the three levels of Sea Kayak Awards and deciding that was way beyond me when I found myself down at Studland on a miserable grey April day. Apparently I was going to spend two days doing my Sea Kayak Award. Why did I do this? … More Sea Kayak Award training
I know wild swimming/cold water swimming/sea swimming/whatever your preferred term might be has become the outdoor activity du jour. Women up and down the country, and indeed all over the world, are taking off their dryrobes and taking to the sea, or the river or the lake or whatever bit of untamed water they have … More Learning to like the sea
I didn’t plan to buy a paddleboard. I’m a kayaker, not a SUPper, although I have been known to go out on a SUP or canoe for a bit of variety. I like a Sunday morning canoe paddle followed by an ice cream and there’s something about the simplicity of SUP that I find pleasing … More I bought a paddleboard
Well, we’ve come to the end of the 2024 season, my second season, at our Girlguiding boathouse and so it’s time to reflect on the last few months. First of all, this so-called summer has done its level best to sabotage us! We had 19 dates in the calendar, seven boat club sessions and twelve … More 2024 season at the boathouse
And so, at the end of the last week of the 2024 season at the boathouse, I finally reach my first season, 2023, on the blog! My first proper visit was in mid-April when a couple of us went to clear up after the long winter, check on the boats and their airbags and generally … More 2023 season at the boathouse
With sticking last week’s escapade in the blog schedule and booting this a week, it does feel a little odd, because immediately after capsizing, we come to my very first capsize on the sea! This is My Paddling Story clashing big time with Paddling In Real Time. It’s July 2022 and I’m in a long … More My first capsize on the sea
Well, this one wasn’t in my blog schedule but here it is nonetheless! We recently had a group of Guides at the boathouse, eight girls and three leaders, including the region chief commissioner (in her role as leader of said Guides; it wasn’t a region event) and long story short, I capsized. It was a … More Seven things I learned capsizing at the boathouse
Part of the reason I started paddling – well, part of the reason I started looking into qualifications in paddling – was so that I could go to Studland in the summer, hire a kayak and feel confident that I knew what I was doing. I’ve done that a few times and they don’t generally … More A hard paddle and a seaside sauna
By now, you already know about the boathouse but my story has reached just under two years ago and I’m about to discover it. I went to do a fencing session with some local Rangers (who didn’t turn up, for various reasons) and chatting with their leaders, I discovered that they were going kayaking at … More In which I join the boathouse
This was my fourth time out on a SUP and by now I realised that maybe I would benefit from actually having some formal tuition. There’s a certain amount of trying things out yourself but to be shown how to do it properly by someone who knows what they’re doing is invaluable. So I booked … More My first SUP lesson
Bumblebee Paddles 