As a paddler with a servere disability I fully understand your hesitancy to paddle again. I find as time "paddles on" my ability to handle my boat off the water has become increasingly limited. Of course; I find this depressing. But I have also found that my fellow Paddlers, here in landlocked Pittsburgh, have become increasingly helpful by allowing me to tag along and portaging my boat etc. It took me a while to understand that I was not a burdon on their trips but an asset because in many other ways I contributed to the trips success. With a background in safety admin. I was always the one with the saw, the extra food, and the good first aid kit. After a while I became increasingly confident of my abilities and did my own sojourn, a self-contained trip of 180 miles on the Allegheny River. Even then I required assistance with a couple of small obstacles- Ever try hitch hiking around a Hydro power dam or two. But in the end I was successful in my trip even though I did not set any speed records or anything similar. All I can say is that even though you may have trouble walking or even remembering tide tables etc. there places you can paddle and have fun on the water. Just be willing to share your experiences with others. For the record there is a great outfitter in St. Paul that specializing in arranging organized wilderness trips that includes people with disabilities and they include sea kayaking on their menu. Just remember the hole in the boat always faces up. I found that to be my key to success. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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