I have read a lot of very interesting lists on PW for quite some time now. Dave, you have a wonderful sense of humor. Kayaking has been an interest to me for a long time & I finally overcame my fear of water to try it & am hopelessly hooked. Most likely like other newbies capitvated with kayaking, (unlike Dave, I don't have a garage to practice in nor for that matter a kayak yet) I want to do it alot more. Despite my eagerness to explore, safety is utmost in mind, due to a disability I will not go alone even if it meant staying close to shore (unless I could be assured that one foot stayed on shore, one in the yak). I have signed up for numerous classes so that I can get time on the water but I am getting rather anxious to get past the roped in areas & do some exploring. There is much to learn & experience but I am finding it extremely frustrating to find someone to paddle with in the local area. Besides joining clubs that the talk is way over my head, there must be an easier to link up with others who wouldn't mind a tagalong. What it costs for all these beginner & controlled classes, I could be renting a kayak & broadening my horizons. I know there is an untold amount of knowledge to acquire & am learning as much as I can but I want more....How did everyone else start up that can't go out solo? I am all for get togethers in various areas and would be delighted to help out in planning a gathering in this area. Heck as anxious as I am to meet other paddlers, to cut down on cost, bring sleeping bags, I can put alot of people up at my own place! I will overcome all obstacles and I Will Kayak! If is means running groves in Interstate 5 to Bremerton to paddle with Tom so be it ! Anyone in the Vancouver vicinity who wouldn't mind company feel free to use that Send Now feature on their email. Anxious to paddle but still on shore Vancouver WA *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
> From: RopePaddler_at_aol.com <snip> > broadening my horizons. I know there is an untold amount of knowledge to > acquire & am learning as much as I can but I want more....How did everyone > else start up that can't go out solo? <snip> > Anxious to paddle but still on shore > Vancouver WA This is an excellent question. I started off running rivers and got tired of waiting for someone to plan a trip. So I did :-) I was lucky that there were some kind souls that were willing to take me... totally green... along. I did run a local river solo once. I enjoyed the experienced but preferred company when paddling rivers. Then I got into sea kayaking with a small group of four, one experienced sea kayaker while the remaining three of us had never been before. The experienced paddler was looking to convert some river runners. It worked... I was hooked :-) It was a multi-day trip into heaven. Good question, Vancouver WA. Jackie *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Dear Anxious to paddle but still on shore, (so Dear Abbey-ish, isn't it?) Our local (north-of Boston) solution to your dilemma is a series of regularly scheduled "skills sessions" where novices and experienced boaters alike can gather for a couple of hours to just practice skills and play on the water. We don't really paddle anywhere but rather energetically practice basic skills and various rescues. I haven't met a paddler yet that wasn't so proud of what they knew that they wouldn't be happy to demonstrate their skills to a student of the sport. One undocumented feature of these sessions is that people get to meet other paddlers in the area. The club that I belong to is heavy oriented to inclusion of new paddlers and teaching in general. Some of us even bring extra boats so non boat owners, like yourself, can at least get on the water and play too. Like I said, we don't actually go anywhere during these sessions, but it is a couple of hours of paddling, playing, demonstrating, learning and talking about anything related to kayaking be it sea, touring, white water or recreational. All in all a free way to gain immeasurable knowledge from experience but not necessarily expert paddlers. A recent call to paddlers to participate in sessions in my area drew 40 names or varying skill and expectation. Try to contact you local clubs again and ask if such an opportunity exists in your area. Save your money to buy the boat and all the accouterments. For an example of the kind of things that are available (at least north of Boston) check out the depth of services offered at North Shore Paddlers Network (www.NSPN.org) Good Luck Jed *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
At 07:23 AM 5/3/00 -0400, LedJube_at_aol.com wrote: >Dear Anxious to paddle but still on shore, > > (so Dear Abbey-ish, isn't it?) Our local (north-of Boston) solution to >your dilemma is a series of regularly scheduled "skills sessions" where >novices and experienced boaters alike can gather for a couple of hours to >just practice skills and play on the water. We don't really paddle anywhere >but rather energetically practice basic skills and various rescues. I haven't >met a paddler yet that wasn't so proud of what they knew that they wouldn't >be happy to demonstrate their skills to a student of the sport. > One undocumented feature of these sessions is that people get to meet >other paddlers in the area. We do something very similar in Ithaca. One of the other features is that often we'll switch boats to give others a chance to paddle a boat they haven't tried before. I'm a firm believer in trying out every model of kayak that I can. Otherwise, how can I be sure that I have the best kayak for *me*. I imagine that I'll be spending most of my time this season in my Northbay but I'll still take the opportunity to paddle something that I haven't been in before if given the chance. I'm looking forward to trying out a few of the Seaward boats my kayak shop owner friend has, as well as Bill Hansens modified Seguin, another friends Laughing Loon Northstar ( a cedar strip baidarka) and anothers Arctic Tern. *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Dear Anxious to paddle but still on shore, (so Dear Abbey-ish, isn't it?) Jed, You were very astute, I did start with the intent to write to her however several things came to mind; the post would be too widely read & secondly it would no doubt, draw response from folks to whom "paddling" could be a sport of dubious nature. It would get old rather quickly instead of saying hello to address someone i.e. (structured verbage) how is the weather in your world? My intent is not to be rude, I find it rather difficult to drop my dry New England sense of humor. I appreciate the recommended website & will continue my pursuit to paddle (in the PW way of course). It is wonderful what you folks do for paddlers in your area & I shall check OOPS & other contacts in my area to see if there is such an activity around here. I did, with much delight, receive a contact here in Vancouver & plan to contact them immediately! Have a great day Sandi *************************************************************************** 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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