Hi all,
Like, I think, most of us here, I’m not a WW guy…not really interested, I like to smell the roses when I’m paddling. However, while I was up paddling on the Maine coast my instructor (the awesome Nate from Pinniped Kayak) suggested it would be good for me to do a WW class (to help with confidence, relaxation in larger water). Since I live in Western NC, I was spoiled for choice.
So, I just finished a two day “intro to WW” class at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City. What a blast! We spent a couple of hours on the lake getting oriented and making sure our wet exit was up to scratch, then a day and a half on the Nantahala river, which was running high after some storms. Just me and one other guy, plus our instructor Elvis.
We worked on eddying and peeling out, ferrying and even did a little surfing on some smaller waves, but the highlights were the three runs down the river. For all 3 we followed Elvis, who was fantastic, 'cause we had way too much going on to try to pick lines and avoid rocks. There were shelves, holes, rocks and some waves well over my head, sometimes coming from 3 different directions. There were a couple of close calls and definite moments of terror, but we stayed dry. Those boats are pretty amazing and really want to stay upright in all that.
Anyway, I’m not going to convert to WW - too much adrenalin - but it was a great eye opener and skill enhancer and will be a real help next time I’m out in slightly bigger water on the coast or elsewhere. I’d recommend it!
Yup, agree! I took up WW training with the NH AMC white water paddlers early on in my seakayaking pursuit for that reason. I enjoyed it enough that I took up white water more than sea kayaking for awhile. Became one a volunteer coach at the NH AMC white water beginners’ weekend training camps for beginners for several springs as payback.
You can also gain more confidence in your sea kayaking through progressive play/practice/training in the surf zone.
Enjoy and play safely with practice and conditioning.
-sing
Just checked and found that the NH AMC Spring Training weekend for beginners are still offered annually. It’s really a great weekend to learn and connect with WW paddlers in the New England area. So, if you are a northeast paddler looking to up/expand your paddling game…
-sing
Good idea. A class like that will help a lot of skills. It will make you a better lake and ocean paddler. You can learn to read water.
It amazes me how many paddlers never practice wet exits, capsizing or rescues. A class is the way to get started.
Plus, it WAS great fun!