Having met Roger at the boat yard, we set off for the cafe and to go through the 3* sea syllabus. He was then given a brief exercise to plan the tides for the area we were going to paddle which was Rhoscolyn. Winds were forecast F2 and from the S/SW, so any chance of rougher water and wind would be good!
We made our way to the edge of the bay and worked one of the smaller channels by the island, which provide a super little shoot, with some gentle wind against tide, a clear eddy and a poor one over the far side. This provide a good opportunity for eddy turns, high and low and then ferry glides, attempting to read the current and check kayak angle and speed.
Roger even manage to get a cheeky little surf in!
It was then out to the Beacon and the outer race to find some moderate conditions. We were approaching Neap tides and had a couple of hours of the flood left, plus with the current flowing against the wind ... all was good!
It was clear that Roger was happy, he was looking around and could manage his boat. It was great to see some one who had really prepared for an assessment. He caught a couple of good fast runs and this seemed a good place to move on ...
From the Beacon Roger led and navigated me to a few locations, clearly (although i didn't know at the time ... he had been with Ogwen mountain rescue as a dog handler for many years) able to navigate, paddle and talk!!
As we were approaching hw, this provided a super opportunity with paddling through the white an black arch ...
Before doing some towing back round to our lunch break ... after lunch contact tows and then assisted rescues close to the rocks and a demonstration of a roll. Back in the bay, to wrap up the day, Roger performed a self rescue which he choose as a re-entry and roll ...
Setting him self up and getting his lower body secure and well positioned in the kayak, before returning to his paddle ...
and rolling up ...He had a strong pass, so congratulations ... once loaded and changed we headed of to Trearddur Bay hotel for a debrief, completion of his action plan and a warm up over a couple of hot chocolates!
roger chandler
www.coastalspirit.com
sea kayaking anglesey
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