Thursday 31 July 2014

InterMediate Sea Kayaking Course, UK, North Wales, Anglesey.

An InterMediate sea kayaking course is for those who are confident in the water, have a good level of fitness, sea kayaked on moving water before, have some experience of tidal planning, plus paddling in Beaufort force 3 (13mph) winds as a minimum - ideal for those working towards the 3 star sea award or those who just want to be a better and more competent  sea kayaker.  

I tend to run the 3 star assessment as an on going training and assessment, with just a few more tasks to consider and action on the 2nd day.  At the end of the first day there is time to review and ensure the client is aware of where they are presently, as on some occasions its better to use the 2nd day as training. Chris however, was up for the BCU 3 star assessment and it was good to see he was looking smooth and well prepared, with good edged and leaned turns.  Mark, Carl, Jon and Stephen, joined in with the support of Douglas.

Due to a super sunny and calm forecast we went to North stack at the back of the ebb, and found some suitable flow and went through assisted and self rescues.  Then some contact tows and rock hoping in Gogarth Bay.





The second day we needed some swell, wind and waves and the forecast was now F3/4 ish NW and the North coast looked promising.  We paddled up to the most Northerly point and worked in the more confused water.  looking at trim, particularly when coming into wind.  As the ebbing current picked up we moved out into the swell and waves and caught a few surfing moments.  A couple of the group were new to paddling in these type of conditions, were amazed at how the wind when apposed to the current, created a very different and exciting sea!
 







A couple of rescues were set up for Chris (thanks Craig), before we headed back into the calm of the bay. Congratulations to Chris on passing the BCU 3 star performance award.

The next InterMediate sea kayaking course is during the August holidays and currently has a few places available.  The course is the  25-29th August and 2 or more days can be chosen.  Otherwise its the weekend of the 6/7th September.  

Unsure if your paddling at the level to access an InterMediate course, then consider booking a Bespoke day in September during the week and receive some clear direction at the same time.  Plus a summer saving of £20 when quoting CS 8/2014 - discount only available up until 1800 on Friday 1st August 14.

Thanks Roger

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Wednesday 30 July 2014

Sea Kayak Mentoring, North Wales, Anglesey



Sea Kayak Mentoring is very well and up and running with Coastal Spirit.  An area Roger really enjoys working in and facilitating, having a strong back ground in development training.  The page has now been updated with more profiles, with clients ranging in age, abilities and aspirations.  Anglesey, North Wales is the perfect place to develop a whole set of paddling skills, ability and confidence.  With fast currents, wind waves, committing coastlines and off shore islands.  While at the same time, sheltered coves and gentle shores.

If you want to progress quicker, need focus on how to move forwards, a gentle prod now and again and are keen to develop your sea kayaking, have a look at the page below.  There is no additional cost, just your commitment and motivation, an open mind and a curiosity to learn.

Details are here

Thanks,
Roger

PS:  BIG thanks for those who took the time to create their profiles.

Tuesday 29 July 2014

InterMediate sea kayaking - Bespoke

Sea kayaking over the last few weeks along the Anglesey, North wales coastline and out to the various islands has been magic with this settled and super sunny conditions.  Kath and Douglas were back for a 3 day Bespoke sea kayaking course with an InterMediate focus.

The Stacks just had to be done, with a super forecast ... caves, arches, tall clifts and some gentle swell and tide races.  Porth Dafach to Parliament House cave and then back, allowed us to play on the start of the flood at Penrhyn Mawr at the end of the day.  








Both Kath and Douglas did eddy turns and ferry glides creatively ... its all about stretching that comfort zone .. ;)


After Kath had achieved an extended paddle roll, (thanks to Sonja), the previous day.  So a shorter paddle form Cable Bay out and South, then back, would work well.  The clarity and sea colour was very Mediterranean  ... and we even saw 5 seals and had some small gentle rolling surf on one of the golden sandy beaches ...


The last day was forecast F3 NW and despite an ebbing tide (not quite on springs), it all looked good.  Douglas kindly provided the shuttle and we headed out from Cemlyn Bay for the first Cardinal Mark.  We were soon on the Skerries and paused for a surf in the flow ...  The terns were stunning and creating quite a display for us.





Room at the top of the world and one of my favourite lunch spots ...


Tern and chick looking pretty good and i guess close to really taking to the air!!


The other inhabitants watched us leave ... as we passed rafts of Puffins ... magic ...





All in all it had been a magic 3 days, with it being Kath's first time to the island and Douglas second and a pretty good wildlife display.  A good focused and relaxed time was had and Kath's gone away with her roll .. whoop, whoop ... Now that cant be bad!!

The next InterMediate sea kayaking course is 25-29th August and 2-5 days can be chosen, then its the 6/7th September.  Details can be found here

Roger

www.phseakayaks.com
www.kokatat.com
www.chilcheater.com
www.mitchellblades.com

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Monday 21 July 2014

Advanced Sea Kayaking Course - Anglesey, UK.

It seemed that Anglesey escaped the weekends downpour, and with a forecast of light winds we on to the Stacks.  Work on Eddy turns, ferry glides, catching that wave and rescues made up the bulk of the day.  With the main emphasis on use of body.

Penrhyn Mawr remain fairly calm and as the main push passed we headed on for some lunch and then on to South Stack and some rock hoping and exploring.  Saw about 20 Puffins, the most ive seen in the area and then jumped on an eddy stream to assist us on the way back.  Penrhyn Mawr was still working fairly well and according to Phil of sea kayak anglesey, it had got bigger after lunch and the faster period.  Thats the sea for you!!

Katie, Amanda and Mark, made up the team with Zoe assisting in support/observation, for the day. 








David joined the team today and we headed out to Carmel Head on the Sunday, to be greeted with a bank of Fog.  This stretch for about 1km, so we did some limited visibility navigation and then it really closed in to 50-60 mt visibility, so we headed back to Carmel Head and worked on the race.  Self-rescue and incident management, was the theme for the day ...







The fog kindly lifted although briefly and provided us with a good sunny lunch break ...




The cafe at Church Bay, as we arrived just after 5pm kindly provided us with take aways so we sat in the sun reflecting on the day and weekend, ensuring clarity and any questions could be reflected upon and answered before heading back to Menai Bridge.   We had some good conditions, over the weekend, although gentler than expected.  This was made use of and can help to get skills tighter and more polished.  Well done all.

Roger
www.coastalspirit.com

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4 star leader refresher


Friday 18 July 2014

Fast Track Intro Sea Kayaking

Jenny had done two days sea kayaking before (on a Bespoke with me) and her sister Liz, only one previous day (She was from Australia and surfed, so had exceptional balance).  We had a windy forecast so we headed inland to a protect lake, that would allow us to move in and out of conditions as the day and their skill level progressed.

The lagoons are beautiful and allow application of the strokes, which we practised on the open water and then applied, to move in and out of the channels.  The sky was atmospheric as we then paddled further up the lake.







Even a few sea gulls had decided to come inland!!


The middle of the lake was getting some wind, while the far side was VERY windy.  We stuck to the middle and worked with on side and off side stern rudders, to achieve control on a down wind run back to our starting point.




We took a break and chatted about what we had done so far ... then headed back up the lake for another down wind run!




The girls were doing super and really picking up the skills and fancied more of a challenge - "We could always cross to the other side of the lake ... " we paddled off and experienced a solid F4 with gust of F5





Back at our start point the girls rewarded them selves with a swim ... and reflected on the days super progression.




Fast Track Intro Sea Kayaking is about learning skills and accelerating your paddling.  More info can be found here.

Roger

www.kokatat.com
www.chillcheater.com
www.mitchelblades.co.uk
www.phseakayaks.com


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