The canoes and kayaks are a remarkably versatile craft, and they can open the door to a variety of adventures for you. One of our particular favourites is to pack up the tarp, bung in the bivi and cram in the camping kit, before heading off for a weekend of paddling and camping fun with our paddling mates, partners, kids dogs etc. Don’t worry we know we used the ‘Bush’ word above but we’re not going to insist you grow a beard and then bang on about every little detail of a ‘Ray Mears’ style survival camping epic, after all […]
Recent Posts
Whitewater Kayaking in the French Alps
We love gear testing, but we hate doing gear tests! Why? Well, gear testing involves putting stuff through its paces out on the water, using it for its designed purpose and generally using and abusing it to see if it stands up to every day use and is good for the job. Putting together a gear test, on the other hand, involves photographing said gear out there in the wilds and in some suitable location. The trouble is, much as the Paddler testers love to get their mugs in front of a fisheye getting the planets of sun, water and […]
Canoe & Kayak Guide to the River Tees
We’re fortunate in the UK to have a breadth of fantastic whitewater rivers, and all with their own unique characteristics, character and flavour. On any given weekend you could be off paddling to Wales, Scotland, the South West or north of England, When the rains come we really are spoilt for choice for quality whitewater runs. Most weekends the question we ask as river runners are not, ‘what should we do?’ But more commonly, ‘where should we go?’ This month we look at one of the UK’s classic runs with a wealth of great whitewater, from waterfalls to fun wave […]
Canoe & Kayak Guide to the Loop section of the River Dart
The Loop (New Bridge to Holme Bridge/Dart Country Park) The middle Dart or the Loop as it’s more commonly known is one of the most popular runs in the UK. It’s fun rapids, mellow nature and beautiful surroundings make it justifiably loved. It’s an ideal river to cut your whitewater teeth on and has a real sense of adventure for canoe clubs and groups. For experts, it offers some fun paddling and some great little playspots. As the level gets higher these play spots get better and better and in super-high water, the Loop become a roaring freight train of […]
Canoe & Kayak Coaching Tips – Dry Land Boating
As we move through the boating seasons the environment provides some varied challenges for us, as coaches, and for our students. During the colder months, we are often limited by short, dark days, and sometimes, the unbearable cold! As coaches, we often need to alter our day out on the water depending on the weather and the bitter cold it can sometimes bring. Our ability to have something up our sleeves that we can coach when it gets cold, or when our group want to cut their losses and head to a warm steamy café. We need to have some […]
Canoe & Kayak Coaching Tips – Are We Over-Thinking?
As canoe & kayak paddlers I think we can be quite thoughtful creatures. Every time we go paddling we have to weigh up the options. Risk, ability, the challenge and fulfilment we will gain. We go through all the ifs, the buts and the maybes. The pros and the cons. We play it over in our head so many times it almost becomes a bigger deal than it was originally. So I ask you, as paddlers do we sometimes over think? To coin a phrase from a well-known trainer company ‘Just Do It.” Our routine of over reflection can sometimes […]
Canadian Canoe Group Test
Whether you’re thinking about replacing that old faithful boat, that’s seen one season to many or taking the plunge and purchasing your first canoe, the choice available to the recreational canoeist can be bewildering. To give you a better idea of what’s available we’ve put a dozen of the most popular boats on the market through the Paddler Test Team wringer and combined what we found with some useful buying tips and a little technical info to get you started on quest to find the right boat for you. Venture Canoes Ranger 14 Length: 450cm Width: 90cm Weight: 32kg Material: […]
Guide to Buying a Kayak Paddle
A kayak paddle is just a paddle, right? No, not really. Just like with all bits of kit for our sport, a lot of clever people spend a lot of time designing what they hope will be an ideal paddle for a very specific purpose. We’ve been at the stage for a long time where you most probably wouldn’t choose to use the paddle you take on whitewater on a touring trip, and you certainly wouldn’t do so the other way round. This article is designed to help you know exactly what to look for in a paddle – whether […]
About Us
Hello! My name is Elliott, I started this blog out of a passion for all things paddle sport. Having padded since the age of 12 to then eventually making it onto the Irish senior canoe slalom team it is safe to say I have spent my fair share of time in a boat. Learn more >