RECREATIONAL KAYAKING CLASSES

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

RECREATIONAL KAYAKING INTRO (FLAT-WATER) (One-Day Class)

Location: Schuylkill River

No experience necessary. This course is designed for students with little or no formal kayak training. Lessons will include basic strokes, safety and rescue on flat and gently moving water.

Students must be comfortable in and on the water. As a safety training requirement, you will be supervised by your instructor to capsize your boat and swim in the water wearing a life jacket.

Recreational Kayaking (1-Day) June 8, 2024  Register Here

Recreational Kayaking (1-Day) July 20, 2024   Register Here

Recreational Kayaking (1-Day) August 3, 2024   Register Here

RECREATIONAL KAYAKING ESSENTIALS (FLAT AND MOVING WATER) - (Two-day Class).

No experience necessary. This course is designed for students with little or no formal kayak training

Day 1: Location: Philadelphia Canoe Club

Kayaking is more fun when you know how to control your boat.  Your lesson will include basic strokes, safety and rescue on flat and gently moving water. You will learn how to safely and easily get back into your kayak should you tip over and how to help your companions.

Day 2: Location: NJ Pine Barrens

You will practice your skills from day one in the morning on a lake. The afternoon session on the river includes water reading and river features. You will practice controlling your kayak in faster currents and around river bends and turns.

Recreational Kayaking (2-Days) June 15 & 16, 2024 Register Here

 

Recreational Kayaking (2-Days) July 13 & 14, 2024   Register Here

Recreational Kayak Clinics for 2024

Location: Philadelphia Canoe Club, 4900 Ridge Avenue

Take one, take all, improve your skills, have fun!

Select Thursday evenings - Clinics from 6PM – 8PM

(Students should arrive by 5:30 to get their equipment and be fitted to boats so all can be on the river by 6:00)

Clinic #1 - May 30, 2024 

Basic River Kayak Paddling Strokes and Boat Control   Register Here

Laura Lipkin - Lead Instructor

This clinic will address both proper recreational kayak seating position and stroke form for good ergonomics, efficient paddling, and preserved stamina on the river. We will work on a solid forward stroke to power the kayak and a reliable backward stroke for slowing down, navigating moving water in twisty streams, and stopping the boat. We will be using sweep strokes to turn the boat and draw strokes to move it sideways as we efficiently move our kayaks through the waters by the Philadelphia Canoe Club.

Clinic # 2 - June 13, 2024

Bow and Stern Draws and Bracing.  Introduction to Front and Back Ferrying   Register Here

Tom Moiani- Lead Instructor

Bow and stern draws are essential for good boat control and necessary for paddling     straight and turning. You will learn where to place your paddle and when to use these strokes for maximum control. We will also learn the low brace, a handy skill to keep      from capsizing. Ferrying is used to easily and quickly move from one side of the river   

to the other while avoiding obstacles (rocks, trees, other boaters).  You can ferry facing downstream (back ferry) or facing upstream (front ferry). 

Knowing a  good back stroke is essential for back ferries.

Clinic #3 - June 27, 2024

Weathercocking – Improving Kayak Control under Challenging Conditions   Register Here

Tom Rickards – Lead Instructor

In this clinic we will be looking at how to control and track your kayak when faced with outside forces like wind, currents, or waves. 

We will be looking at the phenomena of    weathercocking – when your kayak will tend to want to turn into the wind.  We will learn why this happens and practice techniques like ruddering, edging, and figuring out how to weight the kayak to correct for these forces.

 

Clinic # 4 - July 18, 2024 

Topic: An Introduction to Basic Rescue Techniques for Recreational Kayaking   Register Here

Steve Levick – Lead Instructor

Topic: The pleasure of river kayaking has to be combined with an awareness of potential risks associated with it. This clinic will focus on some of the safety and rescue concerns for recreational kayaking and techniques to address them.  Water hazards, wading techniques, assisted re-entry into kayaks, and kayak towing will be addressed as time permits.

 

Clinic # 5 – August 1, 2024

Topic: Preparing to Kayak in Faster Water   Register Here

Jere Downs – Lead Instructor

This clinic will help the recreational kayak paddler begin to develop good river judgement about navigating faster moving water safely and effectively.  The clinic will include discussion of how checking water levels, flow speeds, and tides is vital in assessing risks of paddling moving water. Participants will also begin to learn about reading moving water for hazards and challenges and making thoughtful decisions about waters you can safely navigate and which you should portage around. If water conditions on the river permit, there may be some practice of paddling techniques used in faster water: eddy turns, peel outs, and bracing.