I’ve been wanting to get my 4 star canoe qualification sorted out for 5 years now, but there’s always been something in the way. To start with, it was purely being too busy trying to work my way into the outdoor education industry. Then, two and a half years ago, I actually did my training course. I should have just pushed on to assessment within a few months, but allowed other work commitments to get in the way. Two years ago, I made the decision to prioritise gaining my Winter Mountain Leader status which took many months of dedication. Unfortunately, I fractured my wrist during the 5 day assessment and, although I was able to successfully complete the ordeal, it left me very nervous of paddling in bigger water where the physical stresses can be significant.

So here I am, 19 months on from damaging my wrist, having just been given the thumbs up from the NHS. With so much time having gone by since I did my training, I decided to jump in with both feet and book another training course and the assessment. There’s no turning back now. As a result, I’ve spent the last two days with Leo Hoare going back over the course syllabus, and spending lots of time on the water.

Monday was spent on the River Dee after meeting up at the Mile End Mill. The weekend had brought a lot of rain, which was still falling, and the water level was well up. I always think it’s going to be a bouncy ride when the level is 6 on the gauge. In the morning, it was at 9 and by the end of the day the gauge (which goes up to 15) was well under the surface. The guys meeting there for a White Water Safety and Rescue course didn’t look to impressed with the idea of spending the day in the river!

However, our canoe journey turned out to be quite pleasant. I was a little nervy, having not been a bigger water for a while, but it didn’t take too long to get back into the swing of things. With the river moving so fast, we weren’t able to work on some of the skills and techniques that the course would normally cover, but I had the advantage of having covered these a couple of years ago. Leo made the best of the conditions and still introduced us to one or two new strokes and ideas, which I’ll now need to go away and practice.

After a day on moving water, Tuesday was spent on the expanse of water at Bala Lake. With such a long lake, the wind can pick up a lot of speed, which makes it an ideal venue for practicing open water skills (personal paddling and group management). It also gave us the opportunity to practice skills such as poling and downwind sailing, which I hadn’t had much chance to do on my previous course.

For me, the course was idea for getting me back in the bigger water, building confidence, reminding me of some of the old skills and introducing a few new ones. I always go away from any course feeling the need to make things become second nature, rather than just knowing them, and this time is just the same. With the assessment already booked for December, I’ll be looking for paddlers to join me on a few outings over then next couple of months. Let me know if you’re interested.