Chilly Canoe Party on The Mere

Any parties I’ve done over the last few months have been indoors. This was the first outdoor party of the year. The middle of March was always going to be a bit of a gamble, but the weather we’ve had in recent weeks is far from typical for the time of year. Waking to an iced up car and struggling to get at my kit due to a frozen padlock were not the best starts.

By the time we actually got started, the sun was out and taking the edge off the cold. However, I was very much aware of how cold the water would be and, with a group of about 10 nine year old boys all wanting to get wet, this was always going to be a challenge. Thankfully, I managed to make them see the wisdom of remaining in the boats until the very end of our session.

Many of the games I often use as these sorts of parties have a fair risk of splashing and and increased chance of someone tipping in. Naturally, this was to be avoided today, so I had to be a bit creative in coming up with fun things to do whilst minimising the hypothermia factor! It seemed to go well, certainly considering all the smiling faces at the end.

Once everyone was safely to shore, I gave the brave few a chance to get properly wet. Most had dipped their fingers in the water during the previous couple of hours, and had second thoughts about total submersion. However, there are normally a few natters, especially amongst a group of lads. The rules where simple – they had to have a full change of dry clothing and know exactly where they were so that they could get changed asap. Four brave souls elected to take on the cold of the mighty Mere and decided that capsizing was the way to go. The looks of stunned horror at just how cold it was were priceless!

One person did question whether it was wise to let them go in. In fairness, it’s not the sort of thing most people in their right mind would choose to do. However, that’s the point. Adults base their decisions on experience, but kids often don’t have that experience to call on. These four lads had a great time, and will probably brag about the fact that they were brave enough to jump in the water, but they’ll think twice next time! The other factor, is that they are unlikely to ever have such a controlled environment in which to learn this lesson in the future. With me in the water with them (with all the rescue kit), dry clothes and towel at the ready and a group of adults to help them out of wet kit, we couldn’t have been better prepared.

It was certainly a memorable and fun session from my point of view, simply due to the challenges of the cold with these young lads. I hope it was as fun for Carter – Happy 9th Birthday!

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