I've been away so much over the last few months, that I haven't been around my local area to do any birthday parties for a while now. So it was nice to be invited to help James and his friends enjoy his special day with a canoe party in Ellesmere. His parents had opted for a late afternoon session, to be followed with a party tea … Read More »
Category Archives: Paddling
Paddlesport Weekend with Oswestry School
This was the first of Oswestry School's Adventure Education weekends of the new academic year. The idea is to introduce students to new activities and then develop their skills, understanding and independence for those that catch the bug. This weekend, we had a couple of climbers that have developed over the last few years to the point that they are now leading multi pitch routes, a … Read More »
Canoeing with the Titans
The Ellesmere Titans swimming team have been on a three week training camp in preparation for the national competition over the next few weeks. Obviously, swimming has been the focus, both in terms of tweaking technique and reaching new levels of fitness in preparation for the big event. Clearly, swimming all day every day would be too much for anyone and so they look to break … Read More »
Kayak Sessions with Cadets
Having been on camp with my own cadets at Wathgill last week, I stayed up for another week to run the cadet kayak sessions that made up part of the adventurous training day. The other instructors had already done 2 weeks worth of sessions before I arrived, so a routine had already been established for me to slot into - it was just a matter of … Read More »
Gold DofE Canoe Training
I've been really privileged this week to work with a fantastic group in preparation for a Gold DofE canoe expedition. Some had done a fair bit of paddling before (one had done his 2 star award with me a couple of weeks ago), while others were completely new to it. On Monday, we took a short trip to the Shropshire Union Canal at the Lion Quays … Read More »
Trip on the River Severn
I found myself working for Arthog Outreach today. Based in Wellington (Telford), they are a branch of Telford & Wrekin Council's outdoor education centre on the Welsh coast, and provide a wide range of activities for schools and college's in the local area. Today, I got to spend the day with a group of nine Year 5 pupils from a local primary school that wanted to … Read More »
2 Star Paddling Course
I've done a number of Adventure Education weekends with Oswestry School cadets over the last few years. More recently, I seem to have spent more time in boats, coaching canoeing and kayaking skills. This week, the senior cadets, that have given a lot of time and commitment to instructing younger cadets over the course of the year, were rewarded with a week of AT. I … Read More »
Canoeing on the River Severn
With the weather forecast uncertain this morning, I set off to pick up a group of primary school children for a canoe trip down the River Severn. The sky was suggesting a lovely day, but the Met Office were hinting at a marked change late morning, bringing rain and increased winds. I knew that the group had done the ideal section of the river before, … Read More »
Canoeing on the River Vyrnwy
Today saw me get out with Chris Hughes, friend and fellow outdoor instructor, and my son Charlie for a paddle on the River Vyrnwy. I must confess that my own canoe hasn't been on the water for a few months now, due to a broken yoke, but today's trip was the perfect motivation to get it fixed yesterday. We met up near Trefnanney this morning to … Read More »
Adventure Education Weekend with Oswestry School
I'm very fortunate with my work to get to do some awesome things with fantastic people in great places. The Adventure Education weekends with Oswestry School have become one of my favourite fixtures in my work diary. It's brilliant to get to work with young people with a desire to learn skills, push themselves and have responsible fun in the outdoors. This time we had cadets … Read More »
