Club trips

"Trips are arranged by members of the club which are either coach led or peer group trips within different environments of sea, lakes, rivers and canals. These trips provide an opportunity to gain experience and practice your skills in new environments within a group out to enjoy themselves.

The club has paddling equipment which can be hired if required for use on organised trips.

If you want to come on a trip refer to the calendar of events to see the trips coming up, which will detail the type of trip with the paddling ability required, location distance and organiser. See you on the next trip."

Types of trip

• Chesterfield canal - Hollinwood to Tapton lock and back - all abilities
• Holme Pierrepont - white water course Grade 3 paddlers
• Derwent river - Darley Dale to Matlock - basic moving water skills.
• Anglesey - sea kakaying weekend - varying abilities
• Rother Valley country park - all abilities
• Dee river- Serpents Tail to Town Falls - grade 3 paddlers

Mark Steel

Where	When	Who	Comments
Lake District	10th November 2023	Mark, Helen, Cath, MJS, Martin	Fabulous weather. Clear skies, sun, barely any wind. It was such a novelty to paddle on clear clean water. We had two fabulous days, camping in warm comfortable Pods with albeit thin mattresses. I had the opportunity to try out the Easki kayak. It edges beautifully, and fits my tall frame perfectly. I demonstrated a spectacular exit from the boat at the cafe, sitting on the bottom of the lake not once, but twice. But my peers were very supportive with their laughter.
Anglesey	26th July 2024	Mark Steel, Warren, Sammi, Cath, MJS, Martin, Nichola, Julie	Good weather. Clear skies, sun. Amazing trip exploring coves and rock formations. Warren Mark and Sammi saw some disgruntled seals while navigating the island. We had two fabulous days, camping in an excellent campsite (Anglesay Outdoors). I tried the P&H SCorpio. It edges better than the Easky, is more comfortable, does not cut off the circulation in my legs and is fast.
Barmouth	16th August 2024	Mark Steel, Cath, MJS, Martin, Warren, Nichola, Sammi, Julie, Mark Fox	We had two days kayaking. We explored the estuary on the first day, zig-zagging between the sand banks, heading up river over clear shallow water. The weather was kind to us, and the going easy. Mark Steel and I (MJS) turned back when I had reached my capacity and it was a good call for me. The others (Mark Fox, Nichola, Julie, Warren, and Sammi went onto the pub and had a tougher trip.
Tyne Tour	1st - 3rd November 2024	Mark Steel, Warren, Sammi, MJS, Chris	My most exciting white water kayaking trip so far. This is perhaps the UK's most anticipated Kayaking event. We collected our tickets on the friday and on the Saturday went up to the start above Hexham and joined the river for the seven mile trip. It is a big river with lots of features, and angry water. The level was a bit low and that made it more challenging: we had to avoid rocks concealed in the dark water. The rocks were also dark and so there were some sudden surprises for all of us. The rapids were exciting and challenging. The accepted wisdom was to keep straight, keep paddling, and look for rocks in the distance, and take remedial action. Boofing over them worked sometimes, but sometimes leaning right over the rock and some vigorous paddling was enough to free oneself. A knowledge of the river is invaluable, you can anticipate what is coming and take appropriate action. At the weir just below Georges Hotel, Mark Steel and Warren broke out with dignity, whilst I failed to spot the eddy and was spat out much further down the rapids. We had some swimmers: both taken by surprise by the rocks. Fortunately the unseasonal weather was very kind and they were not cold for long.