NEWSLETTER
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| June 2016 |
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| Check out our Kayaking Resources tab: One stop for all the information you need to go paddling! |
From the Prez
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| By Sybille Fleischmann |
We have a busy summer season of paddling planned again this year!
Be sure to take a look at the upcoming kayaking courses offered this summer. There is a little something for everyone; surf kayaking, wilderness camping, coastal kayaking, rock gardening. There is a course available for every skill level. And if you have honed your kayaking skills and are ready for your ACA or PNA certification, make sure to check the upcoming certification dates this summer - 3 to 5 Level/Star certification is being offered in Washington in June.
Thank you to Rhonda and Chris for the spectacular WKC Basic Sea Kayaking course you taught again this year - and congratulations to our 27 new WKC Basic Sea Kayaking graduates! Can’t wait to see you out on the water. Thank you, also, to Casey Garland and Mike Grijalva for keeping our rivers safe with your ongoing River Rescue courses. This is a must for white water paddlers who want to learn the skills to paddle safely. And a big thanks to our trip leaders who have filled our calendar with exciting trips this summer, including a white water road trip this month with Shanna Gachen!
There are also plenty of paddling events to keep us busy. The Wenatchee River Festival is this weekend - June 11 - 12. Washington Water Trails Association (WWTA) would appreciate your support at the upcoming Kitsap Peninsula National Water Trails Festival on June 18. Paddle Bainbridge is coming up on July 9 - 10. And HOLD THE DATE for the WKC Hobuck Beach Party and Luau - August 13. Hope to see you at Hobuck Beach again this year! Register now to hold your space.
Happy Paddles,
Sybille
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Featured Trip
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North Fork Championships & Kelly's WW Park ROAD TRIP: June 17 - 20
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Last year I missed out on an opportunity to go watch the North Fork Championships and play at Kelly's Whitewater Park in Cascade, Idaho. This year I want to make this happen. I can definitely go by myself and have fun, but it would much more of a hoot to share this with paddling friends!Here's the skinny (or fat of it), we'll work on the skinny as it gets closer...
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When: June 17 - 20
Where: Cascade, Idaho
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Training
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Level 2 / 3 / 4 Surf Kayak Clinic: June 18
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This Level 2-4 Surf Kayak Clinic is designed for a new or advancing surf specific paddler seeking improvement in surfing skills and comfort in paddling out, taking off, surfing down the line and surf maneuvers. Surf specific Sit-On-Top, Surf Kayak or WW boat required, some loaners available. Clinic will be in conjunction with an ongoing Surf Instructor Update clinic and prospective students will be taught by experienced instructors as part of their continuing education process.
When: June 18
Where: Hobuck Beach, Neah Bay
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WKC Advanced Skill's Development & Wilderness Camping Class: June 24 - 26
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Develop and expand your current Sea Kayaking skills and judgment. In this class, you will learn efficient paddling and boat handling technique, effective capsize recovery skills and correct bracing techniques, which includes a new section; Wilderness Camping!
When/Where:
· Thursday, June 24 - Washington Park, Anacortes
· Friday, June 24 - Pelican Beach campsite
· Saturday, June 25 - Deception Pass campground
· Sunday, June 26 - Bowman Bay
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Washington Kayak Club Coastal Clinic 2016
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This 4-day Coastal Kayaking Clinic introduces the skills required to experience thebeautiful, remote, and challenging waters of Washington State and Vancouver Island’s open coastline. The clinic is at Neah/Makah Bay and is designed to improve sea kayaking skills and confidence, which will lead to increased enjoyment of your sea kayaking experience.
When: August 11 - 14
Where: Neah Bay / Makah Bay
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Surf Zone Clinics For Surf / WW / SOT And Sea Kayaks: Aug 13 - 14
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Photo credit to Sean Watson
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The surf zone is an amazing environment for developing many kayaking skills at once and it can be a fun place to learn! Improve bracing, balance and edging skills and progress in stroke proficiency. You will learn new techniques for reading moving water and have opportunities to practice the skills in a supportive environment. For more advanced paddlers, begin to learn, improve or refine surfing maneuvers and skills.
When: August 13 - 14
Where: Neah Bay / Hobuck Beach
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Intro to Surf and Rock Gardens: August 14
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Introduction to kayak handling skills and strokes in moving water along a coastal environment - where the sea meets the shore. Learn how to read the water, develop skills to maneuver your kayak through some surf, and in moving water in rocky environments. Learn to identify safe zones, play zones, transition zones, and hazard zones.
When: August 14
Where: Neah Bay / Hobuck Beach
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News and Events
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Congratulations WKC Basic Class of 2016 Graduates!
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By Rhonda Schwab
Thank you to all who helped out and congratulations Class of 2016 graduates! We had 27 students, 5 helpers in the kitchen, and 11 volunteer instructors.
The class went great with Friday night’s demonstrations on paddles, boats, how to load a kayak on a car, and how to fit into a dry suit.
Saturday we headed to Bowman Bay and worked on basic skills in 5 groups and then at 4:00 we were back at the camp to have a few lessons on Tides & Currents, Navigation, and a Flare demo...
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Help Support Upcoming WWTA Events
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WWTA works hard to protect our waterways.Your efforts to support events sponsored by this organization help ensure all of us can continue to enjoy the beautiful paddling sites available in Washington.
WWTA events planned for June:
June 4: National Trails Day – Ridgefield, WA.
June 4: Join Puget Soundkeeper – Salmon Bay, WA
June 11: WWTA Rendezvous – Sky To Sound WT
June 11: Nat'l Get Outdoors Day -Millersylvania Park
June 18: Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails Festival
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Salmon La Sac Slalom and Music Weekend: June 4 - 6
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Slalom Race!! Kid’s Scavenger Hunt! Downriver Race! Music Jammin’ around the Campfire! Whitewater River Runs from class II to more! Great Hiking! Fun Camping!
Location: The event is at the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest Salmon la Sac campground which is right at the slalom race site. It’s a perfect campground for kids and non-paddling family members, also. There is a camping fee. Hiking and Mountain biking opportunities are right there.
Event Details
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Wenatchee River Festival 2016: June 11 -12
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The paddling community has come together once again to provide the community a forum to celebrate and inspire one another, as well as raise funds to support American Whitewater, whose mission continues to conserve and restore America's whitewater resources and to enhance opportunities to enjoy them safely.
Whether you kayak, raft, or ride the waves on a board, the festival offers a little something for everyone. Come together, get out on the river with friends and family and enjoy the Wenatchee River!
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Kitsap Peninsula National Water Trails Festival: June 18 - 19
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Come on out to the 2016 Kitsap Peninsula National Water Trail Festival on June 18-19 organized by the Silverdale Chamber of Commerce and many others including the Ports of Silverdale, Brownsville, Keyport and Poulsbo.
This years festival activities include:
Ride the Tide - a 5 mile paddle from Evergreen Park in Bremerton to the Silverdale waterfront park through the Port Washington narrows on a strong incomong tide.
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Paddle Bainbridge: July 9 - 10
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This trip is one of the best paddles in the northwest! You may get views of the Cascade and Olympic Mountain ranges, the Seattle Skyline, Mount Rainier, Puget Sound islands and wildlife, and the community of paddlers is a treat, too.
The full trip is 26 miles, or 13 miles per day. You can choose to join for the weekend or just one day, and the trip is open to all human-powered watercraft. All food, shuttles, parking, safety boaters and other logistics are taken care of by us.
No experience is needed and all ages are welcome!
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WKC Hobuck Beach Party and Luau: August 13
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SAVE THE DATE! Last year the Luau was such a success we are going to do it again. So come on out to party and have fun playing in the ocean with boats at Hobuck Beach (Makah Bay).
Paddling opportunities will be available for all club members, including surf clinics and the Coastal Clinic that starts on Thursday the 11th.
If you have never been here, Hobuck is fabulously beautiful and good for the soul. The beach is soft and flat, perfect for exploring ocean conditions. If you come out of your boat, simply walk back to shore.
Hope to see you there! It could be the most fun weekend of your life...
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WKC San Juan Seven Challenge
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| We love circumnavigating islands and want to encourage more paddlers to join the fun, so we have launched the San Juan Seven Challenge.
The seven islands selected for the San Juan Seven challenge are San Juan, Orcas, Lopez, Cypress, Guemes, Lummi, and Stuart.
You can circumnavigate the islands in any order that you like and can take as much time as you need or want to circumnavigate each island. To qualify for badges you need to circumnavigate the island during a WKC trip that has been announced on the WKC website.
Upcoming WKC Trips:
July 9: Lummi Island Circumnavigation
July 29 - 31: San Juan Island Circumnavigation
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WKC Seven Rivers Challenge
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WKC members who participate in club trips to the seven designated rivers will receive collective paddle/boat stickers designed by a whitewater kayaker and artist Zeus Rudner.
Challenge yourself to get all seven stickers! When a member completes all seven rivers, he/she will receive a finisher’s sticker. To make it easy to keep track, participants must register for the club trip online.
The designated rivers and in Seven Rivers challenge are: Nisqually, Nooksack, Sauk, Sol Duc, Stillaguamish, Wenatchee, and White Salmon
Upcoming WKC Trips:
June 4:White Salmon (Class II - III)
June 11:Wenatchee (III)
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Northwest Slalom Cup Race Dates
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The Northwest Slalom Cup continues in 2016. Highly valuable points are awarded at each race. The best 6 out of 8 race results are totaled for fabulous awards. Come out and compete or just learn some whitewater slalom moves and have some fun!
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2016 Kayaking Events
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Don't miss out on these great opportunities to enjoy the water.Start planning your 2016 kayaking adventures now!
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Sea Kayaking Event Links and Dates:
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| SSTIKS (S.Sound Trad. Inuit Kayak Symposium) |
June 10 - 12 |
| Hobuck Hoedown |
October 1 - 2 |
| Gales Storm Gathering - Michigan |
October 6 - 9 |
| Lumpy Waters - Oregon |
October 7 - 9 |
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WW Kayaking Event Links and Dates:
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North Fork Championships
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June 16 - 18 |
| Payette River Games |
June 17 - 19 |
| Wausau Jackson Freestyle Clinic & Midwest Freestyle Championships |
August 18 - 21 |
| Hobuck Hoedown |
October 1 - 2 |
Looking to Buy/Sell Used Paddling Gear?
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Maybe kayaking isn't your sport.Need to sell some gently used gear? Looking to purchase some paddling treasure? Check out the WKC Classifieds Forum to list your items or to purchase kayaking gear from fellow paddlers. Easy to follow instructions for posting items included below:
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Schedule forACA and PNA (formerly BCU) Paddler Certifications
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| Thinking of taking your paddling skills to the next level? Become ACA or PNA (formerly BCU) certified this season. Special awards signify specific paddling, safety and leadership skills at different levels and in various craft. These awards provide a way to track your own progress as a paddler, and give others a reliable indication of your preparedness for trips and further trainings. Improve your skills or become a certified coach and lead others on the water: |
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ACA Certification
Founded in 1880, The American Canoe Association (ACA) is a national nonprofit organization serving the broader paddling public by providing education related to all aspects of paddling.River, coastal, and surf kayaking certifications offered.
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PNA Certification
Paddlesports North America (PNA) was formed in 2013 to provide access to British Canoeing (formerly known as the British Canoe Union or BCU) paddler awards and coaching certifications in North America, including canoe, kayak and stand up paddleboard.
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Recent Trip Reports
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Check out the Trip Reports tab to see more WKC kayaking adventures.
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Team Petty Adventure - St. Joe
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By Kanako Iwata-Eng
For the Memorial Day weekend, Captain Bill Petty led the Team to Idaho’s panhandle near Avery to run the St. Joe and nearby rivers. Bill, Doug, Ken and I got there on Thursday, May 26 and found a free campsite on the river, five miles above the Tin Can Campground.
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Nisqually River - 7 River Challenge
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By Shanna Gachen
The Nisqually River is fed from the slopes of the Nisqually Glacier on Mt Rainier. The river is regulated by the two dams upstream, the first being the Alder dam and the lower one being the La Grande dam, however, sometimes when there's too much water or not enough, the dams can control the flow allowing boating most of the year throughout this river reach.
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Down River Play Clinic
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By Paul Brower
There are times I don’t like being a beginner at a sport and this was one of those times. The first time I remember feeling this way was when my kids talked me into giving up skiing and taking up snowboarding. Going back to falling when I got off the chair lift and having to stay on the bunny slopes is hard when you yearn to be up on the diamond runs on your skis.
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Copyright 2014 Washington Kayak Club
President: Sybille Fleischmann president@washingtonkayakclub.org
Secretary: Bill Porter
Treasurer: Jackie Brown
Editor: Brenna McVety newsletter@washingtonkayakclub.org |