Kent Coast sea kayak trip - April 2015
Sea Kayak trip to the North and West coast of Kent on 25-26th April 2015
We borrowed Shadwell Basin's trailer and with the experience of Andrew R headed off with 11 kayaks to Sandwich, Kent for a weekend of beginner and intermediate paddling. What an amazing weekend! It was an introduction to ‘Glamping’ for all of us! In layman’s terms camping in a shed rather than a tent! We were very grateful for this in the wind and rain.
For most in the group it was their first time on the sea and it was certainly a baptism of fire in the wind and rain. There were a number of heated discussions about whether the experience was mild or rough chop! If you are a beginner it was definitely rough! Everyone managed extremely well, Esther, Toby and Nick’s expert advice and care meant there were no swimmers. We were graced with some sun on Saturday and had a good picnic on the beach – not even any need for extra clothing.
Sunday dawned miserable and even windier- at times it was like paddling on a treadmill – a lot of exertion for paddling on the spot!! In addition to the paddling we learnt a lot about securing kayaks on the trailer to keep them safe in windy weather – Andrew was a real star pulling the load. The weekend finished with a good Sunday roast in a quirky pub before the drive back to the basin. Roll on the next trip!