LCC Menai Straits 30/11/2019 by Catriona Hare 12 intrepid paddlers braved the early morning cold to arrive at Gallows Point, parked up and got changed. However, by now the sun was out, and several of us had to get re-changed to avoid overheating. Even with this faffing, and the arrangement of the double buddy safety system, we were on the water in really good time. So, Ian’s first instruction of the day was to paddle slowly, so we didn’t get to the Swellies too soon. Our next instruction, I was pleased to hear, was to stay away from the roosting birds. At this time of year, many birds have limited energy reserves and they don’t need to be additionally stressed by thoughtless by paddlers. Not long after we came across a bijou residence in need of a little restoration, possibly an end to Trevor’s house hunting, it even came with a resident seal. Still way to early, we took a detour up Afon Cadant, where the residents of a holiday cottage were entertained by our presence, there was lots of excitable waving as our group paddled past and then again as we paddled back a few minutes later. I had very sensible conversations with Ian and Keith about property level flood protection. Back out in the Straits we made the most of the high tide and paddled close to the shore, paddling on the shore side of Inys Gaint, only some us got stuck on an invisible underwater wall, before we paddled past an abandoned and boat which had seen better days called The Mistress. We paddled on under the suspension bridge and headed towards our lunch stop which by now needed to be in the sun and out of the wind, and preferably goose poo free. After a relaxed lunch we […]

Christmas Rolling Competition (2/12/19) Every year we hold the Christmas rolling competition at our pool sessions. Why not give it a go, book a session and see how you get on.   Number of rolls in 30 seconds. https://liverpoolcanoeclub.co.uk/venues/Kingsway%20Pool/index.php

Photo of the Month Please send any photos to website@liverpoolcanoeclub.co.uk December 2019 Click here to see the photos and to vote for your favourite. November 2019 # 1 Sarah Gille Rolling sessions at the docks – John Fay 17 votes (24%) # 2 Istrian Sunset by Gareth Jones 14 votes (20%) # 3 Alps Trip – Martin Aldridge 12 votes (17%) # 4 Farndon to Chester paddle – KS 10 votes (14%) # 5 Aaron rescuing Ian Bell 9 votes (13%) # 6 4th Rolling at the docks 2019 Christine Fay 8 votes (11%)

Club weekends and major events for the Club 2019 to 2020 – for more detail check the online Club Calendar……. You need to be a current member of the club to paddle with us (Insurance and emergency contact details etc) 30th November 2019 Sea Trip – Sheltered Water or Easy Moderate water trip – grade A Coordinator Ian Bell 1st December 2019 WW trip Grade 2-3 Coordinator John Cooke Click for more and to reserve a place. 15th Deceember 2019 Festive Paddle (Conway Estuary) – Suitable for all canoes, SUPs, and kayaks Coordinator Kirk Williams & Brian Green Click for more and to reserve a place. 15th Deceember 2019 Festive Christmas Meal (open to all) – Coordinator Kirk Williams & Brian Green Click for more and to book a place. 22nd Deceember 2019 Xmas Paddle at the Docks Coordinator Julie Brookes, Roger Colman, David Allanson, Martin Sinnott and Nadia Ford meeting at the Marina for 10 am on the water. Santa hats are the order of the day and appropriately ‘dressed’kayaks/canoes would be a bonus. Members using Club equipment come early to give yourselves plenty of time to add festive decorations to your chosen craft. Mince pies/Xmas cake etc will be available and a hot drink at the slipway on our return.” 9th to 13th April 2020 Scottish Easter Paddling Holiday based at Kinlochleven Coordinator John Cooke Click for more and to book a place. First come first served 14th to 17th ? April 2020 Great Glen (Caledonian Canal) Trip Coordinator Dominic Fahey 26th April 2020 Club Open Day Come and try it sessions / Go Kayaking Demo Fleet / rolling competition 1st to 3rd May 2020 Anglesey Weekend #1 Click for more information and to reserve a discounted place based at Tyn Rhos Trearddur Bay – coordinator Peter Massey. 22nd […]

Previous year’s winners….. Photo of the Month Please send any photos to website@liverpoolcanoeclub.co.uk November 2019 Click here to see the photos and to vote for your favourite. October 2019 Top of Form # 1 Sarah Gille in the Alps by Martin Aldridge 25 votes (25%) # 2 Olivia chose to go paddling for her 5th birthday and has since joined in a paddle with the kids club at the docks by Martin Eley 23 votes (23%) # 3 Julie Brookes dry rolling by John Fay 22 votes (22%) # 4 Poppy at the start of the West Kirby Race by Pete Thomas 12 votes (12%) # 5 Blow Hole by Dave Gentle 10 votes (10%) # 6 Rolling at the docks by Chris Fay 7 votes (7%)

It was a lovely autumn morning when four canoeists descended on the sleepy Cumbrian village called Lazonby. We met in the car park just upstream from the old red sandstone road bridge. We unloaded canoes and when Mike was asked if he needed a hand. He replied, “it is ok I have a Ruth”. Ruth came in very handy again as Mike’s car and trailer needed reversing out of the car park. Once safely out of the carpark Mike jumped in the driver’s seat and both him and Keith ran the shuttle. Once on the water the river we noticed it was a couple of foot higher than usual and was flowing swiftly. There was a lot of the bouncy stuff and a couple of rocks in view. I think at times both mine and Keith’s canoes had sprung a leak, but it was just that we were bouncing through the waves and not picking many dry lines. With what seamed no time at all, mainly due to the company and the quick flow, we arrived at the red sandstone cliff where there were faces carved into the rock. We took a late lunch here and even got out one of the open boaters’ staples – the Kelly Kettle. We were all soon enjoying warms cups of coffee and soup. Luncheon over and the canoes where back on the river. We were soon up to the weir. After close examination Ruth and Mike opted to get out and portage down the very rocky middle. The daredevil Keith decided not to bother with the portage and followed a line down a rocky tongue on river left. It was then my turn, the impressionable idiot. I took a line which dropped off the tongue at the bottom into slightly deeper water which was quiet […]

Tees Barrage – Brens Park Jam – by Paul Harwood Last Weekend, Chris, Reece, Steve, Harvey and I went to Tees Barrage on a frosty Saturday morning. The sun was shining and made a good day great.   It was so busy. So many people had turned up to see Bren Orton and his Park Jam Tour. The main course was switched off for an hour, and every bit of water they had was pumped through the short course. It was carnage. Swimmers and boats were everywhere swirling in different directions in the bottom pool. The Beercooler Canoe even went down the short course. There’s loads more photos on Facebook More Photos……… Report by Paul Harwood

Llangollen Aqueduct & Tunnels – by John Fay Over thirty LCC members gathered at the Pavilion Car park in Llangollen to unload boats and equipment before shuttling cars to the Poachers Pocket Pub in Chirk. On the drivers return all paddlers launch under the canal bridge and headed off towards the Trevor and the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. Stan van-den-berg was in his brand new Rockpool kayak and there were concerns about it getting marked on the canal way. Was this the rights decision to bring his new pride and joy? Amanda had chosen the liquid Logic Remix as her preferred mode of transport which definitely proved not to be the right decision as she struggled in the little river kayak. Early on a swap was made leaving Amanda much happier in a Easky 13 kayak and making much greater progress towards the aqueduct. The group enjoyed the beautiful scenery as they were gently assisted by the slight flow of the canal which was fed from the River Dee back at the Horseshoe Falls. As the back markers turned into the Trevor basin an array of colored kayaks came into view. The large group had waited for everyone to gather before heading over the Aqueduct but first we had to give way to a canal boat coming the other way. There is only room for one boat, and they are much bigger and heavier than our plastic boats. Dorin called the boat a “turtle” as it very slowly made its way across the water course which carried it some 126 feet above the River below. Eventually we were off. People walking were taking photographs of the group which spanned from one end of the aqueduct to the other. One couple remarked to Liz that in all the years of walking this canal […]

River Tees Trip Day Two – Barnard Castle to Winston Bridge After a group meal out in the local pub on Saturday night, we had a leisurely start on Sunday. Everyone busied about eating breakfast, packing up their things and making sure the hostel was tidy before we met for a briefing with Stuart outside. The rain Gods had been again and low force was too big for all of us to run, so we set off to run a section of the Tees between Barnard Castle and Winston Bridge (made famous when Ray Hanna flew a spitfire underneath it at 250mph for a TV programme – woah!). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xf3UtmHLKUU The water was quite fast flowing, wide and bouncy with lots of features – again quite like the sunshine run in the Alps! The autumnal colours of the trees were lovely as we paddled down in groups of five, chatting away. The first feature was a weir, which everybody sailed over, and next came Abbey Rapids. As our group was first, we got out to have a recce. Fiona and I decided to portage, joining at the bottom to be ready to catch anybody if needed! John came down first, followed by Stuart and Sarah and then everyone else one by one, all picking quite different but equally successful lines down the two drops. The first swimmer of the day was John, when he slipped off a rock whilst pointing out the line – Sarah was quick to the rescue with her paddle shaft! When everyone was through the feature safely, we carried on in our groups until we reached another weir type feature with a larger drop. We went over one by one, the trick is to keep straight, at right angles with the edge of the weir and to […]

Festive Paddle (Conway Estuary) – Coordinator Kirk Williams & Brian Green Click here for more information and to book…. Sunday, 15 December ’19   10am – 3pm  Beacons Car Park LL32 8GN Festive Paddle (Conway Estuary) – Coordinator Kirk Williams & Brian Green The plan is to take the tide up the Conway Estuary from Beacons Car Park LL32 8GN – Meet at 10:00am. The Conway Estuary paddle is suitable for all types of craft (Sea Kayaks, Open Boats, SUPs, General Purpose Kayaks) so no excuses for not joining us. Questions to  Kirk Williams….. Expect 4 hours on the water with 8-10km with the tide pushing us both ways. Please ensure that you have adequate clothing to protect from the conditions. Previous photos and information The Club compound will be open at 8:00am and an hour after the finish of the meal to collect and return any borrowed boats. Please reserve them using the booking form on the website….. LOCATION Beacons Car Park LL32 8GN

Festive Christmas Meal – Coordinator Kirk Williams & Brian Green Click here for more information and to book…. Sunday, 15 December ’19   4pm – 7pm St Georges Hotel, St George’s Pl, The Promenade, Llandudno, LL30 2LG, Phone: 01492 877544 Hi folks it’s THAT TIME of year again and the 11th Annual Liverpool Canoe Club Christmas Meal is taking place on Sunday 15th December 2019. We seem to get more and more people each year, with nearly 50 of us sitting down last year. The price for the superb three course festive lunch is just £22.00 Following on from the very positive feedback received following all the previous post paddle Christmas Meal at St Georges Hotel in Llandudno I have made a booking for Sunday 15th December for 4.00pm in our own private function room, which will be the Menai Suite again. The food, the venue and the service are always really good with everyone thoroughly enjoying the day. In order to work up a good appetite the plan is to take the tide up the Conway Estuary from Beacons Car Park LL32 8GN – 10:00am. Please book onto this using the separate bookwhen form so that we have an exact register for attendance on the paddle and can send you any last minute information. The Estuary paddle is suitable for all types of craft, so no excuses for not joining us. Maybe even some ‘hardcore’ SUP folks may join us? (4 hours on the water expect 8-10km) We are booked in for 4.00pm which will give us plenty of time to sort out boats, kit and cars. For the three-course festive lunch the price this year is just £22.00 Booking and payment to be made via the club website booking page. The tides on this day are very favourable with local HW at […]

How not to break out of an eddy – by Craig Ford The theory of breaking out of an eddy is relatively easy to remember … When exiting the eddy, paddle upstream with good hard strokes and as the bow of the kayak begins to cross the eddy line, begin to shift your weight and lift your upstream knee, thereby tilting the upstream edge of the boat up.  Continue to paddle forward until you have passed over the eddy line allowing the water to turn the bow of the boat downstream. Don’t do what I did and paddle at 90 degrees to the eddy line, with no edging at all to, or even worse shift your weight onto your upstream knee, thereby dipping the upstream edge in to the river. Here’s a short video showing what happens when you get it wrong. https://youtu.be/0YoI0P71Tso Craig Ford

LIFT & CARRY A CANOE (PICS & VIDS) Carrying / Lifting a canoe As we all know, open canoes can be quite heavy. Therefore, it is important to lift and carry them correctly. Low level carry 2 person An easy carry over shortish distances is for 2 people to go to either end, bend legs, and then following an agreed command to lift with a straight back. To ease the load on your wrist, you can support the weight by utilising a sling over your shoulder. 3 or 4 or more person To ease the load on two people, if there are more of you then simply ask more people to help carry. Again, communication is key to lifting the boat cleanly. This eases the load on the people carrying, but it is slow and carrying through confined spaces or uneven ground can be difficult. High level carry For carrying solo, or on longer distances, it is often easier to carry a canoe up high. HOWEVER, it is very important that we lift the boats properly (otherwise your back will go twang and you wont be paddling that day!). Below are a selection of videos that show how to lift a boat for a high level carry. My favourite, whether carrying solo or double, is to lift / lower with two people 2 person lift & carry – my favourite, whether carrying as a pair or using the centre yoke. These two vids show 2 person lift and a 1 or 2 person carry.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ2j9oeoY2c&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2_MEM6HtYs7vuqDo-1pt_oAI9-tlc1DUCTxU1HSFVX15jLTVCPfCa7sWI  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTHGZ9j46_Q 1 person curl and carry – VERY IMPORTANT TO BE SMOOTH!!! NB, note how you can reduce the weight by resting one end on the floor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZq-nh6kdTM 1 person lift and carry – a great way to lift that puts less risk to your body. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfTrmLTU7Ek (Thanks to Ray Goodwin for […]

River Tees Trip – by Sarah Gille After a foggy drive we arrived at Langdon Beck Youth Hostel in Teesdale and swiftly diverted to the local pub to book a table for 19 for the Saturday night. We then settled in at the hostel with a huge portion of homemade lasagna and a delicious brownie that Hannah had baked. We awoke on Saturday to a surprise from the river gods of an unexpected deluge, filling the rivers up to high levels. As a result, plans where swiftly tweaked and we were ready at 9.00 am to set off to the river. Not too far a dive, the shuttle was organised swiftly and we split into groups to start the racecourse section of the river tees. This was a river most had never done due to low levels the past few years. Craig Ford warmed up on a play wave and tested his roll not far from the get in and we set off down a wide fast flowing river with big bouncy wave trains. If you squinted your eyes and ignored your numb fingers and toes, it was much like the bouncy waves of the sunshine run in the South of France. We passed a dead cow that had somehow met its demise and swiftly paddled by in case it exploded. After a lunch stop and wee break we set back off and where reminded of our geography days in the meandering sections of a river. As we progressed more features developed, and Hannah was eaten by a hole. The team worked swiftly and well to ‘pokey pokey’ her boat to the side and she was soon back in her boat. Further on we entered a gorge like section with a few more waves to manoeuvre, some of which curling […]

Having sorted a shuttle so that we could make the trip to Scotland in one car, Ruth and I loaded the canoes onto the trailer and headed north. It was time to go to the Spey again – one of the best multiday canoe trips in the UK. We had done this trip before, but with all the recent rain the river was considerably higher and flowing far faster than last time. With some initial trepidation as to what the camping sites would be like (waterlogged?), we loaded the boats with food, camping kit, spare clothes for the shuttle and launched into the ultimate relaxation escape. With the higher water level, we noted that the river sped by with far greater ease than last time. Although we were in the shadows of the high Cairngorms, this was one of the flatter sections in which we enjoyed the autumnal sunshine and marvelled at the turning of the woodland leaves. Despite not being quiet, straight away we started seeing fabulous wildlife including several raptors and otters. Even more amazing, no midge, and for paddlers raised on the rivers of Wales, we had only friendly waves from the riverbank! The first day was a great shake down as we haven’t paddled loaded boats for some time, but all too soon it was time to look for a suitable place to set camp. We spied a location that was perfect, so we landed and set up for a night under the stars – perfect, I do love a good wild camp. Zzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzzz, “Oi, stop snoring!” Morning brought a heavy mist / fog which provided a readily taken excuse for a lazy start – our reckoning was that we couldn’t see far enough ahead to read the river (Any excuse for another brew). Eventually […]

After another wet week the Dee was full and flowing. Once a minimal faff car shuttle was complete everyone safely launched round the trees from the bottom of the car park and 4 groups paddled off down the river. There were not many eddies as the water levels seemed quite high on the banks, but plenty of grade 2 bouncy bits to keep people on their toes. A play wave on one bend with 2 big eddies either side enabled everyone to regroup and enjoy the odd burst of sun while a tennis balls was thrown around. A great spot to practice surfing and ferry gliding. Next stop was lunch in a field beside the river to refuel before the main rapid of the day – Trevor Rocks! They were fast and bouncy, but no problem for the LCC – 100% success. Round the bend the country park came into view. The autumn colours in the valley and a perfect view of the aqueduct made for great end to the introductory river trip. Or was that the trip to the pub afterwards? Report by Jenny Brown More Photos……..