Saturday Rescue Class

Image via Wikipedia Saturday's Paddle didn't take the group far, since all we did was practice rescue techniques on High Rock Lake. There were eight of us fine tuning our skills. We welcomed newcomer Ronald, who is the identical twin brother of Donald, also a fairly new paddler to the group. Ronald picked up kayak rescue quickly, this was impressive for someone who has never been in a kayak.

This coming Saturday we face one of our longest paddles of the summer, a 16.3 miler. We will launch from the Old U.S. 421 Park access and paddle to Tanglewood. Some of the group will have the opportunity to shorten their run, and can take out at the Huntsville Access on Shallowford Road.

We will have to negotiate through two old Indian fish weirs, which should prove challenging and fun. There will be a few rapids, perhaps more, depending on the height and water flow of the River. The Yadkin actually creates more rapids when the water levels drop, which is the opposite of most Rivers. Higher waters typically cover up the rocks and lower waters expose them, creating narrow passages, making them fun paddle through.

Still it should be a safe paddle with nothing more than a Class2 and mostly Flat water in between. This can all change with a rain, so check our gauges which are posted on the right sidebar. We don't do paddles when heavy rains are in the forecast. Click on the Enon Site in Forsyth County to see what the current flow and level of the river are.

Those who like to sleep a little later or have further to travel, are welcome to join up with the hardcore paddlers at 11:00 am. The core paddling group should arrive around then, breaking for 15-20 minutes and continuing on for the remaining 10.9 mile trip to Tanglewood. We will say our goodbyes to those not continue on. You will need to arrive at the Huntsvill Access around 10:00 am, so you can shuttle and get back in time for the 11:00 am launch. The shuttle details will need to be worked out in advance for those wanting to make these shorter runs. We will try to help you do this if you sign up early enough. You can always find the sign up sheet on the right sidebar of our site. The password is always "kayak" in lower case letters. Sign Up under the trip that best fits you or click the link below.

Below are some of the photos from Saturday's fun day of practice. We all enjoyed a great covered dish luncheon afterwards, along with grilled kabobs and hotdogs.

Saturday should be a good one. Click here to sign up. "the password is kayak" all lower case letters.