Gwilym's Adventure Blog

Out with good friend and general boaty play mate Olly on SUPs on The Lower Dart. A really nice day on the river trying to stay upright on SUPs (I still find eddy lines tricky).  After getting out we even had time for a high speed run down The Loop in kayaks before coffee, pasty and brownies.

 I have just got back from a couple of days in North Wales on a Water Skills Academy SUP Adventure Guide training course run by Dave Brown A day riding the flow through the Menai Strait and a day off the coast of Anglesey with the seals in warm weather made a a great few days of learning. Of course, come assessment time it will be wet and windy to make up for it

 Today was in the sun on The River Parrett at Langport, catching up with an old friend (we think 25 years since we last met) and then a party group in the afternoon

A bit of fun today working for Wet and High Adventures Ltd with a group of 4 down in Somerset for a holiday. A 2 hour intro to SUP session in the sun on the canal with some good skill progression including a few step back turns.

I was out on The River Parrett this morning with 3 sisters for a birthday SUP. Mainly a dry session (well, for 2 of them) and lots of laughs had along the way. 

 I managed to to get out of the office for a few hours today with Jamie on The Parrett and The Yeo up in Langport.  A slightly cloudy start turned into a very sunny afternoon and when we got out of the wind it felt almost warm.

The next few weeks will be me preparing to return to the life of an Outdoor Instructor. Today was all about getting out on the water locally with Hannah on the new Wet and High Adventures SUPs from Freshwater Bay Paddle Co and trying to remember how to paddle

 Great day down in sunny Dorset completing some Coasteering Inductions/Risk Assessments with Jack followed by a few hours SUPping off Chesil Beach. Jack is on the Wet and High Adventures Ltd Instructor Development Scheme

  An excellent morning afloat with a Mums and Sons Stand up paddleboard session on the canal on the outskirts of Bridgwater.  Wet and High Adventures Ltd offer beginner session and a hire service for the more experienced.

A great paddle with Olly and Rich from Portgwarra via the cardinal mark at Rundlestone Reef before heading to Land's End and  a quick leg stretch at Sennen. Thanks Rich for the loan of the Sea Kayak After rock hopping our way back to Porthgwarra for a Pasty, it was hot and sunny so SUPping seemed like a good plan. After pumping up the boards and leaving the beach the weather started to deteriorate. We made it to The Minack Theatre before turning round and battling the wind and rain (or liquid sunshine as they call it in Cornwall) to get back to Portgwarra

Rake's Progress, a very interesting (but not recommended) route at Chair Ladder which was supposed to be the warm up but turned into the only route of the day.  By the time we eventually found our way down to the bottom (the first descent attempt was a bit early on the tide and we couldn't get to the route without getting wet) we were already starting to cook. 4 pitches of which only pitch 2 was enjoyable. Pitch 1 was soaking wet and pitches 3 and 4 overgrown and covered in lichen. The heat ramped up and any exposed skin was starting to burn. By the time we topped out it was gone midday and the sun was baking. And yet, when we considered it over a pasty, we put it down as an adventure and laughed about it. An evening SUP at Marazion and a chicken kebab finished off the day.

A great day with Rich on day one of my little Cornish Holiday. 3 routes done at Porthgwarra during the morning followed by a pasty lunch once the tide started to come in towards the base of the routes. A few hours back at the cheapest campsite in Cornwall (£3 per night) chilling out before an early evening SUP and fish and chips down in Marazion (St Michael's Mount in the back ground). 5 more day of fun to go.

Working with Carly and Fraser on an Intro to Stand Up Paddleboard course down on the canal in Bridgwater using teh Wet and High Adventures Ltd new fleet of SUP;s