Paddlefest 2008 - High Rock Lake - Denton NC

It's Fun to Get Together with Other Kayakers

The kayak group that my son joined, HRL Paddlers, is hosting Paddlefest next weekend - August 9 and 10, 2008 at High Rock Lake (near Salisbury, NC - not far from Charlotte either).

My son is really excited about this event and has been talking about it all week. He's been calling around to his Boy Scout buddies to see if others want to join in the fun.

If you've never been kayaking, you ought to give it a try. It really is fun to be on the water in a small craft. It's even more fun if you have a group to paddle with. HRL Paddlers is great. They help folks get started with kayaking. If you're in North Carolina or even over in South Carolina, check them out. If you're in another area, see if you can find a kayak group. You'll learn a lot and make new friends with common interests.

I'm not sure how common such kayak or water sport groups are. You can also check around and find companies that host kayak, canoe and white water trips. Those are fun as well. That's how we got started. If you sign up for an organized trip, then you don't have to invest in gear from the start. You get an idea of what water sports are like and whether this is something you want to do big times.

Kayaking on the Yadkin - A Good Day for My Son

My Son Kayaking Near the Waterfall

I've always heard that the teen years were really tough ones for parents (and for many teens too). I have not found that to be the case. My boys are great, and I'd rather spend time with them than anything else I can think of to do.

Sometimes other parents ask me, "What's your secret?"

I wouldn't begin to take credit for my boys being fine young men. They could make other decisions. They don't. I am blessed.

If I had to make a suggestion, I'd say that it's important to spend time with kids and also to make sure that you support their interests. Bored kids are going to be more likely to get into stuff.

When the boys were little I made sure they had all kinds of experiences. We went to libraries, shows, programs and even to watch a dance recital of the Wizard of Oz featuring some of the little girls from their classes. I wasn't looking to influence their interests. I just wanted them to have a chance to see what all is out there and make their own decisions about what they might like to get involved in.

My youngest especially loves water sports. He was probably about three years old when we took our first canoe ride. Over the years we have gone white water rafting several times. He took to all that like (cliche) - a duck to water.

After saving up his money, the kid bought a kayak. He did the research and found a used one on Craig's List.

He went up to the Bull Hole (a small local park) to kayak, but he missed having others around to enjoy the trips. So, he went back online and found HRL Paddlers. That's a local (or pretty close) kayak group. It's mostly adults - but also a few kids and teens. He got in touch and set up a trip.

Yesterday he took his second trip with the group.

My son really looks forward to the kayak trips and keeps checking back to see if the photos from his trips are ready, so he can show them to me. We check them out and talk about his travels.

If you have kids, try to give them lots of opportunities to check out fun things to do. Some things they will not get excited about. My youngest son would never want to get in front of a group and dance or act.

Now and then, a kid will find his or her passion. My son really gets excited about the water. I never knew that would be something he'd love back when we took the first canoe trip. In fact, he was kind of scared of the water during his preschool years. Now, he's like a fish. He loves to swim and will ride any watercraft he can get his hands on.

The kayak club has been great for my son. He gets to do something he loves and gets to do it with others who enjoy the same passion.

*I'd like to thank Neal and other members of the groups for making and sharing photos.

Kayaking on the Yadkin River - North Carolina

My Son and His Kayak Friends

My youngest son is hard to keep up with. He never goes in fast gear, but he is always on the go - slowly and surely. When he was little, I'd be saying, "Hurry up" to him and "Slow down" to the older one at the mall and places like that. We were a family slinky. All trying to stay together - and easier said than done.

I play a lot online, but I don't do it the same way my little-big guy does. I should explain that. He's the baby, but he's about 6 feet tall. He definately the tallest in the family. Must be some recessive genes.

The younger one loves to white water raft which we do on vacations. But, he wasn't satisfied with just the occasional trek. Nope. He got online and read up about kayaks and then found a used one at a reasonable price at Craig's List. Then, we found a group of kayakers in our area and got in touch. The next think I knew he was telling me that he had plans to go kayaking with his new water buddies.

Today was the kid's second kayak trip with HRL Paddlers. He had a great time as he did the last time. Getting outdoors makes him very happy.

I enjoy water sports, and I'm thinking I need to get a kayak too. The HRL group does have some extras for newbies. That's really great. Maybe I can borrow one to start with and then get a second one. I need to figure out if two will fit on top of the truck though.

*Note - The photo was taken by one of my son's kayak friends. The guys were goofing off, and it's clear they were having a blast.