Upcoming Webinars
Expedition Planning for Kayak Adventure Series
A series of on-line sessions with a sea kayaking focus but which will include content useful to aspiring kayak expeditioners in other paddling environments. The course will fully cover the planning requirements of the PAQS Sea Skills award and links to related resources for practical exercises and “home work” related to each session will be provided.
Tuesday 16th August, 7:30pm – Tools of the Trade and how to use them
Covers compass types and their related issues; plotting instruments, GPS including upsides and downsides; communication devices such as hand-held VHF, PLBs, EPIRBs, InReach, SPOT, etc; mapping software; kamals: and more.
Tuesday 13th September, 7:30pm – Chart and Map Interpretation
Covers feature recognition (such as land marks), recognising hazards (natural and manmade), chart datum, intertidal areas, land and sea contours, fixing positions using latitude and longitude (charts)/eastings and northings (topographical maps), scale.
Tuesday 11th October, 7:30pm – Dealing with Natural Phenomena
Covers winds, tides and currents, ocean swells (size and period), etc, etc. and the related considerations for kayak expeditioners.
Tuesday 8th November, 7:30pm – Navigating from the Cockpit
Piloting and Dead Reckoning: the art of knowing where you are and where you need to get to in a safe and timely manner.
A bit about the course presenters…
Russ Swinnerton is a member of the Burley Griffin Canoe Club and the NSW Sea Kayak Club. He has been paddling for more than 10 years. He qualified as a navigation specialist during a 30-year naval career, and put theory into practice with two sea commands and several navigation jobs. He and Adrian have run a number of sea kayak navigation courses for NSW SKC.
Adrian Clayton has been kayaking for more than 20 years. He is a PaddleAustralia Sea Instructor, Sea Guide and Assessor. He has completed numerous multi-day sea kayak expeditions in many parts of the world. His Australian expeditions include a 9-day Bass Strait crossing in 2006. Major expeditions have been completed along Tasmania’s southern and eastern coastlines. In 2017 he completed the last leg of his quest to paddle the full length of the NSW coast — much of which he did solo learning many lessons along the way.
Adrian is a Life Member of the NSW Sea Kayak Club. He is also an active member of Lane Cove River Kayakers and Kayak Share Club.
Presenters Russ Swinnerton (left) and Adrian Clayton (right)
The Next Step: Practical Navigation for Sea Kayakers
Full-day Session Saturday 19th November
Registration via Paddle Australia Courses
A full-day on-water session putting into practice the theory delivered through the following monthly PaddleNSW webinars (7:30-9:00pm) leading up to it.
When coupled with the theory sessions, participants will be more than equipped to satisfy the navigational aspects within the planning requirements related to PaddleAustralia’s Sea Skills award (Risk Management, as a topic, will not be covered).
The session will be conducted in sea kayaks. It is assumed that participants will bring their own, however, sea kayaks will be available for hire (see below). Spray skirts will need to be worn.
Paddling distance is unlikely to exceed 20km and there will be at least one generous land break during the session.
Participants will be encouraged to bring their own compasses along with them however loan compasses will be available on the day.
Registrants will be required to complete some pre-session tasks and in order to do so will be provided with a .pdf of maps and charts of the area in which the session is to be held.
Location for the session is yet to be decided but will be conducted in a waterway extending from Broken Bay in the north to Port Hacking in the south and the waterways in between (i.e. Sydney Harbour or Botany Bay). Participants can expect some elements of the session to be conducted in the exposed areas of the waterway in which the session is being conducted.
The cost of attending the session will be $195.00 per partiipant and will include the supply of incidental items required for the session. Sea kayaks and related kit (skirt, life jacket and paddle) are available for hire at $95.00 for the day.
Spaces limited.
Past Webinars
Leaders & Coaching Webinar 6th & 13th April, 2022
This webinar highlights the key findings of a recent survey of Paddle Educators (PAQS and Coaches) in NSW and presents some actions for discussion. It was held on 6th and 13th April and this video includes the discussion section of both presentations.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar 31st May, 2022
In this video, Mark goes through the PaddleLog and PaddleEd Apps and discusses how PAQS and Coaches can use these online resources to renew and update their qualifications.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar 5th June, 2022
In this video Anna shared her experience and knowledge as a physiotherapist, paddler and coach. She discussed growth in teenagers together with neuromuscular control and joint stability, extending this knowledge to how young bodies adapt to paddling activities and training, and reflected on the consequences of some common errors and bad habits.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar: Expedition Planning for Sea Kayakers, 13th August, 2022
Tools of the Trade and how to use them. This video covers compass types and their related issues; plotting instruments, GPS including upsides and downsides; communication devices such as hand-held VHF, PLBs, EPIRBs, InReach, SPOT, etc; mapping software; kamals: and more.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar: Expedition Planning for Sea Kayakers, 13th September, 2022
Chart and Map Interpretation. Covers feature recognition (such as land marks), recognising hazards (natural and manmade), chart datum, intertidal areas, land and sea contours, fixing positions using latitude and longitude (charts)/eastings and northings (topographical maps), scale.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar: Expedition Planning for Sea Kayakers, 11 October, 2022
Dealing with Natural Phenomena. Covers winds, tides and currents, ocean swells (size and period) etc, etc and the related considerations for kayak expeditioners.
Leaders & Coaching Webinar: Expedition Planning for Sea Kayakers, 8 November, 2022
Navigating from the Cockpit. Covers piloting and Dead Reckoning: The art of knowing where you are and where you need to get to in a safe and timely manner.