With a paddle

Having vowed not to start any new badges until I'd finished a few, I accidentally found myself cracking two of the clauses for Watersports.

I spent a week with 60 Year 6 kids at their residential trip at Hay-on-Wye, a beautiful Welsh border town. It was a fantastic week but utterly exhausting. Not only are you essentially on duty 24 hours a day, you end up doing lots of chores and doing activities, alongside organising and looking after the kids.

I spent two days on the river, one on a canoe and the second on a one-woman kayak. As you can see from the photo, I found the buoyancy aid an uncomfortable fit!

I really enjoyed canoing and was able to steer and power the boat with ease. It was a lovely way to pass the day and enjoy the peaceful scenery, despite the drizzle.

My second day on the river was a different story. It was sunny, so I could shed some layers (sadly making me excellent fodder for horse flies). I found paddling the kayak more challenging and less intuitive. Having worked out that I paddle more strongly on the right, I tried various ways to even things out. Because I was thinking about it, I lost all intuition and spent a great deal of time doing graceless 360° turns, much to everyone's amusement.

I'd definitely canoe again but I'd want a better buoyancy aid (or not have one at all). Unless synchronised kayaking becomes a thing, I might give that wobbly little boat a wide birth.