Much (but not all!) of the post below is repeated from previous postings; apologies for this, I just wanted to assemble all the information in one place, for clarity.
All of you who have already contacted me saying that you plan to join us on this weekend – great, see you there! I will email you also. Anyone else planning to join the weekend, who hasn’t yet emailed me - best do this soon, to avoid disappointment (see below for my contact details). Numbers are still manageable-ish right now, but I’m not a million miles away from putting a ‘cap’ on them.
Where will we meet?
The campsite is at Higher Farm in East Prawle village, South Devon. It is located (I’m quoting the owners here) 50 metres past the telephone box on the same side, heading towards the sea. It’s not a big village, you won’t struggle to find the farm.
It’s a farmer’s field with limited facilities, so please don’t expect Butlins! The owners ask for quiet in the evening and there will be a charge for camping. We’re sharing the field with some cricket players, for reasons too boring to explain.
Whether or not you are camping, the event starts at 9.30 am on Saturday morning with a briefing in the camping field. If it’s raining, I have no idea how we’ll do this, but we’ll think of something no doubt. There will also be a similar briefing on the Sunday morning.
You will then be invited to come up with paddling plans for the day – you will have the choice of joining a small guided/social group (led by experienced volunteers) or of doing your own thing. Either way, all groups going out on the water will be expected to conform to certain safety guidelines (group size, trip plan, Coastguard contact etc.). There will also be demo boats available from PH Kayaks and Venture Kayaks.
The Evening
On Saturday night, there will be an evening of talks in the hall attached to the wonderful Pig’s Nose Inn. The guest speakers confirmed so far include Jim Krawiecki, Chris Wheeler and his partner Julia, possibly *myself* if there is time (pray that there isn’t) and AN Other, to be confirmed.
We will raise some dosh for the RNLI and the Devon Air Ambulance during the evening.
What is the weekend all about?
Last year, we held a ‘book launch weekend’ to celebrate the arrival of ‘South West Sea Kayaking’. The weekend was based at East Prawle in south Devon, and was a lot of fun. So, let’s do it again. Purely for want of a name, I’m calling it the South West Sea Kayak Meet.
-The weekend is aimed at folk who just want to go paddling and enjoy the wonderful south Devon coast. All abilities are welcome, but the paddling will not suit complete novices.
The weekend is free (apart from camping). Nobody will make any money from it (but I can think of one person who’ll lose money on it).
It’s an informal get-together of friends and soon-to-be friends. I’ll do my best to make it run smoothly (generously aided by volunteers) but don’t expect a tightly choreographed Bejing-Olympics-Opening-Ceremony-type-spectacle.
- There will be camping available at Higher Farm, just along the road from the pub. Bring your own food or eat at the pub/ village cafe.
If you are planning on coming, please let me know as soon as possible. I particularly need to get an idea of … how many of you in your party, how many tents you are likely to use (little tents? family tents?), and whether you will attend the talks on Saturday night. I hope to make the event open to all, but as we only have half a farm field to play with and one pub hall, I may have to do some ‘rationalising’ if numbers grow beyond a certain point! Please email your plans … mark@ukriversguidebook.co.uk.
Hi mark
Looking forward to the meet. We will be there from saturday morning.
Cheers
Helen and Lloyd