Making the most of your paddle board will help take your paddle boarding experiences to the next level. So how do you do that?
Paddle Boarding adventures
With the rise in popularity of paddle boarding, there are a number of companies or locations that have begun putting on paddleboarding tours/adventures over the weekends for intrepid SUPers. Attending an organised paddle boarding expedition can elevate your experience by ten-fold.
Gutsy girls
If you are a female who already enjoys paddle boarding, or is just interested in the idea of having some sort of adventure alongside like minded women, Gutsy girls and their adventures are made for you. Gutsy girls is a company that strives to connect women through a love of sports, adventure and nature. If you join one of their paddleboarding cohorts you will be empowered, pushed out of your comfort zone, and also have a time filled with fun and laughter.
Whether it’s their tours of Northern Ireland, the Thames, the River Avon; or their adventures abroad in Croatia or Norway, you will have a comprehensive paddle boarding experience that will elevate your love and appreciation of the sport. You can learn more about the Gutsy Girls and their experiences here.
Expedition to Lundy Island
Gutsy girls and their adventures are a great way to have a heightened experience paddleboarding, however they are exclusively open to women. There are many other paddle boarding adventures open to all, and SUPSouthWest’s expedition to Lundy Island is one of the best you can sign yourself up for.
For those who don’t know, Lundy is an island made up of granite, located in the Bristol Channel. The island had brilliant views of the sea and the mainland you have departed from. Lundy island is famous because it was the first designated marine conservation area in the UK. Due to its isolation from the outside world, and no cars, street lights etc, it is a brilliant place to reconnect with nature. On this tour you will paddleboard around the infamous Island, exploring its nooks and crannies, hopefully being able to paddle alongside some of the marine life that resides around the island.
The tour entails a dramatic 2 hour sailing trip across the Bristol Channel to Lundy. Once you have arrived you will paddleboard through the brilliant scenery, camp overnight amongst its wildlife, and then explore more of the island the next day. If you are interested in exploring a remote area on a paddle board, the Lundy Island Expedition is for you.
Paddle boarding at night
If you don’t have the time, money or the opportunity to go on a far flung paddle boarding expedition, you can still spice up your paddleboarding experiences by paddling at night. Your local river or lake that you frequent normally, will feel completely different in the darkness and the light of the moon.
Whilst this may sound somewhat dangerous, there are now ways in which you can do it perfectly safely. If you wear a head torch so anyone else on the river/lake can see you, and then also equip your paddleboard with some of the new paddle board LEDs which attach to the bottom of the board and beam bright light into the water and surround your board with an ethereal glow, you should be okay.
Hopefully this article will inspire you to explore your local paddleboarding spot in a different way, or pencil in some time for a rewarding weekend adventure.