Welcome to Mallaig and District Canoe Club Junior Section
If there's anything YOU'D like to see on this page contact Sheila.|
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| Touring |
| Open boating ................. |
| BCU awards |
| Constitution |
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Thanks to the Juniors who came along on New Year's Eve and helped pack bags at the Co-op. £400 was raised - great job!
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Pool sessions start again 25th. January and run for 8 weeks - last one 14 March.
River trip dates for top group Saturday 26th. April and Saturday 12th. May. Please keep these dates free!
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Glenmore Lodge weekend 28/29 May 2011.
On Friday 27th May six junior members of Mallaig & District Canoe Club set off for Glenmore Lodge by Aviemore for a weekend of whitewater kayaking accompanied by two of the club’s coaches. Friday evening was spent settling in to the accommodation and having a good look round the facility.
After breakfast on the Saturday morning, the juniors met up with Nancy, their instructor for the weekend, who directed them to “stores” where they picked up the various pieces of kit they would need for river paddling. Next it was on to the boat store to choose a boat for the weekend before loading everything into the box trailer and setting off for Knockando on the river Spey. After one of the wettest Mays on record in the Spey Valley, the river was in full flow and posed quite a challenge to the juniors! The day was spent practising the skills they would need for the journey down the river planned for the following day; skills such as “ferry gliding” across the current and breaking in and out of “eddies”. By the end of the day everyone had become quite proficient and ready to run the river.
The section of the Spey paddled on the Sunday runs from Ballindalloch to Knockando and contains many rapids including one ominously named “The Washing Machine”! Everyone coped very well with the conditions, and especially enjoyed the excitement of running the rapids, even trying a bit of playboating on a standing wave.
The weekend was a great success and thanks must go to those who contributed to our fundraising efforts:
Sport Lochaber Youth Support Fund
The Arisaig Fund
Mallaig Community Coucil
Parents
Adult and Junior club members – bag packing at the Co-op on New Year’s Eve
Finally, thanks to the six juniors – Steven, Joey, Eddie, Aodan, Liam and Peter, who displayed a high level of commitment and willingness to learn as well as a great sense of humour throughout! Roll on the next adventure!
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| There's never a bus when you need one. | Hey, the weather's better here | Are we there yet? |
I said "ARE WE THERE YET?" |
Anyone for a paddle? |
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| Has everyone got all their kit? | This is more like it. | Wake me when the bus arrives. | Come and join me - the water's lovely | The advertising photo |
River Lochy trip 2010 (Double click a picture to enlarge. Click to reduce again) |
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On Sunday 26th September eight junior members of the Mallaig & District Canoe Club undertook a paddle down the river Lochy from Mucomir by Gairlochy to Old Inverlochy Castle. The trip was led by Stuart and Ben from Rockhopper who brought along a fleet of canoes. This was the culmination of all the hard work put in by the juniors over the winter in the pool and on Loch Morar over the summer months which resulted in all eight gaining their BCU 2* proficiency awards. The weather was perfect as the group set off down the river in a mixture of canoes and kayaks. The juniors had to demonstrate skills in both types of craft to gain 2* status. The river was at a good level after the rain the week before, and the group safely negotiated several sets of rapids and learned how to manoeuvre in and out of eddies before stopping for lunch. |
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After swapping boats, they headed down towards the main rapid on the river at Torcastle. Here the river turns sharply left and all the water is channelled through a narrow cleft between two rock outcrops forming a wave chain and some exciting boils! The canoes went first and all got down safely although taking on board a lot of water! The kayaks went next and despite a couple of capsizes joined the rest of the group at the bottom of the rapid to empty the boats.
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Mallaig & District Canoe Club Junior Weekend 2010
On the weekend 11 - 13th June, ten junior members of the Mallaig & District Canoe Club attended Outward Bound Locheil, where they received tuition in two star canoe and kayaking skills.
On arrival they were shown to their rooms and around the centre which they were sharing with ninety pupils from Fettes College in Edinburgh. The afternoon was spent practising canoeing skills on Loch Eil across the road from the Centre. This proved rather exciting as there was a strong wind blowing and they were jockeying for position with the entire Fettes contingent who were trying out canoes and kayaks of various shapes and sizes. However, the Mallaig youngsters set themselves the task of paddling round two sailing boats anchored in the bay and all managed to return to the jetty without incident. After dinner their instructor took them to the zip wire which they all enjoyed (apart from the midgies!!).
On Saturday the group loaded up a trailer with canoes and kayaks (loading and securing boats is all part of the 2* syllabus) and set off for Loch Lochy. They unloaded the trailer where the river Arkaig enters the loch and split into two groups. One group spent the morning in canoes and the afternoon in kayaks while the other group did it vice versa.
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Everyone had a chance to practise their skills in both types of craft and learned a lot. In the evening they all had a chance to try the trapeze and the parachute jump in the grounds of the centre before supper and bed.
The next morning Loch Eil was flat calm so it was decided to undertake a journey to the other side of the loch in canoes. After tidying rooms and packing, the group got together to discuss safety for the journey before setting off across the loch two to a canoe. On the far shore everyone got the chance to right a capsized canoe before returning to the jetty where they undertook rescues which involved everyone getting very wet and a lot of laughs!
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Before setting off for home the group had the chance to share what they had learned over the course of the two days and to thank their instructors. They can now look forward to attaining their 2* level of competency in the near future! A big thank you to all those who contributed financially to the success of the weekend including: parents and children for bag packing, The Cameron Mackintosh Foundation, The Arisaig Fund and The Morar Community Council. And last of all thank you to the juniors who were a credit to their community!
Glenmore Lodge Activity Centre - 18/19 July 2009
Six junior members accompanied by Joan Smith and Colin Biddulph, attended a weekend introduction to whitewater paddling at Glenmore Lodge near Aviemore from 17th to 19th July. They settled in to their chalet on Friday night after enjoying fish and chips in Aviemore, then went to “stores” to collect wetsuits, buoyancy aids etc for the adventures ahead. Instructor Iain Murray joined them on Saturday morning and everyone chose their kayak for the weekend. Saturday morning was spent on Loch Morlich practising the kayaking skills learned in the pool over the winter. After a picnic lunch by the lochside, it was off to the river Spey to get a first taste of moving water. Working in pairs, the juniors practised moving around the river, crossing eddy lines and “ferry gliding” across the current. On returning to Glenmore, it was into the pool to practise some rescues. The rain had persisted all day Saturday, and concerns were raised that there might be too much water for the group to safely tackle a river trip on the Sunday.
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| On Loch Morlich - day 1 | Ready for . . . . . . . ? | Bathing beauties | Kayak train-ing | |
Sunday dawned drier with blinks of blue sky and, having checked river levels, Iain decided that the river Ness was the destination for the day. The “put in” was at the first lock in the Caledonian canal as it leaves Loch Ness. The first excitement of the day was paddling over a weir. Everyone got a good line down this intimidating rapid and excitement was running high. On the flatter sections of the river the juniors took turns in leading the group and finding suitable eddies behind “sticky-out bits” on the river bank. The final challenge was running a second weir, on which it was essential to get the right line to prevent getting sucked on to some jagged looking rocks! With shouts of “Paddle! Paddle!” ringing in their ears, all the juniors made it down in one piece and the right way up!! The take out was at Bught Park in Inverness where the Inverness Highland Games were in full swing. Then it was back to Glenmore Lodge to check and clean all the gear and put away kayaks. After tea and cake (a Glenmore ritual!) the group had a final meeting with their instructor to see whether their hopes for the weekend had been met. They had had fun and tackled some awesome rapids, so everyone agreed that the weekend had more than met their expectations. |
This year some of the Juniors gained BCU 2* and 3* qualifications - in some challenging conditions!
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| Canoeing on Loch Morar | Sculling for support for 2* | Embarking at the pier | Reversing | 3 star lads ready to go |
Younger Juniors have the opportunity to work towards Paddlepower Awards.
Paddlepower is a scheme designed to meet the needs of young people. It’s colourful and youth centred approach aims to :
- Encourage more young people to come into and stay in the sport
- Provide progression and reward achievement in a wide range of topics
- Show them all aspects of the sport – both competitive and adventurous
- Provide signposts into Clubs where their skills and development can be nurtured
- Provide a flexible structure for delivery according to venue/situation
The Paddlepower Scheme consists of 5 youth friendly awards all with a colourful and youth friendly approach to provide an apprpriate pathway for young paddlers.
The Paddlepower Awards:
Paddlepower Start
An entry level award suitable for taster sessions or as part of a series of sessions.
Paddlepower Passport
Four progressive levels based on 24 topics which can be grouped into Safety Awareness, Paddling Skills, Varied Experiences, and Supporting Knowledge. The award is equivalent to 1 Star.
Paddlepower Discover
This follows on from Passport with a further 4 levels to take the young paddler to equivalent of 2 star standard.
Paddlepower Explore
Three different levels take the paddler on an extensive journey exploring the great variety Paddlesport, with topics focused on participation in events and journeys in the competitive and non-competitive disciplines.
Paddlepower Excel
Three levels to test the paddler on all elements of paddlesport including being responsible for self and others, participation in journeys, coaching sessions, training, events/competitions in a variety of disciplines, background knowledge of the sport; access, rules, environmental, nutrition and goal setting.
BCU Star Awards
Older Juniors can work towards BCU Star Awards.
Child Protection Policy
The Club adheres to the following Child Protection Policy - available here.