after school kayaking

 

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The Washington Area is blessed to have a swath of wilderness cutting right into the heart of the city.  The Potomac River and its surrounding parks are immediately accessible from the District - with wildlife, and islands and white water rapids, that make it a paddlers' paradise.

Liquid Adventures can give you a good start into paddling, and help you gain the skills needed to enjoy this beautiful natural resource.

the '08 Spring schedule: (Please check the calendar for days and times. Look for: Westland/Pyle After School Kayaking and Fri Kayaking for High Schoolers).

Level 1 Beginner Youth Class for first timers
Try kayaking for the first time. Our six week sessions of kayak instruction will get you started and let you experience the Potomac close up. With Pyle and Westland Middle Schools. Please contact your school office to sign up and get additional information.

Level 2 Advanced-Beginner Youth Class - (For those who have already taken a class). Returnees from our after school programs or who have experience in other programs, will go a little further to explore more parts of the river and run the riffles.

Level 3 Intermediate Youth River Class
An Intermediate class for those who can roll in moving water. We will go out on class II-III white water, playing the water features, and exploring new parts of the river. It is for paddlers from high school, who have been in our classes a couple of times or have comparable experience in other programs.

Dana Chladek's Slalom Introduction for youth
Former Olympic medal winner in slalom, Dana Chladek, is offering a second workout for those who might be interested. She won a Silver medal in the '96 Olympics (among other honors), but more important, she is an excellent youth coach. It is a great chance for students to try out slalom boats and to see what the sport of slalom kayaking is like.  A weekend trip to a slalom training camp is planned, Sept. 29 -30.

River trip to Harpers Ferry
Where you will run down a section of the river, scouting the rapids and picking out the passages through the rocks.  It's a white water trip with waves and beautiful scenery.

River trip to Yough River
Paddle either the Lower Yough or the Middle Yough all in a day to a class lll river in Pennsylvania.

what we will be doing all year: Early in the Spring, we start in the pool by learning to roll a kayak. As the days warm up we go outside to practice preliminary strokes in the gates at Lock 6. Later in the Spring and in the Fall of the year, we will be out to paddle down through the riffles and rapids of the Potomac River.  At the end of the season we will go beyond the DC area for a trip.

what to bring:  All kayak equipment is provided, including boat, PFD (lifejacket), helmet, spray skirt, sprayjacket, and paddle.  On chilly days, students should have one or two thick layers of synthetic pile or fleece shirts to wear under a spray jacket.  Students must have appropriate shoes.

cost for after school classes: $ 120 for 6 weeks on the river or in the pool.  The cost of the trip to Harpers Ferry is $50. The Yough Trip cost is $70.

signup: Registration and payment for the #1 classes are made through the respective schools.  Other classes and trips can be registed directly from this website by following the registration link above in the top bar.

transportation is provided for most classes students from Westland, Pyle and Whitman.

pickup and drop off: we offer transportation to the river in the afternoon right after school, and return at 6:15 PM to your respective schools.

for questions: related to the after school kayak program, please call the LAKS office at 301 229 0428 or Tom’s cell at 301 980 1889. For days and times please visit our website calendar.

Tom and the Liquid Adventures' staff are kayakers all, known for a love of whitewater adventure and a passion for introducing newcomers to the sport. Tom is a long time devotee and coach of white water sport, having designed over the years both the Valley Mill Camp and Camp Calleva programs.