Crouch Kayak Club
If You Hear Banjos Paddle Faster!
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Membership
As a valued member of the CKC, you'll have exclusive access to the comprehensive facilities of the Burnham Sailing Club (BSC), conveniently located on the quay adjacent to the River Crouch.
Our setup includes a floating pontoon that extends into the river, ensuring year-round access without the hassle of muddy feet.
At CKC, we regularly organise day trips away from the Crouch and coordinate exciting camping adventures for our members.
As part of our community, you'll have the opportunity to enhance your water skills and boost your confidence with the guidance of our coaches and seasoned kayakers.
Join us on the water and paddle alongside fellow enthusiasts—come kayak with happy paddlers!
membership@crouchkayak.club
Meet The Team
Our volunteer committee is committed to prioritising the well-being of our members and guests, as well as maintaining the efficient operation of the Crouch Kayak Club at all times.
Together, they collectively offer a broad and diverse range of experience and knowledge, enriching our clubs activities and ensuring a fulfilling experience for everyone involved.
Club Policies
As an affiliated club with British Canoeing (BC), CKC enjoys the advantages of third-party insurance, waterside licenses, and valuable support on implementing best practices within a club setting.
Our club is fortunate to have a dedicated team of voluntary committee members who are deeply committed to ensuring the smooth operation of CKC and the well-being of all our members and visiting guests. Their efforts contribute to creating a safe and enjoyable environment for everyone involved in our kayaking community.
welfare@crouchkayak.club
- Club Constitution
- Code of Conduct
- Privacy Policy
- Club Health & Safety Policy
- Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy
- GDPR
- Club standard Operating Procedures
- Equity Statement
- Bullying & Harassment Policy
- Pool Risk Assessment
- Sea Kayaking & Canoeing Assessment
- Sea Kayaking Trips Assessment
Scoop
Congratulations to
Roger Simmons
on gaining
Sea Kayak Leader Tidal Award
For most of the nine club members, this was a first: a day trip paddling along the Thames in London. John, Kelsey, Jerry, and I started our adventure by meeting at Burnham train station, joining up with Mark at Billericay to continue our journey into the city. Upon arriving at Pimlico, we took a short walk to the Westminster Boating Base, were we met up with the rest of our group. A quick lunch out on the balcony before changing and gearing up for the paddle. With buoyancy aids, paddles, and spray skirts selected, our group was joined by two leaders, a handful of seasoned paddlers, and a few other first-timers like us. In total, there were 15 —quite a large group, with the leaders agreeing. This becoming even more evident as they had to dig deep into storage to find enough suitable boats. I say "suitable" loosely, as Kelsey and I had a slightly different opinion on what qualifies as such! Finally, we set off. Two speedboats, packed with both people and kayaks stuffed into every available crevice, ferried us out. It was a bumpy, cold ride—definitely not the glamorous scene you'd expect from a James Bond movie. Once we were dropped off on a small beach, the real fun began for Kelsey and me. Our little river boats, without skegs, made for a rather interesting experience. Cue the laughter, the frustration, and the spinning as we fought to gain control on the Thames. Eventually, we got the hang of it, but let me tell you, give us a sea kayak any day! We were blessed with perfect weather: calm, dry, and not too cold. The entire group enjoyed a leisurely paddle, taking in the iconic sights of London from a completely different perspective. It was an absolutely fantastic day, finished off nicely with a pizza and a pint. The biggest thanks goes to Mark for organising this unforgettable adventure for the club. Definitely one for the books, and one we'd love to do again! Dee Photos supplied: Kelsey, Dee, John and Mark
Sunday August 4th Walton Backwaters 10.9 miles This paddle was organised and led by Adrian. It was an early one, the plan was to leave the club by 8am. The participants were Adrian, Mark, Jerry, John, Lorraine and Clare, in four single kayaks and a double. We left the club at the allotted time in three cars and the drive to Dovercourt went smoothly with us arriving in a convoy at Dovercourt. As Adrian had predicted parking at this location is tight but we all managed to fit in for an easy beach launch. The weather was perfect with very little wind and no waves however there was a swell which was different to paddling on the crouch. Adrian remembered from the last time he had paddled, some twenty years previously, there was a small creek before the main channels that would enable us to cut into the Walton Backwaters without paddling all the way down the coast. We thought we had found this entrance shortly after leaving the beach. It looked promising but just got narrower and narrower. After a while we were paddling with paddles on the shore either side and the hulls scraping along the mud. We had to reverse a little way before we could turn the kayaks. Having back tracked we continued down the coast before attempting to enter again. The inlets into the marsh make quite a maze and it is very easy to become disoriented when you are viewing everything from a couple of feet above the water line. The second attempt eventually worked with the map on my watch suggesting a route through and we arrived at the seal spotting location. There were plenty of reddy brown seals on the bank and also in the water. Heads kept popping up quite close to the kayaks and it was hard to know who was watching who. We crossed Hamford Water and landed on a beach behind the sunken barges for lunch. The wind was now picking up and was certainly more than had been forecast. After lunch, with the tide now dropping, we paddled straight back to our starting point. It was certainly a more challenging sea state than when we left. Thank you Adrian, a very successful day in a location I have previously only ever explored by boat. John
Tonbridge to Tea Pot Island - Sunday 30 th June - Distance 10 miles Adrian kindly arranged the paddle, joined by Dan, Roger and Andy. Adrian was in his open boat; Roger took his own river boat and Dan and Andy used the club river boats. So, a nice mixture. The weather was cloudy but warm. Following the usual car shuffle between Tonbridge and Tea Point Island the team set off at 11am, it would have been a little earlier but Adrian was busy chatting up the stand-up paddle board instructor at the starting point. It was quite busy with many Sups’ setting off to do the Tonbridge loop, which was the opposite way to us. We set off and arrived at the first weir soon after, all negotiated the Shute with ease. Although we did notice that the brushes below the water had been replaced and was quite disconcerting as the boats moved around as they ran over them. We paddled on. There was an angry swan at one stage, protecting his young and partner of course. It went after someone in a canoe going in the other direction and left us alone. As we moved on it was clear there were a lot of fishermen on the left bank. One informed us it was a fishing completion. I don't think they were too happy that we were there. We of course passed them as considerately as possible. It was mentioned that they were all men of a certain age, we then thought they probably had the same though about us! Apart from Dan of course, who is still in the flush of youth. We arrived at the 2 nd Shute, which we remembered Martin and Amanda decided to take a little dip last year. We all got through successfully without issue. Before the 3 rd weir we had lunch, at the same spot as last year. A mixture of sandwiches, Guinness 0, Quiche and jelly babies (Dan, of course) kept the hunger away. There was a little shower of rain but that didn't dampen the spirits. After lunch we set off down the 3 rd Shute which has a concrete base rather than brushes. All was good. We paddled on, plenty of ducks, who weren't interested in us at all and the evidence of fish just below the surface. We arrived at Shute no. 4. We had forgotten about this one. Andy went first and had more than one wobble but stayed out of the water. The other three could hear the sound of fear from the top of the weir. On we went to the to the last Shute, the big one. Dan and Roger tackled it with no problem, Andy and Adrian had decided that they had stayed dry so far would portage their boats instead. The team joined up again for a paddle on the other side of the weir. We continued the short distance to Tea Pot Island where Andy was the first to arrive at the jetty unfortunately, he struggled and took some time to get out of his boat, much to the enjoyment of the three other paddlers and probably some of the drinkers at the pub opposite. The sun then came out, we all enjoyed an ice cream. We had finished earlier than expected, some of us were looking forward to relaxing and getting home in time for the England game, Hmmmm. Thank you to Adrian for arranging the day, fantastic paddle, great company, a bit of exercise, lots of laughs, exactly as it should be. Andy Coppin ..........the question remains who was playing on the kids circuit????? Photos supplied by: Dan
I will start by thanking Adrian for again arranging this year’s summer camp, It has become something of a tradition. This year was again a mix of CKC and Dereham members and sited at Redcliffe farm camp site. Friday – Wareham to Studland A 9am start saw us drive shuttle cars over to Studland to park ready for our return at the end of the paddle. The aim was to launch from the camp site slipway at 10am. The weather forecast predicted winds of 12 – 15 mph from a WSW direction. The plan was to use the terrain as much as possible to shelter from it. The tide was flowing out of Poole Harbour so this would be assisting us most of the time. Setting off from the camp site slipway is always a pleasant start. The gentle flow of the River Frome taking us between its reeded banks and leading our group of paddlers out by serpentine meanders into the expanse of water that is Poole Harbour. With the tide still high we easily paddled over the still flooded mud flats. Heading across the lake we headed for Rockley Point where a railway bridge crosses the Sherford River where it empties into the harbour. We were hopeful that a train would go clattering over the iron bridge while we were next to it but were out of luck. From there we hugged the shore and made for the beach next to Lake Pier Car Park, this was to be our lunch stop. Much refreshed, the plan was to head directly across the lake to the other shore to take advantage of the shelter that it offered. With the wind freshening we arrived at the other side a little more scattered than Adrian would have liked. The shelter that was offered was welcome and it was really pleasant ambling along the tree lined beach edge in windless, flat calm water. This was not to last as we looked to make the crossing to Brownsea Island and take the shelter that it offered to our trip. The easiest passage meant paddling into the wind and then, when in the right position, turning, so that it would blow us to the island. This worked very well and once again we found ourselves in calm water. With our journey drawing to a close, all that was left was the crossing from Brownsea Island to Studland. As we rounded the island it quickly became clear that this was to be the hardest part of the trip. Before us we saw the water, white crested by the wind and running towards the mouth of the harbour. Tired arms had to dig deep as the wind constantly tried to push us round and off our intended course. Approaching the shore at Studland, moored boats appeared to be moving passed us although, in truth, it was us being swept along by the tide. Finally we came in and landed on the beach, a little further along than intended. Rather than carrying the kayaks to the beach exit we put them back in the shallows and walked them back – much easier. Saturday – hmmm Well, that wind had only got stronger, so all bets were off. No paddling today, although Alan, Claire, John and Lorraine did paddle from the camp site up to Wareham where it was untroubled by the wind. For others a chance to do other things. For myself and Amanda it was a trip around Corfe Castle and drinking tea and eating cake. Sunday – Knoll Beach, Studland to Swanage and back The wind was much lighter today and coming from the SW. The plan was to park in the National Trust car park at Knoll Beach and launch from there. Once away from the beach we headed towards Old Harry where we could then see what the weather was like as we rounded the chalk stack. Luckily it was not too bad at all. We briefly played around the arches in the cliffs, future stacks in the making, before heading off towards Swanage. With quite calm conditions we paddled beside the looming cliffs towards our lunch stop in Swanage Bay. With the waves breaking at a slight angle to the beach a lot of the group ended up taking an unceremonious dip in the sea as it took the backs of their kayaks around and tipped them over. Not the most skilful of beach landings I must say. I will hold back on naming names although my fingers are hovering over the keyboard……. Where are the cameras when you need them? Suitably refreshed, relieved and drying out, the group left the beach in much better order than it had arrived. Heading back towards Old Harry and Studland we found that the conditions were much lumpier now. Unfortunately, Adrian’s back was giving him a lot of discomfort caused by the choppy conditions and had to take it easy. For him there was a lot of relief after we rounded Old Harry and entered the calmer water in Studland Bay. Arriving back at Knoll Beach it was busy with holiday makers. Coming in to land an eye needed to be kept on small children paddling and playing in the shallows, who seemed oblivious of our approaching kayaks. Once safely ashore and the boats loaded onto the cars/van and the kit stored all that there was left to do was finish off with an ice cream, kindly bought by Adrian. So, to conclude, another very enjoyable and socialable weekend. The weather was mostly kind to us giving a mix of conditions from easy to quite challenging. Martin Crow Photos Supplied By: Lorraine, Martin and Steve Duffy
