Guide’s Blog

If you’re a paddler, all you want for Christmas is to be on the water. But since that might not be a possibility, a stocking full of paddling accessories is the next best thing. We’ve made a list for you to tactfully pass on to your loved-ones to avoid the Christmas-morning-fake-smile-and-the-“Oh, I’ve always wanted a tie-dyed potholder”-lie: For those who love you A LOT: Carbon-fiber Werner paddle (Your arms, wrists, and shoulders are worth it!) Dry Suit (This is the best way to extend your paddling season.) A comfortable PFD (Don't skimp on a life jacket. It might one day save your life!) For those who like you: A mobile solar-charger kit (Who cares if you ever need it; it’s just cool to have!) A kayak cart  (This will save money in the long run

As we head into late fall the paddling opportunities improve at about the same rate that the weather deteriorates. The fall colors can make for very picturesque paddles, the surf gets better, and the inlets have much less boat traffic and more current (if you like that sort of thing). The question is what to wear? We have posted many articles about hypothermia, cold shock, etc., but I've never talked about what I personally wear and when I wear it. In early fall I usually wear wet suits. I start with a shorty or “spring suit” but, as the water gets colder, I will move to a full wetsuit. The colder the water the thicker the suit. The downside to wet suits is that for them to work properly you have to get wet. As

     In this age of cable, Netflix, and Hulu, with 100s of channels to choose from there is one channel you want to avoid - the boat channel! This time of year there are lots of boaters on the water. We are lucky at Coastal Kayak because Little Assawoman Bay is much shallower and smaller than both Assawoman Bay (behind Ocean City) and Rehoboth Bay. This means a lot less boat traffic. The shallow water also means one other thing, and that is that most motor boaters in our bay will stay in the boat channel. The channel is a narrow lane through the bay that typically has deeper water. The important thing for us as paddlers is that we want to avoid the channels when possible. But if we have to cross them, we

The Level 1-2 ACA Kayak Instructor Certification Workshop is not like taking a CPR course - the certification cards are not pre-printed, attendance does not guarantee passing. Candidates have to work hard to pass. These five instructor candidates did four full days of paddling drills, wet exits, self and assisted rescues, towing, bracing, edging, tidal current work, teaching scenarios, presentations, and tests. Now Madison, Justin, Lydia, Jeff, and Tony are ready to guide you and your family through the marshes and cypress trees, show you the wild horses of Assateague, and to teach you the basics of kayaking. Many companies and park systems spend, at most, a couple of hours in one afternoon training their guides. So why do we require so much more? Because your precious vacation time is as important to us as

Like everyone else these days we are trying to break our addiction to plastic. We now use 100% recycled paper bags for our merchandise instead of plastic bags. We only sell sodas in cans. We provide filtered water to refill your water bottles. But our biggest dilemma in the battle against plastic has always been single-use bottled water. On hot summer days people need to drink water. Staying hydrated is extremely important. We have to have bottled water available. Finally, we found a great alternative! Bottled water in resealable, aluminum cans!! The company is called Green Sheep Water. Why is aluminum so much better than plastic? Aluminum is completely and infinitely recyclable. Aluminum is recycled worldwide – in many places it is actually incentivized. And it has a much higher rate of being recycled than

We've all seen the photos—in the middle of pristine, blue oceans a Delaware-sized island of floating garbage, sea turtles munching on plastic bags, dead marine mammals with stomachs full of plastic. It breaks your heart. We all use plastics—it's almost impossible not to. So we are all guilty of the crime. But we CAN do better! Like everything that's worthwhile, it is not easy to give up plastics. You have to haul your reusable grocery and produce bags to the supermarket and then deal with the stink-eye from the bagger. Or, even though you're already late you have to dig around your cabinet for your reusable water bottle, never finding the correct lid. Then you run out during the day so you have to refill it from the faucet with chlorine-flavored water. And the worst—your

We want to reward you for doing good! If you volunteer during the month of April doing something good for the environment (picking up trash, planting trees, planting beach grass, letter to the editor, raising awareness, etc.) come in after 1:00 pm on any day through July 22, 2018, show us proof of you volunteering (can be a photo, article, etc.), and we'll give you 50% off any on-site kayak or paddleboard rental. (Not good with any other offer. Offer expires 7/22/2018. Only good on rentals starting after 1:00 pm. Only good on kayaks and paddleboards rented on-site.) Looking for volunteering opportunities in our area? Here are a few places to start: Fenwick Earth Day Cleanup - 4/21/18 9:00 AM The Town of Fenwick Island Environmental Committee is sponsoring the 3rd Annual Earth Day Clean-up

Fishing, paddling with the dolphins, enjoying the serenity, getting a workout - there are many reasons that you might want to paddle in the ocean. Regardless of the reason though, the one thing that everyone must do in order to paddle in the ocean is launch from the beach - which means making it through the surf zone. In this short instructional tip I'm going to explain how to launch and land through the surf if you are paddling a sit-on-top kayak. First of all you need to recognize what the surf is doing in the area where you want to launch. If the surf is breaking on the beach (we call that shore break) our strategy will be different than if the waves are breaking out a ways. Due to beach replenishment it seems

Was it just a couple of months ago now that the days were long and warm and we were all wearing shorts and sandals?? As the days get shorter and darker, here are a few photos to help you through the worst of it. We'll see you on the other side!