By Del Read
Chris Eastabrook,
Dan Wilkinson
Photos: As stated

Del Read

https://delkayaks.co.uk
@del_likes_kayaking

Chris Eastabrook

Chris Eastabrook
Dr Chris Eastabrook is an extremely talented paddler and highly respected coach. Chris’s desire to go beyond the technical skills of paddling when coaching led him to undertake a doctorate in coaching adventure sports with an emphasis on developing independent learners.

Chris is now the Head of Centre at Bryntysilio Adventure Education Centre, and so can help encourage hundreds of young people in adventure sports every year. The centre runs residentials for young people and health and wellbeing programmes for adults. They are a practice-based research group and are highly recommended!

Chris is also the father of seven-year-old Toby. As North Wales locals, Chris and Toby can often be found descending the mighty River Dee in their pirate canoe and engaging in other adventure sports, such as skiing.

Dan Wilkinson

Dan Wilkinson
Dan Wilkinson is another extremely respected adventure sports coach specialising in white water kayaking and winter mountaineering. He is also the author of Coaching Adventure Sports, which is one of my recommended reads if you are interested in coaching! Over his career, Dan’s passion has led to him being involved in multiple campaigns for improving access to rivers and introducing countless people to paddling and coaching. Dan delivered my core coach training for kayaking last year!

Based in the Lake District, Dan has easy access to plenty of paddling locations to paddle with his children. Lake Windermere is their current favourite! Dan and his wife Kate have two children: Robyn, who is four, and Harry, who is two. Robyn appeared in a Venture Canoe advert at the age of one, had her first kayak before she was two and had her third birthday party at the lake in canoes… so it is safe to say that Dan and Kate have done an excellent job at introducing her to paddling!

Kid-friendly paddling: six expert tips for introducing children to paddling

A year ago, I wrote an article sharing tips to support new paddlers and help them fall in love with white water kayaking. Following this article, several people asked if I had any specific tips for introducing children to kayaking. As I am not a parent, I reached out to the wonderful Chris Eastabrook and Dan Wilkinson, who kindly shared some of their expert tips with me. Both Chris and Dan are incredibly talented paddlers, coaches, and parents. This article will share their top tips for sharing the love of paddling with children. Enjoy!

Chris and Dan’s top tips!

1. Let the child choose the pace
Both Chris and Dan’s answers made the importance of letting a child decide whether or not they want to paddle and how much they want to paddle clear. Chris explained this point so well that I have included his extract as follows…

“I am incredibly fortunate to live in a house overlooking the River Dee and the Llangollen Canal. This has given me a rich environment to introduce my son to the sport I love. I also work at Bryntysilio Centre, which has been taking young people into adventurous environments for over 50 years. However, this is a unique circumstance, and my experience teaching Toby to ski may be as relevant as my first tip on supporting young paddlers.

“After saving throughout the year and visiting an old friend who lives in a ski resort, I’ve been able to take Toby skiing. I have taught him myself, which has been incredibly frustrating and hugely satisfying. On one particular day last year, mid-trip, we decided we were ready for a full lift pass and a reasonable expense. Unfortunately, we only made it down one easy run involving a crash, tears and a yard sale of kit.

“While I had set my expectations low, I was super frustrated at the cost of the day, his lack of progress, and now my lack of ability to ski, so I had to take him home. It’s easy to see this in kayaking with some of my friends with young children.

“Time at the lake/canal/river is limited, so parents (including me) want to get the most out of their investment in time and money. This can lead to young people being overloaded with information, staying out longer than necessary and therefore not having a great time.

“We rarely run full-day sessions at the centre because it’s too much. Leaders are setting the agenda rather than the young person. Bryntysilio focuses on giving the young people agency; outdoor activities are something they undertake, not something we undertake for them.

“This year, skiing was a different story; Toby has got the hang of it, got confidence, and is running some challenging slopes, and we were riding the chair lift, chatting like mates, at his pace (I was struggling to keep up).

“There is hope! To begin with, set your expectations as low as possible in terms of what you can accomplish. Accept that you won’t get much paddling done yourself and that the joy is in introducing your young person to the water.

“Let them decide the pace, which means the first time will probably involve driving to a location, 20 minutes getting ready, five minutes of paddling, snacking and playing near the water, five minutes of paddling if you are lucky, and then home.”

As Dan added, “Watch out for the commitment heuristic! We had loaded up before and headed to the lake, only to not paddle in the end. At their age, it’s really important to go with the flow.”

What I found particularly striking about this tip is how easy it would be not to follow it because of the effort involved with paddle sports. Preparing for time on the water is far more effort than taking your child for a walk in the local park. Making that effort only to have your child change their mind or not want to spend very long doing the activity could be pretty frustrating. If you prepare for this potential outcome and accept it as part of the journey, it may be easier to contain those frustrations and not impact your child’s view of the sport.

2. Be efficient about getting on the water
Dan suggested it was important to learn to become ‘mega efficient’ when getting ready to go on the water. Whilst paddlers are notorious for being ‘faffy’ and slow at getting ready for the river, it is something worth improving when you are with children.

Dan has even invested in a canoe trolley so that the journey from the car to the water can be made in one go. This prevents his children from waiting too long and allows them to keep up their excitement for water time.

3. Make sure it is fun
I love that making sure the experience was fun came through strongly in both Chris and Dan’s answers, as it was also a keep tip that I included about introducing adults to kayaking. When you start paddling with children, it should not be immediately about their skill development. Instead, the goal should be for them to enjoy being on and near the water. Dan says most of his paddling journeys with his children are planned so that within 10 minutes, they can get out and play on a beach or throw rocks from the bank.

Having plenty of toys with you can also really help. Particularly with young children, as they may not be able to paddle when they’re young. Dan keeps his children feeling involved by often throwing a toy ahead of the craft and then letting the children collect it as they pass by. Having an active role makes it much more fun for them than just being a passenger.

4. Make sure it’s not too scary
In my article about introducing adults, I highlighted the importance of not making it immediately off-putting. Imagine the most scared you have ever been whilst kayaking. Now imagine being in a child’s sized body for that experience. Paddling might be incredibly scary for a child, especially on white water. They are closer to the water and more likely to be splashed in the face. Ensuring that the environment is safe and not scary will help improve a child’s experience of it.

As Dan says, “It’s about the experience that they get. I’m always trying to work out different ways for them to be on the water safely. Safely at the moment, to me, is NO capsizes or accidental immersion.” If a child chooses to enter the water, that is one thing. On the other hand, an unintentional swim is a different story and could be enough to put them off paddling altogether.

5. Consider equipment and clothing to suit them
As you may have picked up from the article so far, a lot of the paddling experiences that Dan and Chris’ children have had have been in a canoe or SUP with their dad. From paddling parents that I know, a huge number of them have introduced their children in a similar way. It’s nice to share the craft with your child, and there is plenty of space to store all of the extra things that you need with your child. I know that when Toby was very little, Chris even acquired a large pirate flag for his canoe.

In terms of what to wear, it is important that it is fitted for them. On becoming a father himself, Pete Astles (owner of PeakPS) focused on developing children’s specific paddling gear, particularly introducing a children’s buoyancy aid (BA). It is important that the child has a well-fitted BA, and Dan has recommended that whichever BA you choose, you must ensure it has a crotch strap and handle for lifting them.

Dan was lucky enough that Uncle Andy from Pyranha made little Robyn a kayak paddle from a broom handle and two paddles made of ply! Being much lighter than anything commercially available meant she could lift it and use it herself, thus increasing her sense of independence.

Chris also agreed on the importance of a BA, with everything else being optional. For Toby’s early canoeing days, he would wear waterproof trousers, wellies and a t-shirt in warmer months. Chris suggested that if the child develops a taste for it, a wetsuit might be needed for colder months, and a helmet should be used once white water is involved. Forcing the child to wear too much gear at the beginning, however, can be a bit of a sensory overload. Finding a time and place for the paddle that needs as little extra things as possible is ideal.

6. Have routines and pack snacks
As a teacher, I think this one makes a lot of sense. Children thrive when you have routines as it provides security for them around what to expect. Having patterns in your paddling days can really help children to manage their own expectations. I have included another excellent extract from Chris on this point.

“When we first started running laps in a canoe of the River Dee and then back up the canal, we followed clear routines. Toby would sit on the same rock while I ran Serpent. We would stop at the same beach by the river for peanut butter and jam sandwiches. Then, on the paddle back up the canal, we would stop at the same bench to read a story. Repeating this pattern on our paddles gave Toby a sense of expectation. He knows (to some degree) what’s happening, rather than a nervous experience of not knowing what comes next.

“Now that he’s more experienced, we’ve ditched this pattern because he knows the rapids. In fact, I struggle to get him on the Dee because ‘the lower Tryweryn has more rapids. What have I created?”

Routines
I think routines help children to feel in control of their situation. Knowing what to expect is incredibly reassuring compared to the feelings of nervousness when you have no idea. I also love that Chris and Toby’s paddles incorporated other fun activities like food and story time!

Having fun activities as part of the paddle increases the positive experience. As adults, we also appreciate this! Think how many canoe clubs’ summer night activities involve paddling somewhere for a picnic (or pub lunch!) and then paddling back again.

Dan also recommended always packing snacks (and alcohol gel for hands) on family paddles. He also pointed out snacks are great for you to eat if your children decide they don’t want them that day!