Paddle London – The Best Places to Go with a Paddleboard, Kayak or Canoe book

By Anu Aladin

Dive into Blue Mind and the SUP scene in London with this must-have guide to paddling the city’s waterways.

Are you an experienced paddler wondering about the rules and regulations for exploring London’s iconic river? Or perhaps you fell in love with SUP on a sunny holiday at the coast and would love to start paddling on your doorstep now you’re home? Maybe life is just getting a little too fast-paced, and the idea of Blue Mind and peace on the water is calling?

If so, I have just the book for you, Anu Aladin’s debut book, Paddle London – The Best Places to Go with a Paddleboard, Kayak or Canoe, published by Adlard Coles, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing.

A highly experienced paddler and former co-owner of Paddleboarding London, there is no one better placed than Anu to have explored and now champion the capital’s waterways.

I can say this with some certainty, having paddled with her back in 2021 for a chapter of my first book, Stand Up Paddleboarding in Great Britain – Beautiful Places to Paddleboard in England, Scotland and Wales, with Vertebrate Publishing. Her love for and knowledge of ‘SUP in the City’ was so apparent that I hoped she would one day have the opportunity to share it with a wider audience.

That time is now, and she has created something very special.

Having introduced her own paddling journey, which began in 2011 in Falmouth and her subsequent SUP instructor training in 2013, Anu prepares the reader for the joy of urban paddling. She explains that wilderness can be found much closer to home than many of us think, with pockets of nature, architecture, culture and art simply waiting to be found.

There is a very detailed section on SUP safety, what to wear, licenses, transport and walking times, so you know how far you’ll be carrying your board and kit. Anu doesn’t own a car, so public transport plays a key part in her city adventures, which she encourages us to use too.

She also shares information regarding local paddling providers, public toilets and the rules of the road on inland waterways. There is a reminder to check for water quality and make sure we don’t inadvertently spread invasive, non-native species (INNS).

The main body of the book covers 40 different routes, including 15 on the River Thames, 18 on the canals, and seven on other waterways, some in the heart of London and others a little further afield, such as the River Mole in Surrey, the River Wey, the Godalming Navigations, and the Basingstoke Canal. There is a very thorough section on safety and resources you need to understand on the tidal and non-tidal sections of the River Thames.

Within each chapter, there is a detailed explanation – ‘the lowdown’ – on the difficulty rating, launch and exit points, portages (carrying your board) and licenses. There is a brief history of the route, which is helpful, along with simple maps and a really engaging guide to what you can expect to see and enjoy along your journey. Two elements I really love are:

• a) the Wildlife Highlight, from the white water lily to kingfishers and cormorants to harbour porpoises and
• b) the links to other routes.

As well as Anu’s enthusiastic style of writing, which makes you feel you are out on the water with her and her paddling companions, there are some fantastic photos of each route. From lush views of leafy stretches to Big Ben and Battersea Power Station, the Feng Shang Princess floating restaurant, to walking through a busy Camden High Street with her paddleboard, the photography brings her descriptions to life. I even spotted some familiar faces from my own books!

As an award-winning author of two SUP guidebooks, I know the level of research, time and sheer effort it takes to write a book that is both accurate and useful and that readers will enjoy. Anu’s Paddle London ticks all these boxes and absolutely deserves its place on your bookshelf.

If you’re a paddler with London and the River Thames on your wish list, Paddle London is the most up-to-date and inspiring guidebook that I wholeheartedly recommend. Treat yourself or a friend to a copy and find your own pockets of adventure in the capital, too.
Price: £18.99