The festive paddling season started off with the Liverpool Canoe Club tradition of an early trip at Llandudno followed by a Christmas meal. The winter sun stays low in the sky which makes for a spectacular ceiling with thin layers of cloud.
It was great to finish early in the afternoon while there was still a little warmth form the sun. After we had got changed it was time to head over to the Grand Hotel for drinks and a 3 course Christmas meal.
Manchester Canoe Club hold a Boxing Day race and tour on the River Goyt. We assembled at Brabyns Park where we launched upstream of the 2 weirs. There were a couple of comical swims before the group made the rest of the 3 kilometre, grade 2 descent to the club site at Dale Road. Once back at the clubhouse we fortified ourselves with a festive buffet of pork pies, assorted sandwiches and mince pies.
Later that day I made a quick dash over to Anglesey for a few days of sea kayaking. I was joined by Andrew and we quickly planned a few days of paddling to make the most of the limited winter daylight hours. The stretch between Porth Dafarch and Rhoscolyn provided us with lively seas whilst our day on the north coast was much more serene.
On the third day we launched at Porth Eilian to explore Point Lynas and the East cost. Andrew was feeling adventurous and decided to try some maritime cave scrambling at Freshwater Bay.
Finally, on the way back to Manchester we paid a visit to the Great Orme at Llandudno. This time it was much more quiet the my previous visit with Liverpool Canoe Club 2 weeks earlier. Many thanks to Andrew for his company. It has been a wonderful festive season and now i'm looking forward to the lengthening days of Spring!
