For several years I have been intrigued by Paddle Florida. Paddle Florida is a not for profit corporation designed to promote paddling activities in Florida (see box below).
“PADDLE FLORIDA, INC. is a nonprofit corporation and is organized and shall be operated exclusively for charitable or educational purposes. More particularly, PADDLE FLORIDA, INC. is organized to promote and support paddling in Florida, as well as creating paddling events, promoting water conservation, wildlife preservation, and the restoration of springs and protection of waterways in Florida. PADDLE FLORIDA, INC. will also seek to promote Florida as an international destination for nature-based tourism in general, and paddling in particular.”
From Paddle Florida Home Page http://paddleflorida.org/
It is loosely affiliated with the Florida Paddling Trails Association, Florida parks department, Florida Fish and Wildlife and other non-profit or governmental agencies that promote the same goals.
As a veteran of the Great Hudson River Paddle (GHRP - see archived trip reports), a highly organized and regimented Albany to Manhattan adventure, I have always been intrigued by the numbers of paddlers Paddle Florida would accept on a trip. I recently paddled the Peace River trip with Paddle Florida. Their literature said they could accommodate up to 200 paddlers! I wondered how such an event could be organized to prevent chaos? How could hoards of people find suitable camping spots each night? How could food and bathroom facilities be provided for so many paddlers? How could the experience provide any sense of wilderness or contact with nature? I got the answers to these questions on the Peace River trip.
First, the actual number of paddlers was 80 rather than the 200 possible. The first year that this trip was offered, there were 180 paddlers, but the number has been under 100 since.
Second, the GHRP launches all paddlers at once and keeps them tightly contained for safety reasons on the very busy Hudson River. Paddle Florida is much more flexible on this. PF designates a launch window of about sixty minutes following breakfast. Once the lead boat goes into the water, other paddlers are free to launch as they please during the launch window. This is typically between 8:00 and 9:00 in the morning. Folks get on the water at their leisure, leaving in small groups all through the launch window. This accommodates a lot of paddling styles. Fast paddlers can move to the front while slower folks can linger at the back of the pack. The Peace River is a relatively small, winding, wild river so the paddler who wants to enjoy the solitude of the wilderness can paddle alone, while others who want the company and support of others have that opportunity as well. And yet even the solitary paddler is only a few minutes from help if it is needed.
Third, the camping sites designated by Paddle Florida easily accommodated the 80 paddlers on this trip and could have held more. Bathroom facilities were often a little sketchy, but we made do and even had hot showers the second night out! Food was ample and filling and pretty good for mass quantities prepared elsewhere and trucked to our location.
All-in-all, I was impressed by the preparation and organization of the trip. I would definitely do other trips with this organization. I do however have a couple of constructive criticisms and suggestions I would make in an effort to make a good program even better.
•I came on the trip as a singleton, not knowing anyone. Many folks came with others and had been on other PF trips. An introductory meeting during which the “rules of the game” are spelled out and folks are asked to introduce themselves would help break the ice.
•I was surprised that there wasn’t a quick informational meeting just before or after breakfast where the length and nature of the day’s paddle could be outlined, the lead boat and sweep could be identified for everyone, the expected weather could be reported and the evenings activities could be described (along with dinner, PF provides entertainment of some sort each night).
•Our lifeline to help in an emergency on the river (other than the folks paddling behind us) was to be our cell phone. There may have been a specific number to call, but if so, I missed it. A little more thought and planning could be given to handling emergencies on the river.
As this was my first trip with Paddle Florida, I may have missed some things making these suggestions with their implied criticisms unnecessary. Other Paddle Florida folks should feel free to chime in using the comment section below to correct errors, support these ideas or add additional suggestions. Click here to go to my Peace River Trip Report. Happy Paddling!
Friday, February 11, 2011
Paddling With Paddle Florida. Org
