Black River Three Sisters ,NC

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Here is an interesting article written by Paul Ferguson on the old cypress in the Three Sisters area of the Black River:
www.pocosinpress.com/Methuselah.pdf

Swansboro Bear Island,NC

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5/20-5/22: Rich organized a paddling and camping trip at one of the most beautiful places on the whole NC coast: Swansboro/Cedar Point/Bear Island. Rich apparently also called up perfect weather, which is remarkable, considering what a windy spring we've had. The weather was never very hot, and it rained lightly only once in the night. Days were beautiful. Rich, Eva, Tamas, Anita, Sara, Ginger, and Cathy made up the group. Ginger and Cathy secured a campsite on Thursday, May 19, and the camp host, Julie, gave her blessing for all to occupy one site (5 tents). The Cedar Point campgound has 36 sites, and they stay full at this time of year -- mostly with retirees in camper-trailers. We saw one or more tents in the overflow area daily as well as at least one trailer. But it all worked out fine. On Friday morning Rich and Anita both arrived in time for the four of us to go paddling on a relaxed 5-mile circumnavigation of Huggins Island, across the Intracoastal Waterway from Lamar Hudgen's Barrier Island Kayaks shop. We launched at the newly enlarged Wildlife ramp next to the Waterway Inn and found it almost full of cars and trailers. Also, doing some some research for our next day's trip, we heard that on Saturday morning, 30 or more Boy Scouts would be launching at Lamar's. So we chose to launch from the Hammocks Beach State Park visitor center on Saturday for our trip to Bear Island. First, though, on Saturday we fortified ourselves with a killer breakfast, provided by Sara: thick-cut bacon and scrambled eggs from her own hens. At the state park, Sara, who had paddled out there fairly recently, knew the way and told us which markers to follow. It was beautiful in the saltmarsh, and not hot or buggy. When we got out to Bear, about a 3-mile paddle, we walked over to the ocean beach and hung out a while -- just in time to meet the 37 Boy Scouts and their dads. Wow! On our way back to the mainland we had a head wind up to about 10 mph -- enough to let us know we'd had some exercise on our 6-mile roundtrip. We landed on a terrific floating dock at the state park that has rollers on it and handrails -- you run your boat onto the rollers and pull yourself forward up and out of the water. Slick. We had dinner later that night at the Red Barn at Shell Point Landing -- fresh seafood well fried. Then we went back to camp and sat around the fire for a while. On Sunday morning, after a relaxed start, we launched at the ramp just a stone's throw away and paddled out to Jones Island in the White Oak River. We landed on the beach below a high bluff where there is a house being used as an environmental learning center. (Jones Island has been added to the state park.) We got back to the campground just before 1 p.m., packed up, and all took off for home. It was a wonderful weekend -- and well documented by Eva and Tamas taking pictures. Maybe we'll see some of those soon! Thanks, Rich, for organizing the trip. It was just great.
"Ginger"













Bear Island



Bear Island is a 892 acre barrier island that spans over 3.5 miles and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and the Inter-coastal Waterway. Bogue Inlet lies on the northeast end, and Bear Inlet lies on the southwest end of the island, each creating plenty of beautiful scenery. As part of the inner barrier islands of the Outer Banks, Bear Island is a place of unspoiled maritime beauty, and a popular place for daytrips, camping, boating, kayaking, and enjoying the native wildlife.

Native Indians inhabited the island for many years, but it was not until the 19th century that the island actually got its famous name. Known for its vast shrub thickets and large sandy dunes, it is very easy to see how the island got its famous name. Mostly deserted, and only accessible by ferry, boat, or canoe, Bear Island was originally named “bare island” by Tobias Knight, the secretary to the Royal Governor at the time. It is believed that Tobias Knight and Governor Eden were friends of Blackbeard the prirate, and it is told that the legendary pirate helped Knight negotiate the deal for the land that is today Bear Island. Knight received money and gifts from Blackbeard in return for promising to keep him safe while off the coast of North Carolina, and much of Blackbeard’s treasures were since discovered in Knight’s barn. Today, many historians and other locals believe that some of Blackbeard’s most treasured items might have been buried on Bear Island.

Much of Hammocks Beach State Park is located on Bear Island and nearby Huggins Island. A ferry service runs from the headquarters of the park on the mainland thru Cow Channel to Bear Island, and some 200,000 people a year take the 25 minute long trip through the channel to enjoy all of the amenities and recreation available at Hammocks Beach State Park. In recent years the tide has been quite low and due to sand migration the Cow Channel, where the ferry passes through, is sometimes shut down. The park however, is always open, even when the ferry is not operating.

Huggins Island is located between the mainland and Bear Island, and is part of Hammocks Beach State Park. Filled with thick forests and large live oaks, Huggins Island’s landscape is very different from neighboring Bear Island’s. From the western end of Huggins Island one can look out and see the beautiful seaside town of Swansboro. Huggins Island is only accessible via a private boat and camping is only permitted in certain areas. Kayakers love this area and boat and kayak rentals are available from rental companies on the mainland. Nearby Sharks Tooth Island is a miniscule dot on a seaside map and an island famous for its abundance of sharks teeth that wash ashore on the eastern shoreline; this island is not part of Hammocks Beach State Park but is a great place to check out.

Secluded and tranquil, Bear Island is free from commercialism and truly a marine wonderland. Commonly, people mistake the island for a bear sanctuary or place where wild bears may roam, however Bear Island is really only home to animals such as the gray fox, white tailed deer, loggerhead turtles, crabs, and a variety of migratory birds. The ocean and tidal marshes are home to smaller marine animals, and visitors to Hammocks Beach State Park often report seeing bottle-nose dolphins frolicking in the waves. Between the middle of May and late August, the female loggerheads come ashore at night to nest along the shoreline above the high tides. These mother loggerheads weigh from 150 to 300 pounds and nest every 3-4 years. During their nesting season they will lay up to six nests in a year, and the nests are typically 10 to 20 inches deep. Inside the nests are typically about 120 eggs, which are the size of ping-pong balls. The numbers of loggerhead turtles has been declining over the years as the turtles have to fight off other predatory animals that prey on their eggs, thus resulting in lower numbers of hatched turtles. Educational exhibits and events often take place at Hammocks Beach State Park to teach the public more about these beautiful creatures that are slowly facing extinction.

Visitors to Bear Island and Hammocks Beach State Park will love the camping, swimming, sunbathing, bird watching, shelling, and all the other abundant outdoor activities. Fishing is very popular here and angler’s love being able to catch their own flounder, blue gill and other seafoods.

This area was highly traveled in the past few centuries and at one time was a thriving fishing village. Blackbeard ‘s infamous ship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, reportedly sank off North Carolina’s Crystal Coast and has since been recovered. The Queen Anne's Revenge was not the only ship to fall victim to the region known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic. There have been at least five other shipwrecks that were known to have occurred off the coast of Bear Island. Many of these wrecks were due to the difficult waters and navigation problems through the Outer Banks. Debris from the famous 1926 wreck of the two mast schooner named Morris and Cliff, still washes ashore today. The vessel was carrying over 40 tons of nails and visitors to Bear Island North Carolina and the Hammocks Beach State Park area routinely find nails on the shore.

Bear Island NC, Huggins Island, and Hammocks Beach State Park are located in Onslow County North Carolina, very close to the town of Swansboro. Known for its breathtaking sunsets, beautiful crystal waters, and unspoiled coastline, Swansboro is a lovely place to call home. At Happy House Realty, we can help you buy and sell Crystal Coast NC real estate near this preserved paradise on Bear Island. We specialize in helping our clients find homes for sale near Camp Lejune and the Marine Corps New River Air Station, two of Onslow County’s biggest economic resources.

Kayak Symposium

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May 13th - 15th 2011
Vista Point Campground
Jordan Lake, Apex, NC

Join us for our 2nd annual CKC Kayaking Symposium. A weekend of on-water clinics, demonstrations, and general camaraderie for paddlers of all abilities, and with kayaks in all shapes and sizes.

Not your typical Symposium, this club event is dedicated to the fun and joy of paddling, offering an enjoyable and supportive learning environment, complete with the opportunity to connect with others who love and enjoy the sport. Whether you are just getting started or you have been on the water for years, we are planning an affordable weekend packed with fun and learning opportunities for all.

What's Included:

Wide range of On-Water Classes
Special Beginners Program
Rolling Clinics
Wide range of Off-Water Classes
Fri. night Bonfire and Dessert
Sat. night Dinner and Entertainment
Early morning Feldenkrais/Yoga
SOF/Wooden Kayak Boat Exhibit
Safety Exhibits
Gear Swap
Kayak Race
Door Prizes

You Provide:

Kayak, PFD, Paddle, Gear
Fri night Dinner, Breakfasts, Lunches
Camping Equipment (if camping)

Cost:
$50 / CKC members
Non-members must join CKC first


Symposium Events:
Full Moon Night Paddle Bonfire & Dessert Party
Morning Mist Lake Hikes, Bar-b-Que Catered Dinner
Door Prizes and Entertainment
Kayak Race for All
Roll This!
Challenge Greenland Harpoon Throwing demo
Lakeside Used Gear Sale

On-Water Skill Classes (requires pre-registration)

Introduction to Paddling Fundamentals & Foundation Stroke Refinement
Forward Stroke Workshop Balance, Bracing & Support
Turning and Maneuvering the Recreational Kayak
Turning and Boat Control Draws and Sculling
Wildlife Watching on Jordan
Kayak Racing
Kayak Navigation
Wet Exits and Self Rescues
Assisted Rescues and Towing Paddling with a Greenland Stick
Introduction to Rolling
RollingClinics

Off Water Demonstration/Classes:
Rescue Flares & Smoke Demonstration
Kayak Rolling Demo
CKC Trip Organizer Training

Special Exhibits:

First-Aid and Hypothermia Kits
Rescue Gear Exhibit
Signaling and Communications
Paddling Wear Exhibit


Instructor Bio’s

Kevin Black
Kevin spends a lot of time paddling flat water in a sea kayak on the Blue Ridge Mountain lakes around Roanoke, Virginia. Otherwise, he is trying to find time to head to the ocean for bigger water and instructing at various kayak symposiums up and down the East Coast. He is a BCU level Two coach, Four star sea paddler, ACA level four coach and has participated in several BCU five star trainings. Kevin enjoys solo trips, and his bigger ones include the coast of North Carolina; Shuyak Island, Alaska; Anglesey, Wales; the length of the Florida Keys; and many trips into the Everglades trying to get lost. For many years Kevin has taught at Symposiums at Barrier Island Kayaks, Sea Kayak Georgia, Sweetwater Kayaks, Mid-Atlantic Canoe and Kayak Festival, East Coast Canoe and Kayak Festival, Down East Kayak symposium in Maine, and has helped with instruction for the Chesapeake Paddlers Association. His current favorite paddling area is the coast of North Carolina, particularly the inlets when they start to get "biggish". He is not a straight line racer or fitness paddler, but prefers to meander and "get goofy" on the water.

Bill Bremer
A long time local paddler and former symposium junkie, Bill has over the years worked with many of the top paddling coaches from both this country and from Britain. Along the way he became one of the first ever to be awarded both the BCU Three and Four Star awards while using the skinny-stick and became a BCU coach himself in 2005. For the last few years Bill has had standing invites to coach at several symposiums around the country but is best known for being the Lumpy Paddles guy with a reputation for being the country's most popular traditional paddle maker with an international following.

Thomas Duncan
Thomas began courting a relationship with kayaks in 1998 when he purchased an open tandem kayak to get him and a pile of fishing poles to the redfish at an undisclosed location on Core Banks. He soon discovered paddling itself to be at least as rewarding as fishing. A surprising change of the tide and wind on a late fall trout trip in Beaufort Inlet convinced him that getting professional instruction was the only sensible next step. Fortunately, he fell in with a group of very good paddlers orbiting Barrier Island Kayaks and it was all uphill from there. As his wallet shrank and his paddling gear and skillset grew, he discovered that Greenland-style paddles offered some very real benefits for the variety of scenarios a coastal paddler enters. For the first time he saw the paddle as an organic extension of the body rather than a mechanical tool. He's been happily paddling with the Greenland blade ever since.

Nancy Guthrie
Nancy started kayaking in 2000 and equally enjoys the excitement of whitewater and the challenges and rewards of lakes, rivers, swamps and more recently, ocean kayaking. For several years Nancy has helped with club instruction in the Carolina Canoe Club and is an instructor for Paddle Creek. She is an ACA level 4 River and Whitewater Kayak Instructor and is currently a board member with North Carolina Paddle Trails Association.

Stephen Knight
Stephen discovered kayaking back in the early 70‟s from a long forgotten outdoor sports magazine article, and found that paddling the rivers and lakes of northern Wisconsin and Minnesota complemented training for cross country ski racing. When he moved to North Carolina, Stephen realized that the lack of winters made it easy to take up bicycling at the expense of paddling. He raced over 10 years as a USCF Cat III/Masters, and successfully completed the 1200 km Paris-Brest-Brest Randonee twice. Eventually he rediscovered kayaking. First touring, where he went through the ranks as a paddler to certified sea kayak instructor (BCU and ACA). And then racing, going from participating at local races to medaling at the US Canoe Association Marathon Nationals in both Olympic and Unlimited Kayak. Stephen continues to compete while sharing his experience and passion for the sport, most recently as a coach for spinal cord injured paddlers training for sprint and marathon kayak racing through the North Carolina based Bridge2Sport ParaCanoe project. He is also a committee member of the USA Canoe and Kayak Team ParaCanoe program which trains and selects paddlers to represent the United States. Kayak sprint racing has been selected as a demonstration sport for the 2012 London Paralympic Games and a medal sport for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.

Robert Smith
Robert‟s paddling life began on the rivers, swamps and ponds of Robeson County, NC. Using a paddle carved from a 2x4 of juniper he explored the local waters in a homemade, “Lumber River boat”. Eventually, his recreational pursuit became his professional pursuit. He is now the owner and operator of Watersmyth Kayaking in Wilmington, NC. The American Canoe Association has certified Robert as a Coastal Kayaking Open Water ( Level 4) Instructor. He has been professionally instructing and guiding for 8 years.

Craig Smith
Craig enjoys it all, whitewater kayaking, sea kayaking, and canoeing, day trips and overnight paddling trips. Paddling since 1997, Craig is one of the more popular guides and instructors for The Haw River Canoe & Kayak Co. Craig can also credit for instructing and helping many of our local paddlers through the Kayak Flatwater Meetup Group. Craig enjoys seeing people smile when they discover how easy it can be to learn new paddling skills. Good friends, and good days on the water are the spice of life. Craig has BCU 3* certification, as well as Level 3 ACA Coastal Kayak Instructor Certification, and he's not finished.

Jason Smith
Jay grew up at the coast in Morehead City and during his early years was frequently on the water fishing and boating. Ironically, he didn't begin paddling until after living in Raleigh for several years, buying his first kayak in 2007. Since then paddling has become one of Jay's primary activities for recreation and fitness and he is now paddling multi-day trips, and even participating in WaterTribe Adventure Races. Living now in Wake Forest, Jay can often be found on Falls lake and he hopes to complete a goal of paddling the entire shoreline by this spring. With family still living at the coast he also paddles at the coast frequently throughout the year. Jay has his BCU3* certification, and is the current Vice President of the Carolina Kayak Club. He is a regular club volunteer and is always willing to help others with rescue practice and mentoring skills. He's also a pretty good roller with the Greenland stick.

Dawn Stewart
Dawn began kayaking 26 years ago with white water, but paddling didn't become a passion until she discovered flat water and ocean kayaking in 1995. Her primary interests are in kayak camping, expedition ocean kayaking, and kayak sailing. Dawn paddles both an expedition sea kayak and an expedition sea canoe (Kruger Canoe), but has a boat house (garage) filled with various kayaks, and is currently building a skin-on-frame Greenland kayak, and wooden sea kayak kit.
Dawn has developed an international following as a paddling blogger on www.sandybottomkayaker.blogspot.com , where she posts about her extreme kayak adventure races, which have included seven 300 mile WaterTribe Everglades Challenges, the 1200 mile WaterTribe Ultimate Florida Challenge, and the 340 mile Missouri River 340 Race. Dawn has BCU 4*, and Level 3 ACA Coastal Kayak Instructor certifications, and has taught and guided in the past for Rock Rest Adventures, Get Outdoors, and Paddle Creek.

Joe Strain
Since 1973 Joe Strain has been kayaking from the northern coast of Quebec to the Everglades. While in New England, he taught Class II-IV whitewater as an AMC Class IV senior leader. Through his own sea kayak touring business he taught and led multi-day trips into the Boston Harbor, Cape Ann/Rockport and off the coast of Maine. His teaching experience also includes years as a downhill, cross country and telemark skiing instructor and a PADI Master Scuba instructor. In addition he was an EMT in Boston and held a 500-ton Masters license. He is also experienced in building fiberglass whitewater boats, stitch and glue and skin on frame kayaks. For the last ten years Joe has been interested in movement education and rehabilitation. He currently works as a Feldenkrais practitioner and teaches Tai Chi for Balance at the Duke Center for Living.

Ryan Taro
Ryan Taro is passionate about sharing the sport of kayaking. He was introduced to kayaking in a canoeing class 6 years ago, where the instructor announced that he didn‟t like paddling canoes (it turns out he was a whitewater kayak guide in his past life); and that the class was going to paddle kayaks. In that class, Ryan learned two very important lessons: 1) kayaks were a lot of fun and 2) starting out with good, safe, instruction is paramount to realizing a sport‟s full potential.
Since that beginning, Ryan‟s love of the water and the joys had while sailing, surfing, and kayaking have pushed him to pass along his knowledge to others. He volunteers his time with the Cape Fear Paddlers Association, holding positions as the club‟s President and Vice-President over the years and currently maintaining their web presence; the City of Wilmington Parks and Recreation, teaching basic kayak safety and rescue; and has volunteered with the various kayak outfitters around Wilmington, NC to assist in their coaching needs. A native North Carolinian currently residing in Wilmington, NC, Ryan is an ACA Open Water Sea Kayak instructor and can typically be found plying the waters around Wilmington, Wrightsville and Carolina Beaches by sea kayak, surfboard, or sail boat.

Jesse Tate
Jesse paddled a borrowed kayak in 2002 and was amazed at the "glide" through the water. Jesse bought his first boat in 2005 and began paddling as a complement/alternative to cycling ("just knew kayaking was an upper body exercise - first big misconception about the sport!"). Started doing distance paddling on area lakes and then realized one day there was a lot more to learn so Jesse took his first ACA lesson in late '05. He remembers it well. First lesson of the two day training session - turn over and wet exit! Since that time Jesse has attended several symposiums and training sessions learning from some of the best paddlers in the world and would like to share that knowledge with anyone he meets on the water who is interested in learning more about this great sport. Jesse holds an ACA L3 certification and the former BCU 3 star and plans to test for the current BCU 3 star in the fall.

Ginger Travis:
Ginger got her first Peterson‟s Field Guide to the Birds at age 9 and has been a nature lover all her life. (She spends part of every single day outdoors.) She bought her first kayak in 1998 and started using it to do spring bird counts on Jordan Lake. She writes about birding and paddling for Community Sports News, a free paper distributed in Durham and Chapel Hill.
Ginger has picked up useful rescue, stroke, and navigational skills at the annual Barrier Island Kayaks symposium and at the Wed. night CKC get-togethers at Jordan Lake; she welcomes the chance to pass on what she was taught and to learn some more at the CKC symposium. She paddles with a Greenland stick and has built two skin-on-frame kayaks in classes with Brian Schulz. She's fulfilling her goal to do a lot more kayak camping (and eagle watching) with trips in 2011 to the Ten Thousand Islands (Everglades National Park) and camping platforms on the Cashie River in eastern NC. So many beautiful places, so many beautiful boats, so little time!

Fern & Don White
Fern and Don began kayaking about 15 years ago, in the open waters of Connecticut, Rhode Island and Maine, and have taken their passion to share in the Carolinas.
Both Fern and Don instruct groups, kayak clubs, and private lessons of all type, both euro blade and Greenland Style. Don & Fern developed a proven methodology of teaching students how to roll which has been met with great success, among other elements, such as navigation, boat repair, and safety.
Don attained his ACA Instructor L3 award last year and will be working towards his ACA L4 with Roger Shumann and Scott Szczepaniak. Fern has been awarded her ACA Instructor L3 with continuance (hopefully completed next month!) from Tom Nickels. She has kayaked in locals from Maine to Florida and British Columbia.
They share their passion and knowledge easily and have developed a kayaker‟s resource website for their area: www.WannaKayak.com.