Another weekend meant another sea kayaking course in Pembrokeshire; this week it was a progressive course for Clare, David, Mervin (aka Father Christmas) and Graham.  After breakfast in the Beaches Diner I had a good idea of where everyone was at and what they were hoping to gain from the weekend.  Pwll Gwaelod was chosen as the ideal place to launch from and we were soon on the water warming up.

A route through the rocks in the calm conditions gave an idea of the groups steering skills; an area which all had said they’d like to improve.

In this clip David is discovering whether his sea kayak turns better on the inside or the outside edge.

Is it the same if you’re going backwards?

A game of chicken was an entertaining way for the group to practice steering their sea kayaks.

And then it was time to start a short journey around Dinas Head.  This provided ample opportunity to practice the steering again through the many rocky channels.

After lunch it was back on the water to look at forward paddling on the journey back.

The wind had gone NW as forecast and the wind against tide effects caused a few problems for the group; something to work on then!

We had to make some time to explore some of the great caves of Dinas Head seeing as the tide was dropping and they would be at their best.

Once back in Pwll Gwaelod it seemed a real shame to be getting of the water as the sunshine had joined us, making the day very pleasant.

The second day I decided an Aberieddy start would be the best place to meet the days objectives.  We paddled around into the Blue Lagoon to explore our balancing and bracing.

We also met the request of one of the  group to learn how to get out onto rocky terrain.

And then it was time to see if my work would help them cope better with the small swell than they did on day one.

As we headed up to Porthgain the group certainly had more control over their sea kayaks than previously; my coaching had worked.

It wasn’t long before the marker for Porthgain Harbour came into view.

As we entered the harbour at Porthgain the sun disappeared behind the clouds.  It was enough to remind us that it isn’t quite spring yet and we sought somewhere sheltered from the gentle breeze for lunch.

Perhaps it was my mention of the tide race off Pen Clegyr, the group were perfectly together as they left Porthgain on their sea kayaking journey back to Aberieddy.

The wind was against the tide and all came through the race without incident.

We chose the wider channels to paddle through, not quite confident enough for the narrower ones just yet, although Mervin did follow me through this next one…

There are some views in Pembrokeshire that are better than this, but not many.

Once again we found time to play through the rocks and explore the caves along the stunning Pembrokeshire Coast.

These arches are particularly impressive.

By now the sea state had calmed down, exactly as foerecast.

And we were soon back to Aberidedy.  The beach looks so much nicer now that nature has claimed it back following the removal of the sea defence last summer.

The small waves landing on the beach causing the group no problems at all, it must have been all of that good coaching they’d received throughout the weekend, eh?

If you missed this course then check out our next progressive sea kayaking course in April.  Thanks for coming along Mervin, Graham, Clare and David.  All of the photos from this weekend are on our facebook page.  I hope to see all again soon; please feel free to make any comments in the box below, I love feedback!