Last week I arrived on Anglesey, where Mark and I will be running classes for several weeks. Anglesey is a fantastic place and a top notch kayaking location, and people come from all over the world to climb its stunning cliffs and hillsides, hike its mountains, and, of course, to experience sea kayaking at its finest, which includes tide races, overfalls, caves and wildlife.

One thing that can make Anglesey challenging however, is the wind. When the wind picks up, waves form. And when the current and wind are traveling in opposite directions, things can get really interesting. Last weekend however, the current and the wind didn’t matter, and our classes found shelter at Point Lynas and Rhoscolyn.

A group of happy paddlers ready for a day on the water.

Kathryn works on the Balance Brace.

On Saturday we ran two sessions of Simplifying the Roll, and on Sunday we ran a Traditional Paddling and Greenland Rolling Day. It was fantastic to work with paddlers on everything from the Balance Brace to the Storm Roll, and equally as fun to do some Greenland stroke work.

Evelyn cleans up her Standard Roll.

Set-up position is key.

Gary demonstrates a beautiful Standard Greenland Roll.

This week we have a fantastic group from the U.S., Denmark and Sweden, and we’re heading out into the wind and waves for a BCU 3 Star Sea Assessment, a BCU 4 Star Sea Training with Coastal Navigation and Tidal Planning. Thanks to Pete of Summit to Sea for providing us with an indoor classroom and keeping us well caffeinated. If you’re in Wales and haven’t stopped by his store yet, it’s well worth checking out.

Pete at Summit to Sea.

Derek works on the Storm Roll.

We talked a lot about the Greenland paddle and how to use it.

Join us for a class to find out what’s going on here 🙂

Happy rollers.

Of course, we’ve had time for other things as well, including walking in Cwm Idwal, wave watching at Trearddur Bay and munching on Toad in the Hole (vegetarian style), which Mark cooked up… AND collecting my new P&H Cetus LV (more on that soon).

Spectacular views from the Devil’s Kitchen across Cwm Idwal.

My new kayak, affectionately named “Skunk,” because of her white keel strip and trim.

Trearddur Bay.

Mark made us Toad in the Whole (vegetarian style). For those in the U.S., this does not contain mashed potatoes (although that would be yummy too).

And a close up, of the Toad in the Whole, not my husband.