Three small-space paddling games1. Follow the Leader Position paddlers bow to sterm, lightly touching. Paddle the perimeter of the pool without losing contact.2. Draw RaceLine up parallel to each other and about 5 feet apart. Chase each other in one direction, then back. Option: Have someone in charge of yelling “switch direction!” at unexpected times.3. Buried PaddleFollow a course without lifting the paddle out of the water. This is a great way to work on blended strokes. Got some good games? Please share...

After two weeks of frigid weather, the air temperatures returned to the 30s and we considered paddling on Lake Michigan, ice permitting.Our enthusiasm exceeded our opportunities. Here are a few images from our trip to scout launching and landing sites: The North Avenue beach house behind waves of ice and snow.   Snow fumaroles. Curtains from ice drape over the North Avenue jetty.   A snow fence does its best to keep the ice out.   A lonely snowman guards the beach.   There was some open water, but no safe access to reach...

We’re taking a few weeks off. Check back in mid-January.

Season’s greetings!  ...

Here are two gifts for younger paddlers or would-be paddlers:Indoor pursuits for outdoorsy kids Kayak Chaos, an all-ages board game by SimplyFun, challenges players to move their pieces down a river they construct as they go with the help of a deck of direction cards. Along the way, players avoid rocks and delay each other by shifting and flipping portions of the river.Kayak Chaos costs $28 and can be purchased online from the SimplyFun website.Thanks to Steve and Brenda Adsmond of Freemont, MI for calling our attention to this fun game!   Kayak Anna and the Palindrome Creek by local author Lina Lukashevich revolves around an 11-year-old girl who buys a kayak at a garage sale (for the palindromic price of $18.81) and explores her local creek, discovering odd creatures, water pollution, environmental activism and friendship. Kayak Anna is available for $9.99 at KayakAnna.org. All profits benefit Living Water International, a Christian organization that helps people in impoverished communities create local solutions to their water...

Here are five ways to help your favorite paddler find his or her way this season: Nautical charts and tidal data Option 1: Purchase a nautical chart to a destination your favorite paddler longs to go.Option 2: Buy Chart No. 1, the guide to nautical abbreviations and terms.Option 3: Buy the AyeTides ap (for paddlers with iPhones), which provides buoy data on tides and currents at thousands of locations around the globe.Option 4: Photocopy a portion of a chart and laminate it to create a waterproof deck chart. Include a grease pencil for taking notes on the chart.Option 5: (Best of all…) Treat your favorite paddler to all...

Remember GORP? The acronym stands for Good Old Raisins and Peanuts, and the mix has sustained many a paddler over the years.Time, however, for GORP to grow up. We think of this as…. Better than GORP We considered calling it SCRAPWAGOCCC, but that’s really hard to pronounce. Here’s the recipe: 3/4 cup raw sunflower seeds1 cup chocolate chips1/2 cup raisins1/2 cup raw almonds, toasted1/2 cup pecans1/2 cup walnuts, unsalted 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots3/4 cup chopped crystalized ginger2 cups rolled oats1/2 cup dried cranberries1/2 cup dried tart cherries1/2 cup raw cashews, toasted Mix the ingredients together and put the mixture in a Nalgene bottle. That way, your favorite paddler can tip the bottle into his or her mouth rather than handle the mix and get it wet. And your gift will help satisfy one of the essential elements of every paddler’s kit: something healthy to fuel the...

What’s the next best thing to paddling? OK, the next best thing to paddling or watching paddling DVDs, but something you can do at the same time as either of those activities?Wearing paddling jewelry, of course!R. Pauli Designs Essential Adventure Gear Rik Pauli makes some of our favorite kayaking necklaces and earrings. Some examples: Ancient paddler earring, kayak paddler necklace, kayak paddle earring.   Rik, who lives in northern Wisconsin, has been creating gold and silver jewelry on paddling and northwoods themes for 40 years. His necklaces and earrings (posts and wires) feature ancient and modern paddlers as well as canoes and kayaks, and canoe and kayak paddles. He also offers lava stone bookends with images of ancient paddlers.Necklaces range in price from $36 on a linen sports cord to $48 on a sterling silver box or snake chain, depending on the size and design of the pendant. Earrings are $38 to $58. Bookends are $80 each or $150 for a pair.You can request a catalog or order by contacting Rik at 866.631.7278 or...

Ho, ho, ho. Or is it tow, tow, tow? What do you buy for the paddler who has everything–or the paddler who only wants things that are out of your budget?For the next couple of weeks, we’ll highlight some gift ideas in the low- to mid-price range, in no particular order, including some you can make yourself.First up:  A gift certificate to a local open pool session Here in the Chicago area, several pools are open to kayakers for instruction or just for practice. Some are offered by outfitters and offer options of instruction and kayak rental as well as open pool time; others are run by clubs or schools and offer peer mentoring. Either way, pool sessions enable kayakers to work on specific skills and keep themselves sharp during the long, cold winter when the lake is frozen over.Here are some of the pool sessions we’re aware of in the Chicago area. If we’ve missed any, please post a comment letting us know. Geneva Kayak Center offers instruction and open pool sessions in West Chicago on Saturday afternoons. Buy a gift certificate here. Kayak Chicago offers instruction and open pool session at UIC in Chicago on Wednesday evenings. Buy a gift certificate here.The Northwest Passage offers four-week rolling and rescue classes in Skokie. Information here.  Naperville North High School offers open pool session on Sunday mornings.The Chicago Whitewater Association offers 10-week kayak instruction classes in Oak Park and  Des Plaines. Winter sessions begin in...