When people see us on the river, they always assume we are a school … at a minimum there are 5 paddlers, at most there are 10! We try to balance our days with fun (epic) paddling for the older kids and fun (and safe) paddling for the younger kids. I can tell you, paddling with us is a blast … we can make the easiest Class II river fun for the expert and we can take the stress out of a tough paddle simply by laughing at me! Our kids are excellent at reading water, can find the lines and lead. They are reliable too. They are spot on with a throw rope and will be at your side immediately to ferry a swimmer to the side and gather gear. They are alert and safety minded, always having fun, but never forgetting the power of the river. They have to be, they paddle with me!! When I’m on the river and paddling with the Class IV+ crowd I’m pushing my limits to the very end so I tend to be a bit testy, irritable even. Our closest friends love this, and my kids love this because almost always there will be epic video footy of a crazy lady yelling and hollering “Are you Kidding ME?” “What the f*$&”, “Go! Paddle!” & “Where the hell is the take out?” and almost always a fun little booty beer, or booty marg at the end the day. But most of the time, I can be found paddling with the entire family, which means the experience is G-rated and tons of fun.
With kids, everything is fun, they can never be accused of turning anything unnecessarily into work. And kids love water, it’s almost a natural environment for them!! Drop ’em in a river with the appropriate safety gear and they are little fish. We teach our kids to kayak simply by having a blast on the river. No pressure, no real goals in mind except to share our love of the river with them. If they want to boof a little rock, by all means go for it. If they want to surf a wave, have at it. If they want to roll and pull their skirts, do it! That’s a great skill to have and gets them comfortable being upside down! They are always doing wacky things in their kayaks! Always. From standing up inside the boat and paddling to playing chicken to practicing tricks on the trampoline — they are not following some careful regime, it’s just pure fun. But, unbeknownst to them, every minute they are on the river they are learning new skills that build confidence and lead to a lifelong love of the water. Our older kids who paddle competitively are out there because it is fun. What they say they love about kayaking is that even practice is fun. 8 hours on a wave practicing a McNasty is fun, the adrenaline charge they get from paddling a difficult run is fun. Keep it fun, keep it light and your kids will be accompanying you on the water for years to come – there’s just no way you’ll ever get them out … and that, my friend, becomes your new struggle!! 🙂
Such an awesome family. Your kids are so lucky, I would love to be in your family. This video is way cool.
How bloody old are those kids? I had no clue you could get kids so young into kayaking. How, when, what? Give me the scoop.
So cute, their smiles, especially the tiny little one were priceless. This is such a sweet video!
Damn, where were those falls? And how old are those kids? You’ve got some rad little dudes!
Fantastic.
Do they know how to roll? Any suggestions on teaching the roll? I’ve been working for 2 summers with my almost 10 year old and he can’t seem to get it. I know it’s the coach, not the student.
This is awesome. You can see how much fun they are having being “extreme” like their older siblings, but yet in a really controlled environment. You guys rock!
Yeah buddy. Time for me to get my kids out there, they are 7 & 9.
Gnarly kids! They’ll be hucking Stikine by the time they are freakin 15!
Awww, so cute. You have a really pretty family.
I thought you had to be much older to kayak? I’m 14, what boat do I get? I so want to do this.
Totally awesome! Great to see other people participating in sports with their kids instead of sidelining it.
This made me smile the entire time. Obviously your children really love this and it’s not something mommy and daddy want to do so they are forced to participate. The smiles were genuine and the fun was palpable.
This is a really awesome family, hats off to you folks.
It is terrific to see a family enjoying each other. Keep on paddling, Kelloggs!
Damn, this is so cool. Feeling some mega pressure to get my kids out and in the river. Thanks for the catalyst!
I’m just getting started at 54, would love to get the kids in the water, thanks for the push!
Ahhh, these kids are so lucky, that looks like so much fun!
Just as good as your last post. You should get some ads on your site.
this is sis awesome. such an Awesome family. teaching kids to kayak looks like fun. i can’t even swim. traveling in an RV would be so cool. one lucky famiy. what do u all do for money?
This is the kind of life i’ll love live. Hapy kayaking!!…