Lower Wharfe Canoe Club
River Sessions
This is the time when the skills learnt in the pool can be put into practice on the River Ouse at Bishopthorpe in York. This is the base for the club’s river trips and the area where equipment is issued.
Beginners & Improvers
Coaching for beginners & improvers will take place on alternative Thursdays only
Due to qualified coach availability we will only be carrying out coaching on the following dates: 16, 30 May, 13 & 27 June, 11, 25 July, 8, 22 August 2024.
In June we joined The Big Paddle Clean up – available to ALL who have been on the river previously. This is a yearly event which is enjoyed by all!
On 4th July Robin Hood Watersports brought a selection of boats & kit for a try it session – This was available to ALL who have been on the river previously.
Each year we try to offer SUP coaching subject to wind & coach availability most weeks, if you are interested please add a comment to your booking as we only have a limited number of SUPs, we want to ensure everyone gets a chance to participate.
On coaching evenings we endeavour to run a shorter distance paddle with optional coaching for those adults who would like to learn the full range of distance paddling skills in touring kayaks. There may also be a full Millennium Bridge paddle for very experienced club paddlers subject to there being enough leaders and kayaks on the evening.
Millennium bridge paddles
A group of experienced adults paddles to the Millennium bridge every other Thursday night. This is a trip with minimal supervision, covering approx 8km. Please sign up on webcollect to ensure that this session is running. 25 April, 9,23 May, 20 June, 4, 18 July, 1, 15, 29 August. To attend one of these paddles you must attend a Thursday night coaching session for advice prior to signing up, as you must be able to paddle 8km in 1.5 hours and be aged 16+.
General Details
We park in the car park of Bishopthorpe Cricket club pavilion YO23 2SB, boats & payment are taken at the container in the York Marine Services & Campsite car park.
The cost for members & equipment hire is: £3, for non members it is £7 (with a discount for families). There is also a launch fee of £1 for all participants. We now have an electronic card reader which we prefer people to use as it saves storing cash at the container.
For the river the following equipment is suggested if you do not have a wet suit – old shoes, trousers/shorts, T shirt & waterproof jacket depending on the weather, plus a change of clothes. All other kit is supplied if you need it in hire price above.
Please sign up to all Thursday night Sessions on WebCollect so that we can make sure we have sufficient boats,coaches & helpers. Plus we can let you know of any last minute cancellations due to river conditions.
To use the sign up system: You will need to register for our booking system WebCollect choose top right ‘sign in or sign up’ & then sign up with your email address & password. You will then be able to sign up for river sessions, you will need to pay on the night.