NSW Sea Kayak Club News

Website issues?

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 21:16:54 GMT

We have had some technical issues with the website which should now be largely resolved. Please let me know at internet@nswseakayaker.asn.au if you notice anything that is not working as it should be.

New Committee Members following AGM

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 06:35:24 GMT

Thank you to current and previous committee members, some who have served in many roles on the committee over numerous years. Please bear with the new committee members as they get up to speed in their new roles.

Following the AGM on 11 October, committee members are:

President: Richard Hackett (Sandy McGuiness continuing until December)
Vice President: Simon Swifte
Treasurer: Darryl Peacock
Salt Editor: Peter Monckton
Rock n Roll Coordinator: Dave Winkworth
Trips Coordinator: Mark Dabbs
Training Coordinator: Mark Lewis
Internet Coordinator: Paul Kennedy
Social Media: Cathy Miller

Don't forget to register for Rock 'n' Roll 26 at Twofold Bay.

AGM Weekend at Windang October 11 to 12, 2025

Sun, 31 Aug 2025 21:57:02 GMT

AGM Weekend at Windang
October 11 to 12, 2025

This year, the Club AGM is at Windang, a small beach side community about 1.5 hours south of Sydney with abundant paddling opportunities. To the south is Bass Point, picturesque Bushranger Bay, and an abundance of sea caves including the well known Kiama blowhole; while to the north is Red Point and the Five Islands. Lake Illawarra provides more protected paddling.

We will be based at Windang Beach Tourist Resort which is right on Lake Illawarra and an easy paddle out to sea via Tom Thumb Entrance. Book early to reserve your camping site or cabin as this is the final weekend of the October school holidays.

The AGM will be held at 4:00 pm in the Windang Senior Citizens Centre, a short walk from Windang Beach Tourist Resort. After the meeting, we can socialise over dinner at Club Windang which is also within easy walking distance.

See you there.

Renewing your membership

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 05:53:15 GMT

You can renew your membership by clicking on your name once you are logged on at the top right corner. You can see the instructions by clicking HERE

AGM Minutes 2022

Wed, 16 Nov 2022 11:10:53 GMT

AGM 2022 has been held at 5.00 pm on Saturday 15 October at the Patonga Community Hall. It was a great weekend, thanks for all the participants. You can read the AGM Minutes here

Latest news from the NSW Sea Kayak Club

Sat, 13 Nov 2021 03:00:30 GMT

Trips and training are on again

Our Leaders have leapt out of lockdown and there are currently ten events listed, PLUS the regular weekly trips. Make sure that you are logged in and go to the ‘Events’ page on our website to see all the details for ‘Current’ and ‘Regular’ (weekly) events. If your preferred trip is listed as full be sure to put yourself down for the waitlist as openings often occur closer to the date. Note that waiting lists may also apply to weekly trips, as the leaders will explain if you email them directly as required.

Membership renewal

Membership renewals for 2022 are open. All memberships started or renewed from 1 November 21 are active up until 31 December 2022. Please get this done early as unrenewed memberships are automatically cancelled in January and it always creates hassles where members intend to renew but don’t get it done in time. You want to renew your membership, click HERE

AGM outcome

Thank you to the thirty or so members who attended the AGM last month. Due to Covid it was a low-key Zoom affair, but it is important that we hold the AGM properly for the ongoing running of the Club. The minutes of the meeting, including reports, can now be found on our website. I was delighted that all of the incumbent Committee members from last year chose to re-nominate for this year. There were no other nominations. As such, the Committee is unchanged, namely:

Caoimhin Ardren – Training and Trips Coordinator
Ken Collins – Social Coordinator
Mark Fuller – Vice President
Paul Thomas - President
Sandy McGuinness - Secretary/Treasurer
Selim Tezcan – Internet Coordinator
Simon Swifte – Rock’n’Roll Coordinator
William Verity – Salt Editor

Kayaking magazine collections looking for a home

We are currently housing a whole swag of kayaking magazines that have been donated to the Club from various sources. Regrettably, the Club does not have the resources to make these magazines available to its members in an efficient and lawful (i.e. respecting copyright) fashion so the decision has been made to give them away. Included in the collection are 116 issues of the US Sea Kayak magazine extending from August 1983 until December 2013 (just before the magazine ceased publication). Also included in the collection are 73 near sequential issues of the glossy UK publication Ocean Paddler starting from the first issue. There are also issues of the US Canoe and Kayak magazine and UK Paddler magazine. The collection represents a great source of reference material from trip reports from all over the world, instructional articles over a broad range of subjects (including boat building), kayak reviews, book reviews, incident reports, etc. Ocean Paddler magazine is visually a splendid mag. If interested, contact Adrian Clayton (gclayton[at]bigpond.com) for more information. First in first served!

Don’t forget to book your campsite for Rock’n’Roll 2022

RnR is on at Reflections Holiday Park at Jimmys Beach from Friday 4 March to Monday 7 March 2022. Registrations won’t open until February but accommodation at these sorts of places is currently in high demand so don’t leave booking your campsite until too late. If you are interested in sharing a campsite then you could use the Club Facebook Group to find someone to share with. If you book by calling them (4997 0466) then ask for the 10% discount for Club members.

Richard Barnes sets off across the ditch

Club member Richard Barnes is planning to set off from Sydney any day now on his solo crossing of the Tasman in Blue Moon, his incredible self-built kayak. We wish him luck on this inspirational adventure and I really hope he will regale us with stories on his return. According to the Blue Moon FB group it will be possible to track his journey on the following websites:

http://lcrk.org.au/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=Main.2021Richard

https://maps.findmespot.com/s/J51Q (currently showing someone’s Hawkesbury Classic warmup)

Inaugural yearbook is on its way

The first Club yearbook is well and truly on its way – I’ve seen it! By now it might even be at the printers. So look out for it in your letter box and enjoy the read once it arrives. Thanks again William for your efforts in getting this launched.

How to use Paddle log

Paddle log is the online log book made available by Paddle Australia. It is necessary to use Paddle log to record the training and experience required to gain and renew PA qualifications such as Sea Skills and leader qualifications. On Tuesday 16 November at 10.30 Paddle NSW are holding a webinar on how to use Paddle log, functions such as producing and backing up your log, finding and renewing qualifications etc. It will also be recorded and available afterwards. To register please go to: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7417811634653721871

Kayakasia making bags from kayaks

Finally….a little story about what one adventure tourism company in the Philippines did when the tourists stopped coming due to Covid. To keep their staff employed they recycled their inflatable kayaks into kayak-themed bags, which they are now selling online. A Christmas present idea for the kayaker that has everything? See it all on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5vIMC_jMcw

Regards, Paul

NSW Sea Kayak Club AGM Meeting 2020

Sun, 16 Aug 2020 12:50:49 GMT

This Year's AGM was held in Patonga Public Hall.
You can read the AGM Minutes here.

AGM Zoom meeting at 5.00 pm on Saturday 25 July 2020

Fri, 24 Jul 2020 11:01:18 GMT

Thanks for those registered for the AGM Zoom meeting at 5.00 pm on Saturday 25 July 2020.

The link to the meeting is as follows:

https://zoom.us/j/98727852346

Please leave your video off initially. It may need to be turned on for voting reasons but we will see how we go with numbers on the ground at Patonga – and bandwidth through my mobile phone during the meeting.

Notice of 2020 NSWSKC Annual General Meeting

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 11:31:09 GMT

Notice of 2020 NSWSKC Annual General Meeting and

Call for Committee Nominations

AGM will be held on Sat 25 Jul 2020 at Patonga Community Hall and via Zoom. Below are the Agenda and details.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Saturday 25 July 2020

Community Hall, Address 6 Brisk St, Patonga, and remotely via Zoom

The AGM will commence at 5pm

BYO for a drink and refreshments to share before the meeting

Meeting Agenda

1. Present

2. Apologies

3. Previous Minutes – AGM 2019

4. Committee Reports:

· President

· Vice president

· Secretary/Treasurer and presentation of accounts

· Training Co-ordinator

· Trips Co-ordinator

· Internet Co-ordinator

· RnR Co-ordinator

· Editor

5. Special Business:

‘That Campbell Tiley be appointed as a Life Member in recognition of his service to the Club’

6. Election of the 2020/2021 Committee

We will then adjourn to the pub for dinner – no booked space but there should be options mid-winter.

Camping is available at Patonga, ring 43791287 to book. Weekend bookings need to be for two days. Cost will be minimised by booking Saturday and Sunday nights or sharing a site. Make it a social weekend by staying for the night and paddling on Sunday.

If you are interested in nominating for a position on the Committee please do so by email to either the President or Secretary. Details of the responsibilities of the Committee members are available at https://www.nswseakayaker.asn.au/page-18296. Note that the Training and Trips Coordinator positions will now be combined, and a new position of Social Coordinator has been created (see below). Nominations close seven days prior to the meeting.

In the coming days the AGM will be listed as a Club event – both in person at Patonga and remotely via Zoom. Please register your intention so that we can plan around the Covid-19 restrictions. There will be paddling options on both Saturday and Sunday

New Committee Position: Social Coordinator

This position is intended to promote the social aspects of the Club, including the effective use of social media. The role of this position is:

· Initiate, coordinate and manage events to promote and maintain the social benefits offered by the Club

· Provide oversight and direction of social media platforms formally used by the Club

Mind Your Distance - We are back On Water

Fri, 15 May 2020 09:42:35 GMT

As of 15 May 2020 COVID-19 restrictions in NSW were eased such that groups of up to 10 people can congregate outside. This has allowed the NSW SKC to resume offering Club trips for groups up to that size.

Whilst this is great news it doesn't mean we are back to where we were before the restrictions - we need to still manage within the health guidelines. So maximum group size is 10 (including leaders), and social distancing should be planned for and practised on trips, both on and off the water.

The Club requests that you do the following:

At launch and on return to cars please maintain social distancing, and efficiently get organised and move off. This is both about keeping our members safe and about public perception
For group briefings/de-briefings select a quiet location (away from the water?) where you will be able to maintain distancing whilst conducting the briefing
When on the water if you need to raft up think about doing it in a way that maintains a distance of 1.5m between people

Of course you should also download the COVIDSafe app if you haven’t done so already. We want to make sure we can do effective contact tracing if the need arises.

So keep an eye on the website for a return to (semi) social paddling opportunities!

COVID-19 virus and Paddling activities

Tue, 07 Apr 2020 06:14:32 GMT

IMPORTANT NOTICE!
from the Committee of the NSW Sea Kayak Club

Owing to the federal and state government restrictions now in place to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, all NSW Sea Kayak Club group activities (i.e. trips, training and social gatherings) have been suspended until further notice.

Your committee is working on some off water activities during these times and they will be announced in coming weeks.

Keep safe and Stay tuned.

07 / Apr / 2020

Rock and Roll - close of Registrations

Tue, 03 Mar 2020 22:29:24 GMT

With only nine days left before we gather in Batemans Bay for the 2020 Rock and Roll, final preparations are being made for the event by your committee. Registrations will close on the 6th March, which will provide just enough time to assemble your registration packs, advise the caterers at the Catalina Club of our final dinner numbers and finalise our shopping lists for breakfasts and the Saturday BBQ. Remember to use the On-line shop to purchase extra raffle tickets, extra dinners for non-paddling family members and guests, and any special needs (e.g. vegetarian) meals. Have a safe trip to Batemans Bay. If you are getting hungry on the way down, stop for a pie at the East Lynne shop, for although the building was (just) saved from the bushfires, the business was closed for 8 weeks because of fire damage and loss of power and communications with consequent loss of income.

Neil Gow

RNR20 Co-ordinator

Food Van on Sunday at Rock Roll 2020

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 11:24:15 GMT

The Two Sisters on Wheels food van, offering traditional Lao Thai cuisine will attend RNR20 from 5 pm oh Sunday 15th March prior to the trivia quiz and the Pogies. Their website is twosistersonwheels.com.au, which shows their menu. They cannot take bookings and will also serve other holiday makers in the resort, so it will be first in, best dressed! Enjoy!

Neil Gow

RnR Coordinator

Registration is now open for Rock and Roll 2020!

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 11:19:31 GMT

Registration is now open for Rock and Roll 2020! Please come to demonstrate your support for the local Batemans Bay community which is starting to recover from the recent devastating bushfires.

You will need to renew your club membership before registering for Rock and Roll. Details about the event, including guest speaker Eddie Safarik, the great raffle prizes, Pogies video entries, the trivia quiz, and the Beachcomber Paddle Challenge, are all in the latest issue of Salt.

For those that require a special dinner option (vegetarian, gluten free or vegan) please read the registration instructions carefully as you will need to register without dinner and then purchase it separately from the Online Shop. Raffle tickets can also be purchased at the Online shop if they are not part of the registration package that you want.

Remember to book your accommodation at the Big 4 Batemans Bay Beach Resort at 51 Beach Road, Batemans Bay. If you book by phone (02) 4472 4541 you can get a 10% discount.

See you at Rock and Roll!

Neil

RnR Co-ordinator

Club Update - 11 November 2019

Sun, 10 Nov 2019 22:41:19 GMT

I hope that you are enjoying the warmer weather and (slightly) warmer water temperatures to get out in your kayak. Here is a brief update on what is happening with the club.

Call for a Facebook Moderator

At our recent Committee meeting we discussed the need to improve our Facebook presence and make it easier for members to quickly post accounts of their club activities. We have decided to change our Facebook setup so that any member can post without the delay of waiting for moderator approval. Having said that, we still need a moderator to respond when inappropriate postings are made – which I expect to be quite seldom. Could this be you? This would be a great way to start to understand the detailed workings of the club – maybe a first step for a place on the Committee down the track? If you are interested please let me know by return email.

Come and Try Day a Success

On Sunday 3 November the club held a Come and Try Day for potential new members. The day was a great success thanks to fantastic planning by three committee members (especially Caoimhin Ardren, and also Mark Fuller and Beth Symonds) and further support on the day by Adrian Clayton, Campbell Tiley, Rhys Ward and John Friedman. A number of other members also loaned kayaks for use on the day. Sixteen people attended to give kayaking a try and one of them was so impressed she joined the Club the same day! Welcome Jean Watson. Thank you to all who contributed to make this day a success.

Don’t Forget to Renew Your Membership

Membership renewals are now open. We have not changed membership cost since last year so for just a few dollars you can join any number of club trips and training led by our experienced leaders and instructors, receive the outstanding Salt magazine to your door three or four times a year, register for Rock’n’Roll, boring stuff like insurance……the list just goes on. Please do this before the end of the year. It makes it easier for the committee and clears the decks before we get into final R’n’R preparation.

Happy paddling,

Paul (President)

The Massive Murray Paddle

Tue, 05 Nov 2019 22:33:36 GMT

The Massive Murray Paddle is a five day adventure of over 400 kms which is about to start its 51^st year. It provides an opportunity to overcome challenges, culturally connect with the land, people and river while raising funds for charities and community programs. This year one of our members Vicki McAuley and her son Finn are paddling in this event and raising funds for the Leukaemia Foundation. They will be replicating the efforts of their late husband and father Andrew who won his category 16 years ago.

If you would like to make a donation in support please do so directly via the following link:

https://give.everydayhero.com/au/mcauley-s-massive-murray-paddle

Good luck Vicki and Finn from all of us

Rock and Roll 13-16 March 2020 Batemans Bay

Tue, 05 Nov 2019 03:21:39 GMT

Rock and Roll 13-16 March 2020 Batemans Bay

The Club will return to beautiful Batemans Bay in March 2020 to

hold its premier 3-day annual event. Our base will again be the

Batemans Bay Beach Resort adjacent to Corrigans Beach. The

resort offers a broad range of accommodation options – from self-

contained villas to unpowered tent sites. This location provides an

easy launching to a wide variety of paddling destinations including

the iconic Tollgate Islands, the natural coastline of Murramarang

National Park and the Clyde River and its wide, protected estuary.

The program will follow the usual structure with a welcome event

on the Friday evening, hosted by the team from Expedition Kayaks.

Trips will be offered on Saturday, Sunday and Monday mornings,

commencing after the usual muster at the marquee. Participation in

the training activities on offer will be based on registration through

the Club website prior to the event.

There will be some off-water training activities and novelty events

offered on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

The traditional R’nR dinner on Saturday night will be held at the

Catalina Club, an easy stroll from our accommodation. Apart from

enjoying good company and a decent feed, we will be entertained by

an eminent guest speaker.

A BBQ will be run at Saturday lunchtime and a food van will be

on site for Sunday evening before the screening of entries for the

Pogies award (please start thinking about your entry now).

An innovation for R’nR 2020 will be a New Members’ and R’nR

First Timers’ breakfast on the Saturday morning, hosted by our Vice

President, Mark Fuller. This will help guide these folk through the

various R’nR activities, and introduce them to some of other members

of the Club’s leadership group.

So, put the dates of 13-16 March 2020 in your diary now, and book

your accommodation early. The resort is offering a 10% discount

to Club members, but to achieve this bookings must be done by

phone, not on the Internet. Our HQ marquee and exhibition area

will be in front of Cabin 5. Check the resort’s website https://beachresort.

com.au for its site plan and then call 1800 217 533 to make

a booking for your chosen option.

Our website will announce further details regarding R’nR2020 as

they come to hand, including when registration for the event is

open.

Neil Gow

R’nR2020 Co-ordinator

Come and Try Kayaking Day - Nov 3

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 07:28:32 GMT

Come and Try Kayaking Day

Sunday November 3 - Clontarf - Registration essential

2 hr sessions at 8:30am, 11am, 2pm

If you are a member of our Club we need your help to tell others about our upcoming Come-and-Try Kayaking Day. Perhaps you are also a member of another club. If appropriate feel free to distribute this information to those members also.

This event is open for registration for any adult (18 or older) with reasonable mobility and able to swim. Kayaks and necessary equipment will be provided. Participants should be prepared to get wet and bring a change of clothes.

Registration is essential and can be completed as a guest of the Club through this website on the Current Events Page (under Events in the menu at the top of this page). We will need participant contact details to organise the session. Applicants will be contacted with further information in the week prior to the event date.

Contact Caoimhin, the training coordinator for further information. Please register early for planning purposes.

Club SOPs Updated

Sat, 23 Feb 2019 07:47:24 GMT

Perhaps not major news, but evidence of your Committee working for you! I have just posted a current version of the SOPs incorporating a number of minor changes. The edits clarify the use of guest and temporary members as well as co-conducted paddles.

Potentially of more interest is our initiation of a project to reformat this document to improve its readability.

A brief update from the President's Deck

Fri, 30 Nov 2018 18:02:22 GMT

Adrian has leapt at the challenge of getting his first Salt out as editor and the bumper issue should be in the mail next week. He is hoping to get four issues out over the coming year, so keep your contributions coming.

The new Club web-site is functioning well. I hope that by now you have logged in using the link that was emailed and set a password. You also need to check the information in your profile and correct any errors or let us know if there are details that you cannot edit. Please add the year that you joined the Club. If you have a more precise date, let me know and I can update that record.

The phone apps are a really convenient way to interact with the site and are the fastest way to check the trips calendar or to register for a trip. The admin app also allows leaders to confirm which paddlers have turned up on the beach for a trip. This record can replace the paper waiver, paddlers having already acknowledged the generic risk warning during trip registration.

Rock n Roll 2019 is on track courtesy of Simon’s fantastic planning. The venue and dates are listed on the website. Registration should open early in the New Year so please register early and remember to book your campsite or cabin.

Membership subscriptions are due at the end of December. You will get a reminder in the second week of December with a link that should allow you to renew directly from that email. Although there is a brief grace period, you will need to renew to register for trips or for RnR. The cost of a standard membership remains unchanged. The Committee has made minor adjustments to the costs of the longstanding discounted memberships. If you have any issues with the renewal process, please contact either the internet coordinator (internet[at]nswseakayaker.asn.au), me or the vice president (vicepres[at]nswseakayaker.asn.au) for some help.

Thanks, as always, to the leaders listing and running trips and training for the Club and especially to Rob, Sharon and Owen for their weekly offerings on the calendar.

Update from the President's Deck

Sat, 13 Oct 2018 03:40:26 GMT

Perhaps inspired by federal politics the Club has had a mid-term change of President, but in a very different context. Tony Murphy did an excellent job as President over a year and some months and as Vice President prior to that. He will be missed by the Committee but will, no doubt, now have more time for kayaking and to pursue his many outdoor interests.

I see my return to fill the vacancy as President as short term with the hope that one of the current Committee will step up and nominate for the role at the next AGM. There are many new faces on the Committee since I stepped down as President a few years ago and this is a sign of a healthy club and something to be encouraged. If you would like to influence aspects of the Club or simply to contribute, please consider nominating for a Committee role. If you are unsure but would like to discuss nominating, please contact me and we can meet for a paddle to have a chat about it.

One of Tony’s legacies was a recent series of conversations with Paddle NSW about the possibility of re-affiliating with them. PNSW are the lead body in kayaking in NSW for liaison with policy makers and although their focus is competitive kayaking this places them as an important potential partner for us. A significant minority of our members also hold membership of Paddle NSW because of their interest in competition. These discussions did not lead to a decision to re-affiliate as the additional cost to our members appeared to outweigh the benefits, but this is an issue that may well be revisited by this or future Committees as circumstances and opportunities evolve.

The Club website has been a source of much discussion over the roughly 7 years that it has been live. Stephan Meyn built a complex customised website, but one that requires significant maintenance and management as a consequence of this complexity. Providing that technical support has been a challenge. As a consequence, we are in the final stages of testing a new website and expect to go live over the next several weeks. The site is built on a commercial template and has limited flexibility but will be much easier to maintain than our current site. Selim Tezcan and I have built the site with Selim having done the heavy lifting on most of the page design and layout. We hope that it will offer some advantages, with access to a smartphone app to manage trips for example. Keep an eye out for an email in the not too distant future. When you receive the ‘go-live’ email, please use the link to create a password on the new site and please complete any missing or incorrect details in your user profile. Once we go live, the usual web address will be redirected to the new site.

There has been a focus on training leaders and instructors over the last few years in response to a reasonable perception that they were becoming thin on the ground and limiting Club activities. This has tended to dominate the trips calendar to some extent and I would like to encourage an increase in paddles that reflect the reason that most of us paddle with the Club – which is to have fun and to meet other paddlers. I am open to members suggestions as to how we should address this, what social activities might be of interest, so let me know.

Another agenda that I would like to float and will raise with the Committee at my first meeting with them shortly, is the ability to include ski paddlers on Club trips. If supported, this would always be at the discretion of the trip leader and would clearly be more appropriate on some trips and not appropriate on others. There is clearly common ground between the ski paddling folk and sea kayakers and I think it is in the interest of the Club to foster this and potentially to tempt a few folk over the line to also embrace the joys of our brand of ocean going vessel.

Finally, I would love to see our SOP document reformatted as a handbook, easily readable and making the most of the content. It is rather dry, to say the least, in its current incarnation, but contains a lot of useful information contributed by various authors over many years. It deserves to be better presented. I ran out of steam to attack it last time I was on the Committee, maybe this time. Any takers?

In conclusion, thanks as always to the current Committee members for the energy they are putting into their areas of responsibility and to the leaders who are posting trips and increasing opportunities to paddle and to meet other Club members.

Happy paddling

Campbell Tiley (NSWSKC President)

Welcome to Club's New Website!

Fri, 12 Oct 2018 07:03:16 GMT

Hello and Welcome to Club's new website!

We have successfully migrated from the old to the new site with all current membership records as well as key information transferred.

We have made every effort to have a user friendly, functional and informative website within the limitations of the software our website is now running on. It is less flexible than the previous site but the new website presents an improved user experience for both Club Members and Trip Leaders. Please see the note on this page about the available apps and give this option a try.

Some member information still needs to be completed in your member profile. Please complete and correct your profile Information by editing the missing fields in your Profile Page here.

Thanks and hope you enjoy our new home. If you find anything broken or would like to provide feedback for improvement , please e-mail internet[at]nswseakayaker.org.au