Since I spend so much time on the water I’ve always appreciated the organizations who keep track of the quality of our waterways and push for water quality improvements.  Merrimack River Watershed Council is one of those groups.  Their motto is “The Voice of the Merrimack”, which is fitting since they are tuned in to everything that goes into the Merrimack river from source to sea.

I recently contacted MRWC to see if they needed any help with water quality monitoring here in Lowell.  After a few discussions we realized there was a section of river downstream of Pawtucket dam down to the Lowell wastewater treatment facility that they were unable to access with their motorboat monitoring vessel.  This same stretch is where I SUP all year long, rain/snow/shine, so I knew I could help gather data from my board!  Below are some photos of the first SUP Water Quality Monitoring trip that we know of.

I loaded my backpack with all the gear, including bacterial sample bottles and a cooler to keep them chilled for the transport back to EPA, a nifty (and pricey!) water chemistry computer that recorded Dissolved Oxygen, pH, turbidity, etc., and a GPS to mark the location where the samples were taken.

Taking samples at Beaver Brook.  The glove is to keep any bacterial contamination from my hand from getting into the water sample.

Heading downstream from Beaver Brook towards Aitken St. bridge.  I collected samples from three locations: Beaver Brook confluence, Concord River confluence and below the wastewater treatment facility.

Looking forward to doing this again next month!  Check out their website for results of the water monitoring.

On a recent Get Out and Paddle night, Oliver, Phillipe and I headed upstream from the boathouse and discovered a cool new spot.

A friend of Phillipe turned us on to a side creek off the Merrimack which went underneath an old Mill buidling.  Sure enough, after a 15 minute paddle upstream we found the creek.

What a cool place to SUP!  Gliding up the narrow creek then UNDER the mill buidling was a unique, somewhat spooky way of exploring the Mill City.  Anyone interested in checking this out let me know and we can do a guided trip.  Thanks Phillipe for letting me know about it!

Heidi, Eileeen, Janet and JoJo came out to try Stand Up Paddlesurfing on Saturday.  Janet set up the weekend class by rallying her friends back in June.  These independent, fun-loving ladies weren’t afraid to jump into a new adventure!  Now, I’m not saying these girls are old, but Janet did send me an email a few days before the class that cracked me up.  It read “We’re a bunch of old ladies, what do we do if it’s raining or thunderstorms?!”

Answer: Try Stand Up Paddlesurfing for the first time!  As has been the case all summer, rain and thunderstorms were looming in the forecast.  Luckily Janet made the call not to cancel, and what a great decision!  The rain ended Saturday morning just in time for our class to start, and it turned out to be a beautiful day, with calm winds and sunshine (so much sun we had to break out the sunscreen).

Despite reservations as to whether they would be able to do it (and several bets going as to who would fall in the most!), they all did GREAT!  It was really fun to watch them go from nervous anticipation and uncertainty  to standing up, walking on water, developing solid paddle technique and getting a great workout…all while having a great time being out on the water with friends.

By the end of the class, everyone was all smiles and confident that SUP was a sport they could not only do, but truly succeed at.  I look forward to paddling with you all again soon ladies, thanks for a fun class!  See you on the water again soon….

The past few weeks I’ve started teaching classes in Newton through Charles River Canoe and Kayak.  These guys run a great kayak program and outfitters shop where you can rent, demo and purchase just about every type of kayak or canoe there is.  They are interested in adding SUP to their program, so I’ve been offering initial classes to help get things rolling.  So far so good!  I’ve had some great classes with some great folks.  My last class in Newton (for the time being) was with Beth, Derek, Renata and Karen.

Renata and Karen work for the Charles River Conservancy, a great organization that advocates for improved water quality and public use of the Charles River. Very cool.

The weather started off a bit windy, challenging everyone to dial in their forward stroke and make it to the wind protected area upstream.  We all made it and proceeded to paddle up river under the many bridges that cross the Charles in this section.  One particular bridge produces an incredible echo, and Renata treated us to some great vocals as we passed through.

On the way back down river we worked on turning skills, ending up back at the boathouse after trading boards so everyone could try the different styles.  Once again a great class with great people!  Thanks for coming out and learning to walk on water.  See you on the water again soon.

This past Monday Carol and her husband Wolf came out for a class.  The weather was beautiful and they did great despite the less than cooperative wind gusts!  Wind is definitely the biggest x-factor when learning to SUP.  Going with the wind is great….unless you have to go back against it later!

June was officially the 10th wettest on record since 1895, but it might as well have been #1 in my book.  Luckily we’ve finally broken the pattern (for now) and it looks like sun and warmth are rolling in!  Stand Up Paddlesurfing is much more fun in the sun and warm weather!

After a five day weather delay and rescheduled class, Phillipe, Jen, Oliver and Irene were able to hit the water on Sunday with great weather.  These guys were made to SUP, even though Irene didn’t realize it at first.  “I can’t do this” were her first words after climbing on board in the first stage kneeling position.  Despite her initial reservations, within 20 minutes she was up and paddling and did GREAT right along with the rest of the crew.

Jen’s forward stroke looked great while Oliver was looking cool and collected the whole time (don’t look back though! , and Phillipe was pushing his limits trying pivot turns and tail stalls.  The wind was a factor today, as were the half dozen ski boats and ski-doos that made it more like the ocean than a calm stretch of river!  We went downstream and then came back up against the wind, not easy for first timers, but by the time we headed back to the boathouse, everyone was using their core muscles and making good progress.

Back at the dock Oliver and Phillipe were working the pivot turns and tail stalls, so I joined them and we all ended up falling in plenty of times.  No worries though, this is what it’s all about, having fun with friends and learning new skills that would make Napoleon Dynamite proud.  Looking forward to padding with you guys again soon!  More photos of this class are here.

At 4pm on Monday it was pouring rain in Lowell, something I’ve come to expect despite the fact that it’s officially summer.  To cancel class, or not to cancel, that was the question.  I checked the radar loop and it looked like this was the last batch of thunderstorms.  Not to cancel is the call, and it worked out great! 

Alan, Courtney and Matt scored perfect weather and a beautiful evening to walk on water.  All three of these guys did great and were cruising all over the Merrimack, practicing balance while learning the forward and sweep (turning) strokes.  Alan was styling his strokes and then decided to “cool off” a few times, no big deal, the water is really nice!  I always say, if you’re not swimming, there’s more to learn!  Courtney accomplished her goal of staying dry (and being a natural) and Matt was really getting the hang of “feeling the flow” of the water with the paddle.

Not an hour after class, the sky unleashed yet another deluge that lasted into the evening.  What perfect timing!  Hopefully this run of rain will end soon and we’ll be complaining about hot, sunny days and wishing for more cool, rainy ones….right now I’ll take the heat and sun!

We’ve partnered with Charles River Canoe & Kayak to bring classes to the Newton area.  This is a great location for people in and around Newton, as well as a  more convenient location for folks in Boston.  These classes take place at the Newton boathouse on the scenic Charles River.  Classes are limited so sign up now in order to reserve a spot!  Available dates are July 6th, 7th, 15th and 16th from 4-5:30pm and 6-7:30pm.  LEARN MORE

Last week Arianna, Ashley and Thavy, all Lowell High crew team members signed up for a class.  During crew practice they saw the boards and wanted to try SUP for themselves.  Last Tuesday the weather was awful, but they showed up anyway and we got about an hour in before the wind, drizzle, fog and cold sent us in.  Since we didn’t get a full day in we decided to finish the class next week.  What a difference a week makes!  Beautiful weather meant we could work on more technique and not worry about getting wet…and these girls sure didn’t mind!  They were all over it, trying everything I threw at them, falling in the water, laughing, getting back on board and trying again.  This is what it’s all about, enjoying the water with your friends and learning something new.  Thanks for a fun class ladies, we’ll see you on the water again soon.

UMass Lowell staff members Pete Murray, his wife Shannon and Samantha O’Leary came out to try SUP today as well.  Shannon is about four months pregnant and did a terrific job balancing both herself and the little one!  Pete and Sam, being the adventurous types, both got familiar with the river (in other words, they got wet!).  No worries, the weather was great and the water was warm!

Northeast Paddlesurf has officially been open for one week!  We’ve had a great response to the Lowell Sun article (next post down), and are off to a terrific start, booking quite a few classes already.

Today Alyssa and Sara tried SUP for the first time.  Both are former collegiate rowers (UML alumi, yeah!), so they were familiar with the Merrimack river, having rowed here in college.  I was impressed that they came out despite a prediction of rain and cool weather.  Lucky for us the weather held and it ended up being a beautiful afternoon.  There was a bit of wind but not too much, and Sara and Alyssa did GREAT!  We paddled for over an hour honing the basic techniques and strokes, and before we were done they were asking “How do we keep doing this?!”  I think that means they like it!  My plan is to offer a weekly rental day for students who have taken the Intro class, with the goal being to get more time on the water   before taking the Level 2 class.  Right now it’s proposed as Wednesday evenings from 6-8pm, but may change based on my availability.  I’m going to get a calendar on the website soon that I can update with this type of information.

Big thank you to Sara and Alyssa for being troopers and pioneering SUP in Lowell!  See you guys on the water again soon

-Jimmy