The Potomac is the Best Place to Learn to Kayak!

Not only is the Potomac the best place to kayak, it is also the best place to learn! If you live in the DC area and you have ever thought about learning to kayak, you are in luck! You just happen to live in one of the best areas in the whole world to learn to kayak!

The Potomac River provides 365 days a year of kayaking. There are many friendly access points and a variety of sections to choose from. The river is popular and there are plenty of people to paddle with in the region. Additionally, there are excellent kayak schools including Calleva River School to learn the necessary skills.

The community of paddlers is welcoming and cheerful. As a matter of fact, some of my best friends are people that I met on the river! I began kayaking over 30 years ago on the Potomac River. I am forever grateful for the lessons I have learned, and continue to learn, on the river!

Immerse Yourself in the Potomac

Some of the most basic skills to master when you start to kayak are the wet exit and the roll. Being upside down in your kayak can be a scary experience. But getting comfortable with that is necessary for getting started on the water.

I remember being a terrified 12 year old in my first lesson. We started off with a wet exit, where you flip your kayak over and come out of the boat. I did not want to flip over and put my head under the water! It took some convincing but, when I finally did it, I was relieved to see that it was quite easy to pull off my skirt and come out of my kayak.

Once I knew that coming out of the boat was no big deal, I was able to feel good about safely paddling around and also was able to start working on learning to roll.

The Potomac River for most of its 200+ miles flows along placidly with deep water that is perfect for learning to roll. During my first several years of kayaking, I would go out on flatwater and practice my roll with friends.

Eventually, when my skills improved, I continued to practice my roll in some of the deeper rapid sections. The depth of the Potomac gives the peace of mind to know that you will not have to worry about contacting rocks while you build the skills needed to get back upright.

A River Doesn’t Just Carry Water, It Carries Life

Taking a trip down the river is a rewarding way to spend an afternoon. The Potomac has many excellent sections to go down. Paddling some of the slow moving sections is a great way to gain boat control and get comfortable and confident in your kayak.

Also, you will get to see beautiful places, experience nature, and enjoy the peace and solitude that the river provides. It is common to see bald eagles soaring above, herons stalking prey along the shores, fish swimming below you and dragonflies dancing alongside you. Then as you gain confidence in your kayak, there are sections of the Potomac with some small rapids to spice up your adventures!

It is Worth Simply Messing Around In Boats

To become comfortable with the current, waves, and rapids, it is necessary to practice maneuvering your kayak in situations with light current. When current flows between two rocks, it provides the opportunity to practice eddy turns, peel outs, and ferries.

The calm water behind a rock is called an eddy and turning into this calm water from upstream is called an eddy turn. Once in an eddy, you have two options: peel out into the current and head downstream or cross the current to an eddy on the other side (ferry).

All three of these moves require the correct angle when you enter the current and the ability to lean your kayak in the correct direction to ensure that you won’t flip over.

These moves initially should be practiced in areas of light current to gain proficiency with leaning your kayak and boat angle before moving up to areas of stronger current. Thus the Potomac River provides innumerable areas to work on these skills.

Let’s Go Surfing ⎯ Everybody’s Learning How!

Kayaking is an extremely fun sport and surfing is an activity that maximizes that enjoyment. Because each wave has a trough and gravity allows you to sit in this trough and carve back and forth without traveling downstream.

Holes (white foam piles) also allow you to stay in the same spot either sitting in a sideways position (sidesurf) or spinning around in a circle. Then as you advance with your surfing skills, you can progress to vertical moves. Which are a sure way to bring a smile to your face!

Surfing is a great way to have a ton of excitement, develop skills, and be in a very safe environment while doing so. Many surf spots on the Potomac have deep areas below them so they are friendly for rolls and bow rescues. It is also easy to recover your gear if you do come out of your kayak. 

Where should I go kayaking?

There are a plethora of places to go put your kayak in the water within a close radius to the DC area. As a result, it is a veritable cornucopia of excellent choices. Here are the top areas on the Potomac to go to develop your skills:

1. Anglers Inn

Anglers Inn is the number one spot in the DC area for access to the river and working on skills. The Anglers boat ramp itself provides a nice, calm spot for roll practice. A short distance up stream of the ramp lies The Chutes. Because of this, it gives user friendly options for surfing, ferrying, peel outs, and eddy turns.

The water level will determine which Chute is best. However, all the Chutes have a friendly area below to keep you safe if you flip over. MD Chute and VA Chute tend to have the best surf options and are fantastic areas to work on skills.

2. The Feeder Canal

The Feeder Canal at Lock 6 along the C and O Canal is a fantastic place to start building your kayak life. The placid area near the lock house is great for working on rolling. While just upstream is a section of slalom gates. There is some current and small waves for building confidence with maneuvering your kayak.

Even though the gates themselves can be challenging to navigate and are a great way to improve your precision with placing your kayak on the correct line.

3. Violets Lock

This area has a section known as the George Washington Canal. This is an island channel on the Virginia shore that has a delightful series of mild rapids that lasts for about a mile. These small rapids provide ample opportunity to practice the aforementioned skills in a safe setting.

Once you exit the island, you can paddle across the river and walk over to the C and O Canal. This usually has enough water to paddle back to your car. Downed trees can sometimes be a danger in this section but local paddlers do a good job keeping the channel clear.

4. Harpers Ferry

The area surrounding Harpers Ferry is near and dear to my heart since it is the place that I learned to paddle. The Needles section on the Potomac is a friendly 3 mile section with easy rapids throughout.

The Shenandoah River has a 6 mile section starting with flatwater and ending with a 2 mile long series of easy ledges known as the Staircase. This area contains some incredible surfing spots to practice on at all levels.

The Potomac from the highway bridge downstream of Harpers Ferry to Brunswick has mostly slow water. Although it has 3 small rapids halfway through the run to keep things exciting.

From Brunswick to Lander Boat Ramp or Point of Rocks, there is constant, gentle current. This includes several nice swim spots and rocks to jump off of. This is my personal favorite for a relaxing float trip. 

5. The Trough

Located 2 hours west of the DC area, the Trough is a beautiful gorge on the South Branch of the Potomac. The river flows along with constant riffles and has a secluded wilderness feel throughout. Calleva owns property at the takeout for camping or a convenient access point to the river. 

6. Tributaries

The Potomac River has many excellent streams coming into it that are great for fun float trips. Seneca Creek, the Monocacy River, Catoctin Creek (both MD and VA), and Antietam Creek provide pleasant sections for beginners. Areas that provide plenty of moving water, riffles to practice skills and cool water to refresh you on a hot summer day.

On these streams, you do need to be on the lookout for occasional fallen trees that can block the path and present a safety hazard.

I’ve Got Peace Like a River in My Soul

Once you experience the joy of kayaking and see the many opportunities that the Potomac River provides for a safe and enjoyable experience, it is easy to see how people become hooked on the sport.

I have been kayaking for 33 years and the feeling of my boat gliding across the water is something I have never tired of. The Potomac River has always been a source of happiness, comfort, and peace where I can reliably go to feel connected to nature. I hope you give kayaking a try and experience the satisfaction of a wonderful day on the water.

Get your own Potomac River Kayak journey started with one of the following from Calleva River School:

• Zero to Hero– Our month long intensive whitewater kayak program including 33 hours of instruction. 
• Intro to Kayak Touring– 10 hours of instruction time focused on getting you from the river into the sea. 
• River Experiences–– comprised as 4 experiences from a moonlit to a monument kayak tour.

For more information on the Calleva River School offerings please visit our site here or contact us at riverschool@calleva.org.