Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Members Only Charleston Low Country Excursion


Come enjoy Charleston, SC in a whole new way. Let Charleston County Parks & Recreation Commission show you the lowcountry via SUP, canoe and kayak, includes an overnight trip to Capers Island.






  • Dates: November 2012


  • Cost: TBA


  • Contact: Josh Hall



Learn more...









Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Frees Resources from the ACA!






The ACA eStore now has free educational resources for your paddlesports program. The eStore now has waterproof ACA Placards for SUP, Canoeing, Kayak Touring and the Paddler's Safety Checklist for you to order for your program or business.





The ACA Placards are great to give to people wanting to know more about paddlesports and this resource is waterproof. You can affix these to your boats, or put inside a lifejacket pocket allowing your participants to have the knowledge out on the water with them.





The items are a free resource for you, all you pay is shipping and handling. The placards come in packs of 100.













Monday, November 28, 2011

ACA is on Google+



Last week Google+ opened up it's doors to businesses and organizations to offer Google+ Pages.  The ACA knows social networking is an important part of how paddlers connect with one another and we want to help grow that ability for paddlers everywhere.

This is why we have created an ACA Google+ Page.  Make sure to +1 our page and add the ACA to your Google+ Circles.  You can help the ACA promote paddlesports by sharing the ACA Google+ Page and specific posts that are relevant to you with your Google+ Circles and friends.  We have a link on the ACA website that takes you directly too the ACA Google+ Page.

Friday, November 25, 2011



Join SOAR Inflatables and author Larry Rice for flatwater paddling and easy rapids as you explore the remote rivers and streams of Nicaragua on inflatable SOAR canoes.



  • Dates: February 12 - 22, 2012

  • Cost: $2,495

  • Contact: Larry Laba
www.americancanoe.org/Excursions


Learn more...










Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving



On behalf of the ACA National Office, we hope you enjoy the holidays.



(Please note: the ACA Office will be closed on Thursday and Friday, and will reopen on Monday, November 28th)




As we go into the holiday season, think about how you can give back to the communities and waterways that you paddle on.



Learn about the ACA's Community Responsibility Program.
















Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Working Lunch




Every now and then, the ACA Staff slip out of the office to "practice what we preach".




During lunch, on America's Recycling Day, the ACA staff decided to do a quick clean up of the Old Mill Park access area along the Rappahannock River near our office in Fredericksburg, VA.



This access point is used by hundreds of paddlers each year, not to mention swimmers and people trying to catch those elusive fish.



So, next time you're eating your PB & J at work, think about a simple way to "improve" your neck of the woods.




Learn more about the ACA's Stewardship & Public Policy Program.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Members Only Backcountry Excursion to the Bahamas




Out Island Explorers invites you to kayak and camp among the beautiful Southern Exuma Cays. Join them to enjoy secluded beaches, fishing, shelling and snorkeling on coastal kayaking members only excursion.




www.americancanoe.org/Excursions

Learn more...



















Out Island Explorers

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Trail Maintenance on the Upper Sugar


The Upper Sugar River Watershed Association (USRWA) is a grassroots, 501(c)(3) non-profit conservation organization located in Dane County, Wisconsin. They serve as a forum for the preservation and enhancement of the Upper Sugar River Watershed resources through partnerships among diverse community interests. A recipient of this year's ACA's Club Fostered Stewardship (CFS) Grants, the USRWA used the funds provided by the ACA and L.L. Bean to conduct a river trail maintenance project this fall. The USRWA was able to partner with Operation Fresh Start, a youth development program that addresses core issues facing low-income communities, to help remove fallen trees, strainers, and debris that obstructed the water trail and posed a threat to local paddlers.


The trail maintenance conducted by the conservation crew is just the beginning of many measures the USRWA is trying to implement to protect the Upper Sugar. USRWA plans to continue working with Operation Fresh Start's conservation crew to help combat invasive species, plant native vegetation, and curb the erosion problems that pollute local waterways. They are also going to work with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to fund aquatic invasive species community education and outreach projects, targeted at local paddlers and anglers.

The ACA is proud to have been able to help support local river groups and fund USRWA's projects to protect the Upper Sugar!

Friday, November 18, 2011

ACA Member Honored



Last month, Justin Padgett, an active member of the Wilderness Medicine Institute (WMI) of NOLS community, was recognized with the most prestigious wilderness medicine award in the southern Appalachians.


According to the Appalachian Center for Wilderness Medicine (ACWM), the recipient of its Mountain Laurel Award is someone who has “made extraordinary, lasting and substantial contributions to wilderness medicine.”


“We are delighted to award a wilderness medicine leader as deserving as Justin,” the ACWM announced.


Padgett is the co-founder and executive director of Landmark Learning, a year-round, multi-certification training center for outdoor educators and emergency medical personnel. In addition, he is a multi discipline ACA Instructor Trainer. His co-founder and wife, Mairi Padgett, said Justin feels the recognition was the result of team effort by his whole staff.


“His motivations are not to win awards, but to provide the best educational training he can,” she said.


Landmark Learning began in North Carolina in 1996 with programs that involve medicine, rescue, paddlesports, and outdoor skills. He has also created two original courses—a medic relief program and the Wilderness Starguard Program.


“His current courses include some of the most innovative wilderness and EMS training now being offered anywhere in the world,” said ACWM Executive Director Seth Hawkins.


The relief medic program trains community members, both domestically and abroad, in what to do in the first 48 to 72 hours of a natural disaster.


“We need a community that can give first aid or give long-term assessments,” Mairi said.


So Landmark Learning developed a course to train interested students for basic disaster preparedness.


The second program Justin launched, the Wilderness Starguard Program, was created because backcountry trips include stops at lakes and ponds that haven’t been assessed for safety. “We felt there was a hole in the training out there,” Mairi said. So they collaborated with Starguard to craft a curriculum through which instructors learn how to assess bodies of water and students’ swimming abilities and to improvise lifeguard rescues with backcountry gear.


After a decade, Landmark grew to be the southeastern regional training resource for camps, college outing clubs, rafting companies, therapeutic recreation providers, and school-based outdoor education programs. Then in 2007 they entered into their current partnership with NOLS to administer WMI courses in the southeastern U.S.


“Justin is a valued member of our team,” said WMI Director Melissa Gray. “His passion for people, education, and the outdoors makes him an excellent match with our style and philosophy at NOLS.”


“We feel like we’re one and the same, we’re just in our own offices,” said Mairi.
The collaboration extends to Justin co-authoring the WMI Field Guide and Justin helping to train new wilderness medicine instructors at NOLS Headquarters in Lander, Wyo.


Though the famously humble recipient of the Mountain Laurel Award was surprised by the honor, those who know him weren’t.


His co-workers describe him as “motivation in motion,” and his WMI colleagues call him “the epitome of the visionary.”


Learn about the ACA's First Aid & CPR requirement for Instructors.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Members Only Grand Ronde River, OR Backcountry Excursion








Come join Slickrock Expeditions & Burt Kornegay for a 100 mile wilderness canoe camping excursion down the fast-flowing National Wild & Scenic Wallowa-Grande Ronde River as it winds through the remote Blue Mountains of Oregon and Washington. Western Whitewaterdescribes the Grande Ronde as "one of the most scenic river trips in the Pacific Northwest.” And Oregon River Tours says, "There are few river trips in Oregon that can surpass the Grande Ronde as a wilderness experience."




Learn more...


Wednesday, November 16, 2011

November Edition of the SEI Focus Releases




The latest edition of the SEI Focus is now available online!

This issue's highlights include:



  • SEIC Policy Change
  • ACA Event Calendar Facebook App
  • New Youtube video
  • 2012 Calendar Dates Request
  • SEIC Dues now in eStore
  • Paypal now part of eStore
  • Instructor/Trainer Search visability
  • US Coast Guard Auxiliary Partnership
  • Critter Inflatables added to Pro Deals
  • ACA Collegiate Race Series Virginia Championship recap
  • Instructor Audit Information
  • Important Dates
Read Now

The SEI Focus is a monthly electronic newsletter from the Safety,, Education, and Instruction Department that provides valuable information to Instructor, Clubs, and Affliliates.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Members Only Backcountry Excursion to Mexico




Whitewater Kayak, Whitewater Canoe, Raft or Inflatable Kayak with world reknowned guide Jim Coffey and 
Esprit Mexico.  This whitewater adventure awaits in the warm climate of Mexico.

www.americancanoe.org/Excursions


Learn more...



Wednesday, November 9, 2011

ACA Event Calendar Facebook App




The ACA would like to announce that it now has a Facebook App. The ACA Event Calendar can now be viewed and interacted with via Facebook. The Facebook app is easy to add to your Facebook Favorites so you can stay up to date with paddlesport events. You can view ACA Event Calendar App via the direct link, through ACA Facebook or add it to your favorites.


Add the ACA Event Calendar to Your Facebook
Go to the ACA Event Calendar App. The app will ask for access to your public information, if you chose to allow access, you will then be brought to the app itself.


Now that you have allowed the app access to your Facebook it is listed in your apps, you can click on the pencil icon next to the ACA Event Calendar to add the app to you favorites and viola, you can now quickly access the ACA Event Calendar from your Facebook Home Page! (You may have to tweak your app settings to allow the app to show up initially on your homepage or view it in your account settings)



To Use the App via the ACA Facebook page
This is accomplished by clicking on the ACA Event Calendar listed in the left nav of the ACA Facebook Page along with wall, photos and info. This is a much easier process but more limited viewing window.


The Facebook app only requires access to information that is already listed as public on you Facebook profile.

Please see the links below from Facebook Help Center for tips on working with Facebook apps.


App Basics
Adding, Displaying & Removing Apps
App Privacy Settings




Tuesday, November 8, 2011

PHOTO CONTEST!

Did you know that America Recycles Day is November 15th?


You have ONE WEEK! The ACA is calling on you to send in your craziest pictures of you and your friends cleaning up the waterways you paddle on!


Established in 1997, America Recycles Day is the only nationally recognized day dedicated to the promotion of recycling in the United States. One day to educate. One day to motivate. One day to encourage YOU to actively participate in reducing your waste 365 days a year.


Be a part of a national movement towards a healthier planet! Your pictures could be included on our website, blogs, Facebook, and publications. The winning submission will receive a free ACA shirt! Get your submissions in by November 14th so the winning shot can be unveiled on America Recycles Day! Photos can be sent to Cate, chuxtable@americancanoe.org

Want funding to help organize your own cleanup? Apply for one of our Club Fostered Stewardship Grants today!

Monday, November 7, 2011

ACA Collegiate Race Series Virginia Championship



Students from Sweet Briar College and Hollins University endured Virginia’s first taste of winter this weekend when they met on the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg to compete in the ACA Collegiate Race Series Virginia Championship.

These students not only took on rapids, but also the rain and sub 40 degree temperatures. They donned their cold weather gear and put up some great times on the race course!

The paddlers competed in three classes, OC1, K1 and OC2. Hollins Outdoor Student-athlete Carmella Glazier took the OC1 title with a time of 11 m 34 s, and her teammates Tina DelPup and Mia McDonald took the OC2 title with a time of 11 m 9s, which also was the fastest time of the day. The highly contested K1 class was the closest race of the day; Hollins’ Madeleine Regan edged out Sweet Briar’s Sydney Fuller by 1 s to claim the K1 title with a time of 11 m 12 s.




Friday, November 4, 2011

Up the River WITH a Paddle



It will be a day that Sebastian has never seen before. The first-ever paddling race on the St. Sebastian River, “Up the River with a Paddle,” will bring together recreational and competitive paddlers alike – kayakers, canoers, stand up paddle boarders and all non-motorized water sports enthusiasts of all skill levels and ages. Organizers expect to draw paddlers from around the state who have heard about the scenic beauty of one of the most diverse natural estuaries in the country – the South Prong of the river. 

This will be the backdrop of the event, to be held Saturday, November l9 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Dale Wimbrow Park, 11805 Roseland Road in Sebastian. Proceeds will benefit By the River (BTR), the area’s independent residential community for low income senior citizens, giving them the chance to live affordably in a life-enhancing community. The race is sanctioned by the American Canoe Association (ACA) and being sponsored and coordinated by Florida Outdoor Center (FLOC).


Read Press Release





Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Vehicles in Action





ACA Subaru's have been seen all over.


Learn more about the ACA Member - Subaru VIP Program


Where have you taken your Subaru this fall?