You never outgrow summer camp. Not if you’re an ACA member, anyway. Just a one-hour drive from the concrete jungle of New York City puts you in something close to the real thing—spiders, poison ivy and all. Ahhh, the American Canoe Association camp at Lake Sebago in Harriman State Park! Meeting place of paddlers of all stripes, from budding canoeists to Olympic racing champions. Local paddling clubs maintain rustic cabins here so that club members (and their boats) can come on up to practice and “hang.”
This is where sky meets water. And weekdays (finally!) meet weekends.
We meet lots of new people here. Like baby Juniper, who has already obtained her ACA membership number. (Remember her kayak-coach parents, Kam and Gwen, from last summer’s pre-Juniper rolling class?) And of course, we run into old friends all over the place.
At ACA summer camp, slow meets fast….
…and traditional meets hi-tech.
Flying bugs meet their doom…
…and in the late afternoon sky, summer clouds and swifts gather.
ACA camp is a great place to try new things. Here, Alex tests a surfski…
…while Juniper gums a new PFD before launching on her very first paddle.
More photos from our day with YPRC (Yonkers Paddling and Rowing Club) friends at ACA camp. Click on first pic for slideshow.
2 Geeks @ 3 Knots 
The surfski looks pretty cool… Someday maybe… Gotta learn how to keep what I got upright in the surf first! You have been blessed with great opportunity to paddle amongst friends… I do envy that…
Hi! Are you an ACA member? It can help you find people and places (tho not necessarily right next door). Plus a discount on your next Subaru! 🙂
Got two subarus already! My paddle mentor / buddy is a level 5 ACA open water instructor. I’m not a member. It mainly an issue of location. 3 hrs from the nearest population base where there’s an ACA organized club. Because they are inland, they are mainly flat water paddlers and don’t seek the open coast. Locally, there are only a handful if paddlers ( again, most not to serious (in a fun way) about the sea. Trying to encourage my wife to dive in. She will paddle lakes in the summer so that’s a good thing!
You are blessed with a remote and peaceful location!
Do think about the ACA thing, though. Without access to their site, we never would’ve found out about Cumberland Island and Geneva Kayak group, for example; and that turned into a big favorite destination and travel group for us. It’s like Travelocity for kayakers 🙂 And even more fun when your spouse (or spouse-equivalent) comes along. Good luck with the recruiting! Have a great weekend, N 🙂
Thanks…. Good Advice. 🙂 Had a good practice session at the lake… Sunny, 70 F outside… Water warm… Summer Sea Breeze blowing…
Cheers
Great photos! Looks like a lot of fun.
Crossed rhe LI Sound last Saturday with Michelle Sorensen, our fearless leader. Very very rough but what an adventure- and nobody dunked. Nicholas Clarke