Stand-Up Paddle Boarding

Evidently you can teach an old dog new tricks.......

We are in the little surfing town of Hale'iwa today, 

on the north side of the island of Oahu.  

The grandbabies are here visiting with daughter T, and their pick for something "new" to do on the island was stand-up paddle boarding.  

I'm ecstatic, as I've been begging to try this for ages.  

It looks like a water sport that I can handle......

Our guide tells us that this is the fastest growing water sport in the world right now.

It's a beautiful spot on a quiet little river that feeds in to the ocean. 

And it's a perfect day, no wind or current, which should mean smooth sailing  ~ 

Of course that also means there's nothing to blame it on if I fall........

We've signed up for a paddle board lesson and tour with this nice couple, Captain Steve and his lovely wife.   We have a 4 year old and a 7 year old in our group, as well as Mommy and Papa and Noni, so they have their hands full, I think.

After a some instruction (on land) on paddling and balancing techniques, (as well as the all-important how to re-mount the board if you fall off in the water) we carry our boards down to the dock, plop them into the water, step onto them, and  ~ walah!  With a little starter push from Captain Steve we are water borne.  

Just like that.

And I'm lovin' it!   
Captain Steve tells us it's easiest to balance if we are relaxed, and he's right.  After I unclench my toes and stop thinking 
about dipping and tipping, it's a breeze.  

Even the 7-year old is doing well!  Captain Steve has a leash so he can hook on and tow him if need be, but........it was not necessary. 

He paddled his own board the whole 2 hours.

At some points it's a little tricky, as we are negotiating a narrow path between rocks in the river and brush on the shorelines.  

(I told the kids that they should know 

not all Noni's do this kind of thing.......)

Of course it's all a snap for surfer / wake-boarder / water skier / 

knee-boarder daughter.

Captain Steve took Princess A on his board for the day.

She loved having her own driver.

Can you spot the turtle popping up behind them?

We head out to the ocean, under the historic Hale'iwa bridge.

This is what the local teens do for fun.  
Jumping off the top of the bridge.

And out in the bay we take a short break, dip our toes in the water, and relax a bit before heading back to camp.

I enjoyed it all so much.  It's peaceful and quiet, physical but not too strenuous, and I loved that I could go at my own pace.  

We see people stretched out lounging and sunbathing and even napping a little on their boards.  

Mr. C & I are talking about going back to rent boards for the day and taking a little picnic lunch along.   

There's a curious turtle or two along the way.   

And there's a few on land, too.

Fun for all three kids.

And nobody took an accidental dive into the water the entire day.

Not even Noni.

I give the entire experience a big thumbs up!