EARTH DAY CLEANUP AT BIG SIOUX REC


On Saturday, April 20, instead of an Earth Day Cruise, SDCKA will host a cleanup at Big Sioux Recreation in Brandon, SD. The park will waive the park fee for those who come to help.

We will clean between the bike trail and the river, in the flood plain north of the parking lot. Bags will be provided. Meet at 10:00 am at the shelter.

This is a wooded area, with downed trees. Please wear appropriate shoes, flip flops really aren't suitable here. And bring gloves.

After we clean a couple hours, we could do a Brandon to Brandon cruise. More information will be forthcoming.

Please email Steve dahlmeis@hotmail.com or Cory Cory.Diedrich@sanfordhealth.org or Dave dfctx@msn.com & let us know if you can make it.  If you have questions, please call Dave 605-366-6844.

Also Pool Session at the Oahe YMCA in Pierre this Sunday at 10 AM.

We have a Sioux Falls Pool Session this Saturday as well at the YWCA downtown. The session is from 4pm - 6pm. We still have room for up to 6 more boats. It is free to members or $10 to non-members. Coincidentally, an annual membership fee is $10. Come learn to safely exit from your kayak and even more importantly several ways to get back into it. You can practice in a warm pool now or a cold spring lake later. I guess the other option is to try to figure it out once you tipped over already. Hope to see you Saturday.

Join us Jan. 26 for our annual conference!

The club's yearly meeting to talk all things kayaks and canoes is set for noon-4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 26, at the Outdoor Campus in Sioux Falls. It's free and we encourage you to bring a friend.

Feel free to bring as many friends as you like, stay for a while or for the whole day! We'll also have reps from National Parks Service, the South Dakota Kayak Challenge, the Missouri River Institute and a local shooting club, too.  Email Jarett with questions.
The agenda for the meeting is as follows:

Noon: President's welcome

12:05     Dick B. on Blood Run 

12:20     Brandon Gust from GFP on water laws and rights

12:45     Nancy G. on going to the Apostle Islands

1:10       Pat W. and others on Big Water in S.D.

1:30       Board Meeting with election of officers

1:45       Break

2:10       Capt. Ruml from Sioux Falls Fire & Rescue on safety

2:35       Justin and Kelly from Black Hills Paddlers on its new guide to West River paddling

3:00       Mary, Dave and Gene on contracting canoeing and kayaking 

3:30      Anna and Ryan Beasley on taking the South Dakota Kayak Challenge

3:50      Closing remarks/water's ahead

Additional pool sessions planned

The club hopes to set additional pool sessions - we usually have three each winter - at the YWCA pool in Sioux Falls.

The current possible dates are listed below, and your feedback can help us to nail down a date. Sunday mornings and Saturday evenings are the windows for these possible sessions.

In addition, we hope to add possible pool sessions in Pierre and Vermillion in 2013, and we'll keep you posted on those as we develop them. Here are the possible dates for the Sioux Falls sessions. Feel free to comment about any of the dates to recommend one, or email club president Jarett Bies to weigh in on when we might schedule an event. Thank you!

Saturday, Jan. 19 p.m.

Sunday, Jan. 20 a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 9, p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 10, a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 16 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 17 a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 23 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 24 a.m.

Annual conference set for Jan. 26 at Outdoor Campus

The South Dakota Canoe & Kayak Association will host its annual conference from noon-4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 26 at the Outdoor Campus in Sioux Falls.

The event will include a series of 20-minute presentations on a wide range of paddling topics, from safety to adventures. The event is free and open to all paddlers. Members are encouraged to bring a friend. In addition, a business meeting will take place, which will include the installation of new board members.

Email SDCKA president Jarett Bies with your questions about this event or to RSVP. We look forward to seeing you at the event!

Pool session set for Dec. 15

Consider joining the SDCKA for our Dec. 15 pool session. It's free to members and only $10 for non-members. Since membership and pool use fees are the same, join today and get in to upcoming sessions free. We'll take the first 10-12 sign-ups for this event, where you can practice wet exits, learn about rolling and rescues and just have fun. The session is two hours long and information is available on our club's Facebook page. Email Jarett or Steven for more information.

Join us on Dec. 15 for another pool session at YWCA Downtown Sioux Falls