Back when I thought I’d spend the rest of my life paddling around in a kayak, my biggest frustration was that there was nothing locally geared towards bringing like-minded paddlers together to keep each other company and teach one another.

As is usual, I toyed with the idea of starting a web site to foster such a community. It was one of the few times when I decided not to take on a new web endeavor.

Now, well over a year later, somebody else has thankfully gone and done the thing I had wanted to do. The Canoe Club of Centre County held its first meeting last month and has as its mission to bring together paddlers of all skill and interest levels.

Had this been in place back then, I might not have migrated to bikes quite so quickly. While I do like being alone on my trips, I don’t want to be alone all the time. It was difficult to get out for a paddle with Brandy - in fact, I think we did that only once and that was only because my mother was along to watch Gareth while we took a quick spin around the Kettle Creek reservoir.

This is not to say there weren’t any groups. The Penn Kayak group was in full swing at that time, but most of the trips ended up being more distant than I desired or on higher classes of creek and river than I was ready for.

I sincerely hope the CCCC does well. I might even have to stop in for a meeting and see what the group is like. No, I’m not planning to buy another boat.

Yet.

I did, after all, keep my PFD, shoes, bilge pump, and watertight containers.