Last week I took a short stay-cation in my hometown of Downingtown, Pennsylvania. While I didn’t actually travel anywhere exotic or new I did get to have a whole bunch of brand-new adventures. I hope you’ll come along for the ride with me this week, as I have lots to share!
One of the first things I did on my vacation was to go stand up paddleboarding (also called SUP or stand up paddle surfing) at the Marsh Creek Boat Rental.
Visiting the lake isn’t new to me, as I’ve been known to zip around on a motorized row boat with my mom and dad, but SUP was something I have never done before.
I was so excited when I saw the paddleboard come out that I couldn’t wait to hit the water, especially on this super hot day.
I did end up swimming A LOT while I was on the water, sometimes by accident because I was standing too close to the edge while some turbulent water knocked me in, and sometimes because I wanted to take a trip over to visit dad in his canoe.
Luckily I do know how to swim, and my new life vest kept me even more afloat – and made it easy for mom and dad to scoop me back onto the board.
I’m pretty sure I was the talk of the lake that day and I enjoyed waving at all the other people out enjoying the cool water.
This may have been my first time paddleboarding, but it certainly won’t be my last! Especially if this heat wave in Pennsylvania keeps up!
Tips for Stand Up Paddleboarding with your Dog
- Before visiting a lake rental spot make sure that they allow dogs on their rental boats and boards
- Make sure your dog has a properly fitted life vest – keep a leash attached to it so you can quickly grab your dog should they go overboard accidentally
- If you have never been on a paddleboard yourself, practice paddling on the lake without your dog first, it will be much harder to maneuver the board with a dog on it too
- Allow your dog to get used to the board near the shore first with you standing in the water
- Be prepared to get wet – very wet (but that is the point isn’t it?)
- Don’t bring a dog paddleboarding that doesn’t know how to swim, it is pretty likely that at some point they will go overboard especially if it is windy out
- If your dog has a strong herding instinct it is best to have only one “member of the pack” out on the lake at a time, otherwise your dog will be upset when his “pack” isn’t close together, causing him to jump overboard or panic
- Have as much fun as possible!
And the icing on my cupcake…..according to Shape Magazine I burned 500 – 700 calories every hour I was out paddleboarding (although mom says she’s pretty sure they mean it’s her that’s burning those calories), but regardless it’s also apparently the new “celebrity trend” – with paddleboarders like Jennifer Aniston and Kate Hudson testing them out too.
So considering I’m probably just as famous as those big celebs (right?) then it must be the super cool new thing to do! Not to mention I look awfully sexy doing it! *wink*
So what do you think? Is your next big adventure going to be paddleboarding with your dog? Or do you just enjoy living vicariously through me? Or better yet – have any suggestions of new adventures I should try?
Make sure you stop by the blog tomorrow to hear all about my adventures on my very first airplane ride!
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