Pennsylvania boasts nearly 85,000 miles of rivers and streams and 200,000 acres of lake.
How would one even begin to explore this watery expanse?
That’s where the all-volunteer Canoe Club of Greater Harrisburg paddles in.
“[We’re] a group of people who like to get out on the water and provide a way to connect with others who like to do that,” said Jennifer Brock, CCGH president.
For beginners, a kayak or canoe may be intimidating. There’s purchasing equipment, transporting boats, and navigating unknown waterways. CCGH helps with all of that.
The club has its own boats, paddles and life jackets.
“You can definitely try it out before you make the investment,” said Cynthia Mickievicz.
Membership is only $20 a year and allows paddlers to explore with folks familiar with a particular waterway. It also provides a way to get one’s kayak or canoe to a location and an opportunity to learn from veteran paddlers.
“There is a really good ratio of experienced people to beginners,” Mickievicz said.
Mini-Vacation
CCGH also provides a sense of community.
Michelle Jones joined the club in August 2020 after moving from the Finger Lakes region, where she left a group of about 30 family members who paddled together every Sunday. New to the area and isolated by the pandemic, she found a safe, outdoor way to meet people and do what she loved.
“It’s an eclectic group—engineers, government workers and lots of retired folks,” Jones said. “They’re just really welcoming.”
Member diversity extends to the type of water experience they enjoy—white or flat, excitement or leisure.
“I’m an outdoor naturalist,” Jones said. “I like to paddle and look at the birds.”
Mickievicz’s passion is whitewater, and she has been paddling the rapids for five years. Brock, an avid canoer, entered whitewater kayaking when the club offered a trip to paddle the Grand Canyon.
People shouldn’t let age be a factor, members said. Brock didn’t begin paddling whitewater until she was 50. And without revealing her present age, she said that she’s been doing it for a while.
The club gears its trips to the skill levels of those involved, including everyone when planning trips. Members can explore more waterways or sharpen their existing skills. Regardless of objectives, the water has the same effect.
“It’s like a mini-vacation,” Brock said. “Leave your problems on the shore.”
While it’s not required to join the group for a trip, CCGH offers classes, given by certified instructors, for all skill levels.
“When you’re a beginner, you don’t know what you don’t know,” Mickievicz said.
Newbies will learn about basic maneuvering, evaluating conditions, basic safety and handling capsizes. Higher-level classes include information on operating on moving water, water hazards and reading the water, with levels three and four dealing with increasingly challenging water. Some of this training takes place in local high school swimming pools, some on waterways.
Landlubbers may be concerned about being safe on the water.
“I don’t find kayaking any more dangerous than any other activity I’ve ever done in my life,” Jones said.
Her advice—be honest about your experience when purchasing a kayak or starting out. Kayak styles vary according to skill level and type of paddling. She added that people should wear a lifejacket and carry a whistle. She also lugs a roll of handy-dandy duct tape with her for any eventuality.
Been There
The Harrisburg area provides plenty of great waterways to enjoy.
Mickievicz likes Sherman Creek, a Susquehanna River tributary in Perry County.
“It’s gorgeous,” she said. “It’s one of those really close valleys where you’re just paddling through the bottom, and the hills are reaching up.”
She acknowledged that it’s not always running, depending on the water level. So, would-be paddlers should be aware of that.
More consistent is the Yellow Breeches Creek.
Jones has paddled “the Breeches” often. It runs from Boiling Springs to New Cumberland Borough Park. But due to portages—removing a boat from the water to avoid an obstacle—the next-best put-in point is at Messiah University. Jones also recommends Middle Creek for its wildflowers, Lock 13 on the Susquehanna for its rock formations and Pinchot Lake.
Club members have paddled all of these and many others.
“The Canoe Club, they’ve been everywhere,” Jones said. “I don’t think there’s a spot that I’ve mentioned…that the group’s not like ‘Oh yeah, we been there, we done that.”
Whitewater or flatwater, desiring connection or quiet time, paddlers can find it on Pennsylvania waterways. CCGH will help get you there and help you discover the experience.
“The club is definitely a sense of community in the water world in Pennsylvania,” Jones said.
For more information on the Canoe Club of Greater Harrisburg, visit www.ccghpa.com.
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