Stackpole Sea Kayak Festival 24 - 26 May 08
Despite the horrendous weather foreccast I headed off to Stackpole hoping to get on the water some time over the weekend. As it turned out we managed a paddle on each of the three days thanks to some positive thinking by the Coaches and organisers. Stackpole Centre is owned and run by the National Trust and is set in a beautiful location close to the sea and the Pembrokeshire National Park. It is primarily an Outdoor Education Centre and apparently it is full of school children during the week. This weekend however it was home to some 60 sea kayakers of varying standard. On Saturday we joined the experienced group and headed over to the picturesque Stackpole Quay. My wind gauge showed the wind speed at a steady 25 knots this is force six so there was not a lot of enthusiasm to get on the water. We therefore went over to the more sheltered West Angle Bay which is on the East side of the entrance to Milford Haven. This allowed us to shelter in the lee of Thorn Island and sample the windy