When do we meet for sessions? During the Summer months LKA Monday sessions will be running from Ferry Bridge Carpark in Castleconnell (playground) 7pm to approximately 9pm. During the Winter months we will be meeting on Saturdays at 10am.
Once a month (Sunday) we will strive to Kayak on different Rivers. The winter venues may change according to water volume, weather conditions and is skill level dependent.
How will I get notified of meetings?…Communication of Club Sessions will be issued through WhatsApp where a message will go confirming session location, time and Skill level based on the conditions above.
What is the age bracket? Well 9 to 99+, Minimum age of membership is 9 years, however as we are an inclusion and safety driven club, if a junior member below 9 years of age is proficient in Kayaking, our senior instructor will be happy to give an assessment and offer the best course of action for the individual.
New to Kayaking? No problem, each new member either Junior or Adult* shall be registered with Canoeing Ireland and provided a four week programme to obtain a Level 2 Standard by week four: 4 x Sessions after which an assessment is required at a minimal cost and any member of the committee will be happy to discuss. The assessment is based on Canoeing Ireland standards.
Check out or river runs on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/limerickkayakingacademy/
Our events are constantly being updated.
This has already kicked off and is going to be a busy year, a little snapshot of what we have done so far and the next few weeks schedule is as follows:
January: we traveled to Cork to paddle on the Upper Bandon River which was hosted by members of the Phoenix kayaking club.
February: club members took part in the College Inter-varsity’s and some attended a REC 3
course in the University of Limerick another REC3 course is planned for November.
March: the club traveled to Spiddal in Co Galway to participate in ‘Galway Fest’, there was a big club turnout and congratulations to Muireann for winning gold in Junior Women’s white water race and coming third overall in the category, again in March members took part in the Ennistymon Falls Race we ran a club trip, now named the ‘LASK TourdeClare’ on the lovely Caher River in Clare.
River Clean up: We joined up with the University of Limerick to Clean up the river at UL which was followed by a paddle into Limerick City.
April: some members participated in Jackson Fest and the club hosted members of the Phoenix kayaking club.
May: club members took part in the Junior Liffey descent and Adults provided a safety team at
Lucan Weir and earlier that month members went Kayaking to Italy on the Sorba River.
June: was an exceptionally busy time as the club ran kayaking sessions for scout groups and others. The work was carried out by instructors on a completely voluntary basis to raise the much need funds for the club and in doing so provided appropriate sessions to enable new
instructors to log hours with beginners.
July: the club travelled across the Alps to Briancon in France. This was the highlight of the Kayaking year where we got to experience Kayaking in fantastic rivers surrounded by snow capped mountains, the complete Alpine experience. We also experienced a taste of downhill mountain biking in the Alps.
August: the club co-ordinated and ran the Annual 10 Km Rape Crisis Charity Paddle to raise much needed funds for the Midwest Rape Crisis Centre. This year Kemp Technologies came on board as a main sponsor which took place on the 17th August. This was our most successful charity event to date with a massive turnout of 100 people on the water. Later in the month the Club travelled for a Kayak Surf Session in Lahinch in Co Clare.
September: In conjunction with Limerick Kayak Club we coordinated and ran Limerick Junior fun boater X Race. This was very well supported with some participants coming from Cork and County Laois which resulted in a very exciting and fun day for all also a very successful partnership with Limerick Kayak Club. In this month some club members attended ‘PaddleFest’ and others took part in both the 60th International Liffey Descent and the Scout Lower Liffey descent and many of our club instructors provided the safety team’s at Lucan Weir and Wrens at the events. Congratulations to all who took part in the events and those who won in their respective categories.
October: was again a very busy month, we ran kayaking sessions each week with exception to one day, due to high water levels on the Shannon River. Later in the month the Club participated in the new event ‘Meelick River Fest’ in County Galway. The event was again very well attended.
November: we held our AGM which was well attended in the Castleconnell Community hub. The club continues with usual Saturday river sessions and is heading to the beautiful Spanish Point, Co. Clare on the 16th November for Surf Kayaking training with Canoeing Ireland Training & Development Unit.
*Adult Members as a standard require Canoeing Ireland, Garda Vetting and a Sports Ireland Safeguarding 1 – Child Welfare & Protection Basic Awareness Course.
Limerick Kayaking Academy 