Tag: English

SUP in Eze (France)

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Today we made a train trip to Monaco. It was really, really hot day (+35) so we just couldn’t walk around the city that long time.  We saw many fancy cars and beautiful houses and streets, drank some refreshments and then we decided to continue the journey to Eze, a small city located between Nice and Monaco.

In Eze we faced towards the sea and found a very nice and peaceful beach, with SUP rental service 🙂 (www.club-nautique-eze.fr) . It was hot so I was ready to jump to the sea and on SUP board.  The rental assistant was really nice and helpful giving instructions and helping when needed. Good service indeed!

I rent the SUP board for a half an hour.  It was a wise thing to do, in that time I did not burn myself in the hot sun.  I paddled back and forward in the bay, enjoying the different kind of waves (different comparing the ones in Finland).  Still I had a challenge to stand up on those waves.  My husband said “You are not stand-up-paddling but doing sit-down-one. I need to fix this!  Anyway the beach in Eze was perfect for SUP and the service today was excellent.

 

SUP in Nice

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The Sun is shining, wind is warm and temperature is only +26 (in the morning, during the day it rises untill +32).  Time to make one dream to come true: to sup in Mediterranean Sea. Just swimming suit on (with shorts) this time, no vest, no leash, no belt for camera, no sport tracker.  But neoprene shoes yes, the beach in Nice is covered with big stones so it is nicer to walk with those on.

It is hot so being on water or in water is really comfortable.  Waves are really bigger than I am used to so I rather stay on my knees on SUP board.  Other people on SUP boards also prefer that except few ones, but they seem to enjoy swimming during a sup paddling as well :). (I am not that into to fall into a sea with my glasses on, swimming as it own is fun though).

Going up and down on the waves is relaxing.  But beeing on the knees is really killing after a while so the joy lasts about a half an hour.  Time to paddle back to the beach, carry the board to the rental point, get a quick shower to rinse the salt away from the skin, enjoy the moment and have a cup of refreshing soda.

 

SUP in Copenhagen

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I am visiting Copenhagen with Assari (Assari’s side of a story (in Finnish)).  This is just a short visit but there was a possibility to visit a SUP place called Kajakhotellet (kajakhotellet.dk) in Amager Strand.  By the way Amager Strand is a very nice place by the sea having a large sandy beach, perfect place in a sunny summer day to enjoy life and outdoor activities like paddling and swimming. It is also located near to Kastrup Airport, so you can drop by when coming/going from/to the airport, just get off the metro at Femören station and have a short walk towards to the sea.

The day was not that warm (it is springtime still) so there was just few people on the beach area but I can easily image that the place is just awesome in a beautiful day. At the arrival it was almost a closing time but I got opportunity to SUP for a half an hour. I got my brand new wet suit on (the first wet suit experience (in Finnish) ) and was ready to go.

There were several different kinds of boards available, I said no to a plastic ‘bathtub’, they are awful.  I got a small sporty one, the smallest I have ever tried. So I was a little bit worried in the beginning if I will stay on the board, it was my first time on board after October anyway.  After getting familiar with the board, it was very ok, actually making turns with it was easy indeed.

I was all alone supping  in strange place for the first time for a long time, so I stayed in inner lagoon.  But as you can see the picture, you can go around ‘the island’ as the kayak men did. It was so nice to be on board again, the feeling afterwards was super! For a moment the sun was even shining and it felt like a summer. Pure happiness.

 

Visit in Riga (1.-3.4.2015)

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I visited in Riga (Latvia) with my daughter in the beginning of April.  Unfortunately the weather was quite bad for any outdoor activity (+2 celcius and rainy), and propably the SUP season is not started in Latvia either, so we were not able to do any SUP there.  What was noticed was that in the city center there is a very nice canal which seemed to be very suitable for SUP. According the internet you can hire a SUP board for a canal and a river Daugava paddling in Riga in the summertime.

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Canal in Riga. In the beginning of the April the weather was not suitable for SUP. Maybe next time?

 

One location perfect for sea activities according travel books, maps and a view from the airplane is Jurmala (20 mins from Riga by train). Jurmala is by the sea, in Gulf of Riga, and having a long beautiful sandy beach. Maybe next time in Latvia I am able to paddle these SUP places.

jurmala