Lanzarote Information

I used to love playing on the water with a canoe when I was a child, we were lucky, two well worn canoes had been donated to my brother and I and after some minor repairs, we used to take them on the coast in North Wales or along the canals close to home and enjoyed messing around on the water. Since living in Lanzarote I had wanted to capture the enjoyment of paddling around on the water and we had bought a sit on top surf kayak for taking to the beach, we’ve had some fun with it, but not used it as much as I had intended.

I was intrigued when I saw a poster at our local garage advertising a day trip kayaking along the coast from Arrecife to Puerto Calero, I did a bit of research and persuaded a couple of friends to join me on the adventure. These kayaks are a serious bit of kit (Ysak Hi Lux from Rotomod), they are long and thin (16ft 6in) with a rudder controlled by peddles pressed by your feet within the kayak, something I had not experienced before. The company advertising the trip was www.kayakdelmar.com owned by Bjarke who offered for us to come down and give the kayaks a try before the event as it was a distance of 19km.

The group met at the lovely area of Charco San Gines in Arrecife, Bjarke was already there with the kayaks unloaded off the trailer and was well organised with life jackets and spray decks for each person. The trip was also open for other kayak owners to take part with their own equipment so there were two double kayaks and 17 of us including 5 women in total. We spent time sorting out our kayak so that the paddles were in the correct position, we had made our storage compartments water tight, we had a briefing as to the days event and then we were ready to start our big adventure. The weather was warm, around 27 degrees, and a light breeze, we had decided against wearing shortie wetsuits as by the time you add your spray deck and life jacket, it can get quite hot.

We set off from ‘the puddle’ at low tide, there was just enough depth for us to paddle our way under the bridges and out to sea, we started by following the Arrecife coastline to the right under the "Puente de las Bolas" the bridge near the Castillo San Gabriel and the one just past the Gran Hotel leading to the island. The water was shallow and calm and the first kilometre was easy, we used this time to get into a rhythm and practise using our rudder to steer, this saved you from having to paddle extra on one side and was a bit strange at first.

The water around Arrecife was calm and very little current, the name Arrecife means “reef” and the coast is sheltered, there was a little surf as we rounded the point to El Cable and we lost a man on a wave, it was only waist deep and he was soon back in his kayak and the group continued along the bay, we were all soon tested by the waters off Playa Guacimeta in Playa Honda which runs along side the airport run way, it seemed to take forever to reach the point against choppy waves, we were entertained by a kite surfer skirting around the group and a couple of planes landing and taking off – its a great view from sea! I had walked this stretch of the coast only a few days before and its actually 2 km in length, so even when you’re walking you feel like you’re never going to reach the end of the runway.

By this point, I had realised that I had set my peddles too far away so that my legs weren’t pushed up and outwards for more buoyancy and I was steering with the very tip of my toes, I hadn’t realised just how difficult this was going to be to adjust once we were in the water, I tried to change the position myself but after a couple of close calls where I nearly tipped myself out, I signalled to Bjarke for help. To adjust the peddles you have to twist and hold a rod and then pull or push the peddle with your foot to move it, because I had been trying to adjust it myself, I had managed to push the peddles out of reach, we finally managed to adjust it again with me holding the rod in position and clinging to Bjarke’s kayak to keep them together whilst he delved between my legs and into the kayak to grasp the peddle and pull it back up closer toward the seat!

We caught the group up and enjoyed coasting along the promenade of Matagorda, its funny how different everything looks from the sea, its very tranquil and relaxing just paddling along mentally ticking off the landmarks to mark your progress. I was surprised along the coast of Puerto del Carmen at the amount of naturists just sitting on the rocks, there are lots of little sandy coves and numerous steps down through the rocks to the water, normally you only see the rooftops of these apartments from “the strip” we were getting a chance to see the actual frontline of Puerto del Carmen.

Soon our designated lunch stop was in sight, Playa Grande, we all put on a little spurt as we were more than ready for a break and our sandwiches, Bjarke whistled to warn us to pull up our rudders before going over into the buoyed off area so we didn’t drag the rope with us, whilst disembarking from my kayak, a wave caught me and I ended up sitting in the shallows whilst someone else dragged my kayak up the beach!

The break on the beach was lovely, we all munched on our sandwiches and drank plenty of water and chatted about the trip, we were more than half way there, Bjarke estimated that it would be about another hour and then we would arrive in Puerto Calero. I wasn’t sure how it would feel getting back into the kayak, my arms weren’t aching but I had a blister on my thumb and my legs had been more than ready for a stretch out on firm land.

We kitted up again and found that we were all eager to head off on the home run, the wind had come up and was actually pushing us in the right direction, we were soon past Playa Chica where a motor boat and jet ski gave us some fun with their wakes and then the coastline started to rise and we were kayaking past the harbour extension and along the cliffs, still there were people climbing down twisting paths to reach the sea and small coves. The sea was now quite testing, the wind was stronger and one moment you would be surfing on top of the wave and then you seemed to pause and pull back until you caught another one. Your feet were constantly on the peddles steering right then left whilst your arms maintained a steady pace, we could see the marina at Puerto Calero and the fish farm and we stayed close to the coast. I was getting tired now, I kept catching my thumb on my right hand on the kayak when I was paddling, so set myself the task of beating the two kayakers in front of me to the finish. The Emerlan support boat was keeping a close eye on us and they had to caution us not to cut close to the harbour entrance, perplexed we kayaked around them and another boat and then realised why, as the yellow submarine surfaced close by!

The instant we turned the corner into the marina entrance the sea was calm again and it was bliss to glide over to the slip way. Once we were all back there was a cold drink on offer, whilst the kayak’s were hosed down and the kit cleaned ready for another adventure.

Everyone had really enjoyed the day, the girls had kept up with the boys and we had all completed the 19km. I really enjoyed the camaraderie and the challenge, this is definitely a great way to enjoy the water and see Lanzarote from a different perspective, if 19km is not for you but you fancy having a go then there are trips from 9km or just hire a kayak and have some fun.