Helgeland paddling symposium 2019

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Date: 10.05.19 - 12.05.19

Location: Tonnes, Norway

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The origin of the Helgeland paddling symposium (former Tonnes paddling symposium)

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The Helgeland paddling symposium was first organized in April 2015 as a kickoff to the paddling season with a focus on safety, first aid, technique and seamanship. 23 fresh and experienced paddlers found their way to Tonnes to develop or further develop the necessary skills together to be able to enjoy the sea with friends and acquaintances without danger to life and health.

In 2016, we took this whole concept several notches further and we extended the program to 3 days, hired profiled and extremely competent guest instructors from Finnmark in the north to Sør-Trøndelag in the south, we hired regional activity managers from 6 Helgeland municipalities and we bought top equipment so that the beginners who came to experience kayaking for the first time were left with a good experience.

 We hired our own first aid instructors to be able to send the participants home with an approved first aid course, which both alone and together with basic kayaking skills has proven very useful in many situations during the summer.

In 2016, we welcomed 70 paddlers from far and wide at Tonnes out in the sea gap on the Helgeland coast.

In 2017, we experienced further growth. Just dropped the dates 5-7. May meant that 25-30 people had acquired accommodation during one afternoon. The interest was great, but the infrastructure was a limitation and we had to put an intake stop at 75 participants in 2017. In 2018 we moved the destination to Nesna to check out the conditions out there. This year, however, we are back at our base at Tonnes, where we have planned several memorable experiences.

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Well met!

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