If you'd rather place an order by talking to one of our cheerful order desk clerks, please call 1-888-232-4444 (USA and Canada only) or 250-383-6864. From Europe, ring our UK order desk clerk at local rate number 0845 230 9601 (UK only) or 44 (0)1865 722 113.

A Beginner's Guide to Recreational Kayaking

by Stephen R. Crowell with Fred Hill

100 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-0465; ISBN 1-4120-0102-1; US$18.49, C$24.00, EUR15.60, £10.81

Too embarrassed to ask these questions at a seminar or workshop where Patagonia wearing pros tend to look down on ignorant land-lubbers? The beginner turns instead to "The Beginner's Guide to: Recreational Kayaking". Stephen Rob Crowell provides the expertise on essentials in a comfortable, informational manner.

Read more!

about the book      about the author      sample excerpts or Table of Contents      catalogue info

About the Book Kayaking looks so simple, until you are ready to get started. How do I shop for a recreational kayak? What do I look for in a boat? What gear is essential? What knowledge is needed? What skills are required? Am I expected to wear a floppy hat and a $50.00 fishing shirt? Salesmen in kayak shops will offer their opinions on these matters. But some are simply selling boats and will say anything soothing in order to ice the deal. Others will shower you with torrents of their expertise, until the technical trivia washes over you like a curling wave. Leave the shop and you find that all that information has seeped through the scuppers (holes that let water flow out the bottom of a sit-on-kayak). Too embarrassed to ask these questions at a retail shop, seminar or workshop, where you may feel that Patagonia-wearing pros tend to look down on ignorant landlubbers, the beginner turns instead to A Beginner's Guide to Recreational Kayaking. Stephen R. Crowell provides the expertise on the essentials, in a comfortable, informal manner.

---

About the Authors Stephen R. Crowell fell in love with the out-of-doors at an early age running free and frolicking in the woods of rural Western New York. Stephen took his love for adventure to college where he earned a degree in Outdoor Recreation and Camp Administration. Houghton College gave him the opportunity to explore many different outdoor activities such as: rock climbing, backpacking, canoeing, skydiving, and challenging courses. For twenty years Stephen has used these skills in his professional work. Culminating in a year spent in Florida working at a kayak shop while training for an expedition and taking time to write A Beginner's Guide to Recreational Kayaking. This book contains nearly fifteen years of experience in canoeing and kayaking. Fred Hill is a writer and musician living in St. Petersburg, Florida with his wife, Barbara. He is the author of GRASS ROOTS: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF BLUEGRASS AND MOUNTAIN MUSIC (1980: Academy Books) and OUTRUNNING YOUR SHADOW: CARING FOR DYING PARENTS (2000: Van Meter Publications). He also served as editor and ghostwriter for Chris Grayson's A STRANGER IN OUR HOUSE: A FAMILY FACES BREAST CANCER (2001). In addition, he has published over 50 articles for academic and popular journals, on topics ranging from International Studies and history to fiction and humor. His latest book BREAKDOWN! BLUEGRASS MUSIC, THEN AND NOW, will be published in 2003. Hill is a professional musician, dabbling in jazz and ragtime piano and old-timer banjo. His free time is consumed with running, reading, kayaking, flats fishing and caring for two very demanding pets.

---

Sample Excerpts or Table of Contents

---

Catalogue Information

---