We have some amazing clubs in Cumbria and it's great to see that these are starting to be recognised by British canoeing. 

Here's a snippet taken from their latest article, which you can read in full here, regarding Carlisle canoe clubs quality club mark.

The feedback from these clubs has been great. Here's what they had to say about the process of becoming a Quality Club:
"At Carlisle Canoe Club we are proud to have achieved “Quality Club” status. We recognise the importance of good governance and leadership in providing a safe framework in which to operate. The work we have done to achieve this is built on the strong foundation provided by the previous quality and club marks. The easy to follow Quality Club process caused the club to focus more on what we do off the water just as much as on the water. 
The process has steered us to improve how and where we document our policies and processes so they can be handed on to future club and committee members more easily to ensure that our good practices continue and our standards are maintained. Formalisation of our safety briefings and the introduction of a committee members handbook are the two most significant improvements. The club is looking forward to including the new EDI criteria into our standard operating procedures." - Norrie Brown, Carlisle Canoe Club

As some people may be aware Cumbria Canoeists sea kayaking team regularly use Muck as a base and have a great relationship with the people who live there. Very sad news to hear that the Laird passed away recently. Below are some tributes.

www.obantimes.co.uk/2022/05/26/tributes-paid-to-lawrence-macewen-the-prince-of-muck/

Update from TrafficTeam.West@cumbria.gov.uk

​I am writing to inform you of the decision reached with regard to access to the private site on Ennerdale Lakeshore, accessed via How Hall Farm.
 
The restricted byway leading to How Hall Farm and Ennerdale Lake Shore is owned and managed by the National Trust, with access agreement for United Utilities and the local farm. The byway in question is privately owned, however unauthorised use is common, with frequent camping, anti-social behaviour, littering, the leaving of human waste, and damage caused to the land by campfires and barbecues. This increased misuse of the land, led United Utilities to contact Cumbria County Council on behalf of their partner agencies seeking permission to place physical barriers across the restricted byway.
 
Historically, the National Trust have permitted access to certain groups who respectfully use the lakeshore for leisure. However, the aforementioned issues have exacerbated over recent years, leading to the decision to seek to place physical barriers and prevent access altogether. A consultation on this proposal was undertaken in 2021 to establish views.
 
The initial proposal was for the introduction of a “Kent Carriage Gap,” consisting of 4 separate bollards. However objections were made drawing attention to documents published by the British Horse Society (BHS), indicating that the “Kent Carriage Gaps” are no longer supported. Upon consideration, United Utilities agreed to modify their proposal to consist of only 2 bollards, at a height of 330mm and 1550mm apart. This revision was made in line with advice by the BHS on erecting vehicle barriers on routes used by horse riders and carriage-drivers.
 
Secondly, clarification was sought on what access, if any, would be permitted to members of licensed groups. Cumbria County Council asked if consideration could be given to permitting access to licensed groups, on the proviso that the National Trust and their partners could reserve the right to withdraw access permissions at a later date if the site was seen to be disrespected. After consideration, the land owners agreed to allow permissive use to Copeland Canoe Club and Whitehaven Harbour Youth Project, with both being local clubs to Ennerdale and existing users of the site. A suitable licence agreement will be drawn up by the National Trusts Land Agent. Any other vehicle access requests from individuals or groups would be advised to use the two nearby public car parks, from which the lake is accessible.
 
With the above conditions agreed, the bollards have now been approved for erection on site.
 
If you have any queries relating to this, please let us know.
 
Kind regards,
 
Traffic Team West
Highways Assets and Strategy | Highways and Transport
Economy and Infrastructure Directorate |Cumbria County Council |
Highways Depot | Joseph Noble Road |
Lillyhall Industrial Estate | Workington | CA14 4JH
 
t: 0300 303 2992
www.cumbria.gov.uk
​

I've been asked to share this update about the use of Halton Rapids.
​Last update May 2022

Everyone we have spoken to says “What a brilliant evening” and we are writing to say a big thank you to everyone who made this such a huge success -
 
·       Dave and Sue Williamson and the staff of Derwentwater Marina for hosting us all.
·       Our super Race Director in the start boat - Rob Sanderson and his crew Malc Grout.
·       Our enthusiastic Tiger Boat Helms -  Mark Aplin, Tim Mather, Richard Robinson, John Mc Carthy.  (They gave up an evening the week before to train together with Rob Sanderson)
·       Our hawk eyed Timekeepers - Guy Murray and Bea Deacon, who sat in the finish boat getting cold!
·       The teams who drove a long way, on a mid-week evening to come to Derwentwater and their Club Captains who got the teams together -
1.    West Cumbria  A                           Elaine Jordan
2.    West Cumbria  B                           Heather Compton
3.    Carlisle                                            Jamie Brown
4.    Copeland                                        Mark Jones
5.    Duddon                                           John Sherwen
6.    Penrith                                            Jasper Carrot
7.    Nelson Thomlinson                      Mike Beazley
·       Our Welcome team of Rob Wilson and Ruth Jones who gave you a friendly welcome.
·       Our Buoyancy aids valets and drummers - Christine, Lily & Wilf Clarkson, Ally Barr.
·       Our team of cheerful chefs who laid on an outstanding non-stop BBQ for about 120 people (not a frozen burger in sight, just quality meat from Thomasons) - Dan Jordan, Wendy McCarthy, Liz Milne, Lindy Hatfield, Sean Buckley.
·       The Shore Organisers for WCCC               - Pete Knowles, Alan Ashby.
 
Brief Report
Racing Tiger Boats requires a quick start, teamwork, coordination and some hard graft - Various levels of all of these were achieved!  As the evening went on the races became more and more skilled and competitive with lots of happy cheering.  8 races were packed into a hectic 80 minutes of enthusiastic, non-stop racing. 
A new team from Newton Thomlinson Canoe Club put up an outstanding first race time of 1.03.06 however they were beaten in the final by a more experienced team from Penrith Canoe Club who had won the trophy in 2019.  Dave Williamson of the Marina presented the Jim Wilson trophy to the winning club, Penrith and said how great it was to have such a friendly event and welcome so many local paddlers. 
 
Media and Photos
Plenty of pictures of the event are on the Cumbria Canoeists and West Cumbria Canoe club facebook pages. Please do go and have a look.
 
Best wishes and happy paddling in the summer ahead!
 
Peter Knowles and Alan Ashby for WCCC and Cumbria Canoeists. 

Results
​Final                                                                       Times           (minutes and seconds)
Penrith                                                                  1.02.38        finals race time
Nelson Thomlinson                                            1.07.35        finals race time
                                                                              
Heats Best Times
Carlisle                                                                  1.10.03
Copeland                                                              1.10.18
Duddon                                                                 1.06.99
Nelson Thomlinson                                            1.03.06
Penrith                                                                  1.05.33
West Cumbria 2                                                   1.05.81
West Cumbria 1                                                   1.07.84
 
A big thank you to Derwentwater Marina our hosts for the evening.