New to paddling Posted by: importman on Aug-13-12 9:30 PM (EST)
jrafter, I can't help much on the kayak choice but I'd like to talk about your destination. I'm guessing you're talking about the Waccamaw river? If so, and if you're a beginner, you might want to think it through. If you're going there you should go on a weekday. That river gets pretty crowded with jet skis and power boats on the weekends and many of them don't seem to understand common courtesy. Either that or they just don't care. For me, a much better choice is the inlet itself. You can put in at the public landing right beside the Belin church or further down at Morse park. There's also a sandy beach put in just before you get to Huntington Beach SP. It's down a little dirt lane with a dump for oyster shells on it. In the inlet you can avoid most of the power boat traffic and for the most part it's really peaceful and quiet out there, if you stay away from the marina. The only caveat I know of on this is watch the tide. You can get stuck in some areas if you go out on the falling tide and stay too long. I personally like to put in a couple hours before high tide and I can stay pretty much as long as I like. Hope this helps some.