How to choose good kayaking locations.

First you will need to ask yourself a few questions:

What is your kayaking experience?

What type of water do you enjoy kayaking on? Whitewater or flat water?

Do you like calm water like a lake or pond or do you like water with a little movement like a river with class I or II rapids?

In most cases you don’t have to drive very far to reach a good kayaking location. You may not realize it, but you may have more good kayaking locations near your home than you think; you just haven’t discovered them yet.

When searching for a good kayaking location you may want to look for paddling trails called Blueways.  Blueways are becoming more and more popular and you can find them in many states all over the U.S.

What to kayak on:

Lakes or Ponds

Kayaking on a lake or pond is a little easier than kayaking on a river or stream. Generally when you kayak on a lake or a pond your put in and take out point will be the same. You will park your car in the parking lot, put your kayak in at the boat access and paddle around enjoying the wildlife and scenery.  When you’re done you take your kayak out at the same access point. This is also a great place to teach a new paddler how to kayak.

With a lake or pond you can gauge your paddle time a little more accurately. If you have an hour to kayak you can paddle around and then start heading back to the boat access when you have to leave.

Rivers or Creeks

Rivers and creeks are a little more challenging to kayak on. Generally where you put in your kayak would not be where you take out.  You will also need to have two cars, one at the put in and one at the take out. Water levels can change with rainfall making the river faster or slower. If the river is too low you may have to get out and pull your kayak through the shallow areas.

Where to kayak:

State Parks

One place to look for a good kayaking location is State Parks or National Parks.  Many parks allow kayaking on their lakes, ponds, and rivers. Some have Blueways.

State and National Parks may:

Offer guided paddles

Charge a boat or car fee

Offer kayak rentals

Not allow private boats

Have boat access ramps

County

Another place to look for a good kayaking location is your county or town in which you live. Do you have a lake or river winding through your town? You can call or check your county or town’s website to see if they have boat access ramps and parking for your car.

You may also like to search our places to paddle page to find good kayaking locations all over the United States.

We are lucky here in the Nashville, Tennessee area. We are surrounded by great rivers and lakes – which translates into great opportunities to kayak and canoe – pretty much right out our backdoor.

This week was ideal on the Harpeth River. This historic river is a tributary of the mighty Cumberland River which flows through the heart of Nashville all the way to the Mississippi River.

The water level on the Harpeth this past week was ideal. We’ve had some rain in the past few days that helped to keep the water level near perfect for paddling.

After renting a canoe at Canoe Music City in Kingston Springs (there are several places on Highway 70 that offer canoe and kayak rentals, plus transportation to and from the river) we shuttled our car to the take out at Harris Street Bridge, and dropped off with the canoe at the Narrows of the Harpeth State Park put in.

Going paddling during the week is an excellent option if you can swing it. There were some people on the water, but for the most part it was a very peaceful paddle.

The Harpeth River teems with wildlife. As we paddled along in our canoe we saw huge fish swimming in the shallows, turtles sunning themselves on rocks and branches, and a duckling swam out to us and paddled along for a while!

The day was quite warm, but its almost always cooler on the water. Huge trees hang over the Harpeth offering great amounts of shade just when you need it. The paddling was easy (we had an experienced boat pilot steering), and the current was extremely helpful in moving us along.

At this level, many beach areas exist along the river. It’s great to just pull over and dig out the cooler for some cold drinks and snacks along the way. But the river has its deep parts too, which are easily spotted – just look for rope swings hanging from the trees!

There were some trees down in the water from recent storms, but nothing to impede the way downstream. I had to jump out a couple of times and help the boat over some shallow bits, but we did have three people in the boat. In a canoe the more people you have the lower you sit in the water. Had we been in kayaks, we would have glided right over those spots.

If you’re looking for a place to paddle, kayak or canoe in the Nashville or Middle Tennessee area, it doesn’t get much better than the Harpeth. Once you’re on the water, the rest of the world slips away and you enter a part of nature that has remained virtually untouched for hundreds of years. The Harpeth is a beautiful river and a treasure for locals and visitors alike.

For more information about Tennessee’s Harpeth River, please visit: Harpeth River Watershed website or the Narrows of the Harpeth State Park website.

For more places to paddle, kayak and canoe in Tennessee, see our Places to Paddle in Tennessee page.

To find other places to paddle, kayak and canoe all over the USA, go to our Places to Paddle page and click on any state, or check out nationwide kayak, canoe and paddle events and races on our Paddling Events and Races page.

If you would like us to post your favorite place to paddle, kayak or canoe or your favorite paddling event or race, please use our handy contact form to send us the details.