Nature Writing: Kayak on the Chechessee and Write about It

duration: 3
description:
We who live in the South Carolina Lowcountry are fortunate to be surrounded by its extraordinary nature – the marsh and its seasons, live oaks dripping with Spanish moss, 180 degrees of ever-changing sky, marsh and shore birds, crabs and dolphins and fish, the bright sunshine that lights this southern world, and of course, water…the ocean and rivers and their tides. In this workshop you’ll kayak on the Chechessee River with guides from the Maritime Center for an afternoon immersion in Carolina’s nature at its finest.
Then – like Henry David Thoreau on Walden Pond – you’ll take pen to paper and write about any part of the adventure you choose. Anyone at any level of writing, from rank beginner to pretty darn good, can write using a method called writing practice, developed by writing workshop guru Natalie Goldberg and presented in her classic book, Writing Down the Bones. You’ll learn how to get rid of the self-critic so that your thoughts flow freely onto the page. And you’ll leave with a chunk of nature writing and a memory of time well spent.
Dress for a journey on the water, and be sure to bring sunscreen, a water bottle, notebook or journal, and several pens.

Katherine Tandy Brown has explored the world as a freelance travel writer for 20-plus years. She has taught memoir writing, travel writing, writing practice, et al, in the USCB’s OLLI Continuing Ed program, Tech College of the Lowcountry, Pat Conroy Literary Center, Palm Key and Thera Vista Retreat Centers, her downtown Beaufort cottage…and nature writing on a sandbar in the Beaufort River, her favorite classroom so far!

what_is_included: - Kayaks are included. Limited number of single kayaks are available, tandems are available upon request.
- You MAY bring your own kayak and launch from the public boat landing across the parking lot from the Maritime Center.
what_is_not_included: - Notebooks or Journals
- Pens/writing utensils
- Hats, sunscreen, etc. (Be prepared to be outside & on the water)
itinerary: 2-4pm:
2-hours for the kayak tour, including waivers, launch & return (this leaves room for about a 1-hour tour on the water).

4-5pm
1 hour will be spent in our classroom after the paddle to write in your journals.
check_in_details: Please arrive on time so we can get on the water promptly. All guests must sign a waiver at the front desk in the Maritime Center, whether you are bringing your own kayak or using PRSF's.

If you are bringing your own kayak, you may want to arrive a few minutes early to sign a waiver and get back to the landing to launch with our Naturalist.
what_to_bring: - Hat
- Sunscreen
- Water bottle
- Journal/Notebook
- Multiple pens
restrictions: Please be aware that we will be paddling the Chechessee for about an hour. We are going out at high tide to help with the current, but they can be strong.