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  07792 062471

About Us

Welcome to Encounter Cornwall! Encounter Cornwall was bought by the co-owners of Paddle Cornwall SUP in 2020, Clair, Jules, Phil & Ben.

Up until November 2020, Paddle Cornwall SUP were a mobile, Stand-Up Paddle Board school offering SUP lessons and tours on the stunning River Fowey, launching from the slipway in Golant in an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. After trading for 18 months and receiving some great feedback from our customers we were inspired to look at ways to further diversify our service offer, and so when the opportunity to purchase the award-winning Encounter Cornwall from Karen & David presented itself it was the perfect opportunity to put down some roots and offer both Kayak & SUP lessons & tours, and so a new chapter was born. Now we are honoured to be not only a registered British Canoeing Delivery Partner and Go Padding Centre but also a registered BSUPA Paddle Boarding School.

Clair, Phil, and Ben our instructors & tour guides, are qualified as Paddle Sport Leaders with British Canoeing, having already completed their BSUPA L1 & L2 SUP Instructor training and gained their licenses from the Fowey Harbour Commissioners to operate commercially on the The Fowey Estuary. Now out on the river most days, sharing their knowledge of the waterways and its wildlife, with both Kayak and SUP enthusiasts alike, no two days are ever the same, and each tour and lesson brings an opportunity for our guests to witness the ever-changing landscape and wildlife on the river, and learn new skills or enhance existing ones. 

Our passion is the water, so whether you are a newcomer to Kayak or SUP, rest assured you are in safe hands. 

Now with our offices open seasonally at The Boatshed and our "Boatshed" cafe open daily in the summer from 10am till close, we look forward to welcoming both old friends and new.

GOLANT is a beautiful village, and we ask all of our guests to respect all signs including taking away your waste and observing the speed limit when entering and leaving the village. Thank You.

PARKING IS LIMITED: To avoid disappointment, please arrive early for your session and if possible pre book a private parking bay at the top of the hill. If you do manage to find a pay and display bay, you will need a card or the APP to pay.

 

Meet the Team: 

Clair, one of our Lead Instructors was born & raised in Golant and after extensive travels around the world, returned home to complete her degree in Tourism Management and to raise her family with husband Ben. Having held various roles in her chosen field, Clair has always been drawn back to the playground of her childhood, the River Fowey, from Golant, always looking for opportunities to turn her passion for the village of Golant and its waterways into a business. Clair was introduced to SUP several years ago and was hooked after her first venture out on a board and made the decision to train as a SUP instructor. Since then, she has completing a number of different water-based qualifications including her senior instructor BSUPA L2 qualification, British Canoeing Level 3 SUP Coach and Paddle Sports Leader and RYA VHF and Power Boat qualifications. Clair looks after all EC’s water-based Op’s, from licenses to planning sessions and tours, to training and co-ordinating our fantastic instructors and guides and ensuring that all our company adheres to the highest safety standards possible. Clair is currently being coached by two of the UK's most experienced and influential SUP coaches, Samantha Rutt and Glenn Eldridge. She has also had the privilege of being advised by several the world’s best, including Larry Cain, April Zilg and Micheal Booth. 

Enter stage left, Jules, wife of Phil and former corporate girl looking for a way to embrace the county in which she now lives. By no means a natural to any sport! let alone one that involves water, Jules joined Clair out on the boards for a SUP lesson and has been hooked ever since. Utilising her business degree, Jules is the "Go To" land-based OP's Guru and your first point of contact for bookings and event management, and as I am writing this, I will add the "backbone" of the company tee hee! Jules spent her career in Sales & Marketing, originally a Lincolnshire Lass, migrating to London in her 20's and Later to Cornwall.

Phil is one of our lead instructors and our in house "surfer", Phil has travelled the world in search of that perfect wave! More at home on the water than on land, Phil was a Dry Liner by trade, but completed his BSUPA L1 SUP instructor course and after joining Clair on the British Canoeing Paddle Sport Leader course and has now joined the team full time, swapping plaster board for a very different kind of board! Phil loves our SUP parties, and the kids will agree he is the life and soul and the first to get wet! Phil has recently completed his BSUPA L2 qualification and is known as one of our technical leads for those wishing to enhance skills and focus on speed and distance.

And then there is Ben, X- Plumber by day, designer by night and the brainchild behind STAND. clothing our very own SUP clothing range. Ben is a qualified Level 3 British Canoeing SUP and fitness coach and responsible for our online shop and the designs that feature on our merchandise, adding yet another string to our bow. Ben joined the team full time on the water in April as a Paddle Sport Leader and tour guide, Ben & Phil are keen SUP racers and love nothing better than helping our guests with technique to improve their paddle.

As a team we are thrilled at the opportunity to take up the reigns from Karen & David the former owners of Encounter Cornwall and bring a wider range of water-based activities to the local community and visitors alike. We have big shoes to fill, but we are committed to offering the same standards of service enjoyed by previous Encounter Cornwall guests and our aim is to further enhance the experiences of our guests and to create an all-inclusive ethos around everything we do. You don't have to be experienced or the fittest of folk to enjoy being out on the water and we promise to help you create memories that will last a lifetime.

Encounter Cornwall is a member of Cornwall Wildlife Trust, the local Friends of the Fowey Estuary, and were one of 12 specially chosen members of Coast (Cornwall Sustainable Tourism) Reboot – an experimental programme to show the positive environmental impact that businesses can have, which has helped shape our thinking! with the takeover of Encounter by Paddle Cornwall SUP we have also added our partnership with "Plastic patrol" to our portfolio, further enhancing our commitment to care take the waterways and actively work towards a sustainable business future.

You can hear the team twice a month on BBC Radio Cornwall, sharing an update on the waterways and all things Wildlife.

See FAQ's for our Green Policy.

 

 

Open For Business - Private Parking Bays

PRIVATE Parking, we are now able to offer 6 private parking bays which can be pre booked by our guests by calling The Boatshed on 01726-832451 or e mailing the office at [email protected].

Parking is charged at £5 per day and offered on a first come first served basis. Located at the top of the hill, you will have a 10-minute walk to The Boatshed, but we are always happy to offer you a lift back up the hill after your session.

SUP Pilates: With the introduction of Sally "Seaside" to the team, a fully qualified Pilates Instructor, with years of experiences working with the NHS, we will now be offering board excercise for smaller groups in the New Year, look out for our session timings and dates coming soon. Sally is a British Canoe trained Instructor and a great assett to the team.

Nature by Night:  Exciting new session for 2022! Head out onto the Fowey after the sun has set and witness first-hand the magic of the river in Moonlight, with the aid of our night vision goggles you will be able to capture the nocturnal wildlife on the river bank, learn about navigating by the stars under the watch eye of our BC qualified Kayak Instructor "Hammy", with many years of army service under his belt and a wonderful knowledge of the river and its inhabitants you will be enthralled by the changes that occur once the sun goes down. This session is for experienced paddlers only and a maximum group of 8 (4 x double craft), info and dates available soon. 

Tours, hire & sessions as per the online schedule. If you dont see what you want, please either call or e mail us.

 

 

Guest Facilities

The Boatshed is a quirky old building that has seen many uses over the years, and if these walls coud talk, what a tale they would tell. As well as now being used as our main office it houses our STAND. retail brand along with a selectoin of "SOLA" & "C-Skins" wetsuits, buoynacy aids and wet boots, Moonshine eyewear and the classic "Dirty Dog Sunnies", Duc-kit drybags and Cornish Silver jewellery courtesy of "Tiara Nirvana" New for 2022, C Skins, and lots more.

The Boatshed Cafe offers fresh warm pasties delivered daily and lovely home bakes handmade by "Jac's Happy Cakes", with a great selection of hot and cold drinks and a relaxed atmosphere, we welcome guests to stop by and say hi. Music choices always depend on who arrives at the office first 🤣

The Boatshed has two toilets and a changing room, but if you are coming to SUP then why not pop on your swimming gear and avoid the queue.

Whatever activity you will be joing us to do, you can be assured of a warm welcome.

PLEASE NOTE THAT WE CLOSE AT THE END OF THE SEASON NOVEMBER TO MARCH - Private bookings can be made subject to weather and tides by calling 07792-062471

See you soon!!

 

 

 


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