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P.J. Thomas: Indulge in kayaking close to home in the Delaware Valley

AFTER YEARS of stops and starts, enterprising businesses may accomplish what a legion of politicians and task forces could not: increase recreational use of Penn's Landing and the Delaware River.

AFTER YEARS of stops and starts, enterprising businesses may accomplish what a legion of politicians and task forces could not: increase recreational use of Penn's Landing and the Delaware River.

That is not to say Penn's Landing is completely without leisure activities. Restaurants, summer festivals, outdoor evening movies and quiet waterside walkways make the city's riverfront a lovely place to visit in summer.

In recent years, the addition of the Riverlink Ferry and other boating activities has increased the lure of the river.

The Pennsylvania Environmental Council wants to complement its policy-making and advocacy of the outdoors by increasing recreational activities all along the Delaware River. Its goal is to encourage Delaware Valley residents to think of this area close to home first rather than automatically driving to the Jersey Shore or the Poconos.

"The Delaware River is such as valuable resource," said Patrick Starr, senior vice president of the Pennsylvanian Environmental Council.

"But because the main portion of river is so busy, with a constant flow of commercial traffic and large recreational boats, it is not usually considered by canoers or kayakers seeking a calmer, easier pace."

That's not to say you should go buy a kayak and plop it into the Delaware. Boating on our local rivers requires expertise, since you'll share the water with commercial and recreational boats of all shapes and sizes. There are strong currents and tides to consider, too.

Luckily, there is a wealth of organizations offering classes and information you'll need to stay safe.

A team of instructors introduces novice and experienced paddlers to kayaking on the Delaware River through the little-known program Paddle Penn's Landing.

Just $5 a person gets you a half-hour of instruction in a quiet area of the Penn's Landing Marina at 121 N. Columbus Blvd.

Another calm area that is a perfect departure point for paddling is the Ridley Township Marina, near where the Darby Creek enters the Delaware River. Paddlers are protected by Little Tinicum Island as they enter the Delaware.

Rancocas Creek meanders through New Jersey's Pine Barrens and is another Delaware tributary widely used by paddlers.

Neshaminy State Park, where the Neshaminy Creek meets the Delaware River, has plenty of natural, scenic shoreline too, according to Jessica Anderson, communications manager for the Pennsylvania Environmental Council.

Anderson compiled the Tidal Delaware River Water Trail, a publication highlighting 56 miles of tributaries, channels, wetlands and shoreline on the Delaware River. It details some of the most scenic trails and provides information on the safest ways to get onto the river.

Though paddling along the Delaware may be new to some, more experienced paddlers have enjoyed the river for years.

Last month, a mixed group of experienced and novice paddlers took part in the 16th Annual Delaware River Sojourn, a 60-mile, seven-day journey. The trip was broken up into daily legs of roughly six miles, with paddlers electing to travel just a section or the entire route, which began in New York and ended at Wiggins Park Marina in Camden, N.J.

On July 31, paddlers will honor the heritage of the Lenape Native American people with a river journey that will travel the entire length of the Delaware River. The trip, conducted every four years in remembrance of a treaty honoring the renewed brotherhood between the Lenape and their friends along the Delaware River, will begin in Callicoon, N.Y. and culminate about two weeks later in Cape May, N.J.

Finally, free kayaking lessons are available through Philadelphia Parks and Recreation camps throughout the summer.

P.J. Thomas is editor and co-publisher of Pathfinders Travel Magazine for People of Color, a nationally distributed publication founded in 1997. Contact her at

pjthomas@pathfinderstravel.com or www.pathfinderstravel.com.