Don't want to wait on line? Volunteer!

If you've been to our Brooklyn Bridge Park kayaking program, you probably had a great time--except for the lines.  People have been waiting for over an hour to get on the water with us as our popularity is soaring!

Want to know a way to beat the line?  Volunteer!

Volunteers have been taking special trips and classes all summer, which we plan to expand after Labor Day when our regular kayaking program ends.  We're a non-profit, so we need all the help we can get.  If we see your face before Labor Day--helping boaters with lifejackets, patrolling, getting in and out, you'll be able to join us on trips and classes held in September.  We think you'll get hooked--and next year we'll have even more opportunities to advance your paddling skills.

To become a volunteer, just join our volunteer newsletter, and show up!

Boating on 7/23 and 7/24 Cancelled

Unfortunately, due to a fire at the Riverside water treatment plant in the Hudson, the Coast Guard has issued a water quality advisory for this weekend, and we will be forced to cancel our boating programs on Saturday and Sunday.

This should serve as a reminder how precious and fragile our natural ecoystem is--and how important programs like ours that create awareness are for the future of our waterfront.  We hope to be back up and running at Pier 1 on July 30th and look forward to seeing you there.

Come paddle on the Brooklyn waterfront this weekend

Last weekend, the Brooklyn Bridge Boathouse opened for business at Pier 1 with its free, walk-up kayaking.   We let everyone--regardless of skill or experience--kayak in our semi-enclosed embayment, for free.  It's the most fun you can have in Brooklyn on a sunny day.  

The weather didn't cooperate last week, but our new volunteers got some good practice in with the handful of brace souls that came out in the rain.

Well, the weather is going to be amazing and we'll be sure to have lots of kayakers.  We're going to be at Pier 1 on Saturday from 11AM to 4PM and then in DUMBO (special extra day) on Sunday from 11AM to 3PM.

Two days means we need lots of volunteers--especially on Sunday.  When we paddle in DUMBO, we need help in the morning paddling our boats the hop, skip, and jump from Pier 1 up under the bridge and  into the cove.. and then back again at 3.  The end is easier because we can just grab public paddlers, but if you can come by our blue containers by Pier 2 at 10:15AM Sunday morning, you'll be a big help.   Contact us at bbpboathouse@gmail.com if you can help or signup to help/get on our mailing list here: http://www.bbpboathouse.org/volunteer/

Free kayaking and rowing in Brooklyn Bridge Park starts on June 11th!

This past weekend, our volunteers started their training in preparation for our opening day on Saturday,  June 11th.  (Check out our whole calendar here.) 

Our 2011 program will be expanded from last year--starting earlier, with longer hours (11AM-4PM most days) and more dates.  What isn't changing is our program--safe, fun, free kayaking for adults and kids at all skill levels.   There's no need to RSVP... just come by when we're open for free public kayaking.  We'll get you in a life vest, explain the basics, and keep watch over you in our semi-enclosed space.  (No, you can't go across to Manhattan!)  

If you'd like to join our group of volunteers, sign up here.

Thanks for a great season!

On behalf of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Boathouse, we want to thank everyone who came down to our program this summer to volunteer, to paddle, or just to say hi and be supportive.  We're still counting up the waivers, but we estimate that almost 2000 paddlers came down to our new program, and we had 60 different people pitch in to help.

We'll be back next year, probably in June, with a more consistent schedule, more opportunities to practice skills, and with varying types of volunteer excursions. 

In the meantime, check out the great photos taken by Brooklyn photographer Etienne Frossard (c).