Stand up paddle board channel crossing

If your thinking of a (SUP) stand up paddle board channel crossing then look no further. We have the safety boats and crew to make your crossing safe and affordable. Planning is essential for your trip across. With currents reaching 3-4 knots up and down the channel on spring tides you can get moved sideways and heavily off course.
The Boats

We have two boats we can use for the crossing. Our 7.4m RIB coded by the coastguard for such events as a stand up paddle board channel crossing. And the Type-R powerboat also coded for these trips.  Equipment on board the boats include dual VHF DSC marine radios. AIS (Automatic Identification System) which identifies ships along with their speed, course and final destination on our Garmin plotter screens. This is crucial information for planning your route across the shipping lanes as some of the large ships travel at 20 Knots. Have a look at the AIS ship tracker for the Dover straight to see why they are the busiest shipping lanes in the world. We also have Garmin HD radar as when the conditions are flat in the channel Fog banks can appear quickly this means we can carry on safely. We recommend 2 SUP boards per boat to be safe.

Ideal weather conditions

The ideal conditions for crossing the Channel by stand up paddle board are little or no wind & neap tides. Neap tides (small tides) are best because they only create tiny cross currents. Where as spring tides (large tides) can create 4 knots cross currents that can disrupt and slow the crossing .

The Route

We usually cross from Dungeness to Cap Griz Nez in France. But you can start at Folkestone and cross there the distance is similar. We use a local shop for board rental and training. Epic Life in Hastings has a lot of experience in crossing the channel by kayak and SUP’s and Cliff will be able to advise you on the correct equipment needed. To get an idea of what we charge have a look at our price list.