People who know great paddling know Chesapeake, Virginia. Residents affectionately call it the “Peake.” Now, Chesapeake has introduced a fun program called Paddle the Peake Passport. Visitors and residents alike can kayak, canoe, or paddleboard through Chesapeake’s breathtaking waterways and earn cool rewards along the way with the Paddle the Peake Passport program. Rewards include a fun sticker, stylish baseball hat, a handy dry bag, and a Nalgene water bottle. C.J. Fair, a local kayaker and a mom, recently completed all four levels with her children. “I enjoy the peace and the tranquility of kayaking,” C.J. said. “Chesapeake has a lot of waterways that are very calm and scenic, and it’s soothing to be out there.”
It’s easy to get started, launch your vessel of choice, and paddle through the untamed Dismal Swamp Canal, home to river otters, foxes, black bears, and many other species of wildlife living among the calm amber lake and gorgeous bald Cyprus trees. Or put in at Northwest River Park, which features 763 sprawling acres, canoe and kayak rentals, and glassy-calm Lake Lesa. There are nine locations in total in the Paddle the Peake Passport program. Once you’ve completed your paddling at a designated location, you check in on the handy app and you are ready to receive rewards.
What’s more, springtime is a great time to paddle in Chesapeake; thousands of birds migrate back to the north from their winter habitats and Chesapeake’s parks fill with over 200 species of birds. The months of April through June are known as the Great Migration.
As a result of Paddle the Peake Passport program, C.J. and her children discovered kayaking locations they hadn’t known about. And along the way, they kayaked past some of Chesapeake’s most photo-worthy bird species. “If you take your time and just glide through the water, you can see tons of wildlife. We saw peregrine falcons, egrets, osprey, and a bald eagle. My son especially loved that.”
C.J. reached the highest reward level by checking into every location, earning her the title of Paddle Pro. What motivated her to complete all four levels? C.J. saw Paddle the Peake as a family adventure. “It was something fun that my children and I could do together,” she said. “We set out on a weekend to see if we could check into all of the different places.”
For more information: VisitChesapeake.com
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