Time out from time out

with Anja from Girls On SUPs

Time out from time out

Beginning of the year Anja from Girls on SUPs had a baby boy, so unfortunately she had to have a little time out from paddling and could only dream of all the amazing tours she had with Julia before while mainly changing nappies. This summer she eventually was off for a two-month parental leave and travelled with her little family through France were she finally made it back on the water.

Read herafter about her little time out and being back on board!

With that familiar little "splash", my SUP lands in the water. Finally. I put my feet on the sun-warmed deck pad, grab the paddle and take off.
Breathe deeply. How calm it is. And for a moment, those huge responsibilities, sleepless nights and leaky nappies are a little further away.
A few months ago, I stood on the board for the last time - still pregnant at the time. How much my life has changed since then! My baby is now five months old and is travelling withmy husband and me for two months in a camper van. In the boot: next to the Fanatic Diamond Air Touring Pocket Edition, which takes up so little space.

Old town flair on the canal in Dôle

My first SUP spot is Dôle, a small town in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. A small canal leads directly from the campsite towards the town centre. On the shore there are are some large boats which have been converted into holiday accommodations, such as the red-and-white Péniche Ino Lefkothea II. Frogs croak among the water lilies and a heron watches me with interest as I pass by. At the end of the canal, I turn left under the Pont de Jean Jaurès to the Canal du Rhône au Rhin. The view of the old town with its imposing Collégiale Notre-Dame church was amazing. Walkers along the canal wave watch me as I let the wind carry me past the backdrop before I return to the canal to set off to my return journey - relaxed after just one hour, with new energy and huge anticipation of my baby.

Fairytale feeling on Lac d'Annecy

The area around Lac d'Annecy is like a balm for my outdoor sports soul and my second SUP spot in France. Rugged mountains, endless bike paths, perfect thermals for paragliding and of course this incredibly beautiful lake. Kitesurfers are happy at the windier spots, while the quiet corners are ideal for SUPing. One of these is the small village of Duingt with its castle with the same name, the Château Duingt, which is situated on a small peninsula on the western shore of the lake. There are a few places around it that make it easy to get started. It doesn't take long to paddle around the pretty castle and back again. So there's plenty of time for me to take a deep breath and enjoy the stunning turquoise-clear water of the lake, the view of the green canyons and the the mountains. And to wave my husband, who is following me from the shore with the pram, sleeping baby and camera.

Adventure vibes in the Verdon Gorge

My third SUP spot was a real instagram star. Les Gorges du Verdon is especially known for its surreally clear, turquoise-blue water. And here comes the small downer: the water was churned up thanks to the daily thunderstorms, it was murky and rather greenish-beige. But this one drop was quickly swallowed up by the waters of Lac de Sainte-Croix. I get on my SUP and paddle under the gigantic Pont du Galetas into the gorge. The dimensions of the rock walls only become clear to me as I shrink perceptibly and, I'm sure to look just like a tiny dot to the people on the bridge. Hundreds of metres below the surrounded mountains, I admire the huge rock caves, the trees that defy gravity and simply growing horizontally out of the rock as well as the pretty waterfall that rushes halfway down the gorge. With me are a few kayaks, small boats and a few SUPs, but I notice them as little as I notice the colour of the water. colour of the water - that's how enchanted I am. And as is so often the case, I am happy when something doesn't fit perfectly. After all, there always needs to be a good reason to come back again - perhaps then as a family with a little passenger on my board.

The Girls on SUPs (Anja Moerk and Julia Kaffka) are out their SUPs whenever they can. Since 2017, they have been taking their instagram followers on their SUP tours. Whether it's to the lakes for flatwater or to the oceans around the globe for SUPsurfing. You can follow them on instagram @ Girls_on_SUPs/ for more!