If you’re into water sports, you’ve probably already caught unto the latest craze in water surfing: Stand Up Paddle Boarding (or SUP).

Photo credit Thierry Seray -Tendance Bleue

Stand Up Paddle Boarding is an ancestral sport that’s been practiced by natives of Hawaii and other islands of the Pacific since the dawn of time.

Paddle board sales have recently gone up in the U.S., with people embracing the sport from coast to coast, even in the mid-western states of the country, like Colorado and Montana.

La folie du SUP, a natural evolution of surfing, has won loyal enthusiasts all over the world from Maui to the Galapagos Islands, Costa Rica, Brazil, the Southern coast of England, continental France and now Corsica.

An Amazing Feat

In June of this year, French athlete Benjamin Clément made history by paddling from Menton, in the South of France (near Nice) to Algajola, on the northern coast of Corsica, paddling for 30 hours straight for 120 nautical miles. Truly an act of bravery or lunacy (or a bit of both).

He was followed closely by a crew in a catamaran, but still, apart from the physical effort, I suppose there are bound to be some sharks in such a vast expanse of water. *

Physical Requirements

Almost anyone can enjoy this fun sport, specially in calm, quiet waters. Unlike kayaking, which can put a big strain on your forearms if you’re not well trained, with stand up paddle boarding you get a full body workout.

Shoulders, laterals, abs and legs all work together to keep you moving forward while maintaining balance.

When sitting in a kayak, your forearms and wrists are doing a lot of the work, an area of the body that for most people is seldom developed. This means: feeling a lot of pain after about an hour. When you’re with a group, far from dry land, you can’t just say: “Hey guys, I changed my mind, see you all later”.

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I’m not the most coordinated person in the world (and I’d much rather be hiking on terra firma) but I didn’t do too bad on my first time out, in the swampy back waters of South Florida.

Standing up gives you more leverage since you can use your entire upper body to glide effortlessly through the water, even if you’re not very strong. The board also serves as a flotation device in case you fall off.

Ample Opportunities

Like kayaking, you can enjoy paddle boarding in virtually any open body of water, (river, lake or open ocean). I’ve always hated jet skis since they’re loud and I consider them a big waste of gas. Paddle boarding is primal, eco-friendly and very relaxing, like walking on water.

I recommend you wear some water shoes and gloves, unless you’re very familiar with the area and there are no rocks, coral, or other sharp objects like oyster shells. (Already tried some of that).

If you can combine a week of hiking in Corsica with some stand up paddle boarding on the crystal clear waters near the caves of Bonifacio, I can’t think of a better way to enjoy the best of both of worlds: Mountain and Sea.

Surfing Location

Corsica’s South eastern coast, where the waters are crystal clear and for the most part shallow, make it an ideal location for SUP. (We seem to keep killing the French language with English words and acronyms: kayak, windsurf, kite surf and now stand up paddle or SUP).

Bonifacio Windsurf

If you get a chance, check out the photo gallery, on the above referenced site, taken in the caves near Bonifacio. It doesn’t get any better than that. Imagine gently gliding through those waters in silence.

I suspect there may already be other surfing locations throughout the island where one can paddle board. I’ll be sure to report on those later.

Note: Piantarella is a hamlet located in the Gulf of Sperone near Bonifacio, on the southern tip of the island.

Photo source:

http://tendancebleue.canalblog.com/archives/2008/09/16/10605072.html

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* Shark attacks in the Med are not as common as in other parts of the world (like the Great Barrier Reef or South Africa) but there are definitely sharks in the Mediterranean, some of them measuring three or more meters in length.

Filed under: Water Sports