FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ ‘s)

If you are a beginner kayaker or this is your first time paddling with us, you may have some questions about your kayaking tour that are hopefully answered on this FAQ page.

At Adventures Up The Creek, we pride ourselves on making your kayaking or paddle boarding adventure a fun and memorable experience. If you can’t find the answer to your questions on this FAQ page, don’t hesitate to e-mail us from our Contact page, or call us. We are here to help you with your vacation planning in any way possible.


Is kayaking easy?

With a little instruction, kayaking is incredibly easy for a relatively fit or active person. Kayaks are relatively very fast and stable when compared to canoes – which are not appropriate for Coastal paddling.

Is kayaking safe?

Absolutely. Besides the fact that we use the safest kayaks available for the kinds of paddling we do, and everyone on our trips is required to wear a Coast Guard approved, Type 3 PFD, all of our guides are professionally-trained kayak instructors and guides with CPR and 1st-Aid training and certifications. Additionally, we have at least one trained Fire Rescue EMT on every Up The Creek Xpedition – and at least two trained EMT’s on every trip with 10 or more paddlers. Jennifer and Pete have almost 40-years combined Fire Rescue/EMS experience and safety is our number one priority.

How do I sign-up for a Guided Tour?

ONLINE BOOKING NOW AVAILABLE! Simply scroll down to our online trip calendar or go to our booking page and select the date you’d like to go kayaking and click on the trip or time you’re looking for. We are often on the water, so if you need to speak with someone, please leave a detailed message, or send an e-mail letting us know the desired date and times, how many people are in your party, what kind of trip you’re looking for, experience levels of paddlers, ages of youngest and oldest paddlers and how many singles or tandems you’d like to use. This way, we’ll be able to tentatively hold your reservation until we can get in touch with you and get a credit card number to confirm your reservation.

Can kids go kayaking? What are the age limits?

Yes! We utilize a number of tandem kayaks so kids of practically any age can go paddling as long as they are in a boat with a parent or a guide. Make sure you speak with us about the ages of the paddlers so we can be sure to have appropriate safety gear. If you have a small child with his/her own PFD (Personal Flotation Device), let us know and we’ll make sure it is appropriate for use on our trips. Depending on the trip location we may allow paddlers as young as 13-years-old to paddle their own kayak or paddle board.

How much does it cost to go kayaking?

Professionally Guided Kayak Tours range from $55.00 – $155.00 nationwide. Most of our ½-day Guided Tours are $55.00-$65.00/per person. Full-day trips start at $100.00/ per person. Prices vary for Private/Exclusive group trips and/or Specialized trips. Quality, Experience, Training and Safety matter; an on-water adventure is not necessarily the place to look for a bargain in choosing an outfitter. Prices are subject to change. Tips are appreciated if you enjoyed your excellent guide service.

What is provided?

On our guided tours, we provide: Kayaks or Stand Up Paddle Boards, Paddles, PFD’s, Bottled Water, a Snack and Professional Guides. If you have problems with low blood sugar or other medical conditions, you’ll want to make sure you have what you need in order to be responsible for your own health — and make sure to inform your guide.

What should I wear or bring?

Brimmed hats, ball caps or sun visors and footwear that you do not mind getting wet. Sneakers, sandals, or surf shoes are appropriate. You may want to be prepared to swim in warmer months. If the weather will be cooler in the morning, then dress in layers of quick drying fabrics, since it can warm up rapidly during the day. If it will be cold and windy, gloves and a windbreaker are a good idea (No Blue Jeans or Sweat Shirts). You may want to bring sunglasses with a strap, sunscreen, bug repellent, waterproof or disposable camera in a zip lock bag. Although we provide bottled water, you may prefer something else or just want to have extra on hand. Be sure to bring any personal emergency medications, e.g. for allergies, that you may require. Leave valuables that you do not want to risk dropping into the water locked up in your car or at home.

Can I bring my camera or binoculars?

Absolutely. Let us know if it’s not waterproof and we’ll provide a dry bag to keep it dry while you’re paddling. If you drop it or get it wet, it’s your responsibility – but that RARELY happens. In fact it’s only happened a couple times in 16-years.

What kinds of things will we see on our trip?

Though there’s never a guarantee we’ll see a particular animal while kayaking, some of the animals we commonly see are: Dolphins; a large variety of Coastal Birds; Turtles; Alligators; Manatees; River Otters; Sting Rays and Manta Rays; and even Horses on Cumberland Island. The marsh is always beautiful, as are the Cypress Swamps and Black Water Creeks we often paddle in. Being on the water, in the fresh air and sunshine, always feeds the soul — even if you don’t see a single critter.

How large a group can you accommodate?

Typically, we like to limit our large group trips to around 40-paddlers. If we have enough time to schedule an adequate number of guides, we can accommodate more. The national standard for guides-to-paddlers is a ratio of 1-to-10; but our Safety Standards are one-guide for every five kayaks – plus an additional safety boater whenever we have more than 10-kayaks on the water. Trip size will be based on the number of available guides in order to remain within our safety parameters.

Do you take credit cards?

Yes. Visa, MasterCard, Discover or American Express are accepted for payment. If you make tour reservations with a credit card number, you must present your Visa or MasterCard card for processing on the day of the tour. Payment by cash or check is also accepted.

Where is your shop located?

We have an office at 111 Osborne Street in St. Marys, Georgia (co-located with the St. Marys Welcome Center in downtown St. Marys), but we are rarely there (we prefer being on the water). The best way to contact us is by email at: info@UpTheCreekX.com ; or by telephone at (912)882-0911. You can also reach us at our Fernandina Beach office by calling: (904) 999-4919.

Do you rent Kayaks or Paddle Boards? How much is it to rent?

Yes we do; but at least one group member needs to be well versed in kayaking and have the experience to make decisions in the group’s best interests. Single kayaks rent for $40/day with gear; Tandems rent for $60.00/day with gear. Stand Up Paddleboards are $55.00 per day. Please visit our rental page for more information.

Do you have hourly rental rates?

Not for kayaks. Basically, we can only use a kayak once per day. Most kayak trips are only a couple hours of actual paddling, but preparing a boat, loading, unloading, etc, takes additional time and, since practically all of our trips are based on the tide, we’d need the boat during the same time you would be using it and, since we wash and load equipment the day before a trip, we wouldn’t have time to get it ready to use again.

Do you rent canoes?

No. Canoes are not the best choice for paddling in the tidewaters along the coast – which is why the local experts use and rent kayaks. Canoes have much more freeboard than kayaks and are considerably less stable – making for a treacherous ride in strong winds (which are common along the coast) and in following, beam or quartering seas. On fair days, people have indeed gotten away with canoeing here – leading them to believe it is always safe. But when the winds change, or the tide turns, you can quickly find yourself with a swamped or capsized canoe, or simply blown into the marsh unable to make headway. The kayaks we recommend for this area have front and rear bulkheads which provide flotation in the event of capsize – making it possible to quickly get back in your boat – and rudders or skegs to help deal with the sometimes dramatic effects of wind and waves. Also, canoes have a much lower hull speed; making it impossible to paddle against even a moderate tidal current in the event you misread the tide charts (it’s hard enough in a kayak!). The President of Dagger Canoe Company, as well as the designer of all their canoes, paddled to Cumberland Island with us once using canoes and vowed to use a sea kayak in the future.

Can I rent a kayak to paddle to Cumberland Island?

Only if you are an experienced kayaker with self-rescue skills. At least one member of the group needs to be able to read a chart and understand where the landing zones and boat channels are, and how the currents flow. The trip to Cumberland Island is considered a Level 2 to 3 trip by local experts. If you don’t know what that means, the answer is, “No, you cannot rent a kayak to go to Cumberland Island.” Guided trips to Cumberland Island, however, are available to a MUCH wider range of individuals and experience levels. Even with a guide, the trip to Cumberland can be very strenuous and the return trip is always unpredictable (and can be rather challenging at times).

Do you sell Kayaks and Stand Up Paddleboards?

Yes. Although we do not maintain a large inventory like we did many years ago, we can special order kayaks and paddleboards from several manufacturers and we sell our used fleet boats throughout the year. Give us a call and we’ll talk to you about your specific needs and help you find the best way to get you in the boat you need. We are specialists when it comes to helping people choose the right kayaks – especially for paddling in this area! We have spent over a decade-and-a-half testing and using kayaks in a heavy-use livery operation and can tell you more about kayaks, kayak manufacturing, purchasing a kayak, kayak repairs and paddling in this area than anyone. And we are well-known for our commitment to matching people up with just what they need. We’d rather send you to another shop than see you in the wrong boat – although, with the largest selection of new and used boats in the region for over a decade, we rarely have to do that!


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