Bay Area Sea Kayakers (BASK) is a non-profit 501(c7) sports club of several hundred sea kayakers who live throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our interests include flat-water paddling, kayak-surfing, expeditions, and playing amongst the rocks, in conditions that range from mild to wild. Our club exists to bring paddlers together for companionship, safety, education, exploration, learning, and great food and drink! We're committed to safety both on and off the water, and our club holds insurance through Paddlesports Risk Management. We offer an inexpensive annual Skills Clinic to members, as well as numerous free clinics on skills, rescue, and safety throughout the year. We welcome as members all individuals interested in kayaking. We’re committed to building a diverse and inclusive paddling club and to sharing our enthusiasm, skills, and knowledge to increase equity and access to our sport.
BASK trips range from local to international, and are all member-initiated with shared responsibilities for safety. BASK does not supply boats or equipment, although some members are willing to share their equipment. You have to be a member or a guest of a member to participate in on-the-water BASK events and a signed activity waiver is required. Follow the links to learn more about the benefits of membership and to join BASK.
We invite you to attend one of our monthly meetings, either online or in person. They are free and open to the public; in-person meetings include food (suggested donation $8-10). The format of each meeting may vary a bit month to month, but they tend to include members sharing stories, featured speakers, club news, and information about upcoming events. It’s a great way to meet club members and learn about paddling opportunities. For more information see the Events page!
Would you like to speak at a BASK meeting or have an idea for a speaker? Contact the Speaker Seekers. Interested in what type of speakers we’ve had in the past? See a representative list of previous general meeting topics.
BASK Health Guidelines
For the safety of participants at all BASK paddles and other in-person activities, please stay home and join us another time if:
- You're experiencing symptoms of any communicable respiratory illness
- You're testing positive for COVID-19, even if you're feeling well
- In the past week, you've been exposed to someone with COVID-19 via shared air
If you develop COVID-19 symptoms or test positive for COVID-19 within a week of attending an in-person BASK activity, please let the event initiator know. This will allow the initiator to inform other participants, who can then choose to self-test or take other precautions such as obtaining pharmaceutical COVID-19 treatments if they develop symptoms.
Next BASK General Meeting: Wednesday, October 29 (Virtual)
Time: 7-9 pm
Location: Virtual by Zoom (invitation will be posted on the BASK calendar on the day of the meeting).
About: We are honored to have David McGuire, the Director of Shark Stewards, as our featured speaker. In central California coastal waters, the fall months mark "Sharktober," the period of increased white shark activity and human interactions in the Red Triangle. What is your risk of encountering a white shark, and what can you do to prevent a negative interaction? Learn about threats to humans and threats to sharks with shark conservationist and educator David McGuire.
David is the Founder and Director of the shark and marine conservation nonprofit “Shark Stewards,” which is dedicated to protecting sharks from overfishing and the wildlife trade, and protecting critical marine habitat through regulation and policy. A marine biologist, David is a Research Associate at the California Academy of Sciences where he conducts shark studies in California and Hawai’i using photo identification and eDNA. Through Shark Stewards, his work in media production generates advocacy campaigns from California to China. Shark Stewards introduced the first North American shark fin trade ban and led several states and international movements limiting the overfishing of sharks and the shark fin trade, including listing endangered sharks at the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species. Shark Stewards actively partners with NOAA in our National Marine Sanctuaries and the Ocean Protection Council in our California marine protected areas, where David is co-chair of the California Marine Protection Area Collaborative Committee.
A captain and technical diver, David has made four transpacific expeditions under sail. In his role as a documentary filmmaker, David received an Emmy award for Field Production and Camera on the documentary “Reefs to Rainforests” on the Biodiversity Expedition in the Philippines with the California Academy of Sciences, and has won numerous awards for his conservation documentaries. Since 2007 he has been involved with the International Ocean Film Festival as a contributor, screener, and programmer, as well as hosting the popular shark program. He has written and contributed to numerous publications and books, and is publishing Sharks for Kids, a shark science book for youth. He is a popular public speaker on sharks and the ocean, is a lecturer and student advisor at UC Berkeley, has taught in the Masters of Environmental Sciences at the University of San Francisco, and teaches at the College of Marin. David will also tell us about upcoming opportunities to visit sharks on outings to the Greater Farallones Islands.
L: David McGuire, Shark Stewards R: Great White Shark. Photos from Shark StewardsBe sure to look for all the details and latest updates on Currents and the BASK Calendar. We look forward to seeing you on Zoom! (Log in to BASK website before clicking these links.)
The Zoom link for the meeting will be posted in the calendar at least a half hour before start time. Please do not post or forward the link. Login to Zoom with your full name so the moderators know who you are. If we don’t recognize you we might not let you in.
Have a question or something you would like to add to the agenda? Email Brad at Brad.Findlay@bask.org.
