What is Rock Gardening?

The answer in this 8 part article written for Canoe & Kayak Magazine

"A veteran sea kayaking instructor explains the growing sport of ocean whitewater paddling"

September 24, 2015 By CanoeKayak.com

When I mention kayaking, people generally envision paddling on calm lakes or down mountain rapids, and if I talk about whitewater, they’re almost certain to think I’m referring to a river. But there is another type of paddling found in coastal regions. There, swells generated by wind in a distant storm end their long journey to land with a fantastic result: ocean whitewater. Often, the swells will break on a long, sandy beach or a shallow reef, creating nicely formed waves to surf. Other times, they collide with, or flow through, a rocky coastal shoreline, creating a unique area to play in kayaks. This is called rock gardening!

Bill Vonnegut chasing some negative ions.

In its simplest form, rock gardening is catching a ride on the ocean swell as it weaves its way through and over the rocks and reefs along a coastline. Rock gardening is often done in a short, playful sea kayak or crossover boat, and it involves timing your interaction with a rock feature as it’s hit by the ever-changing swells.

There’s a mental component to this activity that requires complete focus; concerns from the rest of life drop away. As mind focuses, we lose sight of everything else going on in the world except the fun we’re are having right here and now. Though the personal experience of rock gardening is different for everyone, I think of rock gardening as the constant work to hone my skills through new challenges. I focus completely on the run and push myself to make my strokes smooth, clean, and in rhythm with the sea. Each run is a new opportunity to learn, watch, and experience the water in order to gain a better understanding of our dynamic, coastal playground.

These areas of the coast can be unpredictable and very dangerous, so why would anyone want to kayak right into them? The answer could be an addiction to the negative ions we inhale–the invisible molecules created by dynamic whitewater that can be found in ocean surf. Once they reach our bloodstream, negative ions are believed to produce biochemical reactions that increase levels of serotonin, helping to alleviate depression, relieve stress, and boost our energy. Another reason could be the need to push the limits of our abilities, and perhaps even the limits of life itself, keeps us coming back to the rocks on the coast. Regardless of what draws us, it’s where I love to be on a regular basis. Over the next eight weeks, I want to share more details on what rock gardening is as well as tips for paddling ocean whitewater in my new series for CanoeKayak.com.

Mendocino Ca. The Mecca of Rock Gardening

Features

What are “features” anyway? They are play spots we find in the rocky areas on the coast where waves work their way through cracks, over rocks, and against walls. These areas are ever changing from wave to wave, some waves will hit a rock feature in such a way that will make it a fun and challenging run. Other wave sets could turn it into something that can heavily damage both body and boat. The entire section of rocky coast changes with the rise and fall of the tide by exposing new features and flooding old ones.

On a typical rock garden trip I will be paddling on the coast with some buddies and someone will veer off toward a pile of rocks peaking curiosity in the rest of the group members. Then a wave rolls in and we’ll see a nicely formed river spilling over the off shore rock creating what we call a pour over. Many times without saying a word, we head over and look at the dynamics of the area. We’ll watch to see where the water is coming from and where it goes, figure out how much it drains and fills, calculate the risks involved in paddling through the spot, and gage the line to take through the pour over.

Priscilla Schlottman sizing up a feature - Photo by Bill Vonnegut

After a look, someone runs it as the rest of the group cheers them on while also watching their line and making their own mental notes of adjustments they to make for their own run. After making the first run and getting a feel for the spot in subsequent runs, we will run it again and again until we internalize what’s happening in this area. As confidence builds, we start choosing the bigger waves of the sets and the cheering really starts in, our adrenaline kicks in sharpening our senses; dialing in on our skills we aim for the perfect run by attempting it with fewer strokes, making the run backwards, and running it two or three or more at a time. Not only is it a fun challenge, but the cheering and rooting of your buddies and sense of joy felt when nailing the run draws us in and keeps us going back for more.

Not every rock we come across is that perfect spot. At times, we will take a test run or two and move on or watch the feature and then end up paddle onward to find something that’s working better. What determines if we move on to something else or stay at a spot can be a number of things such as not enough water in the waves to run the feature or the penalty of this spot may be too high. We determine if the penalty of a feature is high by watching where the water flows. If it ends up in an area we don’t want to be like a pile of jagged rocks in shallow water, we move on to find something better. Wherever we go on the Pacific Coast, we always seem to find cool features we can just hang out on and have fun.

Understanding waves

If not days before, at least before leaving the house, I will check the marine forecast to see what the ocean is doing. Checking conditions means looking at what the conditions are (wind, weather, swell height and period) where I am planning to go and then assessing if it will be the kind of day I’m looking for or if I should rethink going out.

Roger Smith enjoying some ocean waves- Photo by Bill Vonnegut

Stand on a cliff overlooking the ocean and observe the water. There will be a steady pattern of rounded humps heading as far as the eye can see. These shapes are the ocean swell. One of the things the forecast will tell me is the swell period which the distance in time from peak to peak of an ocean swell. To understand swell period, I pick a fixed point out on the ocean such as a buoy. Then, I’ll count the number of seconds it takes for each peak to pass by this buoy. The number of seconds I count is the swell period. When the waves reach shallow waters near shore, they will release their energy in the form of ocean waves. The size of the waves is what will greatly affect a day out rock gardening.

The swell period and height is what determines the wave size and how far off shore it breaks. Consider this: a wave not only breaks at a depth 1.3 times its height, but also begins grabbing the sea floor at half its width (peak to peak). For example, a two-foot swell in the open ocean is two feet, but as it approaches the shore, that two-foot swell with a twenty second period carries a much greater volume of water than at seven seconds. The two-foot, long period swell with its higher volume of water will build up and be a taller wave. A longer period swell grabs the bottom in deeper water, which not only slows it down but causes it to build significant height and break in areas that are safe on short period days. A two foot wave with a seven second period will break closer to shore and dump less water than the same size long period swell, which will break further off shore in deep water builds up taller in height, and will dump a greater volume of water.

Wave period affects safety

Swell period is something I pay close attention to and here’s why: waves come in sets of 3-15 that usually start small and build before starting small again with the next set. Just as there are different size waves in a set, there are different size sets stacked up behind the one that’s currently coming on shore. With longer period swell, what I’m currently seeing is not necessarily what is going to be there 15-20 minutes from now. I keep this in mind and exercise caution when choosing areas to paddle on long period days.

Long period waves can be great for rock gardening. The longer the period, the more volume of water that will pile up next to the pour over I am looking to run. The result: a great ride with more of a margin of error because the flow will last longer, but rock gardens tend to be in shallower water. An unexpected large wave could have devastating effects, which why I’m always looking off shore and thinking ahead to where I’m planning to be next. As I paddle into the next play spot, I’m always thinking about what will happen if a large, long period swell rolls in.

Now imagine paddling along and seeing a great play spot in the rocks; after watching it for a few minutes nothing big rolls in so it looks safe. After playing on some of the great features in this area for a while, a big, huge frothy pile of water rolls through and covers the play spot leaving everyone to react to keep themselves afloat and protected. This “unexpected” wave set that’s rolled through and wreaked its havoc was actually something that could’ve been predicted by knowing about wave sets and how they work on long period days.

The reasons mentioned previously are why I sometimes prefer to go rock gardening on a day with short period waves. The set sizes are more consistent and there are fewer chances of being surprised by an out of proportion wave showing up. On a short period day my timing has to be better because there is less water that’s actually running over the feature. Shorter period and less water results in a greater chance of hitting a rock or getting stuck high and dry on a feature.

Knowing the differences between how long and short period swells affect the areas I want to paddle helps me decide where I want to play. If it’s a long period day, I plan to head to places with features in deeper water because I get to run features with the longer period waves and face less of a chance of hitting rocks or being stuck in the middle of the run as the water dries out. Since the rocks are in deeper water, there’s also a smaller chance of a large set breaking where I’m at. On short period days, I can get inside and up close to shore, which means that there will be a larger variety of places to explore.

Running Features

There are many factors to consider about paddling between or over rocks. As I paddle up to a bunch of scattered rocks, I “pick the line”. One of the first things I look at is water depth. If there is not enough water to cover the rocks and it’s not deep enough for the period of time I will need to paddle across this area, then I just move on to the next spot. But if there is enough water to make the run, I may watch this area as a set rolls through while visualizing the run and thinking: wave is too small and there is not enough water to make it; that wave is too big and is breaking over the rocks, and if the right one comes in, I decide that this spot is doable.

Tony Johnson running a feature – Photo by Bill Vonnegut

Then I determine the route. As I look at the run to check water depth, I am also looking at the route the water takes when flowing through the rocks. Taking the run is similar to running a river. The best way through is usually to flow along with the current.

One of the most important things I do is making sure I know the right route to take all the way to the end of the feature before running it. I ask myself: does the water flow here and there and push all the way through to that nice protected pool on the other side or does it flow inward and then back out, requiring me to make turn that points toward the ocean in order to exit? Being able to start a run is important, but knowing what to do to make a clean, safe finish is at the forefront of my mind as I analyze potential features.

Before I go, I take the time to visualize what strokes I’ll need to do as I run the feature. The boat is going to be pushed off the line as I make the run so it’s a good idea to have a battery of strokes all built into muscle memory so they just come when needed and allow me to make positive progress through the run. Awareness of the amount of time needed to make the run before running out of water and knowing what my margin of error is before the next wave rolls through decreases the potential for damaging the boat or being sent crashing through the rocks. Tuning all of these skills and making it a habit to observe and think before I run makes my days out playing much more fun.

Pour Overs

Pour overs are my personal highlight of rock gardening! There is something about being in time with a wave as it covers over an ocean rock. First, I look for a perfectly formed swell and as it appears on the horizon, I choose one that will nicely flow over the rock I have picked. I will take a few strokes to match the speed of the wave and put myself on the wave’s path so it takes me over the rock. If everything is timed perfectly, I don’t have to take many strokes as I sail across with the wave and ride over the rock.

A few things that I look for when finding a good pour over are:

The exit: checking to make sure where I am going to finish is a must. Deep water is good; piles of rocks are not good

The run: there are many different types of pour overs, generally any place that waves cover rocks, but the most straight-forward runs tend to have a nice U shape where the water flows through.

The entrance: the safest and easiest entrance will be on a feature with a steep wall. The water will rise vertically up the wall and take the boat right over. Entrances with a large ledge in front of them will be more challenging and are more dangerous if timing is off. The ledges cause the receding waves to expose the rocks in front of the entrance and when the next wave rolls in the water will break right where the run starts,

Pour overs are the biggest thrill in our ocean playground. When they are working right, we can ride big waves over the rocks with a fair amount of ease. A pour over with deep water on both sides provides an ideal spot to practice picking the right waves and learning how to time the run. Deep, calm water at the exit provides the perfect place to stage some friends who can cheer and take photos.

Strokes

While paddling in rock gardens I need to be able to control my boat through turbulent water where there may not always be a place to put the paddle blade because of shallow water or rocks in the way. Picture the boat moving along and a rock appears in front of right in the middle of the run requiring a stroke or reaction to keep momentum going forward. Simply using a stern rudder to go around it may not work. The bow could make it fine but the stern is pushed the opposite direction by the water potentially causing the hull to contact whatever is being avoided.

A better rock gardening experience could be had with a variety of strokes in the toolbox, of which some are:

Bow rudder- pulls the bow away from areas to avoid

Side slip (static draw)- pulls the whole boat to the side

Paddling on one side- a rock may be blocking the other so being able to make forward progress under control using only one side of the boat is important

Bi directional stern rudder- turns the boat both directions while placing it on one side

Sculling and static draw- to move the boat sideways without forward momentum

Low Brace Turn- slow the boat and turn sharp while bracing

Cross Bow Rudder- to turn the bow if something may is in the way of a regular bow rudder, like a low ceiling cave

Bow or Stern Draw- actively pull the bow or stern to one side

Timing

The most common thing I hear when I ask students what they want to get out of a rock garden class is, “I want to improve my timing.” Timing a feature well will require less effort and will be more fun. Good timing on features is safer. If the boat gets in front of the wave, it can send it skidding into the rocks. If the paddler is late on their timing, they may run out of water and get stuck on the feature and then hammered by the next wave. I think nailing the timing on a feature is one of the biggest satisfactions you can get out of a run. There are different ways I challenge myself on timing besides just making it through something without making contact with any rocks.

How do you improve timing? It’s tough to teach timing and even harder to write about. The best advice is to watch everything! Watch the wave that every person that goes before you takes. Try to plan their run for them and then analyze it as they go and see what they may have done different from what you planned.

Go surfing! Surf kayaking is a great way to gain an understanding of how individual waves behave without the risk of being smashed into a rock. Really taking the time to watch every wave and what it does all day long during every surf or rock garden session will really help improve timing features.

Bracing

Just in case it isn’t already obvious, rocks are hard. Ocean rocks are not only hard, but they are often sharp because they are usually covered with barnacles and muscles that can shred whatever contacts them.

Before heading out to play in the rocks, practicing bracing is a must. If a brace fails, use it opportunity to practice tucking tightly against the boat as fast as possible.

Bill Vonnegut getting some bracing practice - Photo by Mark Boyd

A great way to challenge bracing is to try tilting the kayak enough to dip the spray skirt in the water, then brace up. Next try touching the elbow, then the shoulder and finally the opposite side of the spray skirt! Practice high, low and sculling braces enough that they will become automatic. If bracing upright needs to be thought about before it happens, then it’s too late and time to roll.

Hiding Places &Transition Zones

**1) Paddlers head from there protected spot behind a large rock into a transition zone. In the distance there are large breaking waves between them and the open ocean**

Besides just watching and being aware of that next off-shore swell on its way into the area that I am currently in, I am also keeping an eye out for places to hide if needed. Large rocks, reefs or coves where there is some protection from that unplanned wave rolling in are nice to keep in sight. Knowing where a rescue can be performed if needed can, literally, be a life-saver.

**2) The group of paddlers wait in this zone for a gap in the sets of waves, called a window**

When looking for these hiding places one should be aware of what to watch for. The best rocks to hide behind are obviously BIG ONES! The shape of the rock is also a factor to consider. As waves pass by land masses they grab on and swing around, like a pendulum on its side. If the corner of the land mass is sharp, the wave energy will have less of a chance to keep hold and will dissipate. A rounded corner allows the energy of the water to hold its grip all the way around the rock allowing the wave to wrap around both sides and slap together, which results in my kayak being sent into the air. So, when I am looking for a rock to hide behind I try to avoid the rounded ones.

As I paddle between the safe zone of rocks and reefs there will be some gaps called transition zones. These zones should be approached with caution because there is a chance that the gap will constrict the oceans’ energy into a stronger force unlike open areas where there is more space for the energy to disperse. Fortunately, before entering these areas I am normally in a nice hiding spot where I can watch the ocean and time my way across between sets.

**3) Once they see a window, the group quickly paddles through the impact zone before the next set arrives**

Equipment

Boats:

There are many types of kayaks that can be used for rock gardening. My boat of choice for a trip will be determined by where I am heading and the conditions of the ocean.

If it’s a mellow day, I may feel like just touring around the rocks and maybe run a small pour over or two. Under these conditions just about any boat can be used, even composite if I am careful. While composite boats will work great for rock gardening, they are more prone to damage than plastic. For this reason, if conditions are large or I feel like heading deep into the rocks to play hard, I choose a plastic kayak.

If I take a sea kayak out rock gardening, I prefer to be one with a lot of rocker, which that will make it more maneuverable and able climb over waves better. When taking a “long boat” a shorter craft, less than 16 ft., is better adept at maneuvering through rocks.

A cross over boat is another choice, these are shorter than sea kayaks and look like large river boats. My Jackson Karma RG is my go-to boat for rock play. I used a Pyranha Fusion in the past and found it fun and satisfactory for rock play. Crossover whitewater boats are shorter than sea kayaks as a result these craft are more maneuverable, which means less energy spent positioning and more left for playing. They have white water lines with rounded edges to make them more stable in dynamic water and most models usually have a skeg that you can drop to paddle the distance required to reach your favorite rock garden

A small river boat will squeeze into tight places, surf through the rocks well and may be the choice for rock gardens where paddling a long distance is not a factor. These boats are small, nimble, and some are even great for surfing. River boats can squeeze into tight places, turn on a dime and are designed to stay upright in lively water. Even though they are a challenge to travel distance in, they are still a fun option to consider if your play spot is nearby.

Paddles

Rock gardens in the greater San Francisco Bay Area are full of sharp barnacle covered rocks, which is a major safety factor to consider when playing here. The ability to maneuver efficiently and stay upright is important since rock gardens have strong currents and rough water on par with class V runs on the river. Since the paddle is my main source of mobility and bracing, it’s important that I carefully choose one designed for these conditions.

The last thing I want when that unexpected wall of white water appears is my paddle to break. I have seen paddles broken in rock gardens resulting in a swim and rescue that could have been avoided simply by using a solid paddle designed for these conditions. This is why I use a whitewater paddle, these paddles are heavy and durable, designed for running rocky rivers with strong currents and rough water. At times, I may have unintentional contact or get into a jam where the paddle is needed to push off a rock so when that happens I need a paddle I can rely on to be strong enough to handle some beatings. Whitewater paddles are tough enough to help get you out of trouble if needed and are designed for efficient propulsion and bracing in dynamic areas. These paddles generally have a more durable blade and won’t break.

Gloves

Coastal rocks in our area can be very sharp and covered with mussels and barnacles. I don’t always wear gloves when rock gardening, but on days when conditions are big or I feel like playing hard, I make sure I have them on. I have seen a lot of cuts and scrapes that could have been avoided had the person been wearing full fingered gloves.

Gloves are important, you never know when you may need to climb to safety. Or come in contact with sharp rocks.

Helmets

Rocks are hard. Even if my plan is to only go near the rocks and not play in them, I still ALWAYS wear a helmet. I never know when that unexpected wave may show up and send me where I don’t want to be. There are many different types of helmets and it’s easy to get caught up in trying to figure out which one is best. First, I recommend trying on a few and seeing what fits best. I personally do not use a helmet with ear protection, but have seen ears sliced up after a person-meets-rock experience. Having a properly fitted helmet is critically important because when in the rocks the pressure from the waves can wash the helmet right off your head, even if the straps are tightened. Look for fit first and then start to consider what features the helmet has like ear protection, visors, full face protection, etc.

Friends

I highly recommend paddling with the same people repeatedly, you will get to know and trust them to watch your back and lend a hand if needed. It’s also fun if those same people happen to share similar interests and mindsets as well.

For some, I hope to have cleared up some of the mysteries of what rock gardening is. For others, maybe, I have given a useful tip or two. As for me, this is my sport and I will continue to keep trying to improve my skills every chance I get. Now, get out there and practice, take a class, and I hope to see you on the water.

Intro to Rock Gardening Series