Help me understand the process of kayaking

I'm not really sure what your question is exactly.

For the James river in Richmond we're talking about Whitewater Kayaking. This is distinct from forms of flatwater kayaking you will find upstream of Richmond or downstream (generally recreational and sea or touring kayaking respectively)

In Richmond there are two kinds of whitewater kayaking runs. There's the Novice section from Pony Pasture to Reedy Creek and the Advanced section from Reedy Creek to 14th st. in downtown Richmond.

How calm the James is depends entirely on the water level. At lower levels like it is now in the Summer it's pretty sedate. At higher levels like you'll find after a big rainstorm in the fall or spring it's not safe unless you know what you're doing, and this is why you need a permit above 9 feet.

If you're going to go kayaking in Richmond there are flatwater sections you could park and then paddle around and return to your car. Anncarrows Landing, Tredegar pool and Hugenot Flatwater are the popular spots for this type of trip.

To paddle from Pony Pasture to Reedy or Reedy to 14th street you will generally paddle with a companion and leave one person's car at the take out and then drive to the put in then retrieve the car at the put in with the car from the take out. You could also walk, bike, jog, pogostick or whatever you want as well.

If you're interested in kayaking there are Kayaks for rent by the hour at Brown's island during the summer or give Riverside Outfitters a call as they do many different flavors of kayaking trips.

I think Huguenot Flatwater is the best place for beginners around here. You can paddle upstream from there to Bosher's Dam and then float back down to Huguenot, thus avoiding the need for shuttling.

Chesterfield Parks and Rec has an AWESOME whitewhater kayak beginner's class you can take on a weekend. Highly recommend it, just took it this year and it was instrumental to getting me into kayaking. If you're interesting in learning more, check it out :)

Can beginners get in around reedy creek and make sure to not end up in the rapids further down?

Nope. You should go up to Huguenot Flatwater and paddle there. Anything past Reedy Creek is going to cause you trouble. I usually do Pony Pasture to Reedy Creek which has one minor rapid.

How do people plan on getting home when they kayak?

Usually when you're in a higher current area you're planning a one way trip. So you would have someone at the end, or go with a couple people and one of you leaves the car at the end.

Edit: Others can provide more in-depth answers, I'm sure.

Kayak Richmond has courses and trips starting in the $100 and up range. If you do not find a better offer (perhaps from VCU?) then this seems a reasonable fee for beginner instruction with certified instructors.

2nd Huguenot Flatwater as a great place to get started.

There is also a put in at the north side of the 14th Street bridge that is flat water, too. You can put in there and go down towards Rocketts Landing, or just hook around Mayo Island and poke around.

Yes, a lot of the time I'll put in somewhere and go up & back to where I started.

I have a lot of friends who kayak. The more advanced ones put in at Reedy Creek and do the really dangerous rapids downtown. The less advanced kayakers (and tubers, and canoers) usually put in up near pony pasture and then float down and TAKE OUT at reedy creek. When I did a SUP adventure through Riverside Outfitters, we did this upper course and took out at Reedy Creek.

I am also told there is a pipe near Boulevard bridge (nickel bridge) that you are supposed to portage around if you are tubing. When we did the SUP thing we paddled right over it.

That is pretty much all I know.

almost every time I go to the Brown's Island Dam lookout, I see some hapless kayaker or tuber who has no idea that there are giant dangrous rapids below the Brown's Island Dam. They realize it at the last moment and it becomes a crisis as they paddly/swim furiously against the current to avoid going under the dam.

Also I'd like to buy a kayak or some kind of arm muscle paddling vessel to continue my life adventure.

And maybe one day one of you can meet me and show me a spot or two for safe workouts.

hijacking for related question: anybody ever done the full length of falling creek? I'm curious if it's possible and interested to try but i dont know if the right water level exists where there'll be flow in the small parts but still space to get under the bridges

I've put in at Reedy Creek and taken out at the top of Belle Isle and just walked the boat back to Reedy on my shoulder. It's not very far. I've also parked at Huguenot and Pony Pasture and paddled down to Reedy where we had another vehicle waiting for us. Huguenot all the way to 14th can also be done, but again, you need to have someone pick you up, or have a car parked at 14th St Takeout or Shiplock Park, and have whitewater skills.

But if you're a beginner, PLEASE go out on the river with someone who has experience. Take courses on paddling. Every year, the river kills someone who underestimates its power. I've seen people lose their boats after capsizing, and I've seen even experienced people injured while rolling their boats and hitting rocks. A rock to the head or face can stun you enough to drown you. The dams can also be deadly. So can underwater snags that trap you before you can make it to the surface if you capsize.

Paddling easy moving flatwater is completely different in skillset and the type of boat when compared to whitewater paddling. Also, paddling is more of a core workout than arms per se. Paddling any distance just using your arms will tire you out. Using more of your torso and abdominals will result in much better paddling efficiency and stamina.

Read this also:

https://www.reddit.com/r/rva/comments/3ark76/deadly_tales_of_the_river_got_any/

Every time I've kayaker the james, we've had to park one of our cars downstream. The river is quite calm and easy to navigate even for beginners. Just check online to see how high and fast the water is.