Paddleboaring in Greenwich Cove. Credit: East Coast Paddle Sports.

East Greenwich now has a place to rent kayaks and paddleboards – East Coast Paddle Sports, which is setting up shop next to Rhode Island Clam on weekends and, starting Monday, daily.

The mobile business came about after co-owners Kathleen Tefft and Guy Gauzen became paddleboard enthusiasts themselves a year ago. They realized they just needed a trailer and a few more boards to open a seasonal business – oh, and a place to launch from. Enter Mark Finn, owner of Finn’s Harborside and property to the south.

A mutual friend introduce them and a deal was struck. Tefft and Gauzen operate their business on the parcel of land just south of Rhode Island Clam – the lot that floods in high tide, as Tefft aptly described it. Perfect for a mobile business!

The business did run a little afoul of the town when it posted a banner on the chainlink fence at the edge of Finn’s property. Turns out, signs need permits, so Tefft said they will apply to the Zoning Board for permission.

The business is insured and licensed, Tefft said, and they’ve employed a couple of local college-age residents to lead tours of the cove, other parts of Greenwich Bay, or even farther afield (that mobile aspect).

The yoga-on-paddleboard craze? Tefft said she’s looking for an instructor who might want to take that on. Using either the kayaks or the paddleboards is pretty easy, she said, and really fun. Paddleboarding looks hard, but that’s deceiving, said Tefft.

“It’s so big and stable, that once you get comfortable on it, it’s so easy to move around on it.”

Starting Saturday, East Coast Paddle Sports will be open for business (weather permitting) on Water Street from about noon on. Tefft said she was still figuring out the best hours of operation.

You can rent the boards or kayaks for an hour, two hours, four hours or the whole day. Find out more at their website here or call (401) 368-5455.