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Looks like no country for old men to me, but I am a timid woodland creature as well as old. https://www.cinnamonrainbows.com/surf-cam-report Ed Lawson

Years and years ago when talking to a ranger in the Wind River Range of WY about bear/food issues, he simply said mostly there are only black bears around. If they come into camp and bothered you, then simply bash them on the nose with a skillet. They tend to run away and not come back when you do that. If a grizzly, then they get whatever they want and you need to walk away slowly facing them. Fortunately never needed to take advice. A different time. At trailhead you logged in a ledger where you were going and expected return date. They checked the ledger every week or so just to see who might be missing. You got yourself in and were expected to get yourself out. Ed Lawson

Dan: Some random thoughts. 1. I know few believe me on this, but a five year old battery has lost some of its working capacity. It will lose capacity over time whether you use it or not. It will charge up just fine, but amount of electrical "gas in the tank" will be reduced. Asking a battery that old to perform as new, especially when transmitting , is rather optimistic. Don't assume the battery level indicator is actually showing you the amount of working capacity of the battery. It might show quite a bit of charge left, but stop working quickly if asked to transmit. 2. AFAIK the M88 has a larger capacity battery than the HX-870. It is also more efficient in that it draws a max of 200Ma on receive compared to 330Ma for the 870. They both draw the same when transmitting as expected. 3. I could not find the Sandby or idle current for the M88 so can't compare, but my SWAG would be 50Ma or lower. 4. Sandby times for HT's are based on transmitting 5%, receiving 5%, and not signal for 90% of time. Not the same as the test you describe for which a radio should last much longer than the advertised Standby time. Interestingly, the I could not find a time listed for the HX-870. 8 hours or so of Standby would seem reasonable for the radio given all its features which most likely increase its current draw no matter what you do. For example the standby draw for a "regular" HT would be 50Ma or less and that 10Ma difference represent a large percentage increase in draw. 5. The M88 might be an antique, but it is a very good radio. It is essentially a commercial grade radio and that will show sooner or later. My impression is many if not most of the floating radios are consumer grade stuff, but that is based on limited info. Ed Lawson

Not sure if he is member since lives on North Shore, but a neat, but too brief, story on MITA blog about someone going from Portsmouth to Lubec in 11 days using a cracked Tracer 16.5 fixed with FlexSeal tape. An example of "Just do it." https://mita.org/paddling-the-maine-coast-adventuring-in-your-own-backyard/ Ed Lawson

Pru: As to be expected, wonderful report, both text and pictures. I am curious about the Day 13 course correction. Was it to avoid a rear quartering condition or what? Somehow I get interested in small details. Ed Lawson

I don't know, but it would not surprise me if Mike participates to some extent in the Sept. 22 SMSKN program. So might hear his side of story. I heard he is home, but recovery probably lengthy. My SWAG from the video is there was a slight delay caused by repositioning boat, got to the pour over late, stalled out on the drop , and was pushed back. If the next swell was smaller, would have been no big deal, but it wasn't. Shows how critical timing can be. Ed Lawson

Bryan from the article Wayne linked. "I wrote about sea kayaking marketing back in 2012, and how it has tended to show sea kayaking as an extreme sport with surf, big waves and big conditions. This isn’t what most people want from the outdoors. It doesn’t surprise me that after years of being depicted like this that the sport is in serious decline." Interesting comment and something to ponder along with cost of participating in seakayaking beyond in a trivial way. Ed Lawson

Dan: Wonderful description of the the visual sense of paddling in in dense fog (is there any other kind Downeast?). It is a beguiling experience to glide along in silence with no horizon and objects emerging, more or less, along the way. The Cow Yard/Head Harbor is a magical place in an area that can redefine paddling. At least for me it did. Ed Lawson

Sobering reminder of many things, not the least of which is, "There, but for the grace of God, go I." "Just a couple of bigger waves… " That is the catch isn't it? There are always bigger waves. Sad Mike did not make it out on first try...very sad. Looks to me like Mike had setup to scoot out on the next swell, but the next swell was an outlier. As to rescue, seems another example of no good options and you hope you pick the least damaging one. All things considered, having him on a boat traveling to the hospital in @10 minutes is remarkable and impressive. Given Mike's personality, observing him trending toward being non-responsive must have been terrifying to those with him. Ed Lawson

My very limited experience is that given strong currents in area there are rather strong eddies if not multiple streams in opposing directions so not easy to find helpful currents. Ed Lawson

What is the size of your cockpit? I believe they made two sizes of 24" or 28" long. I forget the skirt I used with an AH, but it might have been a 1.2 Seals. Not ideal, but worked. Anyway, I have actually used an OC skirt from Seals on my Sparrow Hawk ( 24") Tight, but worked. Brooks makes a summer Greenland skirt that works on 24" and 28". Suggest calling Top Kayaker in Ossipee, NH. or check website. He has a nylon skirt specifically designed for AH. for the 28" cockpit and he can order specific one for AH. The AH and SH cockpits are odd and hard to fit which is too bad because the boats are so great otherwise. If you like antique, skegless, but light and competent kayaks. Ed Lawson

Dan: "Strangely, this symbol doesn't appear in the current (online) Chart #1 " I do not know what you mean by the online version of Chart 1, but the PDF version of Chart 1 available for download on the NOAA website of the current version (13th Ed 2019) shows the symbol on page 54 section K-12. It is an international symbol used by NOAA. However, it is not a symbol used in the data for ENC charts if I understand things correctly. Regretfully I spend more time poring over charts at home than I do using them on the water. Ed Lawson '[

David: Mystery solved. Is your last name Holmes? In my old Chart 1 I found symbol at K-12 on page 43. Shown in Burch's 3rd ed. tome at illustration 2-5. Seems those symbols might also suggest caution for kayakers as in boomers live here. Ed Lawson

FWIW, the 2021 MITA Guide indicates overnight parking there allowed with permit from Harbormaster. My experience is that Guide language for other locations can mean various procedures. As Gary indicates, would not park overnight without contacting PD and/or Harbormaster. Ed Lawson

Wayne: Cod Cafe (Cribstone Bridge) is always nice as sheltered launch/landing beach and a store for snacks before and after. Gives choice of exposed or sheltered run down Bailey Island before heading out to Jewell. Personally I like Bethel Point which makes for a longer trip to Jewell, but just a nice length seems to me.. I have heard that town now allowing overnight parking at Marshall Field on Harpswell although fee is a bit high at $20. Midweek I believe the folks at Lands End are OK with kayakers using upper lot for free, but I would check with them. These do involve longer trip coming from south however and certainly good spots closer. Ed Lawson

Andy: Did you find this made it easier to keep the rescuee's boat level/stable compared to a regular assist rescue or a sirrup just anchored the rescuee's boat? Ed lawson

Looking for opinions on the use of a stirrup during assisted rescues by those who have practiced/actually used them. Particularly how the stirrup was used and made. Not interested in opinions on whether using a stirrup is good or bad. Just looking for info on how it worked for those who have used it. I have seen various techniques used even among the BCU types in videos and wondering what has worked for others. Thank you Ed Lawson

Given his SAR background I thought Ty was rather charitable in his books, especially in "Where You Will Find Me". At the same time, the normal dichotomy was presented of those who acted prudently and those who did not which is a little disingenuous. Seems to me everyone does stupid stuff. Amazingly, we nearly all get away with it. Some learn from the experience and become prudent or at least become better able to deal with things the next time they do stupid stuff. Some don't learn and either think it was because of skill or luck and that seldom ends well eventually. Ed Lawson

Suggest contacting Harley at Nanuq Kayaks in Portland. He sells Reed stuff and probably knows the answer. Ed Lawson

Out of curiosity, what constitutes an "expedition"? It seems such a commonly used word with regard to kayaks and kayak trips and applied to all manner of trips. It seems to to be used as a standard by which to judge kayaks which makes me wonder to what use it is meant to apply. Ed Lawson Shamelessly hijacking a thread.

Heather: Some random thoughts of a biased mind. If your camping trips are three days or so, you do not need what are often called "expedition" kayaks unless you like carrying everything including the kitchen sink. Almost any 16' boat will do if you come from a backpacking background. Smaller boats are lighter, more fun to paddle, better for day use, and just easier to deal with. If you are worried about dragging a boat over rocks because you are doing solo trips, then a boat with thicker gelcoat and maybe a keel strip will give you peace of mind, but that will mean a heavier boat. My experience has been that most boats do surprisingly well being dragged over rocks now and then if you pick the right rocks. The resistance you must overcome to make a boat move at a given speed is remarkably alike for almost all boats under 3.0Kts which is a typical pace for many. Fast boats are considered faster because their resistance level is relatively less at higher speeds, but the resistance levels at higher speeds require more effort than most can provide over time. So a "faster" boat is not faster for most paddlers most of the time. In fact, a "fast" kayak can even be harder to paddle than a "slow" kayak at lower speeds. That said, some boats are more efficient at typical cruising speeds which means they feel fast in that speed range even if they are not a "fast" kayak. Such boats are great for touring as you can cover many miles at a good pace with an easily sustained effort. Not saying there are no slow kayaks, just don't expect a new kayak to suddenly enable you to be much faster. Typically people change what they like and want in a kayak as their paddling experience/skills increase. Often people will change views of what constitutes a stable boat or whether they prefer rudder over skeg for trimming a boat. As a result, it is not uncommon to go through a few boats till you hit the one that is comfortable/fits, works well for the paddling you do, and its negatives are outweighed by its positives. All boats are compromises and in my opinion the trick is to find the boat whose negatives can be lived with because its positives match what is important for you. And what is a negative to one will likely be a positive for another. I believe it often takes an active season of paddling to really form an opinion about a given boat so don't be in a hurry to say a boat is good or ill. Given the price of new boats compared to used boats, might not be a bad idea to go the used boat route unless you have spend enough time to really know what you like/need. There are some really nice used composite boats out there for @$1,000 and that is for high quality boats which will be good for another ten years at least of heavy use. Ed Lawson

I suggest thinking carefully before moving the seat that far back. Likely to make a noticeable change in how the boat handles. As Jim suggests, Tom would be a very good resource in determining whether the Explorer could be made to fit well by reasonable efforts or, as Pru suggests, a different boat is the better solution. My prejudiced view is best to find a boat that basically feels right and tweak with outfitting as opposed to making drastic changes/outfitting in an attempt to make an ill fitting boat work.

If someone wanted to have a local copy, then they could download the current version in their file format of choice from the Google Doc site. However, I agree with Joe that it should be left as a dynamic/work in progress item on Google Doc as opposed to a static file to be downloaded from the NSPN site. Ed Lawson

Another source:: https://topkayaker.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=119_14&products_id=999&zenid=hvn6lp76h3q6rmbrk90a8qih51 Ed Lawson

I should have mentioned Brian Nystrom, long associated with NSPN, who literally wrote the book on making Greenland Paddles. Ed Lawson