John Martinsen

Price drop to $400

Kokatat Gore-tex Expedition Drysuit Xl. Was cleaned and pressure tested in 2013 and gaskets replaced. Needs one new wrist gasket, the others look good. Located in Quincy but can ship at buyers expense. Jbmartinsen at Gmail dot com

You don't put the kids in the same end as the dogs.

I like the usb rechargeable headlamps. Charges from a portable battery pack, same one I use to charge the phone.

Looks like Kimball Island.

I've never seen this place in person but might be an option for a starting point. http://www.reachknolls.com/

$900 obo. The keel strip has new material at both ends. Very solid boat in great condition. Thanks, John M

Easy cheap way to add some insulation to the sleep system, could use it under or over the pad. Also makes for a good backup if you spring a leak at night, not comfortable but would add enough warmth to get through the night and not loose heat to the ground. Folded up also makes a good sit pad. https://www.gossamergear.com/collections/accessories/products/thinlight-foam-pad

$1000

Just putting a feeler out to see if anyone is interested in a yellow fiberglass Nigel Foster Shadow. Unfortunately this boat no longer matches my paddling style (sedentary) and I would like to see it go to a more appreciative owner. It's a very rewarding boat to paddle but requires a more diligent owner than myself. It's an older boat but in good shape, with new hatches, new reflective deck line and bungee, and a new kayak sport ergo seat. Skeg works great. The keel strip is starting to get worn through and will need to be freshened up sometime soon. The only other thing is that it's a heavy boat, heavier than most plastic boats of a similar size, but has a very solid layup. Since this is a feeler I haven't bothered to get photos, but if anyone is interested I can get the boat out and take some photos. Thanks, Just M jbmartinsen @ gmail dot com

So let's get the important stuff out of the way. Best place for a post paddle taco and beer. https://m.facebook.com/californiaundergroundatnantasketbeach/ Now the other stuff. As others have said, you can park and launch anywhere this time of year. In the warmer months, when and where lifeguards are on the beach, you're not allowed to launch a kayak from the public beach. You have to go north past the lifeguard stations to launch, but again that's only during the summer. For the long boats, I think the best spot would be across from the Dunkin Donuts, closer to the large white bath house and carousel. You could play right out front of that spot, and also transition a little further south towards the rocks, where you might find more deep water rides. Afterwards you could just walk across the street for tacos without having to shuffle cars. I'd avoid paddling where the surfers mainly congregate, which is a little further north where the concrete seawall ends, and it transitions to large boulders. There's a pretty good break right there, surfers usually grab the parking spaces right next to the water, and most of them won't travel any further than there. If you're surfing a dedicated surf boat, and have the skills, you could jump in that lineup. For the long boats, surfers don't really want you anywhere near them. I can't really blame them as they're pretty vulnerable, especially when there's a 16 foot object traveling sideways through the soup zone. So I'd give the boardies some distance if you encounter them in larger groups. Might not matter so much with the 6pm high tide Saturday, but might come into play for future visits. At high tide the water will come up against the seawall, from the south side near the abandoned restaurant, all the way north to where the seawall ends. So it can be more challenging to launch or land from those spots, and you'll get a lot of waves bouncing off the seawall.

Was thinking it was a stove..

I've always wondered if a sil-nylon version of a storm cag would be effective. It would be totally waterproof, pack down really small, depending on the amount of fuzzy you put in the pockets and hood. Wouldn't be breathable, but it's typically used as a wind block layer during breaks, or as an extra layer on the water for a cold challenged paddler, and usually over an existing waterproof/breathable layer. So maybe just a long zipper (backed up with velcro) starting under the chin to provide venting would suffice. Throw in a plush hand warmer pocket, thin neoprene cuffs at the wrists, light lining in the hood for comfort, and you might have a compact cag, about the size of a baseball. Wouldn't be any good for preventing a thermos from knocking around a day hatch, but nothing is perfect.

I would take the REI tent back to the store, especially if you're a member, and see if they'll exchange it for you. The whole reason to buy a premium price for gear at REI (for me at least) is to be able to exchange or return it if it fails. As long as you dry a tent out before storing it, should last more than a handful of uses.

Ditto checking for cracks. You could try getting a spray skirt with a flange, the extra layer of material is supposed to help seal the cockpit. Or I spoke to an old timer who claimed that adding a thin layer of foam, something like weather stripping, around the coaming would make it more waterproof but I haven't personally tried this trick.