billvoss

If BIB 11am or later, I'll plan to get up early to get there by 10:15am, and make this my first paddle of 2023! Otherwise, sorry, I'm not ready to get up that early yet. Have a fun paddle.

I might stay on the island this year, instead of an hour plus away at my dad's. I went to make a reservation at Hadley's Campground, and they informed me they were instituting a $25/day EV charging surcharge. They wanted $77/night plus taxes. I was offended, because I think I will only use around $5/day for driving, and they would already be charging me $15/day extra for the electrical hook-up! So does anyone have experience with my campsite short list below? https://www.smugglersdencampground.com/ https://www.mountdesertcampground.com https://ssvc.info/ (Previously known as Somes Sound View Campground, now part of a chain.) https://wildacadia.com (Just off the island.) There are plenty of other campgrounds, but I don't feel a need to pay more for a water view. I hope to see enough water from my kayak! Bill P.S. The last few years I've been paddling with the late start "mellow" group, mainly because I wanted a late start. However, I have missed the bumpy water, which is part of the reason I am thinking about camping on/near the island.

I was there in 2011, so conditions may have changed. At that time the indoor bathroom had a composting toilet, and the bathroom sink drained into a bucket that needed frequent dumping. If you brought your own solar shower you could use the outdoor shower stalls. The outdoor shower stalls did not have running water. The only "conditions" were the tide races. The group I was with scheduled their paddles to traverse the races during slack, so I have not paddled those races when they were running. Have fun. I'm not personally very interested in places without hot showers.

Boston AMC whitewater rolling instructional sessions will be back again this winter. They have the Arlington Boys’ and Girls’ Club pool reserved from 5-7 pm for five Sundays, February 26 through March 26, 2023. NOTE: This is for WHITE WATER kayaks only. The pool entry path includes a right angle turn which will not accommodate sea kayaks. However, with advance notice AMC Boston does normally rent kayaks for this event from their fleet. I don't think registration is up yet, and I am definitely NOT the registrar. Watch this space: https://amcbostonpaddlers.org/public/white-water/ If you are looking for local inexpensive rolling instruction, this annual event is hard to beat. If you show up for all five sessions, and are reasonably fit, you are very likely to get your first rolls. (Then it just takes years of practice to keep and improve them.) Yes, I have volunteered to be one of the instructors with AMC Boston again this year.

Yipee!

Assuming your suit has socks, turning the suit inside out, then filling the bottom of the leg with water should let you perform your own at-home water test. However, if instead of a pin hole, you then find a wide area leaking and bubbling up I would suspect fabric delamination. Gore-Tex buys us new suits because delamination is not a repairable failure. DWR "deficiency" is also what makes it possible for me to enjoy wearing a drysuit in July and August. It feels kind of like wearing a wet long sleeve cotton shirt. Wearing a drysuit with fresh DWR during July and August is not so pleasant.

@mhabichI love my Icon shoulder-zip drysuits. I initially could not put it on and take it off by myself, until I learned the trick. This YouTube video does a good job of showing the technique. I do NOT find it necessary to use my teeth, but I do use the rest of the technique shown. Most importantly using the other hand to create tension.

Dan, Kokatat has been charging for the water tests for quite a long time now. Though it includes fixing the pinhole leaks. Warranty Evaluation, which in my opinion you should ALWAYS add when sending your suit back, is "Free" but if ordered alone requires a return shipping fee ($11.95 this October). To my amazement, one of my pandemic suits already de-laminated, so I love Gore-Tex! I also received my replacement suit this week. Joseph you should easily get more than a year out of a gasket. My last thick gaskets outlasted the Gore-Tex fabric! Any chance you are getting a tiny trace of suntan lotion on your gaskets? That includes putting suntan lotion on your skin, then touching a gasket with that skin. Any petroleum based product quickly kills latex. Personally, I wear a neck Buff, and Buff gloves to minimize my chances of getting suntan lotion on my gaskets. I try to rinse the gaskets after each paddle. If they don't look shiny, the gaskets also get the 303 Protectant treatment. One paddler did tell me they thought newer gaskets are thinner than they used to be, and thus do not last as long. Personally, I always specify the "Thick" aka "Coast Guard" gaskets these days, and I certainly get multiple years out of them.

I am looking for Pool Sessions this winter! (Sea Kayak or White Water, any leads welcome.) I signed up for the first two sessions with https://www.salemkayak.com/gear-trips-courses/pool-sessions, but I snoozed on signing up for later sessions, and now Kevin's "Practice" offerings are sold out till late March 2023! Any leads on other providers, and any update on NSPN Pool sessions would be very welcome.

Too long a drive for me with that launch time. Have fun.

I might join you, depending on ...

I've done most of those skills in isolation. Paddling underwater by itself exhausts my breath control very quickly. All the head underwater activities would be much harder during a RACE. I would still need to try, or to master the following: Switching to a reverse straddle before paddling backwards. The front deck spin, though I've done it much more slowly on the back deck. Spear the hula hoop with the kayak's bow. Upside down pushing feet above the water. The flip re-entry. I have stood up in a kayak, and damaged my skin-on-frame in the process. However, I'm not sure I could touch the bell. Definitely a fun video to watch.

I second Ed's GREASE suggestion. Once I started putting Waterproof Bicycle Grease on the threads when I installed my Thule Racks each spring, I stopped having significant rust problems on the threads or bolts. My newest problem is that one of my NEW, just purchased this spring, Yakima JayLow Kayak Carriers has started dropping rust on my car! The rust is coming from two press fittings, not a movable part.

Did the outlet mall make money, despite paying for your "free" charge, by inducing you to spend some money while charging? By your description, I'm guessing they only spent a dollar or two on your "free" electricity. Does the outlet mall make more money, averaged over all the transactions from all the EV's that spend time getting a "free" charge, compared to what they would make if they spent the money on some combination of Coupons, Google Ads, TV Ads, Radio Ads, Billboards, and US Postal Fliers instead? I'm confident the outlet mall put out a press release when they installed the chargers. I'm confident that Plug Share sends them some EV customers who would not otherwise stop. I strongly suspect the decision to offer "free" charging is paying for itself.

DC Fast Charging is like filling up with gas at a highway service plaza, not the frugal choice in most cases. DC Fast Charging also suffers from wildly varying regulations in different states. Some states mandate that DC Fast Charging must charge by kilowatt hours, some mandate that they must charge by time, and some even regulate the specific price that must be charged. Some states allow utilities to charge DC Fast Charging sites "demand" surcharges which can significantly push up the site's electricity costs, while some states prohibit the practice, or exempt EV charging from "demand" surcharges. The cheapest way to charge is of course "free" charging. Some EV purchases include some complimentary DC Fast Charging. However, most "free" charging is the slower level 2 charging with power levels similar to an electric drier or oven. Usually companies or organizations are providing "Free" charging as an employee and/or customer perk, or to make a "Green" statement. Level 2 charging is so inexpensive, it can be a cheap form of PR. Similar to the "free shipping" that Amazon made so popular. Fortunately, when FREE is not convenient, most EV owners charge almost exclusively at home. In the past 30 days the only time I have DC Fast charged was the trip from NH to RI and southern MA when I bought my Virgo. That represented just 4% of my charging over those 30 days.

Solved it, with some Button Thread, a Needle, Needle Nose Pliers, and something to cut the thread. First thread the needle, and stick it through the end of the shock cord. After pulling it through the shock cord, thread the needle with the loose ends as well. The needle and thread easily pass through the tether hole in the new hatch cover. Need a good grip to pull. So needle nose pliers pinch the thread, and add a quick wrap for a secure grip. Then pull while praying you don't damage the hatch cover. Sigh of relief, the shock cord made it through the tether hole without breaking anything, Remove the thread, then a simple overhand stopper knot like the factory did the other covers. Put away the tools. Apply some 303 Protectant and the kayak is ready for more fun on the water.

Is there a trick to threading the bungee tether line through the tether hole of a replacement hatch cover?

@EELStandard Horizon customer support blames "The Tsunami." Apparently Standard Horizon management didn't think it was worth restoring battery pack production for out of production radios. That almost kept me from buying another Standard Horizon radio. Part of the problem is that the old battery pack for the HX850s provided part of the shell and the charging contacts for the old radio, so it was a very radio series specific battery pack. However, the new HX890 radio uses a simple rectangular battery (1800 mAh SBR-13LI) which is fully enclosed by the radio's shell, and most importantly somebody in China is selling a "generic" (1100 mAh replacement) on Amazon. The specifications for their generic replacement are definitely not as good as the Standard Horizon version, but that may improve over time, and the generic costs significantly less.

This P&H Video on YouTube recommends Silicone Spray for skegs on both composite and plastic kayaks. I suspect it would also be a good choice for rudders.

An update and correction on my lithium rechargeable AAA battery reports earlier in this thread. Using my old Standard Horizon HX850S for which I can no longer get a replacement Lithium Ion pack, only the AAA battery tray. It turns out that with either regular alkaline AAA batteries, or the Pownergy AAA rechargeable batteries that I subsequently purchased, if the radio is set to LO (1 Watt) power, the radio will transmit with fresh batteries. However, again with either AAA battery choice, if the radio is set to HI or Medium power, the radio crashes instead. It is very easy to accidentally change this model's transmit power since it is a dedicated button. However, even the alkaline AAA batteries do not last very long. Though carrying the radio stored OFF as an additional way of sending out a MAYDAY on an expedition might still make sense. In contrast, my new Standard Horizon HX890's manual says that it will automatically transmit use LO (1 Watt) when the battery tray is used, and says it may use LO or Med if the regular lithium ion battery is low on charge EVEN THOUGH THE SCREEN SHOWS "HI" POWER selected. I can confirm that with the Pownergy AAA rechargeable lithium-ion batteries the new radio did not crash, and claimed to be transmitting, thought the screen showed "HI" power selected. As of now, I plan to just carry the new HX890 radio, though I'm not throwing away the old radio just yet.

At first I read your post as meaning you could only drive 106 miles leaving a 10% cushion, and I was shocked. Then I compared the EPA ratings on my Model Y and your Bolt EUV and decided you meant you could drive about 212 miles a day with a kayak on top while still having a comfortable cushion when you got home. Next I confirmed it when I did the math (65 Kwh - (10% of 65 Kwh)) * 3.7 miles/Kwh = 216.45 miles. My June electric bill was charging me $0.202/Kwh. So that 216.45 mile trip would cost less than $12 in electricity. I know you have Solar, so you may be spending even less. The other wonderful part of charging at home is that every morning you wake to a "full charge" and the EV is ready to do it all again. I was one of those drivers who liked to keep their fuel tank at least half full, just in case. I love how I leave the house with a "full tank" every morning these days. Personally, so far, only my round trips north of Franconia Notch, and my trip to Bangor have required charging away from home. P.S. For anyone looking for fast chargers along a route, or contemplating an EV purchase, I definitely recommend https://abetterrouteplanner.com/ and the associated phone app to see when and how long you would need to charge.

Thanks Joe. It was a very pleasant paddle, with good company, and just enough wind and bumpy water to keep the paddling itself from being boring.

My general rule is sell on EBay to get the best price, buy on Craigslist where the fastest response usually wins and bargains are available. Unfortunately, EBay is less useful for large difficult to ship items. However, if you want something to go to a "good home" avoid EBay and Craigslist, and instead use some form a friends of friends networking, or more focused board like NSPN, Glad you sold your kayak @alcoons When you last dropped the price I started agonizing over the "deal," though I knew I would curse having purchased too long a kayak to easily store at my home.

An 11am meeting time is wonderful! Adding three to sea, plus no lighting, will make me very happy on Wednesday!

First off it is really really difficult to "accidentally" run out of charge. All modern EVs give you lots and lots of warnings. When they get really low, they also start informing you that they are doing things like restricting your top speed, or limiting climate control to save energy and increase range. In the case of a Tesla, if I am in northern Maine I am also going to be using Tesla's in car navigation. The navigation system automatically shows my estimated arrival state of charge, and my round trip estimated state of charge. If I don't have enough charge to reach my destination, the navigation system automatically adds the needed charging stops to my trip unless I turn that feature off. I have seen on YouTube Tesla cross country drivers say it is easier to drive across the more vacant parts of the country in a Tesla than in an ICE car because the Tesla does all the calculations for them, and they don't have to calculate gas stops where gas stations are sparse. However, supposing I didn't use the navigation system, and decided to push on and ignore all those early warnings because I was sleepy and running late. I'm down to where the low on gas light would turn on with an internal combustion engine car in the wilds of Northern Maine at night. I don't need to find a dedicated EV charger, an open gas station, or a tow yet. I just need to find someone willing to let me plug into a standard electrical outlet like I would plug a lamp into. If they will let me plug in, I could use my so called "granny lead," a low power charger that runs off a standard plug. Low power chargers are available for all EVs. Most/all? manufacturers either bundle them as standard equipment, or offer them as an option. After market models are also available. The granny lead won't charge me up very fast, maybe 3 or 4 miles of charge an hour. I might be sleeping in my car that night if I really goofed up, kicking myself for not topping off in Bangor or Ellsworth at a Tesla supercharger. By the way, 15 amps of electricity from a standard outlet for an hour is under 2 kWh, so less than 40 cents of electricity. Historical note: When cars first became popular in the US, thanks to rural electrification EVs were more popular in rural communities where gas stations were few and far between. Now if you drive a Tesla and like me want to be prepared, besides getting the Tesla Mobile Adapter "granny lead," you would also purchase the Tesla NEMA Adapter Bundle. While a standard 15 amp 120 outlet only provides a Model Y with 3 or 4 miles of range, if I can find a campground with electric power for RVs, or even just someone with an electric dryer plug I can reach I can charge a lot faster. Using a 14-50 or 6-50 outlet, the model Y gains about 29 miles of range per hour of charge. By the way, if I'm going to northern Maine, I'm probably going to make a reservation at a campground that can promise me a site with a 240 outlet. Besides letting me charge my EV, it will also let me sleep inside my car running in Tesla's "camp mode." Camp mode lets me run the climate control all night and sleep at whatever temperature I prefer, having the display show video of a campfire is also an option!