Michael_Crouse

Magdalene Islands are beautiful, they're also windy, lots of wind surfers there, 30mph winds seemed like normal conditions. British Columbia Newfoundland Maine, lots of Maine Someplace warm, Baja?

The Took has a shorter shaft, which is the opposite of what I would have thought and I use the darn things! The Tooksook probably enters the water at bit less of an angle. So one would think that the Corry should have a shorter shaft, but I've tried a 210cm paddle and it just didn't work (sold one, tried again and that one is Kim's spare). I think I'm planting the Corry farther forward than the Took or the Camano and the slightly longer shaft makes that reach easier? So yes I do use a slightly different style but not that different. I also use the Corry with my Viviane, which lends itself to a stronger paddle since it's my fastest boat. All this is really points out you should use the shortest paddle that you feel comfortable with. I won't even mention bent or crank shafts.... whoops I guess I did... I hate the damn things :-)

The pic was from a PM discussion with someone, but you can't put pics in PMs, or I couldn't figure it out. I should have noted that. I would say that most of the time when people get a shorter paddle they do change their blade shape. A newer model has come out, a brand change, etc....

Pics of a 215cm Corryvrecken vs. a 220cm Toksook to show that the shorter paddle has a longer shaft.

One nit picky thing that drives me crazy: paddle shaft length vs. blade size! If you're paddling with a 215cm Werner Camano (using a vertical stroke) and you want an new paddle you should measure the paddle shaft, not just the over all length. If you switched to a 210cm with a shorter wider blade the paddle shaft might actually be longer than the shaft on your 210cm Camano. For me observing how much of the shaft is in or out of the water at the catch helps to determine the paddle length. Oh yea, at my height a 215-220 cm feels perfect for me. This is great since people are always selling their too long for them paddles at great prices :-)

A non emergency trick, if you find an iPhone you can hold the home button down and ask Siri "who's phone is this?", yes it works if it's locked. btw. I'm not updating my iOS until the airplay issues get fixed.

Is it possible to remove the internal ferrule bits and switch to an old school button ferrule? I have a one piece paddle and I never use it because it's a pain to transport and when I first tried it I realized it was almost impossible to stow on the water so I couldn't switch back to my old paddle. That kept me from getting used to it, it's a shame because it's a nice wooden mitchell paddle.

We use an outback oven and have made pizza, scones, brownies, etc.... We have the 10" and the 8" versions. The 8" well works for backpacking and for small hatches. It's too small for pizza. The outback oven uses more fuel than cooking a typical meal and if it's windy you need a damn good wind shield. It bakes using convection and trying to bake in the wind is a good way to waste your fuel. http://www.backpackerspantry.com/products/outback-oven.html http://www.bakepacker.com is another option. You can buy a scorch buster and use your pot as a lid to bake some biscuits but I don't think it would work for pizza. If you're just looking for some dessert type baked goods you can make drop biscuits in a regular pot.

Interesting idea, not sure about cooking on plastic though. A few years ago I switched to a bigger pot to save space.... what?!? you say? a bigger pot to save space? Yes, my stove could fit into a slightly larger pot so it actually saved space. and yes I do love playing Tetris ;-)

If the seal is on the inside you have the potential for trapping some water under the hatch rim. I wouldn't want water trapped near the screw/bolt holes. Maybe I'm over thinking this but it could seap into the fiberglass or freeze and expand causing worse problems. I pulled the hatch rims on my Gulfstream and resealed them, it's not that bad to do.

Plumbers putty, a Sam splint can do double duty, it adds structure to boats or bones!

There was a shop who would attach practice golf balls to the grab loops of spray skirts, I suspect they would easily collapse if they were stuck and you yanked on them...... unlike the giant biner I keep on my grab loop..... ducking for cover from the flames

The story I was told was a couple use to live near or on the ocean, the wife was diagnosed with cancer and this was done because she missed the ocean and it made her feel better. We drive by it every time we go to Kim's parents.

If you leave the seat hangers in be sure to put something solid behind them. The hanger can act like a lever and cause cracks, leaks, etc... and separate the cockpit coming from the deck. Personally I would use a foam block for the back rest.

I resubmitted the claim, got a response that I needed to send them my signature, I did, and they just shipped me a new case. I wish they did the claims the same way Lupine dog leashes does, send them back the damaged product with your shipping address and they replace it. I actually had to take a picture of both serial numbers on the phone so I could enlarge them to read them!

I never bought the JOOS charger, someday perhaps. Just bring zip-locks, lots of zip-locks We used to bring cans of Guinness, it tastes fine when it's not ice cold and it's perfect ballast along the keel.

If you start putting bags of wine in your hydration pack be sure to put the cheese and crackers in your pfd instead of your day hatch.

Off topic but what's the best way to get the glue/foam off when you're removing someone else's outfitting? I have (ahem, cough, cough) a few boats I really need to outfit better and having old residue that holds sand and dirt is really annoying. Acetone has been suggested but I know it can soften a gel coat if you're not careful.

Do you think this will buff out? (seen on reddit) http://i.imgur.com/XQWXV8r.jpg

Launch sites from paddling.net is a handy app

The charging port door on my life proof broke in less than a year and they have not responded to my warranty inquiry, so I'll be looking for a new case from someone else.

I think they're without an importer, dealers can still sell them they just have to buy an entire container of kayaks. usual disclaimer: I've been wrong before Maine Sport is listed as a dealer but their is no mention of tide race on their website, I would give them a call.

speaking of the original http://www.junglehammock.com There are lots of hammock manufacturers out there, and I love them in hot weather, but I really hate not having a place to put my stuff. Yes, I know put it under the hammock/tarp, but it just doesn't feel right too me. I guess tenting habits die hard.

Welcome Brian, last year (according to our calendar) the sessions started at the end of May. Not sure if they'll happen again this year. I'm sure someone else will chime in soon.

REI storm proof matches, they're amazing. Please no white gas to start a fire, it's dangerous and it doesn't work well. Also treating burns is my biggest fear, what's in your kit for burn treatment? How's that salt water going to feel on a burn? Ouch! Some cotton balls soaked in Vaseline make a great emergency fire starter but I feel that everyone should be able to start a fire with one match and what they can find in the woods. It takes patience but it can be done. Oh yea I just picked up one of those swedish metal fire starter things, it's two pieces of metal and I can't figure out how to use it. Off to youtube for me I guess.