Rob Hazard

Wow! That's us all right, Mary! There we all are indeed! Is this our Fifteen Minutes of Fame?

Bravo on good decision making! That route is wonderful for its variety of conditions, but doing the inside part first can leave you having a tough call to make.

My guess would be a parabolic path. Nice variety of boats there. Who was paddling what? I assume the boat with the Unmentionable Metal Appliance on the stern is Leon's. Is that you in an Avocet, David? Did you do any swapping of boats to see how the Vaag and the X-cite compare to older designs? Hundred dollar bets! I'll steer clear of you high rollers! My standard challenge bet in such disputes is a jelly doughnut from Marty's in Ipswich. It sounds like you had a lovely day there. I wish I could have joined you!

I hope to make it next Wednesday.

If they could actually ROLL it, it might look like a caterpillar turning over.

Thanks to everyone who posted pix from this trip. I had a great 3 days with you all!

It is important to remember that NSPN lake sessions are unstructured practice sessions. They are not "kayaking lessons" and we have no paid instructors or liability coverage. We operate on the Common Adventure Model. I have been going to Chebacco Lake for 8 summers now, because I continue to learn and improve my boat handling. Sometimes I share what I've learned and sometimes I'm looking for pointers on how to improve some technique. It's an exploration. One thing I have learned is how integrated the various skills of paddling are. Someone who has a smooth, effortless roll probably also has confident edging control and an elegant style with a paddle. I would encourage anyone who wants to learn to roll to seek out some classes with a good coach to get the elements of the art roughed in. Then come practice with us!

Just a note: June 23rd is Saturday, not Sunday.

Looks like a nice paddle, Ed. where did you go?

Yes, that's it. We'll be happy to see you. By the way, I was wrong about the drysuit bit. The water is plenty warm enough for a wetsuit now. We had 3 participants this evening. We're off to a good start!

It's that time again! NSPN's longest-running lake session begins for the 2012 season. As in years past, we gather in the cove at the south end of Chebacco Lake in Manchester every Thursday at 5pm to practice rolls, rescues, boat-handling skills, and the infamous Stupid Kayak Tricks. We usually keep going until the sun goes down. It's a great chance to polish your skills and get ready for summer. You'll need your boat, PFD, paddle and sprayskirt, and either a wetsuit or a drysuit. The water is warmer than it was this time last year, but we're not up to swimming suit temps yet. To get there, take Rt 128 to Exit 16, Pine St, Manchester, and take the road North, away from town. The road soon turns to dirt, but have no fear, keep going for a mile or so. When the paving resumes, watch for the launching ramp on your right. See you there!

Chebacco Lake sessions will begin tomorrow at 5 pm. Rick Crangle and Rob Hazard will be there. Bring your drysuit, because we ALWAYS get out of our boats!

As for what to bring for clean-up, I'd suggest first some shoes for walking on rocks, wet seaweed and sand, also work gloves, garbage bags, and some cheap rope. We usually collect bags of stuff, bring them to one spot near a good landing, then tie them down so they can't blow or float away. I will also bring a claw hammer for bending over the rusty nails I find sticking out of driftwood. On times we did trail clearing we found a small pair of brush clippers handy.

I'm in as well. Maybe we can do a little cleanup on Bangs on our way out to Jewell? I'll bring the garbage bags!

As noted in the edited post, I am canceling this trip due to scheduling conflict with the NSPN on-the-water CAM workshop and the nesting Eiders on Crow Island. Sorry to anyone who is disappointed. Perhaps we can do a cleanup later in the season. Cheers, Rob

Ed, does this request refer to Crow only, or Bangs as well?

Sorry, I didn't check the date against the club calendar. Here's an idea: how about we move the paddle up a week to May 26-27? That weekend appears to be empty of trips, and the tides would work OK. Then we'd get our cleanup done in time for the MITA crew to pick the trash bags up the following weekend. Does that work for everyone?

MITA has announced their cleanup schedule for the islands of the Trail, and Saturday, June 3rd is the day they picked for Casco Bay. Therefore, I propose a trip from Cousins Island in Yarmouth(?) out to our adopted islands, Bangs and Crow, for a day of recreational yard-work. Due to the scheduling conflict with the club CAM workshop, and the nesting Eiders on Crow Is, I have decided to cancel this trip and join the Jewell Island trip instead. Perhaps we can reschedule the cleanup for later in the season.

The weather forecast for this weekend is getting worse and worse! NOAA is now predicting winds of 15 to 25 knots with gusts over 30 knots for both days. I am, therefore, CANCELLING the event. Thanks to everyone who volunteered to come along. We'll do it again some time. (Brian at MITA says it's too late in the year for them to reschedule the Cleanup weekend.) Cheers, Rob

NOAA is giving a rather dire prediction for SW winds this weekend on Casco Bay. Let's keep an eye on it. I'm not into Death Wish paddling! If the forecast hasn't changed for the better by tomorrow evening, I will cancel the trip and look for an alternate weekend. Rob

Wel, Liz, it looks like you'll have at least 3 paddling partners on the trip out, Rene, Barry, and Glen. I'm still not sure how many are coming out on Saturday.

I tend to agree, Spider. I just want to get a consensus. Ten o'clock?

Brian from MITA said they will send a skiff out to Bangs on Saturday with a crew to help and to haul away what we gather. I assume if we stay over and keep working Sunday they'll get back out when they can to pick up whatever else we collect. I also intend to cross post to SMSKN to see if anyone up there wants to come along. How about launch time? Ten? Eleven? This time of year it's good to make use of what daylight we have, but if we're staying over it's less of an issue.

OK, the date is drawing near. Who wants to come along for an overnight on Casco Bay and do some volunteer cleanup for MITA? My reading of the Tidal Current Table for Broad Sound West of Eagle Island on Saturday, October 15th is: Low Slack 0843 Max Flood 1056 +0.9 High Slack 1413 Max Ebb 1721 -1.4 Sunset at Portland: 1758 And for Sunday the 16th: Sunrise at Portland: 0656 Low slack 0926 Max Flood 1140 +0.9 High Slack 1451 Max Ebb 1806 -1.5 So, the tides on Saturday are less than ideal for paddling out if we want to get in some serious trash picking, but if we stay overnight we can do some more work Sunday morning before riding the flood tide back to the launch. It's too early to get a read on the weather yet. But it's not too early to plan!