kate

Very nice photos, looks like a great place to kayak-camp. Wonderful rock formations! And isn't it amazing how fog can change the paddling day? Everything becomes a mystery, every crossing an event. thanks for sharing, Kate

This is not the waterproof model, is it? kate

Omigosh, is THAT what the little tabs on the sides are for? I've wondered and wondered.... Anyway, I give a vote to Seals too. I have their lowliest version, custom made for the quirky cockpit on the Mariner Elan, and it has stood up to much use with no show of wear. It's easy to get on and off the cockpit, and reasonably (versus perfectly) watertight. And I also found their customer service (while ordering the strange size) to be friendly. Can't wait to see the new boat, Phil! Kate

I just take a few sheets of paper stuffed into the paperback book that I bring along for reading in the evenings. Usually lots of time for writing then, and everything is fresh in the mind. Jason, I'm sure you would write up an interesting report. I remember finding your narrative interesting when you showed Mark and me your photos. And in a report, the photos do most of the talking anyway. K

So glad that the West Isles trip report is proving helpful to you in planning your own trip! Mark and I have used seawater for cooking only for boil-in-bag meals (like the Indian pre-cooked meals you can buy, or some of the Trader Joe's heat-and-eat meals), where the water doesn't actually mix with the food. Usually when I boil pasta I use just enough (fresh)water to be absorbed by the pasta and to help make the sauce. Nothing gets drained off. I've paddled between Schoodic and Machias, and the problem there is that the towns are a far piece from the outer points which jut into the ocean. So you have to paddle a long way in just to get more water in town, then a long way out again. I have not come upon any freshwater streams in that area, but then I was usually going island to island, not along the mainland. Sounds like a wonderful trip you've got planned! Kate

Beautiful! and it shows me what I need to practice next time I'm in surf.... btw, I don't understand why we make distinctions between using a stick or a Euro here. A stick is not a handicap. Obviously. Kate

this started happening in mine, and then one day I spent about 45 minutes immersed while helping someone learn to roll, and the entire foot filled with water. I sent it to Kokotat to be repaired (I couldn't find the leaks) and they replied that it had delaminated and they replaced the whole suit for free. You might be on the same path. K

from http://www.solarnavigator.net/wind.htm : Differential heating is the motive force behind land breezes and sea breezes (or, in the case of larger lakes, lake breezes), also known as on- or off-shore winds. Land absorbs and radiates heat faster than water, but water releases heat over a longer period of time. The result is that, in locations where sea and land meet, heat absorbed over the day will be radiated more quickly by the land at night, cooling the air. Over the sea, heat is still being released into the air at night, which rises. This convective motion draws the cool land air in to replace the rising air, resulting in a land breeze in the late night and early morning. During the day, the roles are reversed. Warm air over the land rises, pulling cool air in from the sea to replace it, giving a sea breeze during the afternoon and evening. That's about as scientific as I'm gonna get, but maybe John Huth will weigh in.... K

It's been my experience that this is generally the case - afternoon winds on open coastal waters are greater than in the morning. (This doesn't include a situation where a front blows through at 9 am or some such.) I'm surprised that you have not noticed this too! Something about the anabatic/katabatic winds stirred up by differentials between land mass thermal gain and sea temp. I've always tried to do the bulk of long paddling days in the morning before the wind gets going, or wait until near dusk when it calms again. Just my 2 cents... offered timidly and under cover after the last IOS thread! kate

Nice to hear from you! Fundy is a lot closer than Mingan, easier to pull off with limited time. Both good trips. You might also consider Cape Chignecto as a destination. It looks like it would be a bit more wild and has cool seastacks. But not sure it would keep you occupied for a week. And not whale feeding area. Yes, I think the birds are semi-palmated plovers. I look forward to your next trip report! Kate

Beautiful photos, and I didn't have to keep up with Leon to see these scenes thanks for sharing! kate

Thank you for your lyrical comment, Warren. I think that a solo trip is just a different kind of richness than a group trip. Both offer depth of experience. Sharing the days has its own pleasures (Mark usually remembers the rules to mancala...). I've found it rejuvenating either way. I'd be interested to hear how you (or others) experience solo trips. Kate

Dora and I definitely bonded on this trip. I'm delighted with the boat (and I LOVE the pink). Sounds like it was a deal that worked for everyone.

What nice things you all say. thank you. David, I didn't play with colors. I think I know which shot you mean, and I suspect that it's an optical trick caused by juxtaposition of colors - the pink looks different against one color than it would against another. Or else the camera got the white balance wrong....

West Isles, Bay of Fundy Trip Here is the link to the trip report for my recent excursion to the Bay of Fundy. In some ways it was an easy trip, in some ways there were unexpected challenges. The Bay of Fundy definitely came through with lots of current. Lots. Also whales (no photos, sadly) and a rich diversity of sea life. Wonderful trip. Please enjoy the photos! NK

Sorry, was out of town and didn't see this until today. The panasonic does not have a retractable cover (neither did the optios). Yes, sometimes water droplets are a problem, but I keep the camera tucked between myself and the pfd so usually water doesn't get splashed on the lens. If it does, I can dip it and shake it. The optio had a layer of something on the lens glass that helped it shed water, and it did seem to work. Not sure if the panasonic has this or not. The image quality was not my opinion, it was that of several reviewers. Some did detailed studies of the major waterproof cams and compared them under controlled conditions, taking shots of the same object at various ISO settings, then blowing them up to look at pixelation. Also color exactness was tested. Several reviewers did amazingly exhaustive comparisons. The Canon and Panasonic were neck and neck for image quality. Sorry to say, the Optio and Olympus were far behind for that specific quality. The Olympus in particular had very long shutter lag, which is a killer for action sports shots. Quickly searching, here's one such site (it includes the Casio and excludes the Oly), but if you google you'll find others: http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/content/P...eview-21646.htm and another on the Oly: http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/pr_olympus_1080 http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2366350,00.asp Et cetera. They are just p&s, but I tend to use my waterproof cams more than my fancier cams simply because they can go where I go. So I wanted what worked best - for me. Your choices obviously may differ. If you are happy with the Olympus, all's well! Kate

I did a lot of online research, looking at comparisons between the Optio, Olympus, Canon, and Panasonic offerings at every review site I could find. I was replacing an Optio W40 which had itself been a replacement for the W30. The olympus and optio dropped out of my consideration because the image quality was just not up to par. I narrowed it down to the Canon D10 and the Panasonic ts2, both of which have excellent image quality and good waterproofness. The deciding factors for me were the freeze resistance of the Panasonic (for skiing), the enhanced gasket locks (after 2 cameras that ultimately failed at gaskets), and the HD video capacity (vs Canon's lesser quality video). I've only had it a week or so, and took it out on the water twice, but I'm well pleased with the quality of the photos and video, and am enjoying the improved design that makes shooting video so much easier than it was with the optio. The viewfinder is very bright too, so no trouble viewing in bright sun. It's a pricey little camera but Amazon has a good deal on it and they offer a package with a 5 gig card and a spare battery for less than the retail cost of the camera alone. Be aware that the video it shoots is in AVCHD lite format. You will need to convert it to .avi or .wmv or .mp4 in order to edit it or upload to some sites. VoltaicHD does the job. Kate

I may be interested in this one, Phil. It's been awhile since I've paddled up that way. Kate

FWIW, over the span of 20 years of paddling, the only paddles I've ever seen broken while in use (whitewater or sea kayaking) were carbon fiber. I don't trust them. They are very strong until they are hit in that certain way. Then they snap. Just my experience.... Kate

He doesn't sit on it, it's in front of his seat. Actually, his is held in place with heavy-duty velcro. Not that I'd expect a swim from him.... kate

When my Avocet seat FELL out and disappeared during transport, I replaced it with this one from Chesapeake Light Craft: http://www.clcboats.com/shop/products/boat...kayak-seat.html Has worked fine and it's cheap and easy. They have a few other choices too. Kate

Thank you, Peter. I have done so. Kate

Just a note to emphasize what Jason pointed out: the Wild Turkeys are a group of paddlers covering the spectrum of skill levels. It'd be a pity if you didn't include them in an invitation to paddlers from Maine to Conn. I liked the further explanation that they don't thump the chest (nor get excited about BCU stars, I will add). I think that is right on the money and it's one reason why I enjoy paddling with them so much. A sizable handful of NSPN'ers paddle with WT paddlers too. I can't make it myself on that date, or I'd come for sure (as I did last year). I think it would be a splendid gesture of fellowship to extend the invitation to the WT though. I don't think you'll get any rec boaters responding, but you can make sure of it by being clear about skill level required. sounds like a grand event! kate

A sidewise inclusion in this thread: I was helping someone learn to roll last fall and while standing in the water over the course of about 45 minutes, both booties in my Kokatat drysuit filled with water. When I got home I turned the suit inside-out and filled the legs with water to look for leaks. A few small pinpoints but I couldn't find a real problem. Next time I used it, the wrist gasket blew (I'd replaced the neck gasket the year before). I figured that after 5 years of hard use it was time to send the suit back to Kokatat for a thorough repair of leaks. I contacted them and got the authorization number and sent the suit. A week later I received an email telling me that the gore-tex had delaminated in many places. They said this has generally not been due to customer use but rather due to a faulty batch of gore-tex. So they sent me a brand-new suit exactly like the old one, for free. That is what I call customer service. Kokatat. Good stuff. Kate

They look like standard size GP's to me. I have not noticed that GP's are sensitive to cavitation. It is extremely rarely noticeable for me. The only time I find it to happen is if I am very sloppy with the entry angle of the blade, and then pull very hard on it. I don't think I could make it happen purposely. My paddle is the smallest, narrowest one I have ever seen (sized to fit me). Could be that I just have a well-designed stick. Yay Don Beale! Thanks for sharing the clips. Looks like exciting paddling! kate