Mel Rice

The Anas Acuta has been sold. The other three are still available. See you on the water! Cheers, Mel

Can't spell today... that contact e-mail is: info@carpediemkayaking.com Thanks!

For Sale: Island Qaarsut Awesome little hard-chined boat in terrific shape $1500 OBO For Sale: Island Expedition In great condition Good boat for larger paddlers $1500 OBO For Sale: Valley Anas Acuta Well-used, black with yellow trim $1100 For Sale: Valley Aquanaut Excellent condition 1500 OBO All boats are in Bar Harbor, Maine -- transport/shipping are responsibility of buyer but we're willing to help with arrangements. Serious inquiries only, please. info@carpediemkayaking.com or 207-669-2338

For Sale: Current Designs Sirocco $700, great shape paddle/skirt/PFD available for extra fee For Sale: Necky Chatham 16 $350, slight oil-canning paddle/skirt/PFD available for extra fee Location: Bar Harbor, ME delivery/pick-up responsibility of buyer but willing to help with arrangements Please e-mail info@carpediemkaykaing.com or call 207-669-2338 for more information.

We used a Spot during Mark's time in Norway this year, and were pretty happy with it. Our only complaint was that it didn't keep entries from as long a time period as we would have liked, and there were one or two days when a signal didn't go out). But it was invariably accurate, and gave us both a lot of peace of mind. We programmed it to send e-mails of his location when he hit the button at the end of a day of paddling, and it was often the only way I knew he was OK or where he was on a daily basis. Had there been a problem, another tap of a buttong would have sent out an emergency call. It's a useful tool for expeditions. Drop Mark an e-mail at mark@carpediemkayaking.com if you'd like to ask him about how it performed during the expedition. Cheers, Mel Melinda Rice Carpe Diem Kayaking www.carpediemkayaking.com 207-669-2338 info@carpediemkayaking.com

Mark and I will be at both! QUOTE(Kevin B @ Sep 4 2007, 09:17 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Who's going to the BBQ on Friday and / or the Lobster Bake on Sat.?

In addition to the launch out of Pretty Marsh, you can consider: Launching out of Lamoine State Park. This is just across the Mount Desert Narrows from MDI and is a very nice, protected put-in. From there you can easily paddle across to MDI and through the Narrows and around the Twinnies. You'll have to time the paddle with the tides, as parts of the Narrows become a big mudflat at low tide. You can also access the Narrows more directly from Thompson Island, on Route 3, just across from the visitor center, but this is where the tides will affect you most. Launch from Lamoine SP and you can choose to go the other way in the Narrows and won't have to worry about the tides so much for launching and landing. Launch off the town docks at Northeast Harbor & hug the shore to the east for less than half a mile, head across and around Bear Island, where there's a lighthouse that can only be seen from the water. This is a tiny little crossing at its narrowest point (less than two-tenths of a mile) and the area is lovely. It's quite protected except from easterlies, and this weekend's forcast is for NW on Sat. and W on Sunday. Mind the boat traffic in this area. Jordan Pond is gorgeous and you can do a day hike around it after you paddle, then it the Pond House for popovers. But it's tiny and I don't think it's worth the trouble of loading and unloading kayaks there. For a better freshwater paddle, put in at Great Long Pond. There's a public boat ramp with parking just off Pretty Marsh Road across from a canoe and kayak rental place. Winds from the N and S can really funnel through here. The weather forecast looks fabulous for what you have in mind. Have a great time! Cheers, Mel

Hi Guys, I've got a client with a severe latex allergy and she needs a drytop or paddling jacket. Immersion Research will custom make one for her. Any other ideas? Cheers, Mel

Lamar Hudgens at Barrier Island Kayaks is planning a paddling trip to Ireland. www.barrierislandkayaks.com 252.393.6457 Mel

I'll add one more to this list of good suggestions... You can always camp at Acadia and take a series of day trips. This will give you a variety of places to choose from based on skill level, weather etc. Cheers, Mel

The problem with many DVDs is that many showcase techniques that are out-of-date. The 3rd volume in Nigel Foster's series is good and should help you with those strokes you mentioned. Cheers, Mel

Kevin, If you do camp, Mount Desert Campground and Seawall are nice -- Mount Desert especially. Lamoine State Park, just off island and across the narrows from MDI is also nice and should be fairly non-crowded that time of year. It's about a 20 minute drive from Lamoine to Bar Harbor. Cheers, Mel

Ditto for Aqua Adventures. Jenn Kleck was the second American female BCU 5*. (Shawna Franklin was the first.) If you get a chance to run up to Half Moon Bay, look up Marce Wise and John Lull (one of the original Tsunami Rangers) at California Canoe & Kayak. Good luck out there. Cheers, Mel

Hi Alex, It's good to know there's someone up here with the adaptive endorsement. I'd like to talk with you about that sometime. Cheers, Mel

Concerning the conditions, it's all going to depend on what the weather's doing while you're here -- where's the wind coming from and how big is the swell? Unless a hurricane hits, there will be some great paddling somewhere around MDI for you. Feel free to contact me while you're here and I'll be happy to be one of your sources of local knowlege. Shoot me an e-mail from the NSPN website with your contact info and I'll give you my phone number so you can call me when you're here. Cheers, Mel