NPSheehan

I'll email you the response I got from my request for the CG Gaskets Neil

Hi Suz, That's great! They did already give me a price on the CG Gaskets and I gave them a Credit Card to pay for them as well as the other addition I ordered. The CG wrists gaskets were an additional $5 and the relief zipper flap is $37 which I felt was a very reasonable price. They haven't notified me yet of shipment of the new dry suit but I hope to hear from them soon. I appreciate the loaner as I've been out on the water 6 times in the last 2 weeks. I will get it back to you soon so you'll have it for the upcoming event. Thanks! Neil

Hi Bill, It will definitely loosen on it's own as I cut 2 rings off of mine and it was still snug but loosened up in time. It actually became looser than I would have liked but I think it was still snug enough to give a good seal. I think I'll only cut one ring on my new suit and see how that goes. Neil

Unfortunately Kokatat will no longer replace a wrist gasket with CG Gaskets. I tried to have CG Gaskets installed in my new custom EXP Dry Suit and was told they will not install them on a retail Dry Suit. I was pretty bummed about this as the standard wrist gaskets were very tight. Kokatat recommended stretching them over a soup can for 24-36 hours. I actually prefer a pint glass as it has a taper and gan be adjusted to the amount you want to stretch. Neil

You can use NOAA's Online Chart Viewer and zoom to the location you want to print a chart from. Find the Chart from the link below http://www.charts.noaa.gov/Catalogs/atlantic_chartside.shtml Got to the Chart Viewer once you know the Chart number http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/At...ewerTable.shtml For Example here is a Chart for Gerrish Island area in Kittery Maine http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/13283.shtml Move or Zoom the to the Location you want then Hold down the Alt key on your keyboard and press the Print Screen key. Now open Paint or another similar program and then select Paste to paste the screen shot you just captured with the Alt Print Screen technique into your paint/image software. Voila! Now you can cut and trim out what you don't want and then save the file as a .jpg or just print it out form your paint/image software. This is a simple procedure and you don't need to buy anything. NOAA NOTE: Use the official, full scale NOAA nautical chart for real navigation whenever possible. These are available from authorized NOAA nautical chart sales agents. Hope this Helps Neil

If you are looking for a rotomolded plastic sea kayak with a higher volume cockpit then I'd suggest the Valley Aquanaut HV previously named the Argonaut. Very stable and great tracking kayak that would be great for touring as well as kayak camping. Valley's rotomolded sea kayaks in my opinion are the best available. New England Small Craft in Rowley MA has one or more Aquanaut HV as well as standard Aquanauts for sale at closeout prices. Call first to make sure they still have them. http://www.nesmallcraft.com/ VALLEY AQUANAUT HV poly $1249.00 VALLEY AQUANAUT "CLUB" $995.00 Here is a link to Valley's web site on the Aquanaut HV http://www.valleyseakayaks.com/content/boa.../aquanaut-hv-rm Neil

If Portsmouth area is your decision then why not hook up with us http://www.meetup.com/NESeacoastPaddlers/calendar/12738091/ Neil

Here is some info on the Severn River Bore Phenomenon http://www.severn-bore.co.uk/default.htm Neil

Here are a couple of videos of the waves in the aftermath of the storm. Ocean Boulevard in Hampton was closed to Northbound traffic due to the waves coming over the seawall. Fortunately we only lost an awning off the front door, some shingles off the roof and the chimney cap. I've never felt the house shake as much from any storm. The walls were actually pulsating in and out and windows as well. Hope this is the last big Noreaster for the season. Neil

The Paddleboy PB Flyer is a cool rig http://store.seattlesportsco.com/productca...p;idcategory=78 Paddleboy makes a quality product. I have 2 of their kayak carts one is an end cart and the other a center cart and both fit comfortably in the front hatch of my Valley Avocet and Aquanaut boats. Of course that is with the big Valley front oval hatches. unfortunately they don't fit in the rear hatch due to the skeg box. http://www.seattlesportsco.com/productcart...p?idCategory=74 Neil

I am also a big fan of Kokatat and their Customer Service. I also had a problem with my 2 year old Kokatat EPP dry suit and after inspection and determining there was delamination they are building me a new custom tailored dry suit to replace my original. With that said my girlfriend has a Palm Sidewinder that also had some delamination issues. Palm acknowledged there was a problem with material they used when this dry suit was made and is also replacing her dry suit free of charge. The palm dry suit was not Gore-Tex but Palm also stands by their products. A very Happy Kokatat products owner Neil

I wondered where you folks disappeared to. The house looks great! I'm glad to hear though that you'll be doing more paddling with the group on 2010. Neil

What? You mean everyone doesn't don their drysuits and get into a cold shower when they get home

Thanks for the loaner offer and I may take you up on it if Kokatat tells me I won't get it back before March. I'm not planning to kayak in February as I have skiing on my mind right now however that could change if we get more warm weather and no increase in snow. Neil

Hi Suz, What did you use to wash it? I washed mine yesterday with NikWax Tech Wash and after making sure it was completely dry shipped it out to Kokatat today. It did look nice all clean and spiffy too. I hated to send it away though so I can really sympathize with Werner. I hope to get it back before March and already miss it Neil

Surf update at Hampton Beach. Waves currently are 1-2ft and mostly wind waves from last nights northerly blow. Check the North Beach live camera below for a look http://cinnamonrainbows.com/wallcam/wallcam.html Have Fun! Neil

Could be a bit knarly offshore as the winds winds and seas will be building beginning tomorrow. Unfortunately the bowl won't have any water or surf until after noon. Forecast for the Coastal York County, Maine Region Prepared at: 7:30 AM Thursday January 21, 2010 Tomorrow: Mostly sunny. Highs near 30. Winds northeast increasing to 16-21 knots. Seas building to 4-6 feet. Tomorrow night: Clear. Lows 10-15. Winds north-northeast 21-26 knots. Seas 5-8 feet. Saturday: Sunny. Highs in the mid 20s. Winds north diminishing to 13-18 knots in the afternoon. Seas 4-6 feet. Hampton River Saturday High tide is at 4:38pm Low at 10:47 am

They still have some work to do to complete the Web Site. It appears the kayak photos are older models with the old style decals on the mid deck instead of on the sides and fore and aft deck areas. Not very impressive compared to their previous web site. Neil

Thanks for sharing your experience Spider. As far as the straps freezing maybe some excess bodily fluids could have melted the ice. Also the freezing temp of human urine is -5C or 23F degrees due to the content of amonia. A significantly lower temp than salt water which is around 28 degrees F A small dry bag inside your cockpit or in your day hatch if your kayak has one could've been a good place for extra gloves and or fleece pullover. I know even the rubber hatch covers can be difficult to remove when the temps drop below freezing. This is especially true with VCP hatch covers. I like Suz's idea of gloves inside your drysuit. Neil

You might need to remove the engine first for use in the Blackburn Refer to part 3 from the video link below http://www.mokai.com/instructional-videos.html Hmm this engine might fit in the rear hatch of my aquanaut of course I'd only use it as a backup if my paddle and backup paddles broke Neil

YIKES!!!! That's a lot of kayaking Ts This one is my favorite though http://www.cafepress.com/+real_men_wear_sk...tshirt,49317935

2009 although it's not over yet was truly an awesome year in seat of my kayak. Paddling at least once each month of the year and during the spring, summer and fall months as many as 3-4 days a week. I didn't log the miles but I'm sure it was the most I've paddled in my years of kayaking. Some highlights were winter paddling on the Piscataqua River Portsmouth and winter circumnavigation of New Castle. Boothbay Harbor weekend in June, Warren Island camping over the 4th of July, Kayaking Vinalhaven over Labor Day, Kayaking and camping weekend at Pawtuckaway Lake in Sept. and Kayaking in Bar Harbor area in late October. Some of the best day trips included Newfound Lake, Squam Lake, Massebesic Lake, Cocheco River, York River, Charles River - Boston Harbor, Mousam River, Concord River, Squamscott River, Oyster River, Great Bay, Cape Porpoise, Cape Ann and I'm sure if I think more about it there are many more. The numerous skill & surf sessions over the months of June, July & August were awesome and lots of pool sessions in the colder months. A big thank you to all of you in NSPN as well as NE Seacoast Paddlers who participated in these wonderful days on the water in kayaks and I hope 2010 is even better than this year. Neil

My hat's off to those who maintain this NSPN Site and also to those who use it regularly. Neil

What an AWESOME December Day. Six of us paddled up the York river from York Harbor for a nice 12.8 mile paddle. We launched at about 11:30am and returned at dusk. Here are some photos of the day. The Apre's paddle dinner and beers was at the York Harbor Inn Pub. What an a nice place it looks as if your inside an old sailing ship. http://www.meetup.com/NESeacoastPaddlers/photos/777402/ Neil

Here are some photos from our Friday Dec. 4th paddle up the York River from York Harbor http://www.meetup.com/NESeacoastPaddlers/photos/777402/ Neil