NPSheehan

I'm going to try and make

Everyone has there own methods and ways of outfitting their kayak and that's cool. When carrying a loaded or unloaded boat I like to grab the boat under the bow or stern then grab the toggle with the other hand. Having one hand on the toggle and the other under the bow or stern prevents a slip and drop if you are only holding the kayak and you or your helper stops abruptly or stumbles. Seaweed covered rocky shorelines can be especially treacherous. I nicely ask whoever is helping me to carry my kayak to do the same. Having the toggle above deck held in place by the bungie and easily available to grab I feel is a nice outfitting by Valley and unless I ever find it to be a problem I think I'll keep it.

Hi Graham, WOW!! I was thinking of using Aquaseal myself and will now refrain after hearing your experience. Portsmouth Scuba may be able to do the work for you if you don't want to try replacing the gaskets yourself. Portsmouth Scuba Located on Rt. 1A next to the Sagamore River Bridge 915 Sagamore Ave (Rt 1A) On the north side of the Sagamore River. Phone 603 436-4887 Open 9 to 5. Eastern time.

Interesting story about the T rescue and getting hung up on deck lines. As far as Valley bungee cord and clips, I replaced the ones on both of my Valley Kayaks with stronger hooks that have a tongue. This is due the the weaker stock clip coming loose when someone grabs the toggle to pull the kayak. The weaker clip would pull loose and whack you in the knuckle. I now use a bungee that can be stretched without too much strain when the toggle is pulled to the full length of it's tether. Much happier with this solution and I d like the toggles being secured with the bungee. See the photo of the clip below Neil

Well I don't know if I'd consider it frou-frou even if it's there to keep tension on the decklines or to prevent windflapping of the toggle against the boat while driving. But given it's a stainless ring not a cheapo plastic one I thought it may have had some safety aspect to it or maybe to secure a bow/stern line when tied to a dock. I do understand that clipping onto the deckline is standard practice for towing though. Neil

I'm wondering if the stainless ring found on the bow and stern decklines on most Valley Kayaks could be used to clip onto. I haven't been able to find any info. on if that ring was meant for this or just a place to clip the toggle bungie onto to keep the deck lines taught or to prevent toggle windflap. It would seem clipping onto ring would distribute the load evenly on the decklines as well as prevent deckline fraying which could be caused by the towing clip/caribiner. Neil

I happen to agree with Ed on this topic. I feel it would be best if a person wants to join in on a trip posting to join in on the one that is posted or talk to the organizer offline and see if they are up for a different option prior to making any suggestion for another trip within the trip organizer's thread. Just my 2 cents for all that it's worth Neil

Ahh I was waiting for someone to suggest the Aquanaut. I love my Aquanaut Pro Kev. I also paddle an Avocet RM "Poly" I find the Aquanaut has a little more room in deck height and slightly narrower in the beam. The Aquanaut is also much faster due apparently to length and hull design. Next time your paddling with us NE Seacoast Paddlers your welcome to give it a try. I'll be at Massabesic tonight and Pawtuckaway on Saturday. Aquanaut Composite - LENGTH 17'7" WIDTH 21.5" DEPTH 13.5" Avocet RM - LENGTH 16' WIDTH 22" DEPTH 13" Neil

NICE!! Maybe we can practice this at some of the pool sessions and maybe even use the diving boards Think the Life Guards would be cool with it?

I've had a Garmin 60Csx waterproof handheld GPS for 4 years and love it. I'ts actually held it's value and has served me well on & off the water. I've dunked it many times and it was unaffected. It's very rugged and the display albiet small is very readable. I have the Garmin BlueChart Americas Nav Charts from Boston to Bar Harbor loaded on it. I also have Garmin Topo Software and City Maps on it. It holds a lot of stuff on it's 64MB Micro SD Card. I have many Waypoints and Routes stored on it as well. I can create a route on my PC at home then load it onto the unit in seconds. Nav Aids like tide charts from the nearest tide station are accessable from the find menu. I could go on and on about it's features but it's safe to say it has many if not all the features of a deck mounted power/sail boat NAV unit. See the link below for Specs and Accessories. Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx Here is a review of the GPSMAP 60Csx and Garmin Colorado Consumer Research Review Hanheld GPS Units Outdoor Magazine 2006 Gear of the Year Award I use a deck mount suction cup with pivotal base from Garmin. I also have a mount on my Mtn Bike and on my Car Dash. Garmin GPSMAP 60Csx Marine Mount Feel free to write me if you want more info. npsheehan@aol.com Neil

Great response Ken! I also feel this thread should not be about what Andrew did or did not do but rather a tribute to an extreme kayaker and adventurer. Long range open ocean crossings by kayak was his passion and Andrew accomplished many extreme endurance crossings. http://www.andrewmcauley.com/ My 2 cents too Neil

Yikes! I ate a MOJO Peanut Butter & Jelly as well as MOJO Fruit & Nut. I feel fine though so guess it didn't get a bad one. Cliff Bar Products Voluntary Recal List Neil

I agree with you Rick! I also feel that Andrew was very well prepared and had all of the necessary safety gear including dry suit, epirb, vhf radios, sat phone etc. Sometimes though no matter what you have for safety gear an accident can happen and it only takes one minor mistake to cost you your life in extreme situations like Andrew put himself in. Experts can analyze what could have gone wrong and what could have been done differently but only Andrew knew what really happened. What Andrew tried and many feel accomplished was in a way similar to a mountaineer climbing Everest or other extreme adventure. No matter how prepared you are sometimes the weather conditions, fatigue or other circumstances can be overwhelming and it only takes one mishap for a bad situation to turn into a tragedy. Extreme adventurers who, even when taking every precaution they can think of to minimize risk, are still at the mercy of their extreme environment. I'm glad Andrew's story was told by National Geographic as this accomplishment although unfortunate in it's outcome was still great. I've searched National Geo site and it doesn't appear this show is available. Hopefully it will air again in the future and I'll get to see it too.

Wow! I didn't even realize this happened to Andrew. See Laurie Ford's page with more info. about Andrew's tragedy http://www.laurieford.net/McAuley.htm Neil

If you are looking for a coastal kayaking adventure the above mentioned Boothbay, Bar Harbor & Stonnington are great options. If island camping is something you want to do then Stonnington in my humble opinion is unsurpassed. You won't see many if any campers on the MITA Islands in April. If lodging in a comfy Inn at night is more your liking then Bar Harbor would probably be your best choice for finding an Inn open in April. Another nice option would be Camden/Rockport area as there are many lodging options there too and great paddling spots. Or take the Ferry to Vinanhaven from Rockland and spend a few days paddling Vinalhaven. There are lots of protected areas as well as some open ocean paddling. The Tidewater motel is right at the town dock on Vinalhaven. I doubt you'd have any problem with the Ferry reservations in April. Let me know if you'd like some other lodging info. Pick up Dorcas Miller's book Kayaking the Maine Coast for other great paddling options and Inn accommodations listings there is Lee Bumsted's Hot Showers Maine Coast Lodging for Kayakers. Feel free to write me if you'd like any additional info. any of the above. Neil

Can't forget York Harbor as there is a great kayak launch site at the Town dock. You can paddle up river or out to open ocean. York Harbor Map Another great spot is Chapman's Landing Stratham NH for a paddle into Great Bay or up river into Exeter. May be some ice in Exeter though so good idea to check it out prior Chapman's Landing Rt.108 Stratham NH

The Orca video was actually a korean commercial for Poweraide energy drinks. http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/kayak.asp The guy trying to get back into his kayak was a hoot! :swimming-smiley:

Cool Stuff! For those of you Gadget lovers like me who like to compare technologies take a look at this Tide Software for the iPhone. I've compared it against NOAA and Garmin GPS Nautical Stations and it's accurate. It shows 3 tide stations in the Merrimac and makes a nice backup if you haven't done your research prior and it's always on-hand. It also shows max flood & ebb with rate of feet/hr. Cost is 99 cents and gets 4 1/2 out of 5 stars from reviewers Tide Graph for iPhone Neil

Hi Bill, I have the Icom M-72 as well and really like it. Took a while to figure out all the features. The battery life is really great I can go for 3+ days with it on and scanning each day up to 6hrs at a time without a re-charge. I also like scrolling indicator telling you what the channel naming is ie. 69 = Pleasure Craft, 13 = Bridge etc. The IC-M72 has a capability to assign up to 10-character channel names or comments for each operating channel, including each weather channel. This provides easy recognition of channel usage, or station names, etc. When shipped from the factory, the IC-M72 is programmed with default names for each VHF marine channel. See the reviews of this and other VHF Handhelds below Icom M72 Handheld VHF Radio Review Icom's M72 Page Best Features... -Auto scan function to start scanning when receiving no signal -Auto power save function -Battery indicator shows remaining battery power in 4 levels -Instant access to Ch. 16 and Ch. 9 (or call channel) -Auto WX scan and WX Alert function -AquaQuake draining function emits a vibrating sound and clears water away from the speaker grill Neil

Bummer looks like the Newburyport show is SOLD OUT RT Sold Out Oct. 18th

I'd like to attend as well. Neil

A dive Slate is a good option and you can fasten it on your deck bunjies see link below Dive slate Neil

Price reduced on Nemo Morpho AR 2 Tent at REI Nemo Morpho AR 2 Tent Neil

Hi Heidi, Yes the event is still happening, as far as foliage it should be starting to change by the end of the month especially up north. See the link below for more info. or if you want to get updates of this event NE Seacoast Paddlers - Squam Lake Paddle Sept. 27 - Neil

I agree Hilton's Tent City is a great place to visit I think there are 4 floors in all. The place is packed with camping stuff. Kind of reminds me of NE Small Craft only with tents I bought a Eureka Equinox 6 person by phone and had it the next day via UPS. Neil