spider

I would be interested in meeting up with you down that way if it looks good to you. I don't know my way around down there for launching..I'm thinking Tucks Point is off 127...? if it doesn't look good to you then Pavilion Ipswich is a good launch this winter, though a bit of a walk launching near low tide...

Thursday I plan on launching from Pavilion Beach Ipswich about 11:30 am. if that might be of interest to anybody. Last Thurs the Sound was pretty ice free to about Rowley River. Usually I go out for about 4hrs looking for any wildlife, a little exercise...fresh air etc. Some company is always welcome.

just revisited this thread which did seem to wander a bit. After having the good fortune to paddle Thurs in the warm weather, I started to contemplate how I cleaned up the boat last winter after paddling. The hoses and outside water have long been turned off... I off loaded the boat and then "washed" it off with...snow. Same as I did last year. I had forgotten, but sure you can use what we have an abundance of esp. this year. So while I am always surprised by the number of people who do not clean their boats, for those who do, snow works fine for cleaning the boat off till warmer weather allows for a more thorough washing in the spring. ...actually the snow comes in pretty handy for loading and unloading the kayak... I just back up to a snowbank here at home and slide it right off the car...just need to make sure it's level or off you go kayak chasing ....

I'm a definite...either day is good for me as well. Really looking forward to it. ... I'll bring some more cookies....yum...the tricky part is not to eat them before I get there...

I'll be bringing some cookies... I think they are in the oven now....

Perhaps this is a bit more of what you may be thinking (I turn the sound way down on this,though)

Going over waterfalls is referred to as Hucking. I have a ww kayak that is supposed to be good for "huckin" but I myself am not a huckster. I bought the boat used so I would have a ww boat for friends who are larger than I am. (It's a spare boat) I don't know when the video was made but the next time somebody runs it at a higher water level they get to claim that as a new record or at least argue the point. There is some technique in hucking or at least an attempt at technique, depending on this, that and the other thing. There is a fairly well known top of the class kayaking paraplegic, who became a paraplegic from a hucking accident.. I don't know what the stats are for back/ neck injury's from going off waterfalls, but I would think that it would be interesting to find out. Interestingly enough ww kayaks are kayaks without a rudder or skeg, therefore by some definitions it would be a purist delight and the truest form of kayaking and well blah, blah, blah. So a person hucking waterfalls could assert that their version of kayaking is what it is all about. Kinda interesting when you think about it.

I plan on attending do we need to register somewhere ?

Whew...for a minute there I thought he was talking about a canoe.

To each their own I suppose. Merry Christmas !

Awesome pictures ! Early winter for them. I did a quick google translate to get the gist of the text. All time favorite of Santa and headlamp helper...!

I'm not sure the Spectra line will last longer than the cable, I'm thinking the cable is stainless but I don't know for sure. I also bought my boat used and my friend has a newer version with the Spectra line, so time will tell. However I do take a lot better care of my boat than he does, so I expect mine to last a lot longer as well. In the winter I could describe washing it more as a "sponge bath" I wipe it down then dry it as I go along. (I'm not hosing it down unless it's above freezing) For the fittings and rudder, with the salt water I'm thinking more about possible salt corrosion more than rust. Occasionally you may see kayaks that have never been washed, but I'm a "keep it clean guy" when it comes to the kayaks.

I use 303 for most everything and haven't had any real problem with the rudder freezing up on me. I wash my boat after each time I paddle though in winter I'm more likely to wipe it down with hot water. When I launch I check that I can deploy the rudder, not so much concerned if it is stiff turning left or right. For me it is the long lines to deploy the rudder that might freeze (or get pinched against a spare paddle) and of course sometimes I forget to unhook the cord securing it during transport, if so I have to land unhook it and relaunch. Even if the rudder is stiff it will still act much like a skeg, it helps you track straight. Since the Inukshuk is advertised with moderate rocker and turning agility the tracking is more apt to be of the design than your weight. (I think the low end of the paddlers weight is 120lb so I don't know how that relates to you). I think the cords for turning the rudder are Spectra line which has a really high breaking point I think stronger than we are so you shouldn't be able to break the manually. On the older Boreal Designs, like my Alvik, the rudder lines are braided steel. My understanding is that the thinking is the Spectra line will last longer and not rust out, particularly from saltwater. Though I don't know for sure which you have on the Inukshuk it's always a good idea to keep them as clean as possible. One thing I thought I would mention is the straps holding the hatch covers down can freeze up, as I learned last year. So it's a good idea to keep warm gloves or mittens handy or tucked away on yourself so you can have the dexterity to work the straps a bit esp if the rest of your warm clothes (or food) are in there. A thermos of hot water or tea can unthaw most any thing... Good luck,stay warm.

Life does bring smiles.. actually I just made that number up.. hope folks don't think I did some in depth numerology here. I drive a car, most times Oh maybe 99%, of the time I don't get in an accident...oh wait maybe it's 98.5 of the time ...or ...

I use a leash about 100% when paddling by myself and less frequently when paddling with someone. (also use a leash on ice axe) Figure on any given day something can go wrong and a leash can work against you. but ...then again on any given day things can go perfectly fine and it is a benefit for me. If I take the number of days of no problem and put it as a fraction over days when it worked against me and decided from there. I think it would be 99.9% of the time it is fine for me. If I wasn't secure with that number I would debate becoming an insurance salesman because you never know, something might fall from the sky and land on top of me ruining a perfectly fine day...Murphy's law.

There is an excellent article in this Dec 2010 Sea Kayaker magazine by a fellow Soloing the Northwest Coast of Vancouver Island. Apparently he builds skin on frame kayaks and teaches primitive skills and paddling. He travels with next to nothing for food, very modest in his writing. He spent a month paddling up there not setting any speed or endurance records. His boat was a friends skin on frame weighing 28lbs ( he deemed his own boat to be to small) Living off the what he catches or happens upon as he mentions in the beginning of the article. This fellow is way beyond my skills but it sure is nice to read of someone who can do this and travel with the rhythm of the seas. Apparently he runs a school and has a website http://www.seawolfkayak.com/ I didn't see his article on the webs site but just happened upon it when I brought a random issue of the magazine. His article was "31 Days of Rice, Butter and Lingcod" Perhaps others are familiar with him but it was all new to me, thought others might enjoy reading it.

Launched on the flood tide from Pavilion Beach Ipswich this morning. Beautiful day and I was hopeful that with the cold temps and snow up north that there might be some eagles around. I was not disappointed and actually pleasantly surprised to see 2 adult Bald Eagles sitting side by side in one of the trees on the last point of land on the Sandy Point shore. Actually was pretty close before I saw them so veered off over to the Middle Ground area so as not to pester them. Nice that in all that area they choose to sit together. Tried my luck last week up in Great Bay NH but saw no early arrivals yet, though they are expected most anytime now. Just thought I would mention the sighting in case anyone might be interested. Nice day to be on the water ! .....no ice in the sound but expect the rivers flowing into it to be icing over.

Thanks ... nice info and excellent link !

I did a quick search on the forums but I might have missed some things. I notice as I go through the channels on the radio ( Icom M72) stations 24-28 come through as "telephone" Does anyone know how you would use those stations? (I made sure the Radio setting is for USA) I seem to remember someone making arrangements with an outfitter while underway for transport around a section he didn't want to run.

Just thought I would mention that whatever skirt you do get the tunnel needs to line up with the location of the seat. Perhaps it's common knowledge, but for me it was an education. My lesson was.... though I ordered a nice Immersion spray skirt it fit both boats ...if I wasn't wearing the spray skirt. But as soon as I wore the skirt I could hardly get it around the front coaming of the Ellsemere, yet it was fine on an Alvik but why ? The seat of the Elsemere sits very far back in the cockpit... there is hardly any space from the back of the seat to the bulkhead and coaming. The sprayskirt would hardly reach the front of the coaming yet in the back it would pucker with extra material behind me. In the Alvik the seat was centered more forward in the cockpit. Looking at the skirt, the tunnel also was made with several inches of material before the tunnel started there fore it matched one boat fine yet not the other... though both cockpit measurements were about the same. Something you might want to keep in mind, though it might not be an issue with your new boat.

This should link to our trip using the SPOT rescue device. I'm not sure how long the link shows the trip perhaps about a week.... http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0iA94SqDMrIiHkSSfhrfJWPYjFk4mNRq0 I like the hybrid view the best

Rob very nice day indeed thanks for organizing the trip. Mango was the color of the day among the paddlers...no doubt a gathering of mang golians if ever there was one. Nice avian fauna as well...birds, about 100 Canada Geese nearby when we were launching. (plus one enthusiastic lady with a newfie pup) Nice views and vocalizations of Long Tailed Ducks (apparently formerly know as Old Squaw ducks)...a couple great views of them landing near us... pretty "talkative" bird all and all. One fellow knew his birds pretty well. I think later it was he who gave a nice rolling demo after lunch including a realistic view of what it looks like when tangled up in sea weed...not something your likely to see in a pool session ! and of course 10 "peeps a paddlin" in a wide variety of boats. Nice to meet folks and puts faces with the names I have seen over the years...

There might be some confusion with the "taste" of the MSR Dromedry Bags. I was referring to the "plastic" taste that they seem to have. Perhaps that is a bit subjective depending on what tastes ok to one person might differ from what might taste ok to another. I followed their link and they do state they are BPA free. So I'll just look around to see if there are other alternatives... other than that I'll use them if I don't come up with other choices (course I do follow the usual cleaning, cept I could try a bit with the baking soda) Cutler Preserve- Fairy Head It does sound nice, a good chance I'll go up there before the trip and hike the trails etc. It would give me a chance to see if the trail does access the sea or if the Coastal hiking portion stays up high along the tops of the cliffs. Sounds nice either way. sunny skies for now, good for some post feasting paddling...!

I'll be joining, work gloves et al.. Launching from a place called Cousin Island Bridge, 10 am. It's the 1st time for me up there so I have a cell # 770-0496 with a nh exchange in case you see some guy driving around, looking confused. Might be interested in an over night if others are, but other than that I'll do it as a day trip and keep with the group. Looks like a nice day to be up that way.

Thanks, good information all. For the seawater I found a reference of it being the approx equivalent of 5 teaspoons of salt per liter. For cooking pasta and some veggies some folks are using 1 part sea water 2 parts fresh. (Other than that sea water "soon to be old like bottled water" at gourmet stores also showed up in the search). I think cooking things in a pouch as mentioned and general clean up will be where we save the most water. I am mindful that we may well need more fresh water than usual living in a salter environment for the trip. As may be surmised I'm thinking we will want to keep the trip as remote as possible, so will look for well water (thanks for the location) and other sources, but if we must go to a town or campground in search of water then will as an alternative choice (no mater how much I might grumble about it) Looking forward to the trip. I know the sea is wild as soon as you set foot in it, the paradox is the coast is not. So you have a situation where you have towns and cell phone coverage. Not a wilderness trip as such but, wild water and not to be underestimated. Dromadry bags... I have been using them for years, but grow increasingly wary of them. What is that terrible taste ? The 1st time my friend poured a drink from one he instantly gave it right back to me, thinking the water from my house was no good. So he bought one of them up in Quebec and realized it was the bag that gave it the lousy taste. Pretty sure you can naturalize the taste but what the hell are we neutralizing? Bad tasting water straight from the ground or in the dromadry bag leaves you feeling the water is indeed bad... and may well be. Does any one know of an alternative collapsible bag that may be safer ? thanks again...