spider

Saying no does seem like the non- rescue, rescue. Otherwise it could be kind of stated as "you are screwed but we will notify the next of kin for you." Then again that in itself is a big help when you come right down to it if circumstances are indeed that bad.

We are not the only ones thinking about the snowfall here's a link with a few ideas for a bit of winter camp fun . http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?47953-Winter-Tent-Challenge-13 (I think anyone can read it but only members can reply) ..he does mention you don't have to occupy the camp I'm not sure I will set up till till after the storm mostly because of hurricane winds if they arrive. and another just for ideas and fun http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?47842-Winter-campsite-photo-s of course I don't see any kayaks...but...winter camping may lead to one using one's kayak as a toboggan. I would recommend using somebody elses... bonne chance...

I would think so, sounds like you have an idea or two in mind. Glad I mentioned the don't use a tarp as a sheet thing, other than that you can get pretty creative I would be apt to say.

..we slept out last night,quite nice... Thinking it through with the snowfall and a bivy, there is one important thing to remember, though it might be old news for some. but the gist of it is Never ever use a tarp as a blanket or protection directly on top of a bivy or sleeping bag in the winter. It is probably mentioned more frequently on hiking websites but as we know in Kayking we have real dangers and perceived dangers, same would be true in this case. The danger using a tarp, or plastic directly over you is that it can seal you in much like an envelope and you fall asleep, but it is the forever sleep. Sometimes this shows up when people arrive early at a trail head, or ski lodge and decide to sleep on the ground for a few hrs till sunrise for example. Though the tarp may seem lose enough when you start out it can freeze to the ground from the warm of your body or breath. Always sad when you read of such things, I would call it a real danger but not quickly perceived as such. So, of course, we all want happy healthy campers so thought it might be worth mentioning for safety's sake. Looks like the tempts come up a few days after the snowfall, I've lost track who is paddling this winter but I hope to take advantage of the "window of opportunity" if it plays out as projected. ..happy paddling...and toasty toes for camping...

I never realized how much money they were able to raise. Nice link to their event the other day at Hampton Beach. http://www.boston.com/news/local/new-hampshire/2013/02/04/penguin-plunge-raises-over/7RNiBHTGxwVAoAGqePjiHP/story.html I've never done it or participated have some of the others here done it? Just curious seems they had fun.

Congratulations, sleeping out on a cold winters night is a world unto itself. Any trouble staking out the tent and guy lines ? Conversations of using 3 season tents in winter depending on tempts and preferences etc, so thought I would mention you can also do the reverse and use a winter tent in the summer depending on what you might need. This year we opted for a 2 week trip bringing the winter tent, mostly because it had two vestibules so lot's of flexibility and ideas ...and as we know "flexibility is a component of fitness. :-> Sometimes you just look at what you have and give it your best shot with what you have, or think you might need, and of course you can always rent. I think it was about 15 degrees this morning when I saw a Bluebird fly, sometimes not as many things here in the winter, but special are the ones that you do get to see.

Spending leisure time sleeping out doors...neighbors a wonderin...?? perhaps this thought helps...I learned after spending much time with a particular uncle... "it is important to develop your eccentricities at a young age...that way when older... people will say..Aw don't worry about him he's always been that way" ahh my mantra these days ...

This past week has been a good week to observe which would be the most "user friendly" winter camping conditions. We got a little snow. Snow being our friend when it is nice and dry...in winter the deeper the better,some would say. Why ? With deep snow your options for tenting most anywhere increases greatly. Brush and rocks are covered, and you can make various wind breaks as desired. So then we got snow...then it got warm, above 32 degrees. While the warm tempts were a nice treat, for winter camping it is not good..slush and mush. Then it rained and we had puddles on top of frozen ground..ick very hard to keep anything dry. Big winds...will tent blow away... esp if you staked it in the snow which would now be gone Now it's cold again..has the tent frozen tight to ground ? Would we have wanted to use a tarp under it or would it have just blown away anyway..? (would boat have also blown away...) I'm thinking as folks consider a pleasant winter camping trip all these things come to mind as you plan what would make for a successful, enjoyable trip with nice memories. I notice the Feb full moon is late in the month. If the weather is friendly, sure I could be tempted to do a coastal island overnight or two. Hypothetically , in Casco Bay, what might be considered a good winter spot....?

Warren: March we traditionally climb one of the Mnts up in the Whites for our winter camping fix. I could be interested in some Casco Bay though so please keep me in mind. In general as one person mentioned, probably no snowshoes needed...but doesn't hurt to know, how, where, what kind, you might use if needed. Snowshoeing to a river access is fun, then getting in the boat etc.. it helps put a new meaning to "flounder about" (but I don't think most people have that in mind for coastal kayaking.) Thinking ice would be the most common..there are various "ice creepers" of various sorts that might be handy, kind of like what some ice fishermen might use. Something I haven't tried with the kayaks but chances are they are not that "user friendly" for our boats. Micro spikes might be just the thing to give a try. When I mentioned some people wear their water, I was thinking in terms of the Camel Bak and Platypus products out there. I usually keep a water bottle next to me and wrap the others in my Parker like a "cozy" ..lot's of theories on whether to sleep dressed in warm clothes, some clothes, no clothes at all..."chilly cheeks" so just for the heck of it I'll mention, sleeping bag was a -40 bag...I sleep in it with my parker and every thing else on.(cept boots) That way I can be more casual on how tightly I have to zip myself in. If it were cold enough I would cinch every thing down to just my face, but I know from practice, zero degrees and I won't have to with that bag. There are also considerations of breathing in or outside of your sleeping bag as was mentioned, it also has moisture management considerations with various schools of thought. For winter kayak camping I think the major weak link is our hands...they freeze up so quickly...we can have all sorts of nice stuff in our hatches but if we're unable to open them that ups the ante big time in a hurry. I'm apt to say I would tend to over indulge with several gloves/ mittens..next would probably be socks.... All in all I go for poggies and mukluks.... everybody gets to develop their own preferences after awhile..it's pretty safe to say once you get everything all worked out they will invent something new to try..... .

I sometimes prefer drinking hot water, or hot soup. A big warm cup of tea at bedtime is also nice... but it about insures extra p calls in the night. Often the 1st night goes well but day 2 can be a challenge. Things are frozen that were not supposed to be... often the water bottle is worn in your clothing next to your body. A big vote for loose fitting clothes in the winter and a belt or sash of some kind to keep things from falling out every time you stand up. ....but if we were kayak camping then we might find we need a bit of time to get the ice off the boat...

"Snug as bug in a rug." The sleeping bag was cold from being in the tent all day but warmed right up in short order. If the wind came up stronger it would have been a little noisy with the guy lines blowing about as I didn't tie off each and every one. If it were snowing the weight of the snow might have become an issue, but every thing was fine for the conditions that we had. Quite nice actually...the squeak and crunch of the snow... full moon..moon shadows ...a world unto it's own. Turkeys often come at dusk to roost for the night here in the pine trees. I didn't hear them last eve. ...I might have been the only turkey out there...;->

Dry snow = powdered water. So it absorbs water till it reaches the same saturation point to my understanding. ... winter campers are sometimes asked if they remembered the powdered water....yes, it's a cruel world out there :-)

yes there are times you can just use a sleeping bag or bivy. I find a far greater chance of my stuff blowing away or getting drifted over, and find I track more snow into the sleeping bag without the tent, then it melts with body heat increasing dampness. Definitely doable and of course the practice is always good and conditions are excellent right now, full moon et al

Just thought I would mention now is a wonderful time to practice those winter camping skills. The conditions are great and the full moon gives great visibility during the night. I slept out last night to practice practice practice Stuff like: .....Trying to see when my eye glasses freeze up ...Pitching the tent wearing mittens ...Staking out the tent..that was a "no go".... the ground is frozen and not enough snow to use winter stakes. ....Gather wood to tie tent to ..hope tent doesn't blow away in the meantime. .... Zipper Pulls where are all the zipper pulls to make things easy and mitten/glove friendly...could have sworn I had tended to that earlier in the season Used a winter tent which I believe stand frigid tempt better...you know it's a cold day when your tent fabric starts to shatter or rip quite easily, but others probably know more details about stuff like that. Tempts were somewhere around zero Dry snow is our friend.... kayak camping you need to throw in some mist and spray into the mix. So I didn't truly camp I just slept out for the eve...kept the tent door open. to cut down on condensation.. I'll be out there again tonight. Sweet dreams...stay warm

yes, it is interesting to follow the way the topic has shaped up. I was referring to the pollution from all the heavy exhaust from the lobster boats. Either way it has been quite an informative subject.

I know one taboo subject up here is to remotely suggest that lobster boats are heavy polluters doing significant damage. Not much shuts down a conversation quicker than that.

I could be mighty tempted to do any paddling in that region, in case you ever what to contact me about the possibility. .. portaging I often think of canoes... I think one mile is about the furthest I've portaged with a kayak, (about a 10 mile portage day after all the trips back and forth and helping friends etc). I can think of one excellent kayaker here on the boards who might be lured to the "dark side" of paddling a canoe if the trip deemed it. For a kayak skills goal, I suppose I might feel a bit obliged to say I might relearn how to roll again...maybe..:-)

I would guess yes, so far. Looking at the maps and James Bay ( a lifetime goal) seems so tantalizing close once your up around there, but I know it would still be many miles. Huge hydro project planned for the area. It is the land of twice forgotten people. We forget the territory of the people who 1st lived there... then we forget that they even existed at all. There is currently a hunger strike going on but I drift off subject to much.(my apologies) Another way to say my goals for the year would be... one salt water trip and one fresh water trip (camping trips of course) expand my knowledge of floral & fauna for each.

oops one thing I forgot: I want to use the kayak for a fund raiser this year....

Guess the video was a bit to disjointed for me to see what was gong on. I really don't know what a coaches only surf session is. Presumably paddling in situations that they can handle. I didn't see any coaching, to me it just looked like people playing in the surf. Couldn't quite tell where the 12 ft waves were. I did see the log in the surf, to me, that was a pretty big hazard unto itself, wouldn't want to get impaled on that thing. but I'm no coach...looks like they were having fun to me.

Several goals this year: Paddle from the mouth of Riviere Saguenay up to Chicoutimi (perhaps paddle some of Lac Saint Jean while in the neighborhood) also improve my whale identification skills (I have tendency to refer to everything as a Minke). Paddle Reserve Faunique Verendrye further north this time. One big goal this year... increase the amount of time I can paddle before I need to get out and stretch my legs. Right now 2 hrs is about my absolute max, often much less. So yoga or some kind of stretching routine. Happy paddling

Looks like these folks were having some fun http://www.canoekayak.com/touring-kayak/the-true-meaning-of-santacon/#a6937b196f

nice idea about the grey socks...last time I tested them by filling up the bath tub and sitting on the edge. Till my feet got wet then I seam sealed all the seams waited till it dried then folded the suit nicely and put it away..I think it's been about a year now. ( previously they were tested) though getting back to the paddling pants, just trying to point out that the booties might not be a deciding factor...in some ways many rain pants might do a satisfactory job

...not to worry I know whereof I speak....unless I break a sweat every time my feet touch water... heh... heh..

The latex booties caught my attention...I've been wondering if there is a alternative to leaky Gore-Tex booties. We both have the Gore-Tex booties on a couple different garments, they both leak, so our preference currently is for any garment that has a Velcro strap around the ankles....you can always use most any strap for much the same purpose. if needed I suppose...