Phil Allen

Ummm, Friday forecast is for Sunny and 70. I might have to leave work at noon and join you all! Phil

Nice TR Barry. A pleasure to paddle with you all and to get out to the Graves in such subtle conditions in April. And I'm not so sure I have any plans to camp on that platform Phil

We're on track to be ready by 11am. See you there. Phil and Lorrie

We should be able to make 11am. Put in at the parking lot at the (almost) end of the road? Phil

Depending on start time, Lorrie and I would be up for any of the above. We have drysuits and other cold water gear. Phil

I'm guessing, but it's probably related to the construction on the BU Bridge. They've been shutting down lanes left and right there. If I get a chance this week I'll wander over from work. Phil

I've got a older Impex kevlar Currituck, and my wife has a newer Impex Montauk in Carbon/Kevlar. If you were spending extra money for a lighter boat, I would definitely go for the carbon kevlar, not just kevlar. I get lots of spider cracks in the gel coat as the kevlar flexes pretty well. That deformability has probably minimized some holes in the boat however. If my memory serves, Impex doesn't recommend keel strips, and for me, the only place where it might be helpful has been on the sharp edges of the skeg box (where I'm always patching chips). If you go the carbon/kevlar route it will save ~8lbs on the boat. Also, Impex has a web board like this one where you can ask question like this. Phil

Great video, but what do you expect for a commercial?

Sorry if my wording confused you. I wasn't arguing against your major point, just that the terms velocity and speed were effectively interchangeable here. Phil

True, but speed is velocity without directionality. So if the test is a boat moving in a straight line the approximation should be fine.

I hear you. Dave Lewis, Leslie and I did a 20 miler out of Gloucester this summer and until she chose to slow down a tad I thought it was going to be a solo trip Phil

With my paddling time becoming very limited I've reluctantly returned to the gym. Does anybody have a good workout recommendation so that I can start paddling again next spring in better shape. For motivation, I'm considering training for something like the blackburn next summer. And for those of you who think the season never ends, I'm good with that. But daylight, weather and work responsibilities definitely cut back on my paddling opportunities in the winter months. Thanks. Phil

Re: needing /wanting RAW format. If you're camera is supported, there's a "firmware" upgrade called CHDK which can be temporarily installed to the camera which lets you get access to an amazing amount of features your camera manufacturer may not have enabled. I've got a Canon A710 p&s , and when CDHK is in use, I get raw format, an onscreen histogram, and many other features otherwise not available. Check out the info on the web. As for mounting something "heavy" on the kayak, I've seen people use those big suction cup like mounts. I think they're called stickypods or something. Phil

QUOTE(Kevin B @ Nov 4 2008, 05:21 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Here is another more recent article: http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/art..._harbor/?page=2 more local reports here http://boothbayregister.maine.com/2008-10-...ide_occurs.html

First off, the "global cooling" reported is ~ 0.5 degrees over the six months before Feb 08 when those articles came out. Yes, that's on the scale of global warming for the last ~10 years, but also well within the short term variations seen in an otherwise substantial trend. And to be clear, the warnings about future temperature increase come not from the trends over the past years, but from models highlighting the consequences of continued increases in C02 and methane in the atmosphere. And yes, I am one of those scientists. Phil

Quick perusal shows the usual cherry picking of data, particularly in article 1. As for the big picture, solar activity cycles DO contribute to annual temperature, and usually occur over a period of 12-20 years. However, they act in conjunction with other climatological changes, such as C02 and methane induced "greenhouse" effect. So while the temp in the next year or years might be lower than expected from the trend, there's nothing to prevent the temp from climbing as expected when the solar output returns toward normal. Now if you wanted to make the argument that global warming might lead to local decreases in water temperature due to the reduction in rate of flow of the gulf stream, you might have had a point! Phil

Depending on the date, Lorrie and I would be interested. Phil

Don't forget to make a stop on Despair (Island) if the tide's low enough. Apparently the guy who named them had 4 daughters but wanted a son (I DID NOT MAKE THIS UP. It was told to me by a native.) Phil

The Boston lighthouse tour. Seven of us met at the parking lot on Deer Island , Winthrop for a “mellow†tour of the harbor. After some web debate on the weather and BIB time; Al, Larry, Glen, Ernie, Gene, Lorrie and I launched at 10:03 heading for Georges Island with the intent of heading inwards from there. The hourly weather forecast had the sun appearing about 10 am, and for once it wasn’t wrong. A quick trip across the channel and along Lovell’s Island brought us to a decision point. The sun was shining, there was barely a wind ripple on the water and Boston light looked so pretty in the distance. So instead of heading in, we decided to head out and have lunch at the light on Little Brewster. The group hung together well, any swell was due to boat wake and the only boats in the vicinity to worry about were on their way out to watch the whales. Arriving at Boston light for an earlyish lunch, we were greeted by two members of the CG auxiliary who were wondering if we were the bunch of boy scouts they’d been told to expect. Explaining the obvious (that the youngest of us was 20 plus years past scouting age) we took over the picnic table at the high point of the island for lunch. Off in the distance Graves light shown brightly in the sun, and the lunch time discussion of politics veered back to our next destination. A consensus arose that there might not be an easier, better day to go visit the Graves, with the other Brewster’s providing shelter should things look worse on the water than they did from Little Brewster. So out we headed and made quick pace to the Graves. Conditions were absolutely benign, with little wind, little chop and little current. Arriving at the light, it was hard to remember that you were within 10 miles of a major US city and not on some empty Maine shore. While conditions were so mellow this could have been a level 2 trip, it was easy to envision a not so pleasant time if there were any off-shore storm swells breaking on those rocky ledges. Deciding it was time to head back in, we turned back to civilization with the intent to head towards Georges to see if the snack bar was still open for the season. As we passed Green Island, discussion ensued as to whether that was reasonable given the time and energy of some of the group members. Of course, the discussion was kept “Mellowâ€, but to facilitate an informed decision, we paused on a beautiful but flotsam covered beach on Calf for a food and stretch break. Realizing that Georges would make our mellow day into a 20 miler, we opted to head back to the put in, skirting the edge of the ship channel and crossing to the red nun just off Deer Island. The ebb had started, and the current pushed us further North, but all handled it with comfort. Coming back in along the Deer Island peninsula the occasional boat wake provided a little bit of surfing and we found our way back to the put-in. It was substantially farther from the beach to the cars than at high tide, but nothing difficult. A group effort got the boats and gear stowed and off people went to their various destinations. For Lorrie, Al and I, that was finding the ice cream shop in Winthrop square. Gotta have ice cream to end a great day of paddling. Phil (designated Trip reporter)

Ah, an extra half hour of sleep!

Pick a time. Later will be more current in the gut, but shouldn't be huge. Phil adn Lorrie.

Lorrie and I are still planning on coming. Phil

Are you sure they're telling the truth? After all, the website is run out of Philadelphia and I'm not sure they could tell the difference (Only people born and raised there can say this) Phil

Lorrie and I are interested and plan on coming. T-storms and showers should be done by 11am, so as long as we can keep an eye to the sky we should be good. Current shouldn't be a problem in the gut as long as we dont goof around too much. Phil

So is there a trip report to be found? And you're too young to have had a trip of a lifetime Phil