brambor

IMHO, fit is more important than paddler's weight. For sea kayaks with lots of volume in the cockpit and hatches I find that almost anyone who fits the boat properly, also enjoys paddling the boat, regardless of their weight. The difference might come at differentiating whether you will be using the boat for day trips or for multiple day trips or both. For these decisions, your weight is more important. Most paddlers I know, either don't camp at all or they take maximum of 2 camping days (weekend). I am a fairly heavy paddlers yet I have an 18 foot boat with lower back deck that is just about at it's maximum with me in it and with a few basic safety items, a snack and water bottles. I only use it for day trips and I like how low in the water I am with this boat. My second boat paddles best when loaded with more stuff. Except for winter I use it for all my camping or extended day trips when I take more gear with me. It is my favorite boat yet I don't use it all the time. My third boat gives me a little bit extra room in the cockpit and I find it most comfortable to paddle in the winter with extra layers under my drysuit. All of them are between 17-18 feet, with cockpit accommodating my size.

I needs a floating bench seat. I won't see what I'm flipping if I'm sitting in my kayak.

I am in.

Leon, my comment was not meant negatively. I was just making an observation as I occasionally check her progress. She is loaded heavy with all the supplies and mentions it many times when attempting landing in the surf or when dragging it during low tide. So I was just thinking that in her case, at this juncture she is carrying a heavy load and just goes steady without thinking about the sprinting forces. I may have misunderstood but I thought you were making your point about sprinting/racing and the effect of very light kayak compared to the weight of the paddler. I just thought the analogy wasn't best but I defer to your expertise on this subject. I have no dog in this.

She is usually loaded to the brim.

It is connected to his search engine.

Do you always come to this site from a search engine?

Gary. Awesome report! And your shots are great. btw - my first trip to Lobster Lake I also got lost on the way back :-) Rene

It's a classic

Halloween indeed. Thanks for posting this Rick.

Thanks Nate. I reported it. They said they might retrieve the body for examination.

With the news covering death of seals in new england, I was wondering if I should report a find of a fresh carcass of a baby seal on little jewell island ?

I have this perforated foam mat that I use for standing on with drysuit booties to prevent puncture. When it gets really cold, around december, I am thinking about placing it in my kayak below the seat to insulate my thighs off the cold hull.

Is this the one where I reveal my ballet legs? ;-) The secret is out...along with my talent to hit the highest rock during every rockplay...

Yes, really. Doug's relentless pursuit of fresh air in a kayak is wonderful. I'm glad to benefit from the product of his organizational skills. Thank You Doug. I had a blast.

Yes I am.

Nice. I loved the last part of weighing the bird. Smooth :-)

I'll see you all tomorrow.

Nice! 43 takes the prize!

The farthest campsite at the inlet even had the outhouse tipped over. Probably not even activated since end of the winter. We were there in early July and that campsite although wonderful was probably most buggy so maybe the ranger just did not want to maintain it. All the other sites were good. ;-) I did a circumnavigation inspection of all the campsites just to have the knowledge of which are the prime sites for my taste.

Yes. Thinking to do Richardson lake soon.

I just like live animals

Great report Pru! A really nice read. I took my son to (what I thought) was a more protected destination: Warren Island State park and we had a great time camping Saturday and Sunday. The paddle out was accompanied by 15 - 20 knots wind from the Northwest and an appropriate fetch to boot. Although my son could improve his forward stroke, I was nevertheless proud of him staying calm and enjoying the slow 3 mile paddle to the campsite. :-) He looked completely unfazed by the bumpy paddle. The reason I mention Warren State Park is that we also experienced a little bit of mosquitoes during times of calm winds. We spoke to the ranger and she has said that there were no issues with bugs until this last storm (Hurricane Irene). I wonder whether it was the same situation for your (choice #3) island at Stonington? We ended up placing a new geocache near The Gut so anyone going up there feel free to check it out. Our paddle back was accompanied by similar wind (10-15kn) and probably eve larger fetch from the south. We were able to enjoy it without any drama.

I will be out of state until Saturday night. Maybe I will paddle out on Sunday to wake everyone up! :-)

Great trip report. Loved it. !