Joseph Berkovitz

Skills Practice Session #3 of this year will take place Sunday 7/25/21 (not Saturday) at Cedar Point Boat Launch in Durham NH (https://goo.gl/maps/yNj3YYBwNqPjsqqz5). Please arrive at 9:00 am, with the objective of getting on the water at 9:30 am. We will be finishing up a little after noontime. The plan is for myself, Rob Folster and Jeff Charrette to facilitate the session. This session will focus on skills for paddling in tidal current, in a location which is perfect for a gentle introduction to this topic — but also can serve up challenges if desired! There will be a range of conditions available at different times and in varying locations on the upper reaches of the Piscataqua. We will also land on Goat Island, a small public island that is a great place to take a break and eat a snack. The flood current will slowly build over the course of the morning. Some of the things we can practice include: understanding currents, eddies and eddy lines reading the water surface to recognize what is happening entering and leaving bodies of water that are moving relative to each other (crossing eddy lines) maintaining a ferry angle when crossing current maintaining position and/or doing rescues in current advanced: playing in faster current under the SR 16 bridge Parking: There are twin parking lots in this location, directly across from each other on US Route 4. We will be launching from the lot accessed from the westbound side of the highway (i.e. on your right if you are coming from I-95 and SR 16). If this lot starts to fill up we will ask you to drop your boat & gear in this lot and park across the street on the eastbound side. There is no fee for parking in either lot. Registration and Insurance: NSPN insures participants and facilitators through the American Canoe Association (ACA), similar to club pool sessions. This protects everyone involved. If you’re a regular ACA member ($40/year), you can fill out an annual online waiver once for all skills practices, and merely provide your ACA member number on each signup. Non-members have to pay a $10 ACA event fee through the NSPN Store, and fill out an ACA online waiver for each session. The registration form is here, and will walk you through the insurance steps (links are provided to the ACA and NSPN websites as needed). https://forms.gle/3XeL8SoxkarsMDE96 We will be limiting the size of this session to about 12 participants (not including the facilitators). Hope to see you there! Please PM me with any questions you may have.

This week's Wednesday Lunch Paddle is on July 21, 2021 at Fishermans Beach in Swampscott. We will meet at 9:00 am to get an early start ahead of possible T-storms later in the day; the goal will be to get on the water at 9:30 am. Location: Fishermans Beach in Swampscott MA (https://goo.gl/maps/bebJoJ4ErWUnR9ns6). As you head east on Humphrey St out of the center of Swampscott with the ocean on your right, the parking lot will be on your right just before Puritan Road branches off (a traffic light and gas station will be directly ahead of you). The lot is free. Whether or not you see a space in the lot, go into it and drop your boat and gear on the beach there. If the lot is full there should be plenty of free 2-hour-limit parking spaces on Humphrey and the local knowledge is that this limit is never enforced — much less on a Wednesday morning. Do not park on Puritan Road. Registration: To attend, please register using this form which will also add your information to the float plan: https://forms.gle/9QagufJXcFS6Fd6U7 You must be a paid-up NSPN member to join this trip. Your signup information will only be shared with other participants. Weather: We will need to stay near shore and keep an eye on the radar. Per NOAA as of Monday — Variable winds 5 kt or less. A chance of showers before 11am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 11am and noon, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after noon. Seas around 1 ft. Link to forecast. Tides (Salem Harbor): 2021/07/21 Wed 09:24 AM 8.84 H 2021/07/21 Wed 3:18 PM 0.32 L This trip doesn't have a specific level: we'll determine the route based on who shows up, what people want to do, and what the environment wants to do. All properly equipped members are welcome: please bring boats with rigged deck lines, bulkheads, spray skirts, and dress for immersion. If you're not sure if you have a safe vessel or gear, please get in touch via PM and ask. We may have the opportunity to play around rocks on this trip. If you feel like doing that, please bring a helmet! Bob and I will be happy to provide a safe introduction to rock play if you have never done it and want to try. NOTE: The Wednesday Lunch Paddles are cooperative adventures, not guided trips. Each participant is responsible for her/his own safety.Don’t assume the trip initiators are smarter, stronger, better at rough water, more attractive, or more skilled paddlers than you are. For more information, see this description of our trip philosophy from the NSPN web site. We encourage paddlers to make their own independent decision about their comfort level with conditions at the time of the paddle. Please PM me or Bob if you have questions or if you haven’t paddled with me before. Hope to see you there!

Let’s add in Merepoint Boat Ramp in Brunswick although this is a longish way from Jewell, about 10 nm. But one could stop at the Goslings or Whaleboat or Little Whaleboat along the way. Overnight parking must be arranged with the Brunswick PD. As I recall there was no charge for parking or launch g, but that was 4 years ago. and yes the ticks this year on Jewell are completely awful, worst ever. But I escaped unscathed.

Yesterday's WLP was a thoroughly enjoyable affair, including: Sue Hriciga, Jody Harris, Barbara Ryan, Ricardo Caivano, Benjamin Rechel, Joe Berkovitz and Joyce Carpenter. Particular thanks to new NSPN members Barbara and Ricardo for joining us! Conditions were mild in the harbor with little wind but heavy fog, temperature near 70 F. Easterly breezes had been blowing for the last couple of days so we expected the outside might be bumpy and interesting. We headed up the eastern side of the harbor to the lighthouse, avoiding a stream of cute little kids in little sailboats landing at their club. Once around the corner of the lighthouse things definitely perked up. Although there had been no strong winds for a while, the persistent onshore breeze had cooked up a brew of mixed wind waves and short-period swell. Coming around Eastern Point, the fog lifted enough for us to see south to Tinkers Island, our likely lunch destination. The conditions were a bit stronger now, outside Marblehead Neck. With the low tide, waves were breaking rather violently and chaotically on Tom Moore's Rocks. We decided to head offshore, east of the rocks, and proceed southwards to Tinkers staying clear of the shoal field there at low water. At Tinkers, we were treated to a fairly sheltered landing and lunch spot: A couple of Tinkers denizens were out and about and seemed friendly; we kept below the high tide line. After we landed, Ricardo helped a resident who had landed at the same time turn over his aluminum skiff and set it on its wheels. They struck up a conversation. Apparently this man got his place on Tinkers when he got lucky one year and saw a For Sale notice that had just been posted at his workplace. (It must have been a physical sign: the year was 1983.) He's had the place since then and spends all summer there, shuttling supplies from the mainland as needed. We munched and talked. As we did so, the fog moved in and shut down visibility quite completely. Our view of the mainland became this: With some timely encouragement, Ben had previously figured out a bearing to the land while we could still see it. He then followed that bearing (as seen above), and the rest of us followed Ben. It is very short crossing and we were there in no time. There remained only the traverse back north around the top of Marblehead Neck. Our return was noticeably bumpier, but nothing terribly out of the ordinary: sizeable lumps of water, but not too steep. We paddled right through them, through the shoals this time as the water had risen considerably and the waves were not large enough to break. Rounding the lighthouse, we had a quick capsize and rescue near some of the ledges there. The light wind made this a very easy incident to manage and the paddler was quickly back in their boat, which was left partially flooded to speed things up; there was a convenient beach just around the corner for emptying purposes. While that took place, Ricardo and I practiced some self-rescues and the group observed and talked about it. Finally, we headed back to Riverhead in the fog and calm harbor conditions. Another great lunch outing. Thank you everyone!!! Joe

That looks super fun! I hope to make it out in the fall, either by boat or by.... smaller boat!

@Kevin BI am interested in doing the crossing w you and Paul assuming FC conditions hold. Have sent you a PM.

Al, if you get to the end of the form and it says you registered, then you have registered. And indeed, you have registered! Look in your spam folder for the email, it may be there. glad last Saturday was valuable.

This week's Wednesday Lunch Paddle is on July 14, 2021 at Riverhead Beach. Let's meet at 10:00 am to avoid a long carry at dead low tide. Our goal will be to get on the water at 10:30 am. On our return, at least, we will have lots of water at the beach. Location: Riverhead Beach in Marblehead MA (link to map). The parking lot is on the left side of Ocean Ave, just before the start of the causeway. Parking is $15, cash only. Registration: To attend, please register using this form which will also add your information to the float plan: https://forms.gle/kwrPSd1GM72QGrtA9 You must be a paid-up NSPN member to join this trip. Your signup information will only be shared with other participants. Weather: Light easterly winds becoming 8-10 kt in afternoon, drizzle/fog becoming partly sunny, air temps 60-70 F, water 65 F, swell 2 ft @ 7 sec Tides: 2021/07/14 Wed 09:00 AM -0.04 L 2021/07/14 Wed 3:13 PM 8.72 H This trip doesn't have a specific level: we'll determine the route based on who shows up, what people want to do, and what the environment wants to do. All properly equipped members are welcome: please bring boats with rigged deck lines, bulkheads, spray skirts, and dress for immersion. If you're not sure if you have a safe vessel or gear, please get in touch via PM and ask. NOTE: The Wednesday Lunch Paddles are cooperative adventures, not guided trips. Each participant is responsible for her/his own safety.Don’t assume the trip initiators are smarter, stronger, better at rough water, more attractive, or more skilled paddlers than you are. For more information, see this description of our trip philosophy from the NSPN web site. We encourage paddlers to make their own independent decision about their comfort level with conditions at the time of the paddle. Please PM me if you have questions or if you haven’t paddled with me before. Hope to see you there!

Skills Practice Session #2 of this year will take place Saturday 7/17/21 at Riverhead Beach, Marblehead (link to map). Please arrive at 8:30 am, with the objective of getting on the water at 9 am. Getting an timely start is important as this location becomes very busy later in the day. We will be finishing up around noontime. The topic for a session is selected once conditions are known. This year's topic list includes: Basic Boat Control: Edging and turning your kayak are the foundation of making it go where you want. Forward and Reverse Strokes: Making your boat move is easy, but doing it efficiently is a bigger challenge. Get the most movement from the least effort. Assisted and Self Rescues: Help each other (and ourselves) get back into boats when on the water. Even More Boat Control: Modify your boat’s movement with draws, prys, rudders, braces and more. Boat Handling in Wind and Waves: Use strokes that work in your ocean environment to get the results you want. Paddling in a Group: How do we paddle in a group in a way that maximizes safety, enjoyment and adventure? Rock Gardening: Practice reading and paddling in the dynamic water around our many local rocks. Tidal Currents: Practice reading and paddling in dynamic water being moved around by the moon. The Surf Zone: Safely launch and land in the surf zone, and assist others in doing the same. Most likely, this week's session will focus on Boat Control, edging and turning, perhaps in wind if there is any. (Last week's session was Forward and Reverse Stroke). Parking: Park in the left hand parking lot (facing the harbor and sailboats, not the ocean) just before the start of the Ocean Ave. causeway. Bring $20 in cash. That makes this one of the more expensive venues, but it is a very ample and hassle-free one and the combination of sheltered and open water is ideal for practice. Registration and Insurance: NSPN insures participants and facilitators through the American Canoe Association (ACA), similar to club pool sessions. This protects everyone involved. If you’re a regular ACA member ($40/year), you can fill out an annual online waiver once for all skills practices, and merely provide your ACA member number on each signup. Non-members have to pay a $10 ACA event fee through the NSPN Store, and fill out an ACA online waiver for each session. The registration form is here, and will walk you through the insurance steps (links are provided to the ACA and NSPN websites as needed). https://forms.gle/yJSVYJkQSimWW6neA We will be limiting the size of this session to about 12 participants (not including the facilitators). Hope to see you there!

@Quan Do thanks for asking, it's a good question. Most club-sponsored events ask you to simply "dress for immersion", that is, choose clothing with the expectation that you may wind up swimming at some point. People differ widely in their tolerance for cold water, so we usually don't prescribe specific clothing unless it's winter or spring when the water temps present a clear danger. But it is important to anticipate that you might be in the water — you'll need more than just a T-shirt! And of course you will need a PFD. The water is likely to be in the 60-65 F range this weekend with air temps 65-70 F. So the water is not "warm", although it is not really freezing cold either. Most people at this time of the year are wearing some form of wet suit, some short and some long, perhaps with a waterproof shell on top to protect from being chilled by splashing water and wind. That's what I'll probably wear on Saturday. If in doubt, bring multiple options. Having said all this, please know that this is a low-risk event aimed at paddlers at every skill level. The things we'll be doing this session are unlikely to cause anyone to capsize. In the unlikely event that this did happen, experienced paddlers are on hand to help someone back into their boat quickly. Please feel free to private-message me if you want to discuss in more detail. And of course you can talk in person to other club members about this stuff on Saturday.

@Ken You have just confirmed your registration ?. Yes you are on the list. The weather looks fine so far. We are not going to cancel unless the weather is extreme; the back of the harbor is very sheltered. If it is not very windy we’ll work on forward stroke, if windy we will probably work on boat handling in wind.

Yes, please plan to be OTW at 9.

Note: this paddle has now filled up. You can register to get on the wait list.

Wow, that's great: I had no idea this was the process. I've searched the forums but found no post that announced this benefit since 2009 (long before I joined) — it looks like that post was edited to include this info. Perhaps this pinned post can be linked from NSPN's membership page (https://www.nspn.org/join-the-north-shore-paddlers-network/). That page does mention a MITA discount, but gives no info about the process. The menu item could be retitled from Join NSPN to simply Join as more of a hint to people looking for this info.

THIS PADDLE IS FULL. REGISTRATION WILL PLACE YOU ON THE WAIT LIST. This week's Wednesday Lunch Paddle is on July 7, 2021 at Lanes Cove in Gloucester. Location: Lanes Cove https://goo.gl/maps/RBdqt3GcLLX8qA6R9 The map link points to a state-owned parking lot at the end of Andrews St. Do not park on Andrews St itself. There are also other assorted set-off parking spots scattered around the cove including some near the end of Duley St. According to my information the "Residents Only" signs that decorated these other spots are now gone, but we should be sensitive to the local residents and avoid taking up all the spaces in any one spot. Registration: To attend, please register using this form which will also add your information to the float plan: https://forms.gle/vfiZxXmJNjVQiiS3A You must be a paid-up NSPN member to join this trip. Your signup information will only be shared with other participants. Predictions: Light winds becoming SW 8-10 kt in afternoon, air in low 70s F, water 60 F, low long-period swell Tides (Annisquam/Lobster Cove): 2021/07/07 Wed 10:38 AM 7.92 H 2021/07/07 Wed 4:17 PM 1.63 L When/what: We will meet at 9 am and plan to launch promptly at 9.30. This trip doesn't have a specific level: we'll determine the route based on who shows up, what people want to do, and what the environment wants to do. All properly equipped members are welcome: please bring boats with rigged deck lines, bulkheads, spray skirts, and dress for immersion. If you're not sure you have a safe vessel, please get in touch with us and ask. NOTE: The Wednesday Lunch Paddles are cooperative adventures, not guided trips. Each participant is responsible for her/his own safety.Don’t assume the trip initiators are smarter, stronger, better at rough water, more attractive, or more skilled paddlers than you are. For more information, see this description of our trip philosophy from the NSPN web site. We encourage paddlers to make their own independent decision about their comfort level with conditions at the time of the paddle. Please PM me if you have questions or if you haven’t paddled with me or Bob before. Hope to see you there! Joe & Bob

Yes… Sounds great!

@Thomas Ennis Joining the ACA and signing the docs does not sign you up for any sessions. It is still necessary to register for each session using the Google Form so we have a float plan and know who is coming and how many.

I'm very pleased to announce the first Skills Practice Session of the season! It will take place Saturday 7/10/21, 9 am to 12 pm at Riverhead Beach in Marblehead MA (link to map). We will wait for the forecast to settle before choosing the practice topic, but the plan is to work on Forward Stroke if winds are low, otherwise on Boat Handling in Wind/Waves. We can always work in some rescues too. Please arrive in time to be on the water at 9 am. Who can benefit from Skills Practice? Any NSPN member, from newbie to expert, can get something out of a Skills Practice session. Practice at the level that works best for you. If you know a topic well and want to help paddlers gain that knowledge, please PM me abut being a facilitator. Is this some kind of official NSPN course on “How To Paddle”? Nope, it’s not official, and it’s not a set course. The focus is on picking up skills from each other, without prescribing any single way to paddle. What you get at a given session depends on who is there. Facilitators can access an existing workbook of ideas, but they are free to adapt and use the material as they see fit. What do participants need? You will need a closed-deck sea kayak suitable for coastal paddling, with sealed bulkheads or float bags, and grab lines along the perimeter. Dress for immersion and a spray skirt are required. Due to insurance requirements, each paddler will need a paddle float and bailing pump — contact me if you don't have these and we'll try to arrange. Bring lunch, snacks and fluids for yourself. Optionally, bring a tow line, radio, and spare paddles. (Don’t have something? Contact the organizers and we’ll try to scare something up for you.) Registration and Insurance: This year, NSPN is insuring participants and facilitators through the American Canoe Association (ACA) through the club's status as a Paddle America Club. This is the same way that NSPN handles pool sessions. It's a great idea, as it protects everyone involved. To make this possible, we have to ask everyone to jump through an extra hoop or two. If you’re a regular ACA member ($40/year), you can fill out an annual online waiver once for all skills practices, and merely provide your ACA member number on each signup. Non-members have to pay a $10 ACA event fee through the NSPN Store, and fill out an ACA online waiver for each session. The registration form is here, and will walk you through the insurance steps (links are provided to the ACA and NSPN websites as needed). https://forms.gle/5xN7Z7gMbziJcGZL8 We are going to limit the size of this session to about 12 participants (not including the facilitators). Parking: Park in the left hand parking lot (facing the harbor and sailboats, not the ocean) just before the start of the Ocean Ave. causeway. Bring $20 in cash. It's always a bit hard to tell what will happen with $$$, but I believe the town is collecting $20.00 from nonresidents on the weekends. That makes this one of the more expensive venues, but it is a very ample and hassle-free one and the combination of sheltered and open water is ideal for practice.

Thank you, Jim! I plan to attend the new date on Sun. 7/11. J

When I was last there (late 2020) the main sign clearly divided the beach into residents only (east of the sign, that is, past the sign in the direction of travel down Penzance Rd) and non residents (west of/before the sign). the residents only area is a bit sandier and nicer, hence the setup. The non res part is, as the name suggests, pebbly - although “cobbly” would really be a better word. And quite steep.

This adds absolutely nothing to the preceding discussion, but does reinforce the fact that it's all about reading the water wherever you happen to be in this area. From the NOAA chart for Ipswich Bay:

Well, I guess my request kicked off a session of various folks looking under rocks for various posts. As usual there are interesting things lurking there even if the object of desire cannot be found... lots of interesting reading and NSPN time travel. I have looked for posts relating the Oct. 2004 incident using a number of search engines and keyword combinations, as well as NSPN's own advanced-search form. I reliably keep turning up Paul's various mentions of the incident — but not the incident itself. So my theory FWIW is that it was either never on the site, or has since been removed. I love the NSPN Deep Trouble anthology idea, and the above Plum Island incident is surely a great place to start!

Update: We've moved the Sunday Aug. 1 skills session to Saturday July 31 due to a schedule conflict.

@Paul Sylvester what unforgettable October 4 are you talking about?

Hope everyone had fun. Sorry to have missed this great event, I am obviously on the wrong coast!