Joseph Berkovitz

I have an Outback 2016 and here is my solution, which for economy makes use of the Subaru factory bar system (this differs from year to year so it may not apply to your Outback, but perhaps you can adapt this plan). It's very similar to the Yakima load bar, except that doesn't mount on my factory bars. - I moved the rear factory bar to its rearmost position - I use a pair of Thule kayak mounts that fit cleanly on the factory bars since they're sort of like Thule aero-bar size. The front one has rubber grips, the back one has felt pads (you can also get one with rubber wheels). With this system, you load the kayak from the rear. So the problem reduces to getting the bow sitting in the right place before pushing it over the felt pads into its final position... and it's easy to lift the bow by itself... BUT the Outback has this annoying projection that sticks way out over the rear window and prevents you from stabilizing the bow on the pads... Therefore... - I also bought a Malone K-Rack Load Assist (one source is http://www.prolineracks.com/malone-mpg353-k-rack-kayak-lift-assist.html). This has suction cups and can be attached just in front of the rear window. It provides a superb resting place for the bow, which can easily be lifted up while you stand behind and to one side of the car. Then you work your grip down the decklines to the stern and push while the kayak slides up on the Load Assist holder, and let it down onto the pad/grip combo. It sounds complicated but this whole rig cost a lot less than Thule bars and a Hullavator, which I'm not sure will even mount on the new Subarus (but they are sweet!).

Sounds like we have something going on, then! I will call the gelcoat company and get this going, and let you know the details. I'll just order the quart and split it up when I get it. Peter, you can go in for either 1/4 or 1/3 and I'm good either way - I am happy to pick up the slack if you want less. But I think thirds are easier since there are 3 of us :-) ...Joe

I want to repair a crunched-up spot on the hull of my relatively new Cetus MV from an... er... mistake on the most recent MDI retreat. I'm pretty sure it will not be the last such rock-garden miscalculation that this boat endures due to its inexperienced owner :-) So I'm interested in buying the correct matching gelcoat (Light Grey hull) from P&H's supplier and I have the contact info, but apparently they only sell in quart quantities at $125 a pop. Hmmm. $$$, albeit for a mega quantity of product. Maybe worth it, but: is anyone else out there with a light gray P&H hull interested in going in on this purchase with me? Please PM me back if so. (I realize I could just try color-matching some lower-cost stock gelcoat myself, and it might well come to that.) Thanks! ...Joe

Rock on with your bad selves, Jeff and David! ...j

Normally would be on for this but I'll be away from Oct 8-23. Have fun everyone!

I'm definitely interested. I have a need to be done by 3 pm though, due to a prior engagement... ...j

My apologies, my plans have changed and I will not be able to attend this year after all. I hope you all have a great time in one of my favorite places to paddle! ...Joe

I wish I could attend, but I'll be on Cape Cod visiting friends next weekend -- Enjoy!

I visited this area on land extensively a while ago, before my paddling days -- great to read about it again from a kayaking perspective! Hope to get up there in a boat sometime soon...

Judy, Liz and I spent a hot, pleasant day today, navigating the section of Cape Ann between Lane's Cove and Straitsmouth Island outside Rockport. The water was warmish, the wind hardly a presence, the sun beat down on us and the mood was peaceful. The Blackburn Challenge this was not -- more like Blackburn's Vacation. We began at dead low tide at Lane's, launching among the rockweed. There was some minimal seawater present: We navigated out of the portal in the granite seawall. I've never been to Lane's Cove before and I find its exit utterly charming: The view seems to promise only good things out there. Calm bay waters, the Isles of Shoals appearing as distant brushstrokes on the horizon. Through the gap, we turned right and navigated past the rocks below Liz's home in Laneville, then past Folly Cove. At Halibut Point the water changed texture as we left the bay for the ocean, and substantial but calm swells swept past us swiftly. We pressed on and crossed Sandy Bay to cut a straight course for Straitsmouth Island. Behind Straitsmouth we could see the twin range lighthouses of Thacher Island looming up, dwarfing Straitsmouth's much more modest lighthouse of its own. Very few other boats of any kind were out. We reached Straitsmouth where Liz attempted to land in a tight but long slot in the rocks. Ideally it would have worked for all three of us, but unfortunately the slot didn't have a lot of water in it and swells and boat wakes kept racing in and out of the area. I didn't get a picture of the landing since my hands were on my paddle. (Pru, how do you get all those pictures?) Anyway, Liz backed out of the slot and we went in search of a better spot on the inside channel between Straitsmouth and the mainland. Which we found quickly... This was also a bit of fun as the water was much deeper than it looked when stepping out of one's boat. Anyway, we all self-extricated and mushed our boats up on the seaweed and rocks. The view from the stone stairs above, looking down on the lunch spot: I rambled a bit during lunch. Up the stairs... Past Liz's slot, now filled with much more ocean, and with a tiny mini-slot full of sea foam attached to it, visible at the bottom here: And, finally a view past Straitsmouth Light out to sea with the Dry Salvages visible in the distance: "The Dry Salvages" is in fact the name of a poem by T. S. Eliot, which I don't recall reading, but apparently he spent some amount of time in Rockport and drew on the image of this barren spot. I would like to go out there some time. According to Liz or Judy (sorry, I can't remember which supplied this nugget), the name "Dry Salvages" may be a corruption of the French Trois Sauvages, referring to the three rocks' savage propensity for chomping up ships. Straitsmouth suddenly got crowded with a bunch of kayakers, and we decided to turn back. During the long trek back -- there was little wind and it got steadily hotter -- we noticed a helicopter circling persistently over Lanesville and/or Plum Cove. Or maybe it was Dogtown Common; it was hard to tell. Anyway, Liz eventually asked a power boater if he knew what was going on. Apparently he did: sharks had been spotted, and the copter was looking for them. Perhaps the shark was looking for tasty human morsels at Plum Cove Beach? Or perhaps it was another small dogfish, like the one that scared swimmers a couple of weeks ago at Good Harbor. We neared Liz's dropoff point, where she was going to put in on the rocks near her house now that it was high tide. Another kayaker came into view, paddling a dead-black wooden boat with an ultra low rear deck. Upon greeting him, it turned out it was NSPN member Christopher! Apparently a gang of 4 NSPN members was sufficient to repel the shark (whether real or imagined) and the helicopter took off into the distance. Judy and I left Christopher and paddled the short distance back to Lanes, now full of water. Another perfect session on the ocean came to a close.

Thanks for the responses. If it turns out it's just me and Elizabeth we could call it a DAM trip -- Dual Adventure Model. David and Pru, too bad you can't join! Here is a trip summary: Launch: Sunday 8/7 at Lanes Cove Boat Ramp @ 9:00am (meet at 8.30am) https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1JNWJAedmQ60XaONqgIxijWV0gbc&hl=en Route: TBD, probably around N of Cape Ann towards Rockport/Straitsmouth/Thachers Weather: Mostly sunny, 80s Wind: NW winds 5 to 10 kt. Seas: Seas around 2 ft. Tides: High @ 2.34 pm / Low @ 8:15 am (Gloucester Harbor) As per what I take to be the usual conventions, if you are going, please PM me with the following. I will send out a float plan by email on Saturday afternoon to whoever's responded by then. 1) Your Name; 2) a description of your boat (color, length, make); 3) an emergency contact for the day of the trip (name and phone#); 4) Your email and telephone 5) if the Trip Initiator does not already know you, include your “paddling resume”, i.e., a brief description of your paddling experience. This can include recent NSPN trips you have been on, members you regularly paddle with, classes taken, practice sessions attended, assessments completed, etc. It need not be more than a few sentences. (I copied this from another member's invitation, so don't take #5 as a sign that I am getting uppity.) Hope to see you Sunday!

Hi all, In the interest of getting something going for this great-looking weekend, I'm proposing some sort of Level 3-esque trip out of Lanes Cove on Sunday morning. I am offering to coordinate and organize the contact info and float plan. I think it would be fun to go around Pigeon Cove and down to Rockport or Straitsmouth I. for lunch. I see that this has been a successful route in the past, so hopefully conditions will favor doing it again. The weather looks promising so far: forecast is for sunny, 80s with light NW winds, <= 2 ft seas. Low tide is around 9.30 am. Full disclosure: I have never actually been to Lanes, which is why I want to go. I have paddled in the Rockport/Straitsmouth area. I'm in no way advertising myself as a trip leader in the water - but I do hope that some more experienced NSPN hands than I (of which there are many) will join in! And this is a CAM trip, so regardless we should be able to use what we've learned and stay together, comfortable and safe. I don't know the conditions at the put-in at LT, but I generally like to get going a little early and get an edge on the wind springing up later. I am thinking of a BiB time of 9 am, so would like to meet up at the boat ramp at 8.30. Please indicate interest on this thread. If we see some action on this thread in the next couple of days I will solicit more contact info and we can put together a float plan.

Great narration of what was obviously a stunning trip! Your reports are definitely the next best thing to being there. There is a spot on the Quebec/Maine border called Magnetic Hill where you can put your car in neutral and it will roll uphill: http://provincequebec.com/upl-files/cote_magnetique_chartierville.jpg I have experienced the above firsthand, so I have no trouble believing that the Orkneys offer a marine version of the same effect. Especially if tequila-flavored beer is involved. ...j

I agree that low tide at Riverhead Beach is a real long carry, although wheelie carts make this a breeze as the sand is pretty well compacted. There are other spots in town that are less of a carry at low water but they don't necessarily have adequate parking especially on the weekend. Also, I'm just plain interested in paddling Odiorne if others are: I live in Marblehead, so I'd like to visit more other places. NOAA seems to think Saturday is sunny at the moment. If it does rain... I don't mind paddling in the rain either and do it frequently when it's calm... but yeah, thunderstorms and squalls would be uncool. Guess we should keep checking in as the weather picture gets clearer...

I'm planning on going.

boat is loaded, see you there!

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/14/nyregion/sunset-ride-turns-deadly-for-2-on-windy-long-island-sound.html?_r=0 Summary: 2 men, woman and an 8-year old girl launched at dusk near the mouth of the Connecticut river. The ripping W/NW wind and tidal currents pushed them offshore and across LI Sound. After a night on the water the woman and the girl survived and washed up on an LI beach, but the men did not survive. (One tried and failed to swim to shore, the other remained in the cold water to make room for the girl to stay in one of the boats.) All had PFDs; not clear what else they had in the way of safety gear or clothing. It's a sad story and it seems clear that they weren't experienced. But all of these accidents are sobering and have something to say so I thought I would share this with the group.

There is now an small craft advisory for the Portsmouth zone. In the Ipswich/Gloucester zone forecast they just upgraded from an SCA to a gale watch tomorrow. I'm not experienced in these conditions and I don't know the level of protection in most of the local spots so I'll continue to monitor the discussion then decide. But I am leaning towards being conservative and canning it.

That seems like a great idea to me. Lots good to do w/out unnecessary risks.

With the winds forecast as W or NW, I'm guessing we'll mostly be risking headwinds building up on the way back, rather than waves. It should be slack transitioning into flood tide, so hopefully not opposing the wind, although I don't know the tidal currents in this area at all. Seems like if we do head offshore we should just keep checking in with each other about the prospect of heading back in conditions windier than whatever we're experiencing.

I'm interested in the whole series. Marblehead's obviously convenient for me but any of the proposed locations work!

I want to be in, but must attend a good friend's wedding. Have fun!

It was great to be a part of this Plunge, albeit totally unplanned, and I'm glad to be part of NPSN now -- this trip convinced me that many more fun adventures lie in store with all of you. Thanks again to all the Aquatic Bunnies for so generously absorbing me at a moment's notice!

I would want to go.