• Kayaking on cold water.
    Articles,  Technique

    The Risks of Cold Water Kayaking and Canoeing

    I recently wrote an article for Northern Wilds about how to dress for cold water kayaking on Lake Superior, where even in the summer the water almost never gets warmer than 50 degrees Fahrenheit. I interviewed American Canoe Association Coastal Kayaking Level 5 Advanced Open Water Instructor Trainer Educator Sam Crowley for the article. Sam runs Sea Kayak Specialists in Marquette, Michigan and is one of the best instructors that I’ve taken lessons from. Sam has paddled extensively on the cold waters of Lake Superior and on cold ocean waters. In 2007, he circumnavigated Ireland solo. Sam gave me so much great material that I couldn’t include in a 600-word…

  • Siskiwit LV sea kayak
    Articles,  Build It Yourself,  Kayak Plans

    FAQ: Siskiwit LV Sea Kayak

    The Siskiwit LV sea kayak is an all-around, mid-sized, British-style sea kayak designed to maintain the playfulness of a 16-foot kayak but yield the speed and tracking of an 18-foot sea kayak. The sea kayak plans are designed for wood strip or cedar strip construction. I’ll add questions as I’m asked. 1) Does the rear of the cockpit forms have a smooth transition so that the top of the entire coaming rim is essentially flat? I’m asking because the Siskiwit Bay built with a recess seems to have a sharp transition. I will probably build it without the recess to allow more room for my 5′ -8″ fiance (I am…

  • Gunflint Canoe Paddle
    News

    Win a Paddle from Sanborn Canoe Co.

    Sanborn Canoe Company, based in Winona, Minnesota, makes durable, handmade, lightweight paddles that look as great as they perform. (Plus, they’re really nice guys!) They declared 2011 the year of the paddle, which means that they’ve been giving away a paddle a month for the entire year. This month they’re giving away a Gunflint Canoe Paddle, which is named after a trail (road) that runs from Grand Marais, Minnesota through the Boundary Waters almost to the Canadian border. The road ends at a lake and campground. The Gunflint provides access to the most ruggedly beautiful parts of the Boundary Waters, and this paddle reflects the beauty of the area (see…

  • Kayaker Bryan Hansel
    Trip Reports

    For Whom The Old Presque Isle Bell Tolls

    The Old Presque Isle Lighthouse was built in 1840 and operated until 1871. It’s one of the oldest surviving lighthouses on the Great Lakes. The park preserves both the old keepers house and the light. When originally restored, the owner used wood from a nearby shipwreck, so the interior features knotted wood with lots of holes. He also used all the doors from the ship to replace interior doors, which gives the keeper’s house a wonderful nautical feel. When I was there, the park volunteer had a small fire burning in the fireplace, which made the house feel even more welcoming. After being rescued from a shipwreck, it would have…

  • Kayak at Presque Isle in Marquette.
    Trip Reports

    Port Huron to Home Expedition: Twitter Posts Day 24 to 45

    About the midway through my 45-day Port Huron to Home Expedition, my brother Eric started pulling together all my tweets for a blog post about my trip. Here are the remainder of the tweets. The oldest is the lowest on the page. Also, you may want to read a few articles that were written about the trip: Bryan Hansel Finally Completes his Top Secret Great Lakes Expedition and A Kayaker’s Journey From Port Huron to Minnesota Along Lakes Huron and Superior and Dreaming of a Trip. The Duluth news (KBJR) ran a segment on the 10pm news on Wednesday. I was on WTIP at 8 on Thursday. And I’m going…

  • Kayaking expedition drysuit and tent on a porch
    Trip Reports

    Port Huron to Home Solo Kayaking Expedition

    Yesterday, I finished a 800-mile, 45-day, solo, kayaking expedition. The trip started at Port Huron, Michigan, which is at the southern most point of Lake Huron, and ended in Grand Marais, Minnesota. At Houghton, Michigan, I linked up with my 2009 Grand Marais to Houghton trip, which means that I’ve now paddled the entire American shoreline from the Pigeon River on the Canadian/Minnesota border to Port Huron on the Michigan/Canadian border. I did the trip in three legs. At each leg, I had an easy way out if I wanted to call it good. The first leg ran from Port Huron to St. Ignas. The second leg went for St.…

  • Bryan's Spring/Summer 2011 Kayaking Adventure
    Articles,  Trip Reports

    Bryan’s Spring/Summer 2011 Kayaking Adventure

    My Brother Bryan, the main author of this website has been out on a paddling trip for the last 26 days. I wanted to take some time and offer an update to the site and share with you some of his adventure. He’s been using both Twitter and Facebook to keep people updated to his whereabouts, triumphs and trials. Below you’ll find most of his Tweets from the last 26 days along with my best attempt at mapping his path along the way. If you feel like my map is way off (which it probably is) and would like to contribute to it, use the contact form on this site…

  • Free Canadian Topo map example
    Articles,  Technique,  Tutorial

    How to Print Free Canadian Topographic Maps Quickly and Inexpensively

    This is a guest post from educator and wilderness guide Dave Freeman. Canadian topographic maps generally cost between $11 and $16 dollars each. When buying many maps for an extended camping trip, the costs quickly add up. Luckily, the Canadian government offers free electronic copies of all of their topo maps. By following a few simple steps you will save money and produce more useful maps by printing your own for a fraction of the cost. All you need is an Internet connection, a printer and a little time. Printing your own maps allows you to customize your maps and only print out the parts that you need. It shaves…

  • Solo canoe portage yoke
    Articles,  Build It Yourself,  canoe plans,  Canoes

    Solo Canoe Yoke Plans for Portaging

    Because the seat in a solo canoe is centered in the boat, you can’t permanently mount a yoke there. I’ve seen all sorts of solutions to the problem, such as removable clamp-on yokes, magnet holding yokes, yokes held on with bungee cords, special clamping systems for yokes and many more. It seems like everyone’s inner engineer emerges to fix this problem. In the past, I’ve used an ash clamp-on solo yoke made by Bell with Chosen Valley Canoe pads. It works very well, but it does scratch up my aluminum gunwales, and it’s a pain to clamp down. I decides to make a solo yoke that attaches to the seat…

  • sub-5 ounce cook kit components
    Articles,  Equipment

    Lightweight Sub-5 Ounce Cook Kit

    My friend Jeff Scott, who is an ultralight backpacker, sent me his most recent sub-5 ounce cook kit list. It weighs in at an astonishing 4.62 oz., and it features everything you’d need without skimping on anything. He uses it for on solo backpacking trips, but there’s no reason why this wouldn’t work on a paddling trip. The stove burns alcohol, so you need a supply of denatured alcohol or you can use HEET in the yellow bottle, which you can purchase from almost any gas station. Sub-5 Ounce Cook Kit List T’s B Side Burner Stove – 0.33 Spark Lite Fire Starter – 0.17 Snowpeak 600 Mug – 2.8…

  • Siskiwit LV sea kayak wood strip plans
    Articles,  Kayak Plans

    Siskiwit LV Sea Kayak Plans

    The Siskiwit LV combines the quick maneuverability of a 16-foot day boat with the speed and tracking of a 18-foot touring kayak. This all-around, mid-sized British-style sea kayak suits a kayaker looking for a boat with good initial stability that is easy to edge and quick to turn. When the water gets rough, the Siskiwit LV feels more stable. It thrives in tidal flows, surf and waves. When packing like a backpacker, the Siskiwit LV provides enough room to mount a long tour. It will support you as you push your limits. The Siskiwit LV is the final refinement of a line of kayaks started from an anthropomorphically designed skin-on-frame…

  • Sitting in the cockpit of a properly adjusted sea kayak.
    Articles,  Kayaks,  Technique

    How to Adjust a Sea Kayak

    Adjusting a sea kayak or touring boat to fit not only makes the boat more comfortable but also makes it easier to control. With the proper fit, edging, which helps you maneuver, feels easier, rolling becomes easier, and torso rotation, which propels a kayak forward, becomes unimpeded. For all-day touring, I feel that you need a snug fit that’s loose in all the right areas. That might sound like a slight contradiction, but let me explain. How to Size a Kayak There are a lot of factors in picking the right size kayak, such as what you’re going to do with it, what you weigh, how much gear you’re going…

  • Cockpit on a kayak
    Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Kayaks

    Sea Kayak Cockpit Plans

    Only a few of the kayak plans on PaddlingLight include specific cockpit designs, which leaves it open to you to decide which cockpit to use. I like a cockpit that runs around 32 inches by 17 inches. The plans for this cockpit run just slightly over 32 and just under 17. I find this length and width makes it easier for people over 5’10” to get in the kayak vs. 30-inch versions. The Iggy plans include a smaller cockpit The plans come as a pdf that you can print off at a office supply store, such as Officemax or Staples, or any printing store that can print up to 36…

  • Kayaks on Canada's Lake Superior coast
    Articles,  Trip Reports

    Head North to Old Woman: A Lake Superior Kayaking Adventure

    This is a guest post from sea kayaker Tim Gallway. It was a cold August morning, and I was heading for Wawa, Ontario to teach at the Greenland Symposium put on by Naturally Superior Adventures (NSA). Or at least I would have if the event hadn’t been cancelled. Due to many last minute cancellations instructors would outnumber students, so the plug was pulled. But I was still going. I was planning on spending the long weekend sleeping on beaches, playing in the surf and rock gardens around Superior Provincial Park with the other instructors that were going to do the same thing I was. One way or another I was…

  • Plotting dead reckoning on a chart.
    Articles,  Technique

    Navigation: Dead Reckoning

    In navigation, dead reckoning is determining your current position based on your last known location. Because canoes and kayaks seldom leave sight of shore, you mainly use it during crossings, along featureless shorelines, in foggy conditions or to give you an estimated location between fixes. You can use the same technique to estimate your future position. To do dead reckoning, start with a known location, such as a navigation fix, marked on your chart or map. From that point, advance a line along your known course a distance based on your speed and the time traveled using the formula shown below. Current or wind can affect your DR; during critical…

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