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More Kayaking Accessories for Beginners
A first-time kayaker may not realize what kayaking accessories he or she may want or need when getting into kayaking. In the first part of this article, Kayaking Accessories for Beginners, I listed items that I think are necessary for beginners. In this list, I’ll highlight items that an entry-level kayaker may want to buy right now. Eventually, most kayakers end up with some of these items, especially those who want to paddle further than swimming distance from shore and in less than perfect weather. Note: If you paddle in water colder than 60 degree Fahrenheit (15.5 Celsius), then you need a wetsuit or a drysuit. I’ve covered that before in…
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Get Your Kayak Wet at the Gales Storm Gathering
During fall on the Great Lakes, strong, dense winds blow across the flat expanses of Canada and collide with the relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes making explosive sea conditions. Those steep waves — the old timer fishermen called them square because almost vertical wave faces separate the wave’s tops from their bottoms — provide a mess of peaks and valleys to chuck yourself and your kayak into. In the past, the big names in kayaking, such as Nigel Dennis and Stan Chladek, staged a yearly November (statistically the stormiest month but stupidly cold) event on Lake Superior that challenged paddlers from around the world. Rumor has it that…
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Siskiwit Bay Skin-on-Frame Sea Kayak Plans
The Siskiwit Bay SOF is a multi-chined version of the original Siskiwit Bay cedar strip boat. It’s a great modern British-style sea kayak that a builder can scale down to suit their size. These free kayak plans are for builders desiring a skin-on-frame version of the boat built in Yost-style. For stitch and glue plywood builders, the Siskiwit Bay MC is also available. The plans come as full-sized drawings that you can print. Note: The sheerline and design features sweeping curves that might challenge first-time Yost-style builders. If you haven’t built a Yost-style SOF before, this might not be the best option. The basic process of a wooden framed Yost-style…
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Marine-Tex Review: Rapid Set Repair Epoxy for Emergency Repairs
The skeg box in my NDK Explorer sea kayak is made from plastic and glued in the boat. There’s no fiberglass protecting the outside edge. Instead, NDK/SKUK just covered the exposed plastic edge with a layer of gelcoat. Although gelcoat takes abrasion well, it fails in impact and really needs fiberglass under it for any strength. Before my last expedition, I noticed that the gelcoat was wearing off the skeg box and the plastic was actually fractured. On its website Sea Kayaking UK actually offers repair advice for this problem, so it’s not entirely rare. The problem was that the repair involved cutting out the broken plastic and replacing it…
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Builders Photos of the 1910 St. Francis Canoe
The 1910 St. Francis Canoe in Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America is one of the Free Canoe Plans that I offer. It’s also one of the most graceful canoes in Bark and Skin. It’s high ends and sweeping sheerlines lead the eyes from tip to tail without interruption. The canoe measures just over 15 feet and its 36 inch width makes for a stable ride. It’s appearance is more modern than many of the other canoes in Bark and Skin, and it’s easy to imagine that this could be commercially manufactured today. It’s not surprising that builder’s flock to this design. 1910 St. Francis Skin-on-Frame Canoe Builder:…
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Ninja Paddling – The Path of the Ninja Paddler
The word ‘ninja’ brings to mind silent assassins running through the forests of medieval Japan and cheesy B action movies with terrible plots and even worse special effects. The word itself has become heavily overused in modern society. People are obsessed with ninjas. Movies, cartoons, anime, and even paddling equipment makers like NRS have used the name ‘Ninja’ as a hook to draw people in, but for me the name brings to mind a special activity, something I like to call “Ninja Paddling.” Once a month at Woods & Water Ecotours we guide a moonlight kayak trip where we take clients out to watch the sunset and then to watch…
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22 Ways to Improve Your Kayaking Skills Forever
We paddle because it’s fun and relaxing and sometimes challenging and risky. When it isn’t fun, it’s usually because our skills aren’t up to the challenge. In those circumstances, we can either grit our teeth and deal with it, or we can try to improve our skills so that next time we can smile and laugh instead of grinding the grit from our teeth. Improve your kayaking skills and kayaking techniques today by trying one or more of these 22 ideas. Set up a training schedule. As with any physical activity, if you train for it, you grow your skills. Although you might rather stand on your head and drink…
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Kayak Paddle Stuck Together? This Is How To Get It Apart
At the end of a full-day of paddling, you load your car, put away your vest and rescue gear. You get ready to put away your paddle, but after you push the spring-lock button, the paddle won’t split apart. It’s stuck. Likely, a barely-noticeable, fine sand found its way into the connection before you joined the parts together. With luck on your side, the paddle comes apart when you tug on one end and a friend tugs on the other. On a normal day, it feels like someone super-glued the paddle together. When it feels like glue keeps your kayak paddle stuck together, break out the hair dryer and a…
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Waving Your Arms Past Your Head While Spinning in Circles
Jon Turk begins Part 4 of The Raven’s Gift: A Scientist, a Shaman, and Their Remarkable Journey Through the Siberian Wilderness with a discussion about the mythology surrounding the raven in aboriginal cultures. He relates a myth about Raven dropping a walnut on a man’s head and then laughing about it. The man’s feelings are hurt, so he asks Raven, “Why?” Raven stops laughing and tells the man that he isn’t mocking the man, but just ‘playing’ with him to have fun. Jon interprets the story this way: …Ravens may drop walnuts on your head, storms may batter your canoe, blizzards may scatter your reindeer, but lighten up; nature is…
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Boundary Waters Day Trip: Bower Trout Lake BWCA
The eastern side of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area has many great day trips, but one of the best starts at the Bower Trout Lake BWCA entry point. This route is an out and back paddle, so you decide how long of a trip you want. The fishing is good on several of the lakes, and moose often frequent Bower Trout late in the evening. Combine those factors with the burned area further west along the route, and you get a diverse day trip with plenty to see. Start early in the morning on this one, because there’s so much to explore Distance: 1 to 10 miles – This is…
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Printed Canoe Plans and Kayak Plans Plus Electronic Nestings
PaddlingLight offers a significant number of historic canoe and kayak plans and several original designs. In the past, those free kayak plans and free canoe plans came as a drawing on one sheet of paper. The plans showed the stations at 1-foot intervals with the stems drawn over the station. Only my commercial plans and a few were available with nestings. I’ve decided to start offering nestings for all the plans. I’m also offering a new service. I’m printing the nesting and stem and station plans on 24- by 36-inch paper. These two new services come with a fee. While I’ve made these plans available without expecting to make any…
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SeasonFive Phantom Review: A windproof, waterproof rash guard
SeasonFive, a recently launched watersports clothing company with a purpose of making innovative clothing to keep you on the water longer, attempts to do just that with the Phantom Long Sleeve shirt. The Phantom uses SeasonFive’s proprietary Atmos 1.0 fabric, which combines a water repellent outer fabric, a waterproof/breathable membrane and a soft inner fabric into one top. I tested the top for the last six months and used it on a 45-day kayaking expedition. This is my SeasonFive Phantom Review. SeasonFive Phantom Features In addition to the waterproof/breathable Atmos fabric, the Phantom features a zippered expansion on the shirt’s back, flat lock stitching to make the seams feel comfortable…
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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…
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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…
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Tear Aid Review – An Emergency Repair Kit and Patch
On a 45-day kayaking trip about a week from the end of the trip, I stopped for lunch and took my top off to cool off and change to a lighter layer. After lunch, pulling on the drysuit, I felt the neck gasket tear — a smooth, soundless rip that released the tension in the gasket, but caused my stomach to turn. The rip was huge. It ran from the top of the gasket almost all the way to the base. My standard repair kit includes Aquaseal, duct tape and bulk bike tire repair material, but for various reasons my repair kit didn’t come in the resupply box that I…
