-
Kayaking Adventures in 2014: My Paddling Year in Review
It’s January 2015 and I thought I should look back at 2014 and see what fun I had kayaking and canoeing. 2014 was a busy year for me otherwise. We bought a house that needed (and needs) lots of work. My kayaking company, North Shore Expeditions, hired its first full-time guide other than myself and my photography business was busy, busy and more busy. That left very little time for personal kayaking and canoeing. I actually didn’t get the canoes out once this year. Kayaking this year was mainly work for me. I paddled very little for personal reasons and when the season was over, I didn’t paddle at all after…
-
Review: The Battle of NRS Cockpit Covers
A kayak cockpit cover keeps the gunk out of your cockpit when travel down the road and helps save gas money — I lose about 1 mpg when traveling without cockpit covers. It can also keep gear inside of your boat. For example, I strap by paddle float and pump into the cockpit, but a cockpit cover can ensure that they stay in the cockpit and that the wind doesn’t rip them out. When you’re storing your kayak (especially if you store it outside), a cockpit cover will keep debris and mice from getting into the boat — if you leave something for mice to eat in your under deck…
-
Cold Water SUP and a Paddlesport Marketing Fail
Yesterday, Tower Paddle Boards, a manufacturer direct SUP company, posted a tweet about cold water paddling. It said, “Scared to paddle when it’s cold out? Don’t be. Here’s how it’s done.” The tweet included a picture of a guy in a jacket and blue jeans paddling on a SUP with a cup of coffee resting on the board. In a later tweet the company said that the tweet was meant in good humor. But, even though it probably wasn’t meant to do so, it promoted unsafe practices when dealing with cold water. I’ve written about cold water paddling safety and winter kayaking before, so I thought I’d address this issue…
-
Sawyer Mini Water Filter Review
When a 1.6 ounce, $24 Sawyer Mini water filter showed up at my door, I felt hopeful that it would be all that it claimed to be, but skeptical as well, because of an experience I had testing another lightweight water filter over the summer (one which the company withdrew from review after I told them it was like sucking concrete through a straw). I also knew that by getting a chance to test the Sawyer Mini Water Filter in the fall, I’d be one of the first people to review it and because it stands to be a revolutionary water filter in the way the bigger Sawyer Squeeze Filter…
-
Sawyer MINI Filter Preview
Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to review Sawyer’s Squeeze Filter (see: Sawyer Squeeze Filter Review). The summary of that review was that I loved it. It completely revolutionized the way I filter water, because I no longer have to pump. Since then, Sawyer has been working on a new water filter called the Sawyer Mini Filter, and I’m going to review it during the next month. Here’s a note I got in my email the other day: A 0.1 micron absolute filter, that weighs 2 ounces, is rated up to 100,000 gallons and costs $20???? You might think we’re crazy but we’re not (well maybe just a little…
-
Review: Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown Volume 3
I’ve been a big fan of the Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown videos. I thought that the first volume was innovative in its approach in that it intermingled the instructional aspects of the video with a journey narrative. The approach kept the instructional components fresh and although you could watch each section separately, it was fun to watch them together. Volume 2 took the same approach and applied it to rescues and towing. I thought Volume 2 was a big improvement over an already great volume 1. In Volume 3, Simon Willis and Gordon Brown take the series a different direction; the journey narrative is gone and the instructional components no…
-
Comfort Paddling Tuilik Review
I’m a huge fan of tuiliks (read The Tuilik: a Perfect Bit of Kit for Winter Kayaking), which are a combination of a hooded paddling jacket and sprayskirt. I like them because they’re warm, they give you a larger freedom of movement vs. a neoprene sprayskirt, which helps with torso rotation. They make rolling easy, because they’re buoyant. They keep your head dry, which in the cold water I paddle in (usually doesn’t get above 55°F), makes rolling more fun and warm!. Until this spring, I had only used neoprene tuiliks, but this spring, Paulo from Comfort Paddling approached me about his waterproof/breathable tuiliks. I was excited to try one and write…
-
GoScope Extreme Review
One of the problems with the curved and flat GoPro mounts is, because they don’t move they create a static scene when kayaking. The video ends up showing only one direction, often pointing at the kayaker, which is boring. In a video, about 15 seconds or so of the same angle, especially in action videos, is about all a viewer can handle. If you doubt this, search Youtube for sea kayaking surf videos and see how extremely boring watching someone surf is when the same angle is shown during every ride. To make an interesting video, it’s nice to have multiple GoPro units mounted all over the kayak. If you’re…
-
Grand Trunk Double Hammock Review
I recently received a Double Hammock from Grand Trunk Goods to review. Grand Trunk Goods claims that the Double Hammock is “The world’s best portable hammock.” So, in this cursory review, I set out to find out if that claim was true. I’ve used these simple fabric hammocks before and currently own three of them. They occasionally get put up in the backyard (although this year has been too buggy to enjoy them), and now and then I like to take them along on trips into the BWCA, especially on trips to Brule Lake. There are a bunch of island campsites on Brule Lake and it’s great to paddle to…
-
Around Madagascar on My Kayak Book Review
I just finished Riaan Manser’s Around Madagascar on my Kayak and I have mixed feelings about it. It sort of pains me to write this review, but if you have limited reading time for adventure stories, then I want to make sure you know what you’re getting into before you read this book. The short version is, skip this book and read something by Jon Turk instead. The Good First, the good stuff: Manser’s writing style is frank and open. He’s not guarded in what he writes, which allows the reader to at points get into his head. The beginning part about gaining sponsorship and putting together the trip is…
-
North Water Hydration Holster Review
When I’m out on a long distance trip, I like to hydrate by using a hydration pack, but for day trips and calm water, I prefer a water bottle. Keeping that water bottle handy without having to pop a sprayskirt is a challenge. While the deck bungees works well for some things, they don’t have enough holding power to keep a water bottle on deck. And I tend to stay away from storing anything more than spare paddles and a map on the deck, because it annoys me to have anything large up there. That’s why I like to use the North Water Hydration Holster. The North Water Deck Mounted…
-
Quick Review: How to get to THE NORTH POLE …and other iconic adventures
Tim Moss, an adventurer who has traveled around the world using 80 different types of transportation and who has supported over 100 expedition worldwide, has come out with a new book, How to Get to the North Pole: . . . and Other Iconic Adventures (Kindle Edition). The book centers around seven adventures: crossing a desert, getting to the north pole, rowing an ocean, cycling around the world, sailing the seven seas, getting to the south pole and climbing an unclimbed mountain. To help him write the book, he consulted over 50 explorers. After a brief introduction covering gear and funding, Tim details the seven adventures using a common format…
-
Polarmax Comp 4 Tech Fleece Review: the Perfect Layers?
Base layers have been something I’ve battled both in central Canada and now out here in Newfoundland. Balancing bulk to not look like that kid on A Christmas story and still feel comfortable rolling or bobbing around after a incident in a surf zone is a delicate balance. While there are many articles on the importance of dressing for immersion, not many are out there discussing clothing options in cold climates. (You beautiful paddlers in the warm south feel free to enjoy the pic’s and ignore remainder of the article!) My normal paddling base layers kept me warm while moving; yet restricted movement due to its bulk. Many combinations of…
-
Stealth Camping: the Path of the Ninja Paddler
Many of the areas that I’ve paddled have built up shoreline with houses coming almost to the water and parks, if they exist at all, more than a day’s paddle away, or parks that don’t allow camping. During a multi-day kayaking or canoeing trip, if you want to camp in these areas, you’ll camp on private property at some point — known as stealth camping. In a few countries, such as Norway, you have the right to access, which means that you can camp freely on wildlands and other private lands. In Norway, as long as the land is uncultivated, you can pretty much camp there (see the Outdoor Recreation…
-
Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown Review: the Rescues, Vol. 2
Simon Willis, a journalist and film maker, and Gordon Brown, a world-class BCU 5 Star sea kayaking coach, have teamed up to make Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown Volume 2, the Rescues. This DVD, like Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown Volume 1, combines a sea kayaking journey to a stunning destination with instructional components. The end result is a DVD that you can watch in a couple of ways. You can watch the instruction intertwined with the journey, the journey alone or the instruction alone. It’s like three films in one. For Volume 2, the paddlers head to the Islands of St. Kilda, which are rocky islands west of Scotland…
Or if you use a RSS Feed Reader subscribe via our RSS Feed.