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10 Classic Canoe and Kayak Books
Canoeist and kayakers should start off the new year and a new decade by resolving to read a few books. In the past I’ve done round-up reviews of boat building books and paddling books, but it’s about time for a new round-up. These 10 stand out as the paddling books you should read in 2010. Kayaking Books Sea Kayak Rescue, 2nd: The Definitive Guide to Modern Reentry and Recovery Techniques (How to Paddle Series) First published in 2001 and updated in 2007, this guide presents the most up-to-date rescue, reentry, and recovery techniques for sea kayakers. The book is well-written, easy-to-understand, and laid out in a progression that instructors could…
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Sanborn Canoe Co.
Nessmuking welcomes a new advertiser: Sanborn Canoe Company. Sanborn Canoe Co. is based in Minnesota and makes lightweight gear tested and proven in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, our home waters. Here’s a little more about Sanborn Canoe Co.: Sanborn Canoe Co. is a lightweight wooden canoe paddle and cedar strip canoe company located in Winona, Minnesota. We like to make things light, durable and easy to use. You can buy them right here from our site, we ship almost all over the world, or find one of our amazing dealers. It was started early in 2009 by Todd Randall, John, Zak & Greg Fellman, Mark & Michael Boysen…
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Funny Kayak Videos
Over at Xtranormal, a website that allows users to easily create animated videos, a number of paddling related videos are appearing. They take a humorous look at serious issues and debates that occur within canoeing and kayaking. Many of the videos are based on some of the actual silly online debates that have occurred over at paddling.net. Note: Xtranormal discontinued its video service many years ago. These videos were pretty funny, so it’s too bad that they are gone. Also the links to the old paddling.net threads were broken years ago when paddling.net change forum programs. Pungo Kayak Expedition A funny examination of the Dunning-Kruger effect: 1. Incompetent individuals tend…
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A Paddling Emergency Ditch Kit
A common fear among paddlers is losing the boat or getting into a situation where the boat must be abandoned. Usually, along with the boat, the gear is lost too. It happens. An example of it happing comes from Canoe Trip: Alone in the Maine Wilderness. The author David Curran finds himself on the wrong side of a flooded river upstream of a rapid that would likely mean his death. After getting to shore, he abandons his canoe in an attempt to walk back to his car. In the process, he leaves essential gear behind. Another example comes from Robert Pruden when his kayak was swept over an unexpected rapid.…
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Wilderness Survival School Presentation
Tim Smith, the owner and founder of Jack Mountain Bushcraft School, often gives a presentation about wilderness survival at Canoecopia. He also teaches bushcraft and wilderness survival at his school. I’ve attended several of his Canoecopia presentations. Basically, during the presentation, he talks about wilderness survival, discusses making fire, what to have in your survival kit, and a survival plan. These skills are essential to anyone heading into the woods (Also, check out my article: Core Philosophy). His main point is this: If you can carry out those three activities, there’s a good chance that you’ll survive 40 days. Survival Plan His basic strategy aligns with what many in the…
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How to Decorate a Canoe Paddle
Since I built a Northwoods canoe paddle in a North House Folk School class, it has decorated the corner of my living room. Serving as decoration, I always thought that it needed a design painted onto it–if I’m only using it for decoration, why not. For awhile now, I’ve been following Murat’s Paddle Making (and other canoe stuff) blog, and I’ve been inspired by both his paddle building skill and his decorating skills. When he posted a picture of Steve Pyne’s Māori decorated paddle, I knew that I’d found a design I wanted to use on my Northwoods paddle. Steve Pyne’s Māori paddle is a carved masterpiece far beyond my…
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Sulfide Mining Near America’s Most Used Canoe Wilderness Area
I live near the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) and on the shore of Lake Superior. Both locations are among the most pristine locations in the world. When paddling on Lake Superior, I can see what seems like forever into its depths–it looks cleaner than a swimming pool. On the inland lakes, I can paddle for weeks without seeing any of the adverse effects of mankind. There is no pollution to be seen. The wildlife is abundant. Fishing is world-class. When camping in the BWCA, the only sounds heard are the natural sounds of a clean healthy wilderness: the howl of a wolf, the call of…
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Boundary Water’s Route: The Hunt for the Viking Dolmen
Experts believe fifth-century Vikings placed a dolmen—a large stone perched upon three small rocks—somewhere in the Boundary Waters. Join us while we hunt for the Viking dolmen. Kelso River Boundary Waters Route Lakes Used: Sawbill Lake, Kelso River, Kelso Lake, Kelso River, Kelso Lake, Alton Lake, Sawbill LakeLength: 1 to 2 daysDistance: 9 to 10 milesElevator Pitch: A short scenic day trip, that works as an overnight. Paddle along varied terrain including birch forests, bogs, small and large lakes. The highlights include many large beaver lodges and the mysterious Viking dolmen.Description: Start at the campground on Sawbill Lake. If you need a canoe, rent one from Sawbill Outfitters. Head north,…
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Free Canoe Plan – Modern Malecite St. John River Canoe
This cedar canoe drawing is taken from Edwin Adney and Howard Chapelle’s The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America. It appears on page 79. Adney surveyed the original in 1895. He notes that the boat shows moderate sheer and low ends. For this set of free plans, I left the station shape and stem shape alone, and I modified the rocker and sheer. The original drawing shows the canoe with little to no rocker–I prefer a canoe that has some rocker–so I added a similar amount of rocker as seen in Prospector canoes. When I changed the rocker, I changed the sheerline, because I felt the additional rocker…
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Paddle to Seattle Kayaking Film
J.J. Kelley and Josh Thomas built a couple of plywood kayaks. Then they paddled from Alaska to Seattle via the Inside Passage in the plywood kayaks that they built. During the trip, they filmed everything. After the trip, they whittled all the footage down to an 80-minute movie. Everyone from Paddler Magazine to Outside Online is raving about this new movie. You’ll see why after watching the trailer. Paddle to Seattle What intrigues me is that they took the time to build their own kayaks, invested the extra work into filming the movie, they got sponsorships, but they come across as just a couple of guys on an adventure. They…
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Great Gift Ideas for Paddlers
The end of the year approaches and the holidays are almost upon us. This means it’s time to start thinking about holiday gift ideas for the canoeist and kayakers in the family. This year, I’ve used and fell in love with a bunch of gear. Some of the gear I’ve fallen in love with appears on this year’s list. I think most paddlers would enjoy seeing these items under their Christmas or holiday tree, and I expect they’d fall in love with the gifts too.
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IKEA Tote Bags for Kayakers
IKEA tote bags revolutionized (if revolution is simply change) the way I carry gear to and from my kayak. In the past, I’d grab a couple or three dry bags, carry them up the beach to the tent, drop, and repeat, but since my trip to Norway last year, where I discovered IKEA tote bags being used by the folks we kayaked with, I’ve been using these lightweight and compact bags to store my gear, carry my gear from the car to the beach, and to carry from the kayak to camp. At IKEA stores, they cost $0.59, but without a nearby IKEA, Amazon is the only option. About Ikea…
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5 Quick and Healthy Breakfasts For Canoeing and Kayaking
On my first paddling and camping trips, I often overlooked making a good breakfast for canoeing and kayak in favor of eating a few quick snacks, like Pop Tarts, and as I paddled I noticed my strength fading quickly. It took me a few trips to figure out my breakfast wasn’t working for me. Although breakfast snacks like instant pastries have over 400 calories per package, they lack any significant fat or protein. Essentially, they’re just empty carbs and eating them in the morning creates high blood-sugar levels, which will eventually crash throwing the body into a battle that’ll will last all day. That’s no way to start a hard…
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Throw Bags for Sea Kayaking
Most sea kayakers who’ve passed a safety and rescue class are aware of the importance of carrying a tow rope. A similar safety device that could be of equal importance and prove more handy in some rescue situations is a whitewater throw bag. These bags are inexpensive and lightweight, so there is no excuse not to carry one in some situations. Throw Bags Basics A whitewater throw bag is a rescue tool typically with 50 to 70 feet or floating rope loosely packed into a bag that pays out easily when thrown to a swimmer. It often has a rope handle on one end that allows it to be easily…
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Free Topo Maps for Your Garmin GPS
GPS units can be useful tools for some wilderness trips, and they become more useful when loaded with topo maps. If you own a Garmin GPS unit, high quality free topo maps may be available for the areas you travel. You’ll need a Garmin GPS capable of receiving user uploaded maps, software, and the free maps. Free Garmin GPS Maps I remember my first search for free Garmin GPS maps had me pulling my hair out after spending hours trying to download them and getting them to work on my GPS, which is the one I list below, but the good news is that getting the maps is the easy…
