Lazy Summer Days . . . the epitome of kayaking!

Ahhhh, the lazy days of summer. This is what kayaking and life is all about . . . sometimes! The good times!

Do you see the two little white eyes at the top of the first picture? Click on the pic twice to enlarge it. Cheeky bug. Not afraid of the camera either. This is not a zoomed in shot. I was taking a picture of the nose of my boat when this guy showed up and stole the shot. The camera lens focused on him instead. A nice surprise.

My feet are underwater here. Pretty nice stuff! I mean the water . . .

This one (or maybe most of them) is for love of boat. I love this boat so much! The Maelstrom Vital 166.

Ahhhh, the lazy days of summer. And I just learned that all those pesky big black "picnic hungry" ants can't climb up beer cans, so at least part of my lunch is safe!

So many nice spots!
Enjoy finding yours!
The BaffinPaddler

Paddle to Yoga with the Maelstrom Vital 166! This is one mission I love!

Need I say more? Strap a yoga mat to your fab sea kayak. Find a spot. Strike a pose.

Notice the bright green yoga mat under the bungee on the back deck of my Maelstrom Vital 166?

That's not a bed roll but maybe it could function as one under a sleeping bag. It doesn't get any better than this!

I'm out shopping for Paddle to Yoga spots in the 1000 Islands region on the St. Lawrence River off the quaint little town of Gananoque in the province of Ontario in Canada.

I'll never tire of it . . . shopping for great places to get out of the yoga studio and do some yoga outdoors once in a while.

Don't get me wrong. I love my yoga studios and teachers! I just can't wait to Paddle to Yoga with them.

You really don't even need a mat to Paddle to Yoga. Just yourself and a boat!

It really rocks. I love it and I'm going to keep doin' it! . . . Paddling to spots to do yoga.

Where have you paddled to yoga?

Where would you like to go?

Happy paddling to yoga!
The BaffinPaddler
Paddle to Yoga

P.S. I'll be adding a video to this page soon. So you may wish to check back.

People who make your day . . . in a good way . . . and the Greenland paddle connection!

Ever have someone really make your day with something so simple? Like one little innocent comment that really makes you laugh and think?  I just did. It made me wonder why we work so hard to have fun sometimes.

I was out tooling around some water with my "skinny stick" (Greenland paddle) in a sweet sleek sea kayak when a guy in a parked houseboat sipping a beer with some friends called out, "Hey. What's that thing you're paddling with? The stick I use to stir my cake mix with is bigger than that!"

"Ha! It's a Greenland paddle", I replied.

"Can you get anywhere with that!?"

"Yep!"

"Why do you paddle with it!?"

"Well, lots of reasons":

• "The long narrow blade of the Greenland paddle doesn't catch the wind like a big spoon, and spreads the pull on the water over a longer area. A big bladed paddle has a bigger pull on the water over a shorter wider area and puts more strain on your body."
• "My Greenland paddle let me keep paddling when my injured right shoulder was healing and I haven't reinjured it as long as I stick with my Greenland paddle." (See: Let's talk yoga, a Greenland paddle and healing a wrecked shoulder.)
• "These paddles were invented by the Inuit people of Greenland propelling their kayaks through big seas and wind, sometimes with a harpooned walrus in tow! They knew what they were doing!" 

After I gave him a few reasons why I paddle with a Greenland paddle, the real reason hit me and it was the most important one:

"When I paddle with my Greenland paddle, it makes me feel connected to the water and my boat."

Now here's the funny, ironic part of this whole Greenland paddle thing, a skinny stick that always stirs curiosity to newcomers to the "stick", and the thing that made the guy and his crew laugh out loud:

"Plus, you can make one of these things for about 9 bucks! Now my expensive $500 Werner fiberglass paddle is my spare paddle!"

I've probably got one of the longest skinniest Greenland paddles around at 8 foot 8 inches long, and 2 3/4 inches at the widest part of the blade. And I love it!

More and more, I see people making their Greenland paddles with wider and wider blades for more power. Hey, is that cheating? Is it still a Greenland paddle?

Learn more about Greenland paddles from : The Weathered Paddle or see: Greenland Paddle Makers

The Greenland paddle movement is growing! They are making a big comeback and there are more and more converts to the "stick"!

The GP connects you to so many things

• Yourself
• The Water and what it connects to
• Other people
• Great things you keep discovering

You can add to this list I'm sure!

Have you joined the GP community . . . yet!?

Happy paddling!
The BaffinPaddler

Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! Test Your Gear. I Did in May. A Good May Day for Me!

Cold Water Rescue Practice. Do it safely. Test your gear before heading out. I finally did!

Today some experienced local paddlers and kayak instructors got together on Canada's Ottawa River to do cold water rescue practice. I joined in. I was glad I did!

Whatever gear you are paddling in when the water is cold, it is a good idea to test your gear close to shore before you head out further. Some days, you choose your gear well. Other days, you wish you've dressed differently.

 I've been paddling for several years in different types of gear, and combinations of gear, and never got completely into the water to test all of it in cold spring waters before heading out. Today I did. And I'm so happy I finally had the courage to do it!

Everything I wore today performed well for me in the conditions I paddled and practiced in during cold water rescue practice. The water temp was probably 10 degrees Celsius or warmer, but I can't be sure. The thermometer we plunged into the Ottawa River was impossible to read. The air temperature was about 16 degrees Celsius at 2:00 in the afternoon, but there was a fair wind blowing in the bay and I felt chilled on land in dry fleece as I geared up.

I had to go by feel. How did I feel in the water with my gear. How much time will it give me to get back into my boat and be comfortable. I didn't plunge my unprotected head completely into the water today. I'll try that another time, with a neo hood.

Of course, how much time you spend in cold water or on a cold shore is another matter. The point of the rescue practice is to see how well, and how fast you can get back into your boat unassisted or assisted, and how you can help others.

The gear I wore today to practice cold water rescues worked for me. I can't tell you how happy that made me feel. I couldn't believe how buoyant I was in all my neo, paddle jacket and PFD! You may be in neoprene, a dry suit, or a T-shirt and shorts. What matters is what you wear, what works for you, how it performs for you, and how well you can perform in it. Then it matters to the others you are paddling with!

Gear Up

You can see in the photos, that I'm geared up. I was wearing a long sleeve neoprene top and long neo pants, a Merino wool layer underneath, a Gul paddle jacket over all that, a very well-fitting PFD of course with the straps on the shoulders and waist battened down securely but still comfortable, a neo skirt, neo socks and neo booties, and Gul 4mm Flexor Gloves. I don't have a drysuit yet.

I started slowly by walking out into the water to see how my body reacted and how my gear choice performed. Then, when I was comfortable with my gear in the water for a few minutes, I got into my Boreal Baffin unassisted from the water. Then I felt ready for rescue practice.


I know that if I'm in really cold water and get dumped over suddenly, I can still suffer from cold water shock and gasp reflex. But today I'm testing my gear after the spring water in the Ottawa River has warmed up a bit and the ice has completely thawed several weeks earlier. I don't ever want to intentionally throw myself into water that is 4 degrees Celsius or colder. And I'm thinking I may want to avoid paddling water that cold.

Cowboy Scramble into the Boreal Baffin - This boat rocks! I love it!

When you are suited up in gear: Neoprene or a dry suit, gloves or mitts, booties and your PFD, that's when you're going to find out just how much tighter you fit into your cockpit, whether or not you can grab your decklines with your gloves, if your hands and feet are warm and comfortable, if you can still maneuver with what you are wearing, can you get back into your boat with all that stuff, and find out if you can still assist others.

You should be comfortable and able to paddle with ease in your gear. You want to have fun right?

I did today. Another day could be different. I know that. And when I'm not in the mood to hit up all that gear, I grab my bike or my yoga mat!

 
Why do Some People Paddle Cold Water in T-shirts and Shorts?

There is nothing like being suited up properly for the spring cold water conditions in May on a warm, windy, sunny day in a beautiful bay on the Ottawa River in Ontario, Canada, with a crew of experienced paddlers and instructors, only to see several people heading out from shore in rec boats wearing shorts and T-shirts, but at least a PFD.

Wow! They have no clue what they are doing. And most times, they will head out and come back just fine. I'm happy for you who do - you're lucky. They put their feet into the water to launch and say, "Yikes, the water is cold!", and head out anyway.

Get gear. Test your gear in a safe way. 
Learn about hypothermia.

• Visit Coldwater Bootcamp and watch the videos of real people and what happens to them in cold water.
• Visit Cold Water Survival by the United States Search and Rescue Task Force.

Learn about the water you paddle and what temperature it is. It is probably way colder than you think!

Learn how to get back into your boat. Practice. Have fun!

Don't Forget the Sunscreen

Despite all the great gear I wore today, I still forgot one thing! The waterproof sunscreen. I've got a nice little red sunburn on the only part of me that was looking at the sun for two hours. My nose!

Thanks to Local Paddlers and Instructors

Thanks to the great crew of local Ottawa paddlers and instructors who continue to share their experience with us and who put on today's practice! You rock! 

Happy and safe paddling!
The BaffinPaddler

Have you tested your gear?

First Spring Paddle with the Boreal Baffin: Paddling on Clouds and Testing the Gul 4mm Flexor Gloves

Camera Failure - What a way to start an epic first spring paddle!

The absolute bane of the blogger has to be camera failure when you set out for your first spring paddle on an epic weather day with exceptional environmental conditions that offer rare photo ops that won't be there tomorrow or maybe ever again.

When I set my Boreal Baffin down on a nice solid ice ledge near a big rock on a sunny spring afternoon with a perfect view down the Ottawa River's mirror reflection of both the azure blue sky lightly dusted with soft white clouds and the surrounding landscape, I knew I had a perfect shot! You couldn't tell what was sky and what was water or which way was up. They both looked the same at that moment in time. But my orange Olympus Stylus Tough camera had other ideas!

It had a dead battery and no spare was on hand. You can relate, yes? Even though I'm a girl, that didn't stop the barrage of four letter words that escaped me for a good long while. I had to give up on pressing the "GO ON YOU #@&* CAMERA!' button and resign myself to just paddling the boat and enjoying what I can't share with you on film.

Paddling on Clouds

I'll try to describe the incredible effect that certain water and weather conditions can have on your paddling and wonder if you've ever experienced it yourself - because it's a rare moment when the mirror like reflection of the sky on a big stretch of perfectly flat water gives you an out of the world feeling that your boat is no longer on the water. You feel like you are paddling above the water in the clouds that you see both above and below you. You don't even feel your paddle moving through the cold dense water. It's a mind game played with you by the optical illusion of the environmental conditions, and it's offered to you, if you want to go there.  

Been there yet?

When I looked to my right, all I could see was the muddy brown colour of the Ottawa River in its full spring glory. When I looked to my left, the water was the sky. It was the same beautiful blue, the clouds and the sun were there. It was a perfect and surreal reflection of the sky gleaming on the water. Wow!

When you are surrounded in this odd effect, it is an amazing experience. You could call it an "Out of this World" feeling. You don't want to stay there too long as it gets eerie, yet at the same time, you want to stay in it for a while longer, as it is only a temporary experience brought on by those rare moments when there is nothing disturbing the water: no wind, no boats, no big current, or any debris floating on the water, the sun is just right, and so is your position on the water. And you still wish your camera battery had juice!

The Blackberry 

Later down river, my patient paddle mate offered to take a pic from his Blackberry to appease me a bit. "OK, it's better than nothing," I pouted. And this blog post pic is from a Blackberry taken in the glaring sunlight so bright that I could not even see without my sunglasses. Pretty amazing for a cell phone pic I think! Two thumbs up for Blackberry.

The ice shelf I'm leaning on in the pic in this little bay to show off what I think is the best side of the Boreal Baffin was still about five inches thick in spots. It's April in Canada. We still have some snow and ice here in the woods and along some shorelines.  

Rules not to forget

I broke a bunch of my own paddle rules today that I won't do again. But the first paddle of the season always sees me forgetting or neglecting something important. 

One year it was the paddles! I arrived at the launch, unloaded all the boats and gear - and no paddles! That only happened once. Now I check! Are the paddles in the car? 

Today I didn't check everything in my gear bag. I just assumed everything I needed was in there from last year's paddling season - my neo skirt wasn't. That's an important item but not a deal breaker on a calm day in flat water. I didn't check the camera battery - it was dead. No harm done, I'll just kick myself forever for that one. I didn't bring an energy bar and later wished I did. I needed it. I didn't throw my paddle jacket or any other warm gear into a hatch to put on when the sun dropped and the beautiful day fell into something about 10 degrees colder as I paddled back in what was "way too warm neoprene" when I started. 

No harm came for any of my broken rules today and it was still a great day, but I need to remember to pack and plan better for those short two hour paddles close to home, especially in the spring. The distance I normally breeze through in the warmer summer, was more effort than I expected to paddle through in the colder denser water of spring thaw. Surprise, surprise! How easily some of us, like me, forget things over the long winter.

Gear Testing - Gul 4mm Flexor Liquidseam Neoprene Gloves

Spring is my favorite time of year to test gear. Especially gloves. My fingers freeze easily and this keeps me off the water - especially in winter, and sometimes in the fall, and usually in the early spring.

Every pair of gloves I've tested over the past 4 years have failed in late fall and early spring. They were either too thin, leaky, and cold, or too big and bulky that you couldn't feel the paddle. Why bother?

But this year success! I paddled for two hours in spring conditions with new gloves that I love and can recommend: Gul 4mm Flexor Liquidseam Neoprene Gloves.

I found the Gul 4mm Flexor Liquidseam Gloves very comfortable, finger and hand flexibility is excellent, no slip on my skinny Greenland paddle, the seams really are waterproof and don't leak or rub, they were warm but not hot, and fit just long enough past my wrists to prevent water from running down in to my hand while padding. When my fingers or hand glanced the water on some paddle strokes, I didn't feel the icy cold. I bought them big enough so that I could add an insulating layer if needed on colder days.

After two hours of paddling spring water with very happy hands and fingers I asked my paddle mate, "How are your hands in YOUR gloves?" They were a different Gul model: His response, "Terrible, wet, and cold!"

So, if you're not happy with your fall or spring paddling gloves, you may want to give the Gul 4mm Flexor Liquidseam Gloves a try. I love them!

Happy spring paddles.
Stay warm and safe.
The BaffinPaddler

Plan a Paddle from a Tree! Petite Nation River, Ripon, Quebec, Canada

I did a little Spring paddle planning from a tree today. Spring for those of us in colder climes, like Canada,  means we start getting major paddle itch when we see open water and start dreaming about where that first paddle is going to be after a long cold winter. Finding new water to paddle, meaning water you haven't paddled before, is always more exciting than thinking about plopping your sea kayak in the same old beautiful river, lake, or stretch of ocean you've paddled time and time again. Right!

On my way back home from a visit up to Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, Canada, my GPS Tom Tom One "Lori" suggested a small highway I didn't normally travel, and I had the great pleasure of discovering a much better route that took me along beautiful stretches of the Petite Nation River through the little town of Ripon, Quebec.

When you stop and fall in love with a spot, it's a great day. Especially when you vow to come back with your boat. I was wishing my Maelstrom Vital 166 or Boreal Baffin was with me. But the Vital was still in bubble wrap at home waiting to be unravelled after spending most of the winter with its maker, Boreal Design, to fix all its leaky hatches and repair the gel coat that I busted on some nasty lake rocks.

 Finding new stretches of river to paddle are my thing right now. I'm thrilled to have discovered more stretches of rivers close to home that I want to paddle: Parts of the Petite Nation River (at Ripon, Quebec), and long stretches of the Riviere Rouge/Red River in the Mont Tremblant, Quebec area. I'll be posting more on this later in the paddling season.

Today, I had to dream of paddling this stretch of the Petite Nation River from a tree suspended over the water. Trying a little yoga in a tree over the icy water was the best I could do to tease the water and hope I didn't fall in. And it rocked. But I'm not suggesting anyone else try this.

Where will your first spring paddle be?

Happy spring paddles.
Stay warm and safe.
Find a new river to paddle!
The BaffinPaddler

Sunscreen your kayak! 303 Aerospace Protectant, time to think about it!

To sunscreen your kayak or not to sunscreen your kayak. That is the question.

It may sound like a modified quote from William Shakespeare, "To be, or not to be . . . that is the question." And it is. An opening line from Shakespeare's play Hamlet. That's about as much of Shakespeare as I can comprehend. And it's a big question. To be or not to be? To sunscreen your kayak, or not to sunscreen your kayak?

We know that we have to protect ourselves from the sun, either with sunscreen, shelter, or clothing. In Florida, cycling the long stretch of white sandy beach along the Barrier Islands in the Gulf of Mexico, I use SPF 60, a hat and sunglasses, along with common sense. I don't stay out there too long.

We expect that the factory paint jobs on our cars protect their finishes from the ravishes of the sun, but I didn't know that I needed to think about sunscreen for my kayak.

I owned two plastic sea kayaks for a few years before someone told me that you could sunscreen your kayak to protect it from fading by using a product like 303 Aerospace Protectant.  By then, the red Current Designs Storm was much less than its original red, and my eye-glaring yellow Boreal Baffin, was still pretty yellow! It was hard for me to decide if I wanted to take the time to make the Baffin brighter than it already was, even after a year of fading.

Sometimes I think (and know) that we just like to spend time with our kayaks when we can't get out and paddle, and this is just another way to do it - spending time with them in the garage sunscreening them and bringing back a little lustre before we show up with them at an event. But, when you've seen what the sun can do to a kayak and its hatches, you start to think about protecting it at the beginning of the paddling season.

We sunscreen ourselves to guard against skin cancer. With kayaks, it's about keeping them looking pretty and protecting the finish. Let's call it vanity or the pleasure of looking at your beautiful boat gliding on the water in front of you.

There is no before or after picture of sunscreening my kayaks here. I learned the lesson with my plastic sea kayaks. I 303'd them after they faded from some time in the sun and was happy with the results after using the product.

Now that I own a new fibreglass Malestrom Vital 166, I contacted the 303 product people for more information and advice. "Can I use it on a fibreglass boat?" Yes, the product can be safely applied to the gelcoat - the outer protective coating of the fibreglass boat. Hey, I didn't know if I could 303 my fibreglass sea kayak.  I'm not fond of pulling out my glasses and reading the tiny fine print on product labels, I'd rather call someone.

But with any new kayak you buy, (plastic, fibreglass, thermoform, etc.) you may want to ask the manufacturer if protection from sun fade is a built in feature or not.

303 Aerospace Protectant - SPF 40: Is it environmentally friendly?

A good question. And I'm not the only one to ask. According to 303 Products Inc, as I contacted them last week, the product is environmentally friendly and passes American, Canadian and Euro regulations.

However, if you do not apply the product properly, some of the unbonded product can wash off into the water you paddle. So if you do use this product, make sure to apply it properly. The product bonds with the surface of your boat and does not soak in. People have seen excess product wash off into the water. And that means that the product was not applied properly.  

How do you apply 303 Aerospace Protectant to your kayak?

According to 303 Products Inc., proper application is:  Spray on, wipe COMPLETELY dry. Wiping completely dry, which requires finishing with a DRY cloth, not a damp cloth, removes all excess un-bonded 303 and makes the bonded 303 bond better and become more repellent, which also means better longer lasting performance. 

At what temperature should you apply the 303 Aerospace Protectant to your plastic kayak or gelcoat of your fibreglass kayak?

According to 303 Products Inc, this product uses distilled water as the carrier, so you have to use it above freezing.  This product is destroyed by freezing (when in liquid form in the bottle). So you have to store the 303 Aerospace Protectant and other topical treatment products such as wax and specialty cleaners at room temperature. 

Uh, oh! I left my bottle of 303 Protectant in my freezing garage all winter!  Now I'll have to buy more, and store any leftover product in the house next winter. 

As for applying it, "it doesn't matter if the surface being treated is in the sun, but it DOES matter if the surface is hot to the touch. Don't use on surfaces which are hot to the touch. Warm to the touch when applying 303 to the surface of your boat is good." 

Thanks to the 303 product people for getting back to me so quickly and answering all the questions I had. Hopefully, this post can save you some time and money as well by using and storing the product properly if you purchase it.

To sunscreen your kayak, or not to sunscreen your kayak . . . that is the question!

Even though I'm still waxing my skis and enjoying hitting the snow where I live in Canada, I'm thinking about sunscreening my kayaks for the upcoming paddling season. Are you?

Happy preps for your upcoming paddling season!
The BaffinPaddler