TT Kayaking Club

“SS: That's the same system I use, basically. I use webbing straps... those tie-downs that have teeth-grips on them (hard for me to describe)... like you would use to secure a stuff in a pickup truck. They came with something I had... then I have some ropes tied to the rafters. I keep one pair in a lowered "loop" and the other unhooked. Then I walk the kayak into the loop and rest the nose while I pull up and strap the loose end. It works really well plus was really cheap. I guess it's all about what the space you have to store the boat looks like, however.”

“Thanks for all the pics, SS. I'll rig up something like your yak on the wall, with straps at the 1/3 and 2/3 position. Except in my case my boat will be in the position your yak on the floor is in (parallel to the floor. It needs to be flush with the joists so my garage door can clear it. I might also try hanging from one end - I may have enough room to take it up into the rafters and still have the lowest point clear the door.

I just really want to use what is otherwise unusable space, and I don't want to keep strapping it up to the pole which usually takes 2 people. I think I can safely do that now, thanks again.”

“do you think 17.5 miles in one day on a river is doable?”

“Normandy Dam to Three Forks Bridge. About 8.5 miles. Nice ride.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/richdude32/album?.dir=461cre2&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//photos.yahoo.com/ph//my_photos”

“�do you think 17.5 miles in one day on a river is doable?�
dutchess of road kill

Yes. Especially is the water is moving some.”

“you sure? cause if its not then I am calling you and i will be sleeping at your house :)

because the freakin campsites are pretty far apart. i remember the Delaware being kinda fast”

“If your idea of fun is hiking 15 miles/day, then 17.5 miles is definitely doable.

Exactly what sort of mission are you accomplishing?”

“well im off tomorrow early in the am.
hope you all have a great weekend :)”

“17.5 miles in a kayak is way doable. The average paddler with current in their favor can do 3-4mph easy.”

“Have fun Maple. You'll have no troubles with that mileage. Just take your time.

Richdude, looks like a pretty river. Nice pictures.”

“sorry guys I will not be doing the trip this time. our dog needs my attention first.”

“Darn, I need some water time, the Nantahala last weekend just whetted my appetite”

“Thanks Joy! That trip was very nice.”

“I kayaked under the moon and watched shooting stars last night.”

“I'm jealous. =)”

“Sunday afternoon I felt guilty laying around watching football. As much as I love watching football, I’m glad when that happens – let’s me know there’s still life in these aging bones. It was a beautiful clear hot day and I’d been thinking about kayaking all weekend but hadn’t gotten to it. So I paddled for a couple hours exploring new shoreline exposed by the lake being two and a half feet low. Got a mild sunburn and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Driving home from work Monday it was another beautiful clear day, but not quite as hot as the day before. The forecast was for one cold front followed by another and it sounded to me like the end of summer. So I resolved to get one last paddle out of this summer. I was pleasantly delayed feeding the grandbaby and walking her in the yard so she could see her favorite trees, but soon got in my shorts, sandals and funky straw cowboy hat and was splashing toward a newly exposed sandy beach I’d discovered the day before.

Our lake gets lots of birds in the fall. A flock of cormorants were in the tallest snag and the honking of geese was incessant. The sun slipped behind the wispy arms of a cloud in the west shortly before I reached the beach. On beautiful days like this I’m always amazed by how few people get out and enjoy the lake. A volleyball bounced in the little waves against the sand. It looked in good condition and I imagined kids playing on a manicured lakefront lawn the day before letting it roll down into the water and be carried off by the breeze. On the other side of a row of brush that is usually a small island was a wide mud flat where a flock of geese snacked on small green shoots. They didn’t mind me. A ruckus flapped in from the south as another flock of geese flew in and landed just off shore. The two flocks eyed each other as if wondering where the party was.

I looked back up toward the sun and realized the wispy clouds were the leading edge of the first cold front. The summer sun was gone. It would not be back today, or for several more months. A warm breeze blew from the southeast. I was glad to have soaked up the last of the summer on the lake in a kayak.”

“Sounds great toejam!

This Saturday, if it's not snowing we're taking two little girls out to look for migrating waterbirds. It'll be the first time in a canoe for one. They both get paddles. I really hope the weather is dry and warm enough to go. I'm not ready to let the good weather go yet. The time between Indian summer and snow is hard for me.”

“Just bought a used 17 ft Grumman. It's 25-30 years old; the previous owner advertised it as having a "dent". Turned out to be about walnut size. It's not been in the water yet, but I'll really be able to load up the gear for next years float trips.”

“Sunshine and I picked up a couple of Current Designs 140's. Been out a few times and hope to get out again but with this weather might be next year”

“hey guys, I am in the market for a couple of good sea kayaks...anyone want to give me advise on good brands to look into? I found a cheap Cobra Explorer on Craigslist, but wanted to get some more info from yall....looking for a length of around 11.5. thanks!”

“Cool afternoon paddle Toejam. What the end of summer means for some is heavy coats and high heating bills. For those of us in the south it means backpacking season has finally arrived. Enjoy the cool fall and winter weather because summer heat is never far away here. Sometime this winter I'm going to take the yak out for a camping trip. A friend that we cycle with has asked if we can do a float trip down the upper parts of the river I live on. I'd like to do a one or two nighter all the way back to my house. The upper portions at normal level has just enough current to push you along. Last 6 or 7 miles is at sea level and still water water though.”

“Embear, Sierra Trading post has perception Carolinas (14.5) on sale for $600 right now. It's a great price on a nice boat. It's okay for big water. I wouldn't choose anything shorter for big water.”

“Embear I agree with Sass, for a big water yak you will want to go longer”

“Got my yak and canoe hung from my garage ceiling 2 weeks ago. Thanks to several people here for advice on hanging, given several months ago. Now they are out of the way and easy to retrieve for future trips. Looks nice, too.

Now to plan on some backpacking trips, with family camping season and yak season over!”

“Holding out hope for one more paddle before we hang ours in the garage”

“ok, cool. Thanks! I need all the help i can get. The people in the stores around here think around 12' is long enough for me, but my bf is wanting something around 16' so i guess i need to go longer too.”

“embear,

i have the 14.5 Perception, i've taken it in the ocean here a buncha times and it handles well for me. (and my 1" taller frame than you!! hahahahaha)”

“i took my boat on the open water last weekend. what a trip! i paddled for 2.5 hours from my home to the marina with 3-5' swells and whitecaps near the shallows into the wind. the boat was torpedoing into each trough no matter how hard i leaned against the swell. what a ride! i was spent and still had to paddle back.

the ride back... 45 minutes!

LOL! what a weekend!

i was sore for two days.”

“May go out on the Lake this weekend...might even paddle to the wilderness area for a night in the woods.”

“i should have had on a wetsuit. the water was pretty cold. not smart.”

““hey guys, I am in the market for a couple of good sea kayaks...anyone want to give me advise on good brands to look into? I found a cheap Cobra Explorer on Craigslist, but wanted to get some more info from yall....looking for a length of around 11.5. thanks!”
embear
10:07:47 AM
10/11/06

NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!

Oceans need long yaks for speed and waves.
In CA there should be many shops that will let you try out different ones.
Please do that, but shoot for at least about 15 to 17 feet for a true sea yak.

I own two, my 'starter' Perception Carolina 14.5 and my newer Wilderness Systems Eclipse 17'. The 17' is so much faster than the 14.5 it ain't funny.”

“From what I've been told a wetsuit only keeps you warm if you're in the water with it. I'd love for someone to do some research on it and the science behind how it works. I think the water inside the neoprene makes a baffle of warmth doesn't it?”

“....I own two, my 'starter' Perception Carolina 14.5 and my newer Wilderness Systems Tempest 170 17'. The 17' is so much faster than the 14.5 it ain't funny.”
GreasyGrimyGopherGutsStomper
3:41:57 PM
10/11/06”

“yep.

i would have wanted it in case i fell out of the boat. because i am out often a mile or more from shore i am ultra-paranoid about getting hurt. i try to plan for the scenario where i fall out of the boat and somehow injure myself such that getting back into the boat is a real problem. so i carry stuff i won't often use like webbing to make a rescue sling, etc. i try to plan like i will be in the water for a long period of time even though i never fall out anymore.”

“dang sas, i must have missed the sale. i was gonna grab one of those carolinas at 600, but the site says they're 750. does anyone have one of those nifty coupon codes?”

“Em,

Check out a Wilderness System Tempest 165 or if that's too squirrely a Tsunami.”

“Here is what I made my pops-in-law for Christmas...

”

“Nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Did you use PVC or CPVC?

Nevermind.
LOL, if I had read the caption, I would not have needed to ask.
last edited: 12/23/06 12:31:22 PM”

“I used sched 40 PVC, I thought about the CPVC but would have had to buy CPVC cement too. The next one will be sched 80. With an aluminum axle, the steel was crazy heavy.

I would like to rig one that can be disassemble and stored in the boat. After portaging 5 boats up a huge hill this fall I decided wheels are the way.”

“Easy, just drill a couple of the T's and hold in place with D shaped cotter pins rather than cementing them.”

“
Here's the simple mod I made to my 'Bought' one. Once the wheels are off, it's easy to store.

Bigger pins like that can be used to hold a couple of the T s so the whole thing can be broken down.
last edited: 12/23/06 12:40:03 PM”

“That was my thought too. My only concern is the whole thing too wobbly if not cemented. I may try using the threaded male/female connectors on some of the parts just to keep it stiff. But that would necessitate assmebly and disassembly in a particular order. I used clevis pins to hold the axle and wheels together, they would work well on the other joints too I would think.”

“Very cool stove, is that your tempest?”

“
Yep!

Here's some more pixs of yak carts.....

http://community.webshots.com/album/75339708CVOdDJ

http://community.webshots.com/album/71377980IyfJoZ
last edited: 12/23/06 12:52:30 PM”

“

I bet fitting all those joints together at the same time was fun!
Note the way the wheels are mounted, that's interesting!

I can see we would have a ball, if we built something together.
last edited: 12/23/06 12:59:55 PM”

“I used the same design as you did in your "kayak 1" pic.

"I can see we would have a ball, if we built something together." Indeed, I love to tinker with stuff like this. I am thinking of a way to use the bike tires with an ultralight frame.

Putting it together wasnt too bad, I dry fit everything 2x first.
last edited: 12/23/06 1:11:29 PM”

“http://www.westcoastpaddler.com/building/thumbnails.php?album=search&search=cart


http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com/articles_view.asp?Kayak_Articles=38”

“That kayakfishingstuff guy is kinda anal, isnt he? ;-)”

“i was going to sign up for cold water kayaking on lake MI this winter but the winter has been so crappy i haven't done it. perhaps later in the year. i really want to get one season of cold-water lessons in so when i try something serious i'll be ready.

hey there birch... you still up for our little "project"?”