TT Kayaking Club

“Awesome dude! The funny thing is I've heard your laugh....

I can picture it now....you probably didn't notice a family out fishing for the day and his child asks "Daddy why is that guy sitting by himself in that funny thing talking to himself and laughing?"

LOL

I remember the first time we sea-kayaked in a tandem:

We were in the Bay of Fundy off the coast of NB, Canada and there are fishing weirs everywhere. Well we were paddling along with a group of kayakers and our two guides when everbody spotted some thrashing about in a fishing weir. A basking shark had caught himself in the weir and was trying find his way out! So everyone paddled up for a closer look. The dorsal fin stuck out of the water just as high as our heads were! It was awesome...since we were in a tandem it was comical; I kept on trying paddle closer and the Mrs. kept paddling away....lol.”

“That must have been cool to see Adventurist! Did it get free?

What I really want to do is kayak with killer whales. I think that'd rock.”

“I'm surprised Maple's not been all over this thread telling everybody about the HMS Pottymouth.”

“The guides told us they eventually get free....just have to find their way out first.

I also would love to kayak with killer whales. When we went to Vancouver Island we stopped in the area that lead's to Robson Bight and we were going to kayak there but the guide wasn't available. We were able to eat an excellent meal at the Killer Whale Cafe though.”

“I've heard that Cafe mentioned in an article before.. or maybe it was you who talked about it before? In anycase, kayaking with killer whales is definitely on my "to do before I die" list.”

“Get ready for a photo of Artex standing next to a killer whale hanging from a chain!”

“Dude! Put the harpoon down!”

“LOL!”

“YEAH
:)
I got to do my very first Wet Exit this past weekend.
i was scared but I did it. I had no idea that I was going to do it, but we were with a group of people that were doing it and they asked and I said yes.
I will try to post the pics later tonight if anyone is interested.
It was a blast even if I got BONKED on the head...”

“You're supposed to do that in water deep enough where you can't smack your head on the bottom, 'leaf... ;-)”

“Now you've wet exited, you can try to wet enter. Impossible you say?? I've done it.”

“I went kayaking for the first time last Saturday. It was as fun as I had anticipated. I'm hooked!!”

“hey FG
I bumped my head on the kayak (goofball)

it was a blast. it was very hard to do but I did it.”

“I find wet-exiting quite easy, myself. It's rolling I have trouble with...”

“I now have a new Perception Carolina 14.5 kayak sitting on my rear deck and an Aqua Bound Expedition Carbonfibre paddle sitting by my computer.
Woo Hoo! They get wet tomorrow!

Oh boy, new toys to buy! What accessories must I buy next?
Any good web sites for buying them at a good price?”

“I paddled 7 miles this morning,started out about 6 am. 17'Mainstar,a composite surf boat.
Built by Maine boatworks.”

“I allways wear a life jacket with
pockets. Carry candy bars, whistle,
flares. My deck is lashed with a
chart,water bottle,pump and deck
compass. Rear deck I sling the larger flares. This time of year I'll start wearing wet gloves. I allways carry a qick dri towel,spare clothes, and a two way submersible marine radio. Of course
I didn't get this gear all at once.”

“I went out yesterday and paddled in choppy waters thanks to tropical storm Henri. The storm didn't drop much rain where I live, but the seas were kicked up pretty decently. 2-4 foot chop and surf, which made for some VERY fun paddling. I even surfed a few waves, which was a hoot. Paddled about 10 miles. I may attempt a 20 mile paddle tomorrow.

StoveStomper - Congrats man!!!!! That's a sweet boat! When are you taking her out on her maiden voyage? I have the same paddle, it's a pretty nice one. Check out paddling.net, they have lots of links to retailers for gear.

Elfskin2 - I promised my father I'd get flares, but I haven't yet. They're a smart thing to have. I DO have a Marine VHF 2-way though.”

“I used my radio once for a guy floating out with the tide. He sounded like a sea gull at 200' away. He was bald and looked like
one of the lobster pot floats. Not
until he waved his arms around.
I called the CG picked him up with
the tail of the boat and dragged
him to the nearest island about 300' away. Good thing the flares
had a pictogragh on them. I'd forgotten how to use them. He was in a 16' outboard that foundered in
a wave. His partner had a heart attack and died. After sticking a
lobster bouy up his shirt he was too tired in the April water to do
nothing but float out with the tide.”

“Wow, that's crazy!!!!!! You saved that dudes life, which is cool! I bet you felt the money for the radio and flares was more than justified after that.”

“That guy was wearing a pair of shorts,nothing else. He stuck the
bouy up his pals shirt. But as for
me after that I make sure I do a
radio check once in awhile. I thought of getting a headset but not yet.”

“
Here's my new girl!
A new Perception Carolina 14.5 kayak.
This is the first time she's been wet!
I paddled for a couple of hours this afternoon. I prob will not be able to lift my arms tomorrow. ;)
I felt very unstable at first but soon grew confident and this baby can move!
The ruddle controls are kinda hard to use. Hey Artex! How are your rudders?
The Aqua Bound Expedition Carbonfibre paddle felt good but seems kinda fragile. I think I'll buy a cheap one for others to use. ;)
I dang near cried when I pulled her from the water and found a big scratch on her once virgin bottom!

Three more pictures at my website if anyone is interested.
Woo Hoo!”

“ruddle = rudder hee hee.”

“finally!!
good choice stovey!!
i think she needs to dip her belly in the gulf soon....;)”

“Stove, I find stearing with the paddle much easier unless there's a good strong wind or waves.

Are you gonna take a lesson? I think the two I took were worth about ten times what they cost, plus they were a blast.

I have the same boat, (color too) and sounds like the same paddle.

Outfitters should be running huge end of season sales right now. REI had all their stuff 15 or 20% off over labor day, may still.

Pfds are tricky if you haven't gotten one yet. I had to try on 8 before I found one that didn't ride up or rub my neck.”

“miss om - You haven't responded to my last email. ;)
I think she needs a dip too. Gotta get a spray skirt!

sass - No lessons near me, I had to drive 100 miles to buy her.
I'm hopeing to hook up with some FL TTers and get them to show me.
I've been in canoes a lot. I should be able to learn quickly.
Havn't bought a kayaking pfd yet. I have plenty of regular pfds. Like you, I want to try them.

Artex - Thanks for the web address.

Elfskin2 - I already have the GPS and portable VHF Marine Radio from my other boating.”

“StoveStomper, c'mon down! I'll take you out for some killer sea kayaking!”

“A video "Performance Sea Kayaking"
Demonstrates paddling techniques,
wet exits, 4 different types of
Kayak rolls, surf action and
navigation skills. I took a couple
of lessons,but I really got an edge
when I read "Fundamentals of Kayak
navigation by David Burch" 11 chapters of fantastic information.
I only got a radio because I would
see harbor police etc, racing out
on a call. I wondered what they were up to.Congrats on the new boat.”

“A couple of weeks ago, STP had all their paddle and float stuff on sale. I don't know if that's still the case though.”

“Stove, it amazed me how much different the paddling is from canoeing to kayaking. You might wanna get a video or a book at least, shoulder injuries are really common in kayakers who don't learn the correct stroke. And it's sooooo much easier to go farther when you do it right.”

“That's a beauty Stove! Use it well and safely...”

“Should I have float bags added to the bow and stern?
I'm getting ready to order some stuff from Moosejaw.”

“does it have the foamie thing in it?
mine does so i have no need for the float bags.”

“No need for float bags, the hatches fit securely enough and when you've got drybags in there they add float.”

“I don't trust my hatches to stay waterproof enough for flotation.”

“maple - The bulkheads in front and back look like 2" foam. That's it.

Sass - I will have drybags, thanks.
I don't think there is enought room for camping stuff AND float bags. I think they might be nice when just farting around, and not camping.

le Subtil - Those hatches aren't completely waterproof, you are right.”

“Stovestomper, you should be fine without them. But it would only help to have float bags, like you said, the only disadvantage is the room they take up. Peace of mind goes along way, ya know? If it makes you feel comfortable, I say get'em.”

“I started out with float bags. I'm
glad that I did. They make your boat more bouyant.I read that kayaks can sink worse that canoes.
I scarred the entire bottom of my first boat. It was worth it because
I learned and I had a lot of fun!”

“I just ordered a set of floats from Moosejaw along with a paddle float, lanyard, pump, and a few other safety items.”

“I read that kayaks can sink worse that canoes.

So have I. One that water gets trapped in the hull, it's hard to get air back in to keep it alfoat, and down she goes! :-)”

“I eventually went on to a fiberglass boat. Some of the clubs
I paddled with would split in two
groups. The plastic boats get slower because the heat of the sun
causes them to expand altering the
chine.”

“I'd love to have a fiberglass yak, but too expensive for me, at least for now. Elfskin, where do you typically paddle? Ocean or freshwater? If ocean, is it really rocky around where you go, and ever have any seal encounters? Just trying to get a sense of what paddling is like in the northeast...”

“Cape Cod,Maine, it's usually all
rocky.Even when you beach,there is
usually rock under it. I gotta admit, island camping is prety cool. I paddled through a couple of
winters and that is great too!”

“Very cool... how close do humpback whales come to shore around you? I've heard that at Acadia National Park in Maine they come relatively close to shore... I've heard you can see them from the top of Mt. Cadillac. I wonder if anyone is daring enough to kayak with Humpbacks, they can be pretty playful.”

“Oh yeah, seals, sometimes a seal will follow you around. A couple of times I would round a bend close
to a island.Boom, there's a herd of them you didn't see because their hide blends into the rocks.
Then they slide into the water.
I back paddle out of there pronto.
They have their young with them and
you just intruded.”

“That's cool about the seals.. I see dolphins all the time here in Tampa. Today was actually the first day in a very long while that I didn't see dolphins while paddling. I practice the same thing, if I see there are young present, I'll totally back off.”

“Whales are wicked big and my kayak
is wicked small. fug that.”

“getting real jealous here guys :(”

“LMAO @ elfskin! Yeah, I imagine a humpback would have no problem tossing a yak, and probably would if it had the chance.. but of course, in it's mind, it would be playing.. LOL!”

“Oh, and Maple and I were wondering
if you can run into manatees' That
must be awesome! Dolphins, wow .
wicked cool!”