Kayak Yakity-yak [NA]

GaryM said:
I used to play a bit with whitewater kayaks...I had the first half of an Eskimo roll down cold!

Actually, in the pool where we practiced, I got the full roll working most of the time. But I never progressed to where it worked reliably in moving water, which rather limited my whitewater abilities.

The university outdoor club when I was in grad school had use of the pool one morning a month for practice. Very helpful to work on the roll in clear water while wearing a divers mask, so you could initially see what you were doing, and if you couldn't get the roll to work you could generally plant the paddle on the bottom of the pool and muscle yourself up, allowing for another try, without popping the spray skirt and flooding the kayak.
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The key to getting the roll is to lean to leave your head in the water when you flip your hips. I was on the whitewater team on high school, and we went all over the east coast, Tariffville Gorge, CT to South Boston, VA. One kid went on to be an Olympic alternate. I wanted to do the Gauley in WV, but at max flow that's some seriously heavy water. Did it in a raft instead, discretion being the better part of valor.

Thing is, it's just too popular now. Any river with rapids of any description is just infested with kayakers. It was more fun when it was still a sport for oddballs.
 
flyingron said:
We just built a dock on the lake and were donated a couple of plastic kayaks (I did install hoists to get them up out of the way) and a "KayaArm" which definitely makes getting into it off the dock a lot easier. Here's Margy demonstrating it right after I got done putting it in
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Ron, just now noticing that pic a bit more closely. Has Margy tested that PFD in the water? It looks like it would ride very high on her, possibly not keeping her head above water.
 
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She's gotten a newer one, but that one is securely strapped around her narrower part.
 
Delightfully obscure photo - Adequate for internet use. Been out 3 days this week and loving it!PXL_20230715_213243426.jpg
 
NealRomeoGolf said:
That's some nice Canadian fire haze you have there. Sure hope it leaves us soon. :rolleyes2:
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It's not nearly as bad as it was a couple weeks ago - IFR conditions & AQI over 300. But yeah I wish it were clearer.
 
We have two pre-covid kayaks and two inflatable SUPs.

We got the SUPs for airplane travel but end up using them often since they're pretty convenient and nearly as fun, for lazy paddling and drinking.
 
NealRomeoGolf said:
It has been worse down here unfortunately. This weekend was awful.
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Coming back from TN yesterday it was ridiculously bad in KY and IN, but got to MI and suddenly visibility went to 20+.
 
I'm not a fan of wearable transportation devices, but that's a beautiful picture...
 
Morgan3820 said:
Do not cheap out on the paddle. A few ounces over hours of use and you will notice the difference in your arms.
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I second that sentiment! I used to kayak a lot. I bought a used flatwater boat many years ago...it's about 12ft or so with the large opening cockpit. This was back when the rotomolded plastic boats were still quite expensive new. It came with a Werner paddle that as I recall cost as much or more than the boat would new. That's the way to go for sure.

I used to enjoy it a lot...maybe I should pull it off the garage wall and dust the years of dust off of it!
or really what I should do is sell it and buy what I always thought would be a better fit for my mission... a longer boat
 
Brad W said:
I second that sentiment! I used to kayak a lot. I bought a used flatwater boat many years ago...it's about 12ft or so with the large opening cockpit. This was back when the rotomolded plastic boats were still quite expensive new. It came with a Werner paddle that as I recall cost as much or more than the boat would new. That's the way to go for sure.

I used to enjoy it a lot...maybe I should pull it off the garage wall and dust the years of dust off of it!
or really what I should do is sell it and buy what I always thought would be a better fit for my mission... a longer boat
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Always go for the bigger boat.
 
I got to see a Lake Amphib doing splash and goes along Lake WI on their way up to OSH.
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Mtns2Skies said:
Any other kayakers on here? I'm 'very' new to the sport, but though I should take advantage of all that WI has to offer while I live here. I initially purchased a cheap-o Seastream GT 105, but it arrived all smashed and dented so I refused the shipment and got my money back. I took it as a sign to splurge and get my second kayak first. I did an ass-ton of research and landed on a thermoformed Eddyline or Delta but ended up going with the Delta 12S "mini-sea kayak". I'm waiting for it to arrive at REI, but I'm stoked and ready to go!

Show off what gear you have!
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I used to mount two kayaks to the bottom of my Avid and fly up to remote areas to paddle. I used the mounts where the tricycle gear would have mated the main gear as well as the float mount, then devised my other end mount from the tow bar attachment area. People would sure look at me and my plane funny as I came back home. BTW, Yakity Yak used the be the name of a company who imported Russian and Chinese Yaks and restored/rebuilt them. I moonlighted as an apprentice A&P for them and now own several Nanchang CJ-6 Yaks. I was just sitting in one of them a few minutes ago :)
 
I bought an inflatable Advanced Element kayak. I believe that it will work fine for local park lake and class 1 and 2 floats. I haven't been out since I purchased it so I need to wait until spring for final verdict.
 
About a year in and I've upgraded. I found that I prefer the challenge of kayaking in higher winds and more challenging conditions, rather than just floating on a calm lake. The delta 12s is a great kayak even called a "mini sea kayak", but I'm on the upper side of the size limit for it and in bigger waves I can bury the bow. Having a skeg is also key for getting around while in high winds.

I ended up with a Delta 14 which is an inch narrower and 2' longer than the previous kayak, but wow is it a beast in waves. I took it out today with an isolated cell nearby and I was punching through swells in 15mph winds like it was nothing. It almost made it too easy. I can tell I'm on the smaller side for this kayak, but it's still faster and handles great for me. If I ever get into kayak camping it will be great to bring plenty of gear along without being worried about weight. It ends up being a perfect compromise at 14' of still retaining enough maneuverability for large rivers, but long enough to be stable in surf and big winds. It's perfect for my mission!
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Mtns2Skies said:
...I ended up with a Delta 14 which is an inch narrower and 2' longer than the previous kayak, but wow is it a beast in waves. I took it out today with an isolated cell nearby and I was punching through swells in 15mph winds like it was nothing.
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Congrats on the new ride. I have a good buddy who is a sea kayaker and taken kayak trips weeks long and hundreds of miles. He's a beast. Have fun; be careful.

Using a graphite paddle?
 
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Nice, Dom!

I’ve done a little pond fishing with my yak, but just for little critters. I got it specifically for fly fishing on the small ponds around here and it works pretty well for that.
 
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