I suspect most of us are waiting until he gets into our local waters when we can be in a position to offer help / support / food / company etc. Good luck to him though.

Likewise, I also wonder if I am really taking part in a "high risk" sport - I stopped filling in the survey as I don't personally regard the Sea Kayaking which I do as high risk, therefore I didn't think adding my personality type profile to the research would have added anything. It's an interestin...

Then it might be worth the extra spend on http://www.duncanyacht.co.uk/078796-Cap-Retainer

Channel runs between Inchcholm and the mainland. Braefoot terminal sits opposite Inchcolm. The channel markers are only about 250m apart here so no problems paddling across if there's nothing moving when you get to them. The main deep water channel lies S of Inchcolm, channel markers here are about ...

Check out the on-line chandlers for "cap keepers" - but basically just a couple of croc clips and a length of cord...

If the boats not running straight - put down a bit more skeg. If it gets better - result, if it gets worse, pull it up a bit. Ignore any "rules" - find out what works for you, in your boat and in the way you paddle and the conditions you are paddling in, how the boat is loaded and so on and so on......

Mostly - it's fairly relaxed out on the Forth and sea kayakers have a good relationship with Forth Ports I'm not sure what the official line is at the moment but the new bridge (Queensferry Crossing) did have a restricted area during it's construction to keep everyone safe, so all vessels had to kee...

Could adding a snagless carabiner into the loop in the jam cleat help? Release in the same way, from the jam cleat, but leaving the carabiner attached to the towed boat - quick to place and avoids rope on rope issues.

I picked up a SH Nordkapp HM a few years ago and could barely get it up onto the roof of the car. When I got home I found 3 x 7Kg bars of lead glassed in behind the seat! That was maybe a bit of over-kill!! I never paddled it with the lead in the boat so can't comment on how much it changed the hand...

No problem fitting one as long as it comes with T Track fittings. Mine are Thule carriers with the locking tension nob at the bottom of the arm and they fit without any issues. Pay close attention to the instructions which come with the carrier - I'm fairly sure the first instruction is to throw awa...

I know what you mean about the Reed seams - I put mine on outside-in if I'm going to be wearing it for a while

Does the outer cable need to be replaced? A bit of self annealing tape and a new inner might be all that's needed??

As a stove, hard to beat a trangia.....
From past experience... don't try to cut too many corners, it's better to "buy it once, buy it right!" as the old adage goes.

Without peddling, The physics sez - the skinny bloke should be quicker downhill. The reality sez - the fat bloke pics up speed faster and attains a higher descent velocity. I don't understand it - but it invariably seems to be true (and I don't think it has anything to do with kayak speed - but who ...

Wow - what a lot of opinions! My own personal preference (and this is only my own preference....) is straight shaft, medium blades, the lighter the better, feather of about 45 degrees, which I have reduced from 60 over the past year. (I started paddling when 90 degrees was all you could get in "good...

I have searched the manual for my Icom M91D for that, and I have not found anything. Mine is a Standard Horizon, I've never used an Icom DSC set.... but on the Standard Horizon it's Menu GPS Setup Unit Power (Off or On) So fairly easy to switch off if it's not needed - just be aware that it will ta...

On DSC sets, it seems to be the GPS which eats into the battery life. Switching off the GPS unless you think you might need it (remote or unknown area and solo?) and using it as a standard voice comms ony set should give the same or possibly even better battery life than a non DSC set as the battery...

I'd also suggest that a heavy (compared to a racing K1) sea kayak isn't going to benefit from the lift and glide effect generated by a well used wing so might not yield a similar performance benefit than going from a euro-blade to a wing in a racing K1 would show. Sea kayak euro blades also tend to ...

Interesting, I'd never actually thought about paddles from that point of view before. I agree there's not a lot of information around, but perhaps it is so closely related to all the factors involved in choosing a paddle length that it might just be repetition. I suppose it'll vary with the width of...

Hope you both chose the same colour... :-)

I'm getting a nice new pair of carbon Shuna's from my wife and apparently I've bought her a handbag....

The harmony pump might not be big enough to clear your cockpit in a sea kayak - especially as you would rarely have the pump completely upright. Have a look on some of the chandlery web-sites - they often sell a bilge pump with an extension hose which can be used on either end, either to clear the c...

Not a lot of difference between the hand pumps - although they do differ massively in price! I've had both metal and plastic shaft versions - metal corrodes (eventually) and plastic breaks / bends (eventually) so now I just replace mine with the cheapest I can find, knowing it won't last long. A che...

That's a serious looking jig! :-)
I just dumped a load of weights on top of mine.
I used the SS (slow set) version as I was doing the repair in summer - but it still sets fairly rapidly.

That's why some people fit some ballast to their kayak. I think "fit" is the important point here. I've often seen folks just dump water bottles, gravel or bricks into their hatches to "make the boat more stable" - which might reduce any tendency to lee/weather-cocking if done to balance the boat f...

I suspect any metal fittings would rust and it might soak up a fair bit of water - but what are you intending to use it for? If it's just for a bit of rolling practice when you might hit another boat or a fairly soft bottom - for £20 why not? If, on the other hand you want to go surfing or rock-hopp...

Not sure about air bags - but I've put in closed cell foam to fill the empty space in front of the footrests.
I don't know how robust an airbag would be or how easy it would be to hold it in place?

I can see it being a very difficult situation. Especially in a group of three..... Having already ignored a bit of advice and taken the open crossing option - and having got away with it - I can see why there was great reluctance to do anything other than take the same exposed route again. I don't l...

Waterproof bag and lanyard onto my BA for me. Even though it's waterproof, I've found that if water gets into the speaker I can hardly hear the radio. I'm always a bit cautious about using too strong a cord / attachment for anything in my BA pockets. Strong enough to avoid loosing anything if I drop...

A very good rub down - I used a flap wheel on a dremel to get rid of all the old adhesive from the boat (I was fitting new rims to replace old cracked ones) and a good wipe with acetone on the boat and the rim before gluing them.