Great White Sharks, now they are scary beasts (not to denigrate all sharks, most species are lovely and not a threat.) I have read of sea kayaks and surfskis being holed by shark bites in places like South Africa where they have lots of big sharks and crazy people who go out when there are shark war...

The rudder-chewing orcas move around Spain, Portugal and Biscay following tuna, their favourite food. Tuna are deep water fish, and sailing boats are advised to stay close to the coast within the 15 metre depth contour to avoid the orcas. So kayakers won’t go far enough out to ever encounter them. I...

Both Lee valley and the nene have “house” clubs you can join based at their sites if nobody can suggest one closer to your home.

Why don’t you join a club, who will have coaches to take you under their wing as you say, and as you improve, there will be peer support for rescues? As Franky says, clubs will often book out the whole course and provide their own safety cover so you don’t have to sign to say you can do anything. Ad...

What sold me on my Rockpool is that it has a curved footplate that is further away in the middle compared to the sides. So when I am in wobbly water I have my feet apart and legs more bent, pressed up against the thigh braces in a slightly froggy fashion. When I want to paddle fast I move my feet to...

Towergate / Elite Rowing Insurance insure canoe club boats including accidental damage if I remember. Not cheap but a lot of firms have pulled out of the market or imposed odd conditions in recent years.

When I did my Legacy assessment they said that the first couple of minutes were actually the Lake assessment. We were asked to put on spraydecks, capsize and either swim to the side or roll, and once everyone had ticked that off we were told to paddle across the lake to the start of the Legacy cours...

only one air chamber so maybe less safe to venture far from the shore (on a lake)? Would this lake be Loch Ness and you’re going to meet the monster? Unless you are fishing, you are unlikely to get a sudden deflation in the middle of a lake. Multiple chambers would be great reassurance for bumping ...

I have a Gumotex boat that is older than that and in great condition. Made of the same stuff they make RHIBs out of I think- very hardwearing. Reviews of all kinds of inflatables here https://inflatablekayaksandpackrafts.com/ I have picked up an Oru- it was light - but not paddled one. Its owner was...

The sunglass retainers aren’t 100% either. I wear prescription sunglasses with retainers and a headband, and Neptune is very good at plucking both from my face if I have a messy surf landing and my head goes under either from capsizing or tripping over in the sand. These days if the surf looks big I...

Hi folks, I’ve been sea kayaking in the U.K. and participating on this site for years but since moving to southern Portugal I’ve had some amazing trips there and fancied putting a website up to share what I’ve discovered. It’s http://www.seakayakalgarve.com/ and I’ve aimed it mostly at people coming...

Rowing boats are nice for pottering but even harder to transport than big kayaks. Plus the hardshells capsize in waves easier than the inflatable dinghies - I know you aren’t keen on inflatables but good quality ones can be very tough and have multiple chambers - you don’t see RIBs go pop. For safet...

I would have been so unbelievably pissed off if that happened to me. Indeed. Fortunately I can report that two nerdy, academic and puny middle aged women managed to see off and scatter an entire gang of scrotes by barrelling out of a door on the other side of the road screaming at the top of their ...

If you like the Wilderness seat, have you checked out the Tempest? I used to have a Tempest 165 and it was a capable sea kayak, quite fast for a plastic boat.

Re security - I agree that opportunistic theft of big heavy boats is rare, but once when I had two boats ready on the roof in a city centre the night before a Sunday paddle, a bunch of drunken idiots started pulling at the boats and climbing up on the car bonnet to fiddle with them. They did not cau...

Does your Isel not have adjustment on the seat, Yes, and the Rockpools, I think, do need their seats moving forward aggressively - I suspect mine needs to go forward even more for good balance, as I never feel the urge to deploy the skeg, and it might help with the reach issue for the deck too. But...

I use a combo of a bag and some foam. Foolishly for my WW boat, I found a tip online -“instead of spending ££££ on more airbags, divert the household wine spending temporarily from bottles to wine boxes”. These could then be blown up and were a convenient size to stuff in boat’s noses. So I did that...

I use a solid float so little faffage required, and I can keep it to hand as I don’t need a clear space on the rear deck for cowboying. My party trick is that I can roll reliably just holding the float, no paddle. So if I get knocked over by a huge wave and the paddle gets snatched out of my hands I...

I did my Sea Kayak Leader assessment in my Isel, and I agree, I found reentry and roll with paddle float far more reliable than cowboying around in “conditions”. I can cowboy in perfectly in the pool - inchworming forward slowly is fine and can naturally end up with one side ahead of the other and r...

Visualising it, I think it’s natural to turn slightly sideways and plop one cheek down ahead of the other based on which leg is going to come in first. Makes the whole movement more fluid.

I am identical height and weight to you and own an Isel. I just got my partner to measure my hips and we think they are 40cm. I don’t have any problem getting into or out of the cockpit. Possibly I turn sideways without realising it. It’s a great boat and yes, they don’t come up for sale often. I bo...

Hi folks, Our family is considering moving to Bishops Stortford, but the flat doesn’t look like a sea kayak would fit in it. Does anyone know of boat sheds, clubs, self store facilities, marinas etc in the area that would take a sea kayak? It would need to be close to the water as I don’t drive. Bis...

I’m in Lagos myself so get in touch if you fancy a paddle. I have a gumotex solar that takes 2 if you don’t have a boat yet.PM
me.

2 nautical miles out is against the rules in Lagos I’m afraid, though whether they are enforced is another matter. https://www.marinha.pt/Conteudos_Externos/lexmar/PGPAT%20100/PGPAT%201000%20-%20Cap%C3%ADtulos/Cap%C3%ADtulo%20A%20Espaços%20Mar%C3%ADtimos/Sub-cap%C3%ADtulo%20A.4/Editais%20e%20regulam...

Sounds like an Epic v5. More stable than your v6, less of a racy feel as the hull is SOT
pedigree rather than the v6 being descended from more advanced surfskis, and lighter when comparing the same construction type.

Just keep them out of the sun

They sound like an interesting alternative to neoprene plus cheap lightweight allegedly slightly breathable waterproof trousers over the top, which I’ve used in the past to keep the wind chill feeling off the neoprene. The gap between the waterproofs and the neoprene does trap air and helps with the...

Owen wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 04, 2022 2:14 pm

I've paddled quite a lot of different kayaks, the only one that was difficult was the Valley AA. I'd imagine other very low volume Greenland style kayaks would also be difficult.

Ruddered boats with pedals can have issues too.

I don’t have wide ankles at all, but I find it frustrating that neoprene boot manufacturers have an image of bikini clad models paddling SUPs rather than winter paddlers wearing thick woolly socks and drysuit socks under the booties. The Velcro ankle straps aren’t long enough and come undone causing...

I wouldn’t tow a swimmer directly with a towline or attach them to anything. They could go head down into their own bow wave and lose airway and you wouldn’t even know for a while because you’re not watching them all the time. Towing an inflated paddle float and telling them to hold it might work th...