off topic I know but I agree with PlymouthDamo, pogies are one of the great mysteries of the universe. They defy the laws of the nature. Ditch the gloves and get some Pogies. out today with below freezing temps and bare hands toastie in the pogies. Reed do some really good short ones with wired rims...

Thanks pitchpole for the pointer. None of my friends seem to experience but from what you say a decent set of earplugs should work, fingers crossed

Ok I’m throwing this one in. Who experiences dizziness when rolling or exposed to cold water? I also get extreme ice cream head in the winter even with a 7mm neoprene hood. I’m putting the dizziness due cold water entering the ear canal. I have tried surf ears but they still seem to let water in. Cu...

Hi Daker, I never keep my RescueMe PLB in any bag, I just tether it to one of the pockets of my PFD. However, I religiously rinse it in fresh water after a trip and extend the antenna to dry in a warm room. few months ago I found the wind in antenna was becoming stiff so I gave the wind in and anten...

Thanks Chris for sharing your experience. It's all very useful and a shore contact may have helped in our case but you are correct about inreach messages. I only bought mine to reassure my wife, but being ex police she is pretty good at dealing with emergency calls. I was once on my way back from An...

I lost half a Werner Shuna paddle with a blue blade in the Menai Straits, just NE of Menai Bridge, yesterday on Tuesday 11 June. I have it on good authority that it may spend the best part of a week ebbing and flowing with the tide between Bangor pier and the swellies before it gets flushed out of t...

The problem is we will never convince everyone of the seaworthiness of our "little boats". absolutely and this may be part of the issue with false alarms and the general public. On our return we stopped at the Tayinloan ferry terminal and my friend got chatting to a couple-outdoor types. They were '...

We assumed the only reason the campsite owner was involved was the concerned individuals wanted to use the landline as there is no signal. But as I said earlier we will make a better effort to inform as many people as possible, but even the catch all coastguard call is not foolproof as highlighted a...

Thanks for your comment Mike but this as discussed would not stop false alarms, also what if we decide to extent the trip. no signal on Gigha. It was definitely a Jack Snipe. I know these are less common but they do cover this range and I have listened to both recordings of snipe and Jack snipe. The...

I think Owen has a point. Neither party can win. I have had some correspondence with the coastguard about the incident and even if we had left a float plan with the campsite owner, and then been reported missing, they would still follow through with a search; but the float plan may helped to help fo...

In a previous post I asked for advice on Gigha and some alternatives if the weather was pants. The response and advice was great and so began our adventure! We travelled the 370 miles from the Wirral to arrive mid afternoon at our campsite in Muasdale on the Mull of Kintyre, a great site just above ...

Wow! Thank you all. So many options I think I might need 6 months to explore this area not 4 days. Great to know that there are so many wild, remote sheltered options. And my mistake for discounting the Crinan canal, after investigating further it looks a very interesting place to paddle. Really loo...

Many thanks guys for your advice. Loch Sween looks good so I think I’ll adopt that as our plan B. Is the Imray pilotage worth buying for this area?

me and a few friends are planning to circumnavigate Gigha this march. Douglas Wilcox's account of his adventure here has inspired us to take on the challenge. We will be setting off from a campsite at Muasdale on the Mull of Kintyre, out to Cara for one night then circumnavigate Gigha over next 2 da...

After great advice I purchased the platypus 2.0L duo lock and a 4l platypus water tank. I use both last weekend. Although the 4l fits ( just!) behind the seat of my delphin, I agree with Ian that multiple smaller bags are the way to go. The 2.0L duo lock is a great bit of kit, it folds away to nothi...

That's interesting Chris 'cause the ortlieb does seem to be getting worse. I had also looked at the platypus but couldn't find any reliable reviews and they are hard to come by in the UK. I think they are a medical grade plastic and based on your comments think I might try these in preference to the...

Thanks for the suggestions. I have contacted the Ortlieb UK distributor and they are contacting Germany about the issue. Don't really hold much hope on that but we'll see. I did look at the MSR range of carriers but had seen some comments about after taste in a review, nonetheless a friend of mine h...

I am looking for recommendations for a 5-10L water carrier. I have bought and tried the Ortllieb carrier and despite soaking for months in hot water, milton and washing up liquid, fresh still retains the most awful plastic smell and taste. I don't want my man boobs to get any bigger! so can anyone r...

Thanks for all the comments and advice. I've pretty much tried most these and particularly the 2-3h addition to the expected time won't cut it when I'm out for most of the day anyhow. I've look at the Inreach explorer+ and I think with a basic subscription of £12 a month I am gonna give it a try. I ...

My missus is great. She puts up with my paddling obsession and never stops me doing and buying what I like as long as I can justify it to myself. I suspect she secretly enjoys the peace and quiet too, but I digress. However, there is one rule that must never be broken and that is I have to report in...

After the excellent advice I have received on this topic I thought it only right to report back on my solution. In the end I opted for the Peak Combi short sleeve gag with fourth element thermocline short sleeve top and shorts. Although labelled as semi dry, the Peak combo is for all intents and pur...

I have had a Typhoon multi sport 4 for over 4 years now and has had a lot of use. Averaging a sea trip every 2 week and weekly use on the river from april to June. I am still learning this game so it's had lots use clambering over the rear deck for rescue practices etc. I have changed one set of nec...

As always this forum really is a font of knowledge for sea kayakers. Thank you for all your comments I am currently using the winder finder mobile app and just started to use windyty.com Thanks Douglas for pointing me to the desk top version of wind finder. I had assumed it wasn't much different fro...

We all rely on forecasts to plan our sea kayaking trips. Although generally accurate and reliable, I am quite often surprised by the expectation and reality of forecasts and sea conditions- be that calmer or rougher than expected. I know local conditions can vary from forecasts as most forecasts loo...

I know this topic is the subject of a number of threads that have provided some really useful info. Fitting an electric bilge pump to my delphin is on my list of things to do. From the previous posts I am pretty sure what gear I will be using but I am struggling as to the best position for the exit ...

Thanks everyone for your comments. Looks like I need to start building my 4th element wardrobe this summer. :-)

Anybody try this 4th Element thermocline under a dry suit in the winter or would it way too hot for that. Great if it could be used winter and summer.

many thanks. very sound and useful advice

Thanks for the advice and comments so far. I'll look into the peak dry top, also seen a Reed short sleeve dry top that is also recommended for summer paddling -anyone got experience of the Reed cag? I like the idea of fourth element gear and had a quick look on their website. How wet do the garments...

Looking toward the summer with some optimism and I am considering changing my usual long john wetsuit and neoprene shirt for a short sleeved dry cag and neoprene shorts. Would be interested to hear any brand recommendations or other solutions to dress for immersion and not boil in the bag during sum...