Warming up to my "Mockpool"

All that vast "plain" deck needs some "blig"...

I was looking at my new (to me) Seabird Designs NorthSea kayak.

This unique kayak (unique as different than any other and unique as the-only-one in Australia) is a prototype that I purchased used after the importer assessed it.
It had a few scratches and it needed a bit of work but it was a kayak that I could fit.
My legs don't have to be splayed wide or flattened to the floor in this kayak.
I can have my legs slightly bent and my knees closer together, a position favouring a fast paddling technique (surfski style).

North Sea's cockpit compared to Tahe Greenland

What I did not like (initially) was the narrower beam and the round hull.

It felt tippy like a log when I first took it for a paddle.

Noticeably faster than my Impex Assateague (most narrower kayaks are) it has much less initial stability.

I was actually rather disenchanted at first and almost put it on eBay after a particularly frustrating first session in the surf with it.

I am glad that I listened to Mark Sundin when he told me to persevere and spend some time in it: I would eventually get the hang of it and probably love it.

A few months later I have to say that he was right.

While I will probably never have the same confidence to just bob around without my paddle in hand and trying to chase images in rough waters like I can do in the Assateague, the kayak is warming up to me.

I love how it needs so little effort to surf small wind waves.

The bay where I often paddle produces those conditions.

The waves are not big or steep enough to push my Impex but sufficient for the SeaBird.

All I often need is a couple of powerful strokes at the moment my hull is lifted by the following wave and I can usually surf along having fun.

It seems that the round hull of the SeaBird offers less friction (wetted surface) and a higher hull speed.
Looking at surfskis' bottoms there seems to be some similarity in the shape of the hull of my North Sea.

One thing I disliked about the SeaBird was the rudder.

Flimsy and very badly executed hardware prompted me to remove it and install a skeg.

If my preferred paddling would be racing or trying to leave my paddling buddies behind I probably would have left the rudder on, but for my style of just enjoying sea kayaking for the sake of it, a skeg suits me better.

So back to that big "plain" deck.

I am not a cool (?) "all white" kayak kind of guy.

While the hull on the North Sea is carbon/Kevlar weave with clear coat (admittedly very sexy) the deck begged for some "bling"
I like the look of SKUK (Nigel Dennis) custom deck designs and Rockpool's decoration.

Rockpool kayaks have not been available in Australia until recently.

Adding glitter to the finished kayak would be rather difficult, so I just settled for the "starfish"

A made-in-China kayak that is trying to impersonate a British boat?

Not wanting to pretend that it is a Rockpool I named my North Sea: MOCKPOOL, complete with the Chinese flag instead of the Union Jack.

Some might think that I ripped off Rockpool's design but certainly they are not the first to use starfish as decor on a kayak; they just made them famous.

If I can only work out on how to add glitter now... :-)

Compass for sea kayak

I often wondered what that recess in front of my bow hatch was.
Well, I have been told it was not designed for the snow dome that I mounted there :-)

OK, jokes apart I want to talk about sea kayak compasses.

I am not a big fan of GPS and while I know that are great in featureless coastal areas to pinpoint your position or when visibility is really low I prefer the old deck mounted compass.

I use a few different styles on my kayaks.

My Impex Currituck came with a Silva 70P mounted in the recess.

I think that compass is great: always there when needed and relatively out of the way.

I heard some kayakers with poor eyesight lament visibility issues since it's too far away from the cockpit.

In my case the Silva 70P is occasionally covered when I stow my sail on deck.

The mast base (red, in the above picture) is positioned in front of the compass and the folded sail covers the compass dial.

I have therefore started to use a different compass: the Suunto Pioneer.

While the rose is smaller and the cardinal points are not as bold, the casing allows me to mount the Suunto in alternative spots on the deck.

Suunto mounted on VCP hatch cover

The Suunto Orca comes with bungee cord style attachment, the Pioneer with a plastic base that can be hard mounted on the deck while allowing the compass to be removable.

I don't like the bungee style but I also don't like drilling any unnecessary holes in my deck.

On one kayak, the preferred position for the Suunto is the hatch cover.

Drilling holes in a rubber hatch cover could compromise waterproofness.

I therefore created a fibreglass base for the Suunto that would give me a flat surface for my mounting hardware.

using the existing holes in the rubber casing I threaded some cord to keep the Suunto in place on the fibreglass base plate

On the base I stuck some industrial strength touch tape (aka Velcro).

The self adhesive pads are water resistant and will stick to most surfaces like the proverbial sh*t to a blanket.

The Scotch branded touch tape is extremely tenacious and won't "fuzz up" after a while loosing it's holding power.

Scotch brand touch tape uses little interlocking "mushrooms" for its holding power even when wet

And while I like the holding power of the this touch tape I am not totally confident that a good knock won't dislodge the compass.

I tethered it with a small cord to one of the deck lines.

I also use a 3rd type of compass: the Silva 70UNE.

Basically the same as the 70P this compass is not designed for a recess in the deck (not all my kayaks have one).

Silva 70UNE on my SeaBird's deck, the "black tubes" are paddle parks

This Silva kayak is unique since it has a small light inside the rear handle that can be turned on for night navigation.

If you have ever tried to navigate in the dark you will understand that shining a flash light onto the compass to check your course is not the way to do it: you will loose your night vision.

The Silva 70UNE light is just strong enough to illuminate the compass' dial but not overpowering to kill your night vision.

On the other hand the Suunto can be adapted to night illumination by slipping a very small chemical light stick between the compass' base and its rose.

I purchase my light sticks from a fishing shop: they are designed to be used in conjunction with a fishing lure for night fishing.

prying the base open to slip in a mini light stick

And last but not least this little gem.

A "budget" compass that I picked up on a road trip to China.

To this day I still can't figure out to where it is pointing....

I guess the saying it's true: cheap, good: pick one :-)

WTF?

SHOP: recess in bulkhead

In a previous post I have documented the installation of an electric bilge pump in an fiberglass kayak.
In most kayaks there is enough room to position the pump behind the seat.
Recently I was installing a pump in an Impex Montauk where the bulkhead is very close to the seat.
This bulkhead minimizes cockpit volume and aids the empting of water in a T-rescue however complicates the installation of an electric bilge pump.
Measuring the distance between seat and bulkhead there was not enough room for the Rule 500 pump.


The bulkhead had to be modified and a recess created to accommodate the pump.
I made a half moon shaped fiberglass channel that would be used to recess the bulkhead.
I used double bias cloth, epoxy and a soda plastic bottle to create the piece.
I outlined the shape of the tube on the bulkhead and estimated the cut-out. The bulkhead is convex and curved; an exact outline was hard to guess so I undersized the cut-out.


I used a high speed drill with a small cut-off wheel to make easy work of cutting fiberglass. Wearing a respirator was essential since there was a lot of fiberglass dust created with cutting and shaping the hole.


I then tried to fit the tube against the cut-out and redefined the correct shape needed with a sanding wheel on my drill.
The base (return) of the bulkhead had to be removed from the hull to make a flush recess for the pump.
I had to be careful not to cut into the hull.

Once the tube had a good fit the area was cleaned off of silicon, grease and dirt with acetone. I used electrical tape to hold in place while I epoxyed it to the bulkhead with 1” fiberglass tape.
After leaving it cure overnight I removed the excess flange with the cut off wheel.
I filled any little gap with epoxy/microfiber slurry.

The recess was now ready to accept the pump.
Installation proceeded as per any other pump installed in this article.

The final install of the Rule 500 bilge pump shown with a loop in the outlet hose to prevent water from waves reentering the cockpit

SHOP: leakproof through bulkhead hose

In a previous post I have described a solution for a hydration system.
The water bladder sits under the deck, on a “shelf”, and the drinking hose sits in front of me on the deck.
In the Nordkapp LV the deck is lower and less space is available in the foredeck.
Water bottles positioned under the bungees on deck just don’t cut it as they often end up in the sea, especially in rougher conditions.
While on short trips carrying water on the PFD is a possible solution (small amount of water) in the heat of summer in Queensland a liter of water does not get you far.
Hydration in a subtropical locale is a serious consideration.
The water bladder could not go behind the seat (Valley makes sure that the rear cockpit bulkhead is tight against the seat) so the best solution was to place it in the day hatch.
I wanted a positive seal between the drinking hose of the hydration system and the bulkhead.
A simple hole that is just undersized drilled in the deck might not do the job: small amounts of water could still get through and wet items that are otherwise totally dry in a Valley hatch.
I decided to position the drinking hose to the left of the cockpit.
On the right hand side there is the day hatch cover and the outlet spigot for the electric bilge pump.



After drilling a smaller hole with a high speed drill (Dremel_ I use high speed or gel coat chipping can occur) I enlarged it to a slightly undersized dimension for the clear PVC water hose.
I placed an “O” ring on the hose that is slightly constrictive and let it sit on the hose for a while.
The “O” ring would create a small indent in the hose making sure it will really seal well.


I roughened up a circle on the gel coat around the hole, clear off the “O” ring, cleaned the surface with acetone and inserted a slightly greased up (mold release) hose and “O” ring hard against the gel coat.

roughened-up circle on gel coat; hose and "O" ring inserted
I mixed up a small quantity of West System epoxy 105 with 207 hardener (UV stabilized), added some tint (I didn’t like the pale yellow color) and thickened it with microfiber (for strength and workability).
With a toothpick I carefully covered the “O” ring creating a full encasement of the ring.

After curing it overnight I removed the hose (it released easily since it was greased up) and shaved away the excess epoxy to make a smooth “fitting”

epoxy still needs polishing
The “O” ring is now encased in the resin with the rubber surface against the PVC hose making it really leak proof.

The hose can still be slid in-out to shorten or lengthen it according to the paddler's needs.
The hose end inside the day hatch has a quick release coupling that came with the bladder so removing and filling up the bladder is a breeze.
The hose is usually stashed under the deck bungees and can be easily reached when needed for a drink.

After trying different solutions for a drinking system this one seems to address all the shortcomings of the other(*) systems.

* other systems that I tried:

-1) water bottle on deck: not enough water, fall off and hinder some paddle strokes.
-2) water bladder on PFD: if enough water in bladder for a day’s supply PFD becomes rather heavy on the shoulders. Also hinders rolling.
-3) water bladder in cockpit and drinking hose threaded through tunnel of spray deck: bad idea in case of wet exit (rough waters) and inevitably pain in the butt when forgetting to remove before landing :-)

Ownership and copyright

My last post (Kayak carry handles) has prompted an indignation (*1).
The owner of the website, where an image I borrowed for comparison, has been alerted (*2) that I have "stolen" an image.
As reader of this blog you might have noticed that all the images that I post that belong to me bear a watermark with my name on it.
In the past, I used to publish electronically images without the watermark.
A few years ago somebody appropriated some images of mine and used them in a presentation claiming them as his own.
I was not impressed.
Since then I decided to watermark my images.
I used to submit some of my images to a sea kayak Club and my newly watermarked images sparked a fierce debate: the webmaster would not accept images that were watermarked.
Not really sure what the motive was at the time for not accepting watermarked images (was somebody intending to use them indiscriminately?) but that prompted me to get involved on the committee of that Club and have a democratic decision by the whole committee to approve or not watermarked images.
It appeared that ignorance of Copyright Laws was a possible factor in making those rash early decisions against watermarking.

As keen photographer, on my outings and trips I take a lot of images.
Being a lousy writer it is my personal satisfaction to be able to document the spirit of the journey in images.
Occasionally some of my images are sought for commercial use and I sell those images.
Often I also send the watermarked images to the companions on my trips however I stress the point that those images of mine are for their personal use only and not for publication or resell.
It was interesting when one of my paddling buddies was mocking me about my perceived “anal” behavior about watermarking.
One day perusing the websites of a kayak manufacturer I stumbled across one of my images.

my image (highlighted) as it appeared on manufacturers website
After a quick check of my invoices I could not find the transaction for that image for that client.
Long story short: the manufacturer was sent my image via my paddling buddy, the same one that mocked me about the watermarking.
What the manufacturer however did was that he conveniently cropped my watermarked name from the image.
I invoiced the manufacturer for my standard fee for outright use of that image and eventually got paid for my published image.
Some of the friends of my paddling buddy got infuriated by my actions: how could I charge “my friend” for the use of a “holiday snap”?
The image was used commercially (to make money) on a website of a kayak manufacturer. The image was altered and my name was deleted so royalties could be avoided.

notice the full size image with my watermark...
There was no mistake made there: it was intentionally sent to the manufacturer for commercial use.

So when I published an image that was not mine on my last blog post hell broke loose.
That’s right: I published an image that was not mine, nor had permission to publish it on my blog.
Was I mad? After I pressed the copyright issue for one of my images? Doesn’t the law apply for myself as well?
Yes and no.
While copyright laws protect the ownership of original material in the Copyright Act 1968, section 41 there are some exclusions.
An image can be used for review or criticism without infringing copyright laws.
What some people fail to understand is that there is a marked difference between a misappropriation of an image used for commercial purposes (and altering it to exclude the copyright owners details) and the use of an image used in a review case where full details are given on the source of the image.
I am sure that some might think that I unjustly dealt with my case (use of my image) and now am abusing my right on the same issue but I made sure I would not infringe copyright laws (after all I am aware that “they” are eagerly awaiting for me to slip up :-) )

While some consider that just because an image is published on the web it becomes public domain (trust me I have heard that line of defense before) there are many levels of copyright protection.
Some authors publish under the Creative Commons license where their images can be reproduced for non commercial purposes as long as credits are awarded, some reserve no rights while others retain all rights.
If there is no specification an image automatically upon creation becomes copyrighted material. There is no need for registration or specific wording.
The watermark is a reminder and identification from the author, but not legally required.

I hope that with my little rant on Copyright Laws some misconceptions have been cleared and some myths debunked.

*1: Take the photo off your blog. You have not contacted me about using theimage. As you can see on my website this image belongs to another personthat has given me permission to use it on my website, NOTYOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*2: Gary Tischer wrote: "Damiano is pinching pictures .... and spining bull at the same time"

Kayak carry straps

After witnessing several injuries and sustained the odd one myself while carrying loaded kayaks up the beach I decided that there must be a better way of doing things.
While some kayaks are strong enough by construction and are fitted with very decent carry handles that could easily sustain the load others are not.
I have been taught to carry loaded kayaks by grabbing them with my arm wrapped around the bow or stern.
Wrapping my arm around the deck and hull of the kayak is relatively a good position to carry such kayak however picking it up from the ground and bringing it to waist level is not.
If the kayak is loaded with gear for an overnighter (or for a longer trip) it tends to be rather heavy.
I can hear you say: unload the kayak then carry it up the beach to camp.
While that sounds the smart thing to do often under peer pressure some kayakers carry a loaded kayak "just up the beach".
Other times kayaks have to be fully loaded on the beach far enough from the water's edge to accommodate for an incoming tide (or vice versa, tide ebbing and leaving the kayak on dry land).
It does not take much to injure your back while twisting your spine in a curve and applying the lifting load.
To aggravate things most kayaks are shaped so that if 4 people are helping to transfer the load chances are the persons helping at the cockpit are bending over (rockered kayaks) or bending their arms trying to elevate the load.

"cockpit helpers" having a hard time
Most times carrying a kayak on the beach might also involve going over sand dunes where uneven grounds is encountered.
The image below shows the problem I am describing


source* Seamongrels

I have seen people use carry straps to transfer the loaded kayak.
I liked that idea.
You slip the strap under the hull and two people at each end can lift the kayak without twisting their spine.
The traps however have to be wrapped around the wrist and often constrict the hand.
Carrying a loaded kayak for any distance results in a "blue" hand.
I have therefore modified the carry straps and added some handles.
Using a PVC conduit of suitable diameter (not too small or it does not distribute the load on your hand well) I have cut 4 sections of 11cm.

Using a nylon webbing strap I have sewn loops that thread through the PVC handle to come up with a strap with handles of approx 85 cm.
Now 4 people can carry a fully loaded kayak without risking a back injury.


my preferred way of carrying a loaded kayak

* published under Copyright Act 1968, section 41

British kayaks, British weather?

The forecast was calling for possible thundery showers but I have to say that most times the weather bureau can't get it right; there are just too many variables to be able to predict the precipitation with pin point accuracy.
The wind however was going to be light and admittedly forecasting wind seems to be more accurate than rain.

Morning started nice and sunny with only patchy clouds but by the time we reached our destination island 14 Km away the clouds have rolled in and prevented us to have a pic nic on the grassy shores.
The rain made us scurry for a tinned roof shelter and we quickly changed into our spare clothing trying to get warm.
The rain started to bucket and, while waiting to ease off for a quick dash to the "fish'n chips" shop just up the road, the water pouring from the field formed a stream big enough to wash one of our beached kayaks back into the sea!
We looked at our fleet of kayaks on the beach and then it dawned on us: we were all (bar one) using skegged boats, most of British origin, a couple of British style.

Was it that such a concentration of "British boats" could cause the proverbial British weather?
I don't believe in superstition but it was an odd coincidence :-)

Funny enough though we all seemed to enjoy the weather.
On the return leg (now raining steadily) we were all smiles.
Being warmly dressed made us enjoy the situation.

Living in Queensland we opt way too often to chuck in the sponge if the weather is not picture perfect since we can just avoid those rare rainy days and pick most other times to head outside.
What some might have viewed as "terrible conditions" became on opportunity to observe the large water droplets that created the peculiar divots into the water surface.
It looked like somebody had spilled a bag of pearls and now they were bouncing on the sea.
Needles to say we were the only "fools" to be out in such "miserable" conditions.

PS: to my cold weather climate readers: it was a still balmy 20C and not that gnarly anyway. Reed Aquatherm or a light spray jacket was all that we needed...