Video: Petra surfing Dugong

Let's name her Dugong!
Short, stubby and just a bit "a face only a mother could love" look... the Whisky16 (designed by Nigel Foster) is not a pretty kayak in a traditional sense.
Dugong seemed an appropriate name for Petra's new kayak.
While looks are often deceiving, this kayak fits Petra very well and being very maneuverable spurs confidence in rough water.
The inspiration for the name came from the previous day's event where Petra and I were kayak-sailing back from my favorite play spot. A dugong suddenly surfaced too close to my kayak and looked at me with spooked eyes: I don't know who got the bigger fright, me or the dugong.
Then he quickly dived, his tail flew inches away from my face wetting me completely while I ducked my head avoiding the slap as he desperately tried to miss my kayak.

That evening a sail was hastily mounted to the Whisky16's deck as next day's forecast was promising conditions for a pseudo tidal race: wind against ebbing tide.
With the new SeaDog sail mounted up front Dugong really brings smiles


click on image above to play video

Edging and rolling the Whisky16 seemed easier than the borrowed kayaks: a good fit where one can brace without having to splay the legs too far could be the reason.
The keyhole cockpit where the legs can be kept relatively close together, allowing some wiggle room but still offering a solid wide area of contact, is probably a better solution than the diminutive thigh braces wings I see in most kayak cockpits.
So far the two kayaks that I own with such keyhole cockpits are way more comfortable than the other system I have tried.
The rear deck is not particularly low in the Whisky16 however layback rolls are still reasonably easy since the seat is not jammed right against the rear of the cockpit rim.
For once the seat is not shaped as a racing short-pan paddler crunched-over design: a lower front lip allows for more relaxed seating.
My experience with short seat that have a higher front has not been positive as I often end up with "dead legs". A flatter pan and longer seating area is key for longer paddles where my thighs don't suffer from blood circulation cut off.
Petra, while being the exact opposite of my bio-metrics, seems to agree: she dislikes short peaked seats and loves the flatter pan. The seat of the Whisky16 is here to stay.

The front deck however has already been modified to accept a sail and place it at closer reach. Details here.

Video: Best Moments of 2014 in Moreton Bay

Once a year a new video is edited focusing specifically on local paddling's best moments.
This one was shot over 2014 in Moreton Bay alone.



Of course, only a very small portion of "the fun stuff" is recorded despite spending most weekends on the water.
I compiled mostly "orphan" clips that were not previously included in a other videos; the shots are short and highlight the best moments of a day's outing.

In order of appearance: Gnarlydog, Vanilla and Petra.

PS: work has already commenced on the 2015 edition...

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Video: Radikal Kayak Surfing

I love this video.
Beside the incredibly smooth kayak surfing demonstrating outstanding skills using an unconventional paddle, the footage capture and the editing is really captivating.



It inspires me to get out more in the rough stuff and play.
My aspirations: to be one day half as good as Marc.

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Photo: foam pile

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Playing in messy conditions with waves coming from different directions is one of the best training grounds for improving my skills.



I was joined by Peter who has only recently learned how to roll.
It was so rewarding to see his improved skills that allowed him to go for the biggest waves, now that he can confidently come back up when tossed over by a wave.
We both had a ball.
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Photo: rolling on Australia Day

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Downunder we are celebrating Australia Day.
From barbecues in the park to a party at the backyard pool, in the cities and at the beach it is Australia's big day and a long week-end to boot .
My favourite way to celebrate and cool off on this January day is to be on the water, sometimes in in.



The wind kept most of the motorized watercrafts away from my favourite paddling spot.
The light clouds were a welcome screen for the harsh sun.
Life is good in Queensland.

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VIDEO: Never Ending Fun in Moreton Bay

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Once a year I edit a video of my best footage of sea kayaking in Moreton Bay, Queensland. No surfing ocean swell, no remote granite islands, no seal colonies and no dry suits here. The paddling fun is not far away and, even if I don’t live close enough to the bay for a quick morning paddle, most weekends are spend paddling and sea kayak sailing in the warm waters of my local pond.



I love a windy day where I can challenge myself on a few small waves sprinting to catch a short ride, sometimes aided by a sail.
I find calm waters more challenging than textured ones and paddling on a mirror-surface sea is not my thing. When tidal flow opposes the wind conditions mimic a small tidal race: I can paddle in one direction and surf while making very little ground. The waves don’t usually spill although they don’t last like in a real tidal race. Of course all the rough stuff is in name of training for real challenging conditions that I might find myself in when on an extended trip.
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Photo: playing in small waves

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The sea conditions lately have been rather calm and my usual play spots had only small waves.



On the other hand I don't need a dry suit to keep me alive, not even a warm top, just a hat to keep the harsh Queensland sun off my face.
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VIDEO: Surfing Vixen

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My new kayak is tippy, with me on board.
A narrow beam and a deep V hull give me less initial stability but allow slightly higher speeds.
I have used the Johan Wirsen designed XP on the bay a few times; in milder conditions I chased the little short wind waves with ease as I can glide where usually I can’t with my other kayaks.
In steeper waves however the longer and less rockered kayak becomes more difficult to keep straight on the short waves. The bow seems to get caught in the wave in front of me while the stern is still getting pushed by the following wave, broaching the kayak.
Then every so often I get a decent longer wave and linking the one in front I get a free ride.



Conditions were rather windy with recordings of winds in excess of 25 knots all around the bay. The tidal flow was opposing the wind and the waves were starting to get blown over, flattening them. After an hour of surfing I no longer could paddle out against the wind as it increased beyond my skills: I had to call it quits. I pulled the kayak back to my launching spot and battled the wind trying to keep it in my hands once out of the water. I was tired, a bit frightened but happy to have overcome the initial tippines that I felt in the XP.

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Video: Neptun Kajakk

Every so often I come across a kayaking video that leaves me speechless.
And this is one of them:


Norway - Jæren from Roald Holm on Vimeo.

Worth watching in High Definition and full screen, not on a mobile device..

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VIDEO: R&R short movie winner

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The short film entries to the Rock&Roll competition were of a high standard.

The New South Wales Club hosts a yearly sea kayak symposium that attracts paddling talents from around Australia and invites international guests to run clinics.

This year a large number of the short movies presented were focused on high skills (and thrills) of paddling dynamic waters, often in big seas meeting cliffy shoreline.

I enjoyed the bravado captured on camera displayed by the local talent: the videos were highly entertaining and inspiring.

And then there were Vincent's entries.

He presented two movies that immediately transported me to his unique world of paddling. There was a magic feeling when I watched his skilfully edited footage; something about the soft evening light combined with soothing music.


select HD if you have fast Internet connection and allow the movie to load before viewing

I love the understatement that the music brings to his high action scenes; it is an approach to movie making out of the ordinary. The surfing action excites me while the music wants to calm me; it stirs conflicting emotions in me that at the end, at the closing scene, leave with a smile wanting to paddle those waves.

I asked Vincent what does kayaking mean to him:

>>

It feels wonderful out on the water in a sea kayak, especially in the low light of early morning or late evening.

I usually don’t travel too far to paddle, and am lucky enough to live 12 minutes drive, from my nearest surf beach or lakes in a relatively undeveloped National Park.

I love the durability of my plastic sea kayak because it magically gets attracted to rocks and sand banks.

After snapping a couple of other paddles, I’m now really happy with the strength of my one piece carbon Greenland paddle.

For me, finding out ‘what rings your bells’ as a paddler is part of the pleasure of kayaking.

The most important thing is that you are out on the water, having fun.

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"Dedicated to the independent paddlers that think outside the box willing to try new things and embrace diversity; to the kayakers that like to dance to the tune of their own music."

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VIDEO: Bumping around in waves

I found myself getting tossed around more than usual in those short dumpy waves.
It has been a while since I paddled Green-Piece, the quirky little lime green Currituck from Impex.
Yes, it felt little compared to my other kayaks and with my hefty weight it does not suit me as multi-day tripping boat (I think I am at the load capacity limit). I find that boat quite nimble and I seem to be able to turn it faster than other hard tracking kayaks.
I wanted to take it surfing and find out what it can do for me.


select HD for a superior viewing experience

I noticed the bow getting pushed under the surface faster than my other larger kayaks and occasionally it would pitch and broach; I think a lighter person will find it more forgiving.
Reverse surfing made me spin quicker than in my Zegul and I had find again the balance point before it would tip over.
It was refreshing to be paddling a kayak that I have neglected for a while thinking that it just was not suited for me.
It gets to show what a difference a few years make and with new skills what fun I can have in a kayak that I find boring otherwise when flat water paddling.
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PHOTO: Start of the Year

Somehow the conventional NYE celebrations left me wanting for something a bit more real this year.
On the 1st of January, not having to nurse a headache, I headed to the beach instead.
The surf was promising and I was in an unfamiliar kayak.
Not wanting to hold back I decided I was starting 2013 head on.


New Year's resolution: more of this :-)

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VIDEO: Still feeling good

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 Following the original concept highlighting local paddling, this is the sequel mash-up video of fun on the water in South East Queensland.


select 1080p if you have fast Internet connection

In order of appearance:
Toddy, Stika, Gnarlydog, Adventuretess, Simone, Matt.
Intro footage courtesy of Greg Schwarz.

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VIDEO: kayak sailing in the bay

A few years back I would cherish the days when the forecast would call for little or no wind; these days I prefer a bit of breeze to ripple the waters of the bay and occasionally produce a few small waves. And there is nothing like popping the sail on a beam wind to make paddling so much easier.


A common misconception is to assume that a sail on a kayak is only good for downwind sailing.
With a well designed sail like the Flat Earth Sail I find that I can sail out and back with very little effort from my paddling; the wind does most of the work for me. When the breeze is not strong enough (below 10 knots) a few strokes often help to catch a wave.

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Photo: sailing in rough waters

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Sunday morning paddle in the warm Queensland winter sun...  then suddenly got bumpy.



A fun outing with just 12 knots of wind.
Flat Earth sail with Northern Light Greenland paddle.
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VIDEO: Zipper Zone Futzing

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I like it bumpy, always have.
From bicycles pedalled on rocky terrain, motorcycles ridden off road to bushwalking cross country I recognize a passion for the challenging conditions.
Mindless rhythmical power exertion of my body does not interest me and I usually seek locations where skills and balance are more important than muscles. The same goes for sea kayaking: I seek waters that offer a bit of excitement and unpredictability, where I have to use my body and bracing to keep myself upright.

select HD if you have fast Internet connection

 My local paddling location is a sheltered bay away from ocean swell and lacking a rocky coastline I don’t have anywhere to practice my balancing skills in clapotis rebound. Moreton Bay however has a decent tidal flow with 6-7 feet of height variation at spring tides creating shifting banks of sand a few miles from the shore. Power boaters avoid the area and take a different route to travel to the big sandy Moreton Island. I instead seek those locations where tidal flow, residual ocean swell and small wind waves, from the opposite direction, meet over shallow waters of sand banks. The opposing forces of the two waves collide and at the right moment peak high with a great splash. With the confidence offered by the Northern Light Greenland paddle, I play in the area hoping to get caught in the very spot of collision to get tossed high in the air.

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PHOTO: zipper play

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The wind was gone and so were the waves. I looked for something to play in and I had to content myself with a small "zipper".



It's when two waves from different directions collide together at a slight angle and form this imaginary zipper that appears to close together. The bay I often paddle has decent tidal flows that create banks of sand miles away from shore. Leaving the fishing folk behind, I played around in the shallow water trying to get caught in the zipper zone.



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When the journey matters more than the destination

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From Tsunami Rangers site:

"To mosey is not to become oblivious to the reality of kayaking on the exposed open coast, but rather to be deeply present and aware by not always following the map, the plan or the objective. Sharing this way of being on the water is one of the elixirs, the absinthe of the Tsunami tribe but can be part of any sea kayaking journey by anyone, anytime."




That pretty much sums up my view on travelling on the sea (or land, by human power).
There is a marked contrast between the destination being the objective or the journey itself being the focal point. When you want the journey to never end, when rushing does not seem right; when the highlight of the day were those beautiful waves crashing into the rocky point or the encounter with a whale then you know that the journey means more than the destination.
If the little islands with white sandy beaches and the pretty lagoons or the deep sea caves with the surging swell lure you more than the results on your GPS then you might value the journey more than the destination.



My most memorable trips are not the ones that were run under strict schedule or plan but those that just evolved as the days went by. My favorite way of planning trips is where enough research goes into delivering a relatively safe environment but not a rigid schedule or itinerary. I still laugh at the prospect of some paddlers mapping their journey at home on their GPS by "breadcrumbing" the waypoints with such accuracy that a warning beep will tell them that they are off-course, by mere yards.
My ideal plan is where I look at a map and I see a lot of potential along an interesting coastline that might deliver a rugged environment.


Photo: Manolo Pastoriza _used with permission
Since I am not one for large crossings that will see me off the visual security of landmarks, I probably would get bored with endless pushing of the paddle with a compass or GPS as my only stimulation.
I also like the unknown, the discovery. I often feel that there is not enough interesting coast line in my area that would make sea kayak travel mysterious enough. I wish I lived along an unpopulated rocky coast with endless islands to explore where I could spend weeks covering just a short distance.



I envy my Swedish friend's backyard archipelagos although I don't covet his country's climate. Just like my other passions; mountain biking and backpacking, for me the sea kayak journey has to involve fun and play time.
When I was heavily involved in mountain biking, occasionally people would ask me: how many miles did you ride this week end? (knowing I just came back from a mtb safari) “Only 8 this time” was my reply. But little they knew that those 8 miles where very intense. They involved crawling over improbable boulders with friends spotting me to save me in a wipe-out on a radical move. We would spend hours trying to "solve the problem", not unlike in bouldering.



The same reason why now sometimes I am just happy to go rolling my kayak in the sea, covering only a few hundred yards that morning.
For me it has never been about speed  (well, driving 200 Km an hour on the Italian or German Autobahn not counting) or distance. I have never owned a road bike, never participated in a ski race and never took up running. My style is usually slow and bumpy where skills are more important than muscles, where the fun factor always wins.

VIDEO: wave dump recovery

The wind subsided but the swell was still there. Myself and Johan Wirsen wanted to have a closer look at waves smashing onto rocks but misjudged the sets.


select 720p if you have fast internet connection
It would have been wise to wear some helmets but we didn't have them with us on this mini-expedition. After this little incident we distanced ourselves from the rocks and went sailing instead (video coming soon)
For full story of the trip click HERE

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Inspired by GnarlyDog News?

A recent YouTube video has been brought to my attention where a paddler performs a similar balancing act to my recent guest Geggamoja video .
In "Sea Kayak Video Production" video a happy paddler with remarkable balance tries to stand on the deck of his kayak.


YouTube screen-shot

I then read his accompanying description on the video where he says:

>>It usually takes several years dedicated to paddle before being
able to balance standing in a kayak.
Some of us, probably, they will never (like me),
others do not see any purpose,
just like some people do not see any reason to learn how to roll a kayak.
I admire these kayakers able to handle the kayak with ways so
graceful .....
able to communicate with a few simple steps ...
real Guru can teach all of us ...
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Wait a minute... those words sound familiar!
In my post I write:

It usually takes a few years of dedicated paddling to be able to balance standing in a narrow beam kayak. Some of us will probably never get it (like myself) and some will see no point in it.
Just like some see no reason for learning how to roll a kayak or master more than a sketchy combat roll, I admire paddlers that can finesse the boat with graceful strokes.

Have I inspired people across the pond, all the way to Italy, to mimic Geggamoja video and copy my text?
Should I think that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?
If nothing else, at least it has inspired people to have a go and make it fun :-)

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