Where’s your favorite place to paddle? Email us a photo at [email protected].
This photo was taken by Flickr user Marc Latremouille. Think your image could be a Rapid Media Whitewater Daily Photo? Submit it to [email protected].
Where’s your favorite place to paddle? Email us a photo at [email protected].
This photo was taken by Flickr user Marc Latremouille. Think your image could be a Rapid Media Whitewater Daily Photo? Submit it to [email protected].
“Two guys from our boat tour decided to do a bit more kayaking than the rest of us and head back to Ben Beo harbour by human power,” says the photographer of their trip in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam. Where’s your dream destination?
This photo is was taken by Flickr user scjody and licensed under Creative Commons. Want to see your photo here? Send to [email protected] with subject line Daily Photo.
Jet-boil’s all-in-one, personal cooking systems combine the burner and cooking vessel in a single unit that will fit in day hatches for easy access. Light the system with the push of a button and you can make soup, brew coffee, prepare a freezedried meal or two cups of cocoa on the spot. The stove can be expanded with pot or pan add-ons but the beauty of a Jetboil is its no-nonsense configuration—one piece means a safer stove and no accidental spills.
www.jetboil.com • $100
This article originally appeared in Adventure Kayak, Summer/Fall 2012. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
The numbers are staggering: an estimated 27,000 kilometers (16,750 miles) of coastline; 1,500 potential sites, including launch points, rest stops and camp sites; 10 paddling clubs and two official trails already open with a combined total of 179 sites. The British Columbia Marine Trail Network (BCMTN) has arrived.
Born nearly 20 years ago in the tidal mind of West Coast kayak pioneer and author of Kayak Routes of the Pacific Northwest Coast, Peter McGee, the BCMTN vision has been a long time coming. In the early 1990s, McGee envisioned a marine trail that would connect paddle strokes from Washington to Alaska. McGee’s ambitious project foresaw increasing pressures on popular and critical kayaking campsites and rest stops from both private land interests and heavy industry, and had the goal of mapping and securing permanent access for paddlers up the entire coast.
After a flurry of activity, including a mid-coast survey and the creation of a campsite at Valdes Island’s Blackberry Point, as well as a rest stop and toilet on Saltspring Island’s Musgrave Point, the association lost steam and by the late 1990s the BCMTN vision began to blur.
Nearly 15 years later, with pressure mounting on popular paddling sites, mainly by private landholders, the movement re-awoke with new energy and support from the B.C. Government’s Recreational Sites and Trails program.
Parksville’s Stephanie Meinke is the president of the BCMTN Association and has been working hard with a small army of volunteers to identify, ground-proof and begin adding the sites to the growing list of official B.C. Marine Trails Recreation Sites.
“Campsites vary,” explains Meinke. “Most do not need any form of booking as they are completely undeveloped wilderness sites. Other sites in parks may require a fee and may have prebooking options, such as those in the Gulf Islands National Marine Park Reserve. We will be adding some commercial campsites and even strategically located B&Bs and resorts shortly.”
“We are continuing to identify prospective new sites to propose to Recreation Sites and Trails B.C.,” says Meinke, “concentrating on the rest of the Vancouver Island coastline and adjoining islands for now. We are also developing our website to become a comprehensive first stop for information on the B.C. Marine Trails Network and its sites.”
The B.C. Marine Trails Network website and online interactive map launched this spring at bcmarinetrails.org. With detailed satellite imagery and info on access, water availability and marine hazards, the map offers paddlers a glimpse into the grandiose scheme of creating the world’s longest marine trail.
And the association never rests. Due to the scope of the initiative, they anticipate the completion of the trail to take several years. The seemingly endless work of installing signage for access and launch sites, filling in the existing network of sites and, finally, expanding the BCMTN north to Alaska is ongoing.
Dave Quinn is a wildlife biologist, guide and writer based in Kimberley, British Columbia.
This article originally appeared in Adventure Kayak, Early Summer 2012. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
Where’s your favorite place to paddle? Email us a photo at [email protected].
This photo was taken by Flickr user Big Dubya. Think your image could be a Rapid Media Whitewater Daily Photo? Submit it to [email protected].
Sure beats sitting in a classroom.
This photo is was taken by Flickr user U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Northeast Region and licensed under Creative Commons. Want to see your photo here? Send to [email protected] with subject line Daily Photo.
Nothing like a day for fishing.
This photo is was taken by Fotopedia user Stan Oleson and licensed under Creative Commons. Want to see your photo here? Send to [email protected] with subject line Daily Photo.
Repairing a cracked kayak is what nightmares are made of, but there is no reason you can’t fix your trusted plastic boat and turn that nightmare into more pleasant memories.
Kayak repair guru Jamie Dors of Paddle Sports Repairs walks us through this straightforward, but sometimes sticky, fix. Sorry, but you’ll need to find a new excuse to buy a new boat.
Icy temperatures and craggy runs make spring paddling a recipe for cracked boats, but this is possible all-year round from collisions with rocky shorelines, pins or other random events. However it happened, these are the kayak repair tips you need to know to get back on the water.
Not all polyethylene is created equal. Most manufacturers use layered high-density polyethylene (HDPE). Alternatively, a few boats out there, including Jackson Kayak’s Elite lineup, are made of a variation called high-density crosslinked polyethylene (HDXLPE).
Both types of poly are weldable, but HDXLPE is a lot trickier. “Its melting point is very close to its burning point,” Dors warns. This makes not scorching HDXLPE more difficult for most people without professional experience and highly specialized equipment. If you’re not sure what type of plastic you’re working with, contact the manufacturer.
You can weld plastic with either a heat gun or plastic welding iron. Learning how to fix a cracked kayak can take time. “The key is providing direct and constant heat,” Dors says. Hot air can pool material so it’s important to use a high-quality heat gun with the proper focusing tip nozzle.
A plastic welding iron may work better since it provides a more focused, consistent heat. If your boat’s manufacturer doesn’t sell poly welding sticks, they can be found at some auto or motorcycle body shops or online.
For a professional look, try matching colours, or go with whatever you can get your hands on—chicks dig scars. If you’re working on a particularly large crack, you’ll want reinforcement that will help the repair to hold. Use mesh for cracks in flatter surfaces like the hull or decks, and rods to support cracks in awkward areas such as around cockpit combing.
Stainless steel or aluminum works best because they won’t rust. Aluminum is lighter. Lastly, get your hands on a good scraper, some sandpaper, a file and a surform for prepping and finishing.
Your boat has to be clean before you begin work. Hose it down and then sand or scrape the surface around the repair area. Opening up the crack a little with a scraper will help with the binding process. Finally, clean the area inside and out with mineral spirits as dirt and grease can interfere with welding.
Whether you’re working on a deep gouge or a crack, the process of heating and mixing is more or less the same. Dors says holes are rare, “but if you’re this unlucky, you’ll have to find a scrap piece of poly, cut it to size and follow the same process as welding a crack.”
If your hull didn’t crack on its first run down the river, then its surface is probably fuzzy and whitened. “You’ll know the surface is hot enough when it starts to get shiny and the fuzziness disappears,” Dors says. If you’re using a heat gun, you’ll also need to preheat the welding rod. When welding with a heat gun, lead with the gun and follow with the heated rod. Keep the gun 1 to 2 inches away from the work surface.
Mix the welding rod with the boat material using a stirring motion so as not to let the melted plastic pool. A steady, methodical hand will do the trick if you’re using a welding iron. Just take your time, ensuring the material mixes well, and leave the rest up to the iron.
If you’re using reinforcement, support the hull and realign the crack, then press the mesh or rod into the plastic as you heat. Allow the plastic to mix around the reinforcement for strength. “If it doesn’t mix well, the weld will pop open when it cools or is under stress,” Dors cautions.
This will ensure the heat penetrates the material completely. “Don’t rush,” suggests Dors, “plastic does not conduct heat well.” Continue the weld at least a half-inch beyond the length of the damage. This will prevent cracks from continuing to form after welding.
“The weld should be just as thick or thicker than the original surface of the boat,” says Dors. Reheating the area until it’s pliable and gently pressing it back into shape with a flat, metal object can smooth out lumps.
Continue to support the weld while it cools to restore the boat’s original shape. Let the plastic cool naturally. Adding water or anything else to cool it will weaken the weld. Once the weld cools, use a scraper, file or surform to smooth out the surface.
Bruised egos will pass, scarring should be minimal and your boat will live to see another day on the river. Next up—perfecting your river-reading skills to avoid the carnage in the first place.
For the first time since 2004, a tandem canoe team won the Yukon River Quest, the longest annual canoe and kayak race in the world. Team Round Side Down, consisting of paddlers Tim Lynch and Dave Lewis, passed the finish line after 45 hours and two minutes of paddling a Clipper WW2. The midnight-sun-fuelled race takes place each year on the Yukon River, along the 715 kilometers (444 miles) between Whitehorse and Dawson City in the Yukon.
Out of the 62 teams that started the race, 49 finished. There were 13 scratches—one at the end of Lake Laberge, 11 at Carmacks and one at Minto. Race officials noted that 50-kilometer long Lake Laberge was very calm for second straight year and that the river was high, but also say that these conditions did not result in faster times. No records were broken for the first time in many years. The uncharacteristically warm temperatures likely slowed teams, as well as thunder and lightning and smoke from forest fires, they added.
Though there were no major incidents, two teams overturned in the infamous Fiver Finger Rapids.
Race results below. To enter the 2014 Yukon River Quest, go to www.yukonriverquest.com.
Solo Classes
Open C1:
Women K1:
1- #59 Super Maryo – Mary Obstfeld, Alberta (64:24:54)
Men K1
Overall Solo
Tandem Canoe Class
Women C2
Mixed C2
Men C2
Overall C2
Tandem Kayak
Men K2
Overall K2
Voyageur Canoes
Women Voyageur
Mixed Voyageur
Open Voyageur
Overall Voyageur
Special Awards