An Update on me and this blog.

So, I am no longer associated with the blogger 'The Lorax's Wife' or 'Capital City Kayak'.

I am no longer just a guy who kayaks. I have since starting this blog become and ACA L3 Coastal Kayaking Instructor, I have my ACA Coastal Kayaking Day Trip Leading Skills Assessment,  ACA Level 4: Open Water Coastal Kayaking Skills Assessment. So, I now know a little about Sea Kayaking.

I became an instructor because someone else wanted me to become an instructor.

This past year I went to a few training events and spent time soul searching. Do I really want to be an instructor or just be the best paddler I can be? The things that were holding me back are gone and I can paddle as aggressively as I want with the people I choose. It was liberating and crushing at the same time. I decided that I can still work on being a better paddler and I am a good instructor so, I will continue to instruct. I am just not sure if I will pursue my L4 Open Water instructor because it is not relevant to where I live and instruct currently.

I have been invited to pursue a couple opportunities as a kayaker this coming year. I am also looking to plan a couple journeys in the coming year. I have been asked to expand my social media footprint so I now have an Instagram account (novakayak). The problem is I do not have my phone available while I am kayaking so I am still learning to make the best use of it.

Having a full time job outside of kayaking makes these plans difficult but if I manage my leave well there could be some interesting post coming in the future.

Stay tuned and read the post http://adventurelorax.blogspot.com/2014/10/what-is-this-blog-about-and-why-another.html for all the original details for writing this blog.

Kayak Attic (under deck loft)

Last weekend I decided to put in a loft under my deck so I can stow my bilge pump. I do not like having stuff on my deck and now that I seek out rough water I do not want stuff on my deck.

To be honest I rarely use the pump. If I come out and it is to rough for an assisted dump, I re-enter and roll and go to where I can dump my kayak. But, I understand that there will be a time when I wished I had my pump. 

Lately I kept it in the back hatch on the top of my gear. Not an ideal place to keep your pump and I keep my float behind the seat but it gets away in a rough water exit. A loft seems like a good idea. But I hate the knee tubes so, I was thinking a bungee loft. Then I thought if I used mesh I could keep snacks and things there but they could be lost if I pulled out the pump.

Then I remembered my old Camelbak pack. I have 2 newer ones and this one was in a pile of stuff I kept in case I could find a use for it.

I pulled it out and it appears to be the perfect size. The pump fits nicely in the front lashings. It will hold a few small things like snacks an ouch pouch (small personal first aid kit) and an emergency kayak repair kit. Light use but stuff I want easy access to.

The next thing is, how will I attach it?
I decided that I did not want to cut the straps off. The pack whole could be useful in an emergency/survival situation. After some thinking I decided to use grommets and bungee.

I placed 4 grommets near the corners on the back side and made bungee loops to pass through the holes. 

Next I needed to plan on a way to attach it. I epoxied 4 vinyl hooks to the top of the kayak. This makes for easy installment and removal. And I can use the same hooks to attach a small bungee cargo net if I so choose.

It has worked out as expected. It goes in easily and stays flush to the top of the kayak.

It takes up little space and is not in my way when I am getting in adn out of the kayak (at least while it is sitting on the garage floor.

It holds the equipment and the cargo well. It is fully loaded with everything I would carry in it and I can still get in and out of the kayak without noticing it.

Total cost was $2.49 plus tax for the vinyl hooks. The rest was stuff I had on hand. Realistic cost without the Camelbak case around $5 in materials.

Now I need to test it in actual use. Will it be in the way during a reenter and roll. I do not believe so. The explorer has more leg room than my other kayak. But these things you never know until you try them. 

And while I was hammering grommets I decided to make some attachment tabs for my hatches. I made some for my wife ( http://theloraxswife.blogspot.com/ ) a while back and they have worked great for her.

Since winter is coming I will be doing some indoor classes. We found a great indoor venue so, Capital City Kayak will be doing an introduction to navigation course, we will sponsor a Wilderness First Aid course and have an emergency preparedness course that will cover emergency repair kits (and how to use them), survival kits and equipment you should have with you when you kayak. In the spring we will expand on this with a course "When it all goes south". I use to teach wilderness survival and thought I would bring that knowledge to our local kayaking community.

That's all for now. 

Busy Autumn

Well, It has been a busy late summer early autumn.

My wife loves NDK Kayaks. And to be different I was always paddling something different. I really love my Point 65 Whisky16. But now after some pushing from my wife I am paddling an NDK Explorer and I think it is a great kayak. It is now my primary boat.

In August my wife became an NDK dealer ( Capital City Kayak ). We have the Virginia area. I have been building out the website and trying to get our marketing off the ground. I also had to move my workshop from the garage to the shed so we would have room to store the additional kayaks kayaks. I also had to build a new rack and another may be in our future.

Also we are dealers for Celtic Paddles and Reed Chill Cheater. So, now I am changing out some of my cold weather clothing because you should use what you sell. We are also hoping to carry Snapdragon spray skirts. My wife and I both love their product.

And as for Celtic Paddles, I am a huge fan. I was not sure when I got my first one. The blade scoop threw my roll off. After a little time I got my roll down with the Celtic and I love it. I am a huge fan of the 4 piece paddle and the ability to have one shaft and multiple blades. 

We also made it to the Kiptopeke Sea Kayaking Symposium. I had an great time kayaking with some great instructors (Ashley Brown, ACA L-5 Instructor and NDK sponsored kayker and Tom Noffsinger ACA L-5 Instructor and BCU 4-star paddler). Theses are two great instructors.

We have also had our standard range of local kayaking trips and Randi is at Autumn Gales this week. I am home holding down the fort.

Oh and I would like to mention that EveryTrail was bought by AllTrails and now my Islamorada Guide is gone. AllTrails has removed their Events functionality and they do not have guides posted by users, you can post a trail but that is not the same. I am finding little reason to pay them $29 a year for a pro account and my wife let hers go. I am looking to add guides and launch site into our webpage using Google Maps I will post about it when I figure it out.

I will try to get around to posting paddles we have done over the last few months, I also have some photos from a trip to Thomas Point Lighthouse a couple weeks ago that I need to process. And some gear repairs to do. Also don't forget to check and restock your first aid and kayak emergency kit and change out the batteries in your lights.

That is all for now.

Some rough water and surf images.

Just so you don't think I have not been kayaking. It has been a busy year and I have not had much time to post. Theses are stills from my deck cams while I was surfing at Metompkin Inlet, Virginia, 37.676689, -75.589551

Movable Kayak Rack

We have limited garage space and a growing fleet of kayaks. So my latest project was a movable kayak rack. A couple 2x4s and some pvc pipes and fittings and some casters and we now have a light weight movable kayak rack. I added a bungee net to the top for paddle storage.

Local Knowledge is a Good Thing

This blog post was put on hold because of life and work. I just have not had time for blogging.

It is always good to know the area you are paddling. Over Thanksgiving 2015, my wife and I went to my sisters place near Cape Henlopen State Park.  We have only paddled there a couple times and the water has always been calm in side the breakwater area and we had never been past the point since my sister is not and adventurous paddler. We kner there was a mild tide race near the point and planned to play in it since all reports were there would be no surf to be found. 

Seriously all data said 1.5 meter swells out and nothing in toward shore. The tide was going out so the tide race would be all there was.

Max wave height nothing of note, 1.5 meters at sea and winds to the south on land and in the bay.

So we expected nothing of a challenge and maybe a little fun in the tide race at the point.

You can see from our track that we never went outside the entrance to the Harbor of Refuge. Heading out we met some swells. The beach had a shore break about waist high and nothing much else but out a little in the deeper water the swells were pushing in at closer to 2 meters. It made for some fun playing and the tide race around the point was confused water. Great place to practice boat control.

Had we been planning a longer trip or taking my sister out to the point we would have had to make a float plan correction. Nothing lead me to believe there would be that much happening in the area. This is when a little local knowledge would have been handy. Now after looking at the data and talking to some people that paddle the area these were the conditions they take L3 prospects out to train in.

Now we know and we found our new teaching an training ground within a few hours drive.

You should always do a roll or two ever time you go out. Right? Yes, my head is up early. The water was cold but I completed the roll.

A short video tour of the day. This is a calm day.

Got myself a fauxpro - SJCam SJ400 review

I like taking video when I kayak. I am not sure why. Mostly I end up with large amounts a very boring video. I started with an Oregon Scientific ATC3K then I got and ATC9K. They no longer make the ATC9K. My wife has a GoPro Hero3 Black and I considered a GoPro but I could not justify the price for something I was using to amuse myself. If I wanted to make professional video then maybe. So I did some research and found the SJ400. It is interesting how many knockoffs there are of this knockoff. I got the WiFi version for $80 the non WiFi version runs around $65.

There are many good comparison reviews on the internet. Just do a search. These are my opinions based on how I will use the camera.

First looks compared to the GoPro Hero3 Black.

The GoPro and SJ4000 are plastic bodied small cameras. The GoPro lens is extended a little ferther from the body. Both have a power button on the front and the button  on top to start recording or tack still photos.

The SJ4000 comes with a bilt in view screen which the GoPro does not have.

The water proof cases are similar but the SJ4000 comes with the case a part of the base package as does the GoPro Black edition.

The SJ4000 also comes with a bunch of mounting attachments. You can also use any of the GoPro or after market GoPro mounts.

So, not a big difference in size, looks or mounting options.

        SJ4000                                                              GoPro Hero3 Black

• Records Full HD 1080p30 Video                        Records 4Kp15 / 2.7Kp30 / 1440p48 / 1080p60 / 960p100 / 720p120 fps
• Captures 12 MP Still Photos                                Captures 12MP/ 30 fps Burst
• Ultra-Wide 170° Lens                                          Wide Angle Lens
• Camera Housing Waterproof to 100'                   131’/40m Waterproof Housing
• Wi-Fi Remote Monitoring and Control (App)     Wi-Fi Remote and App
• On-Board 1.5" LCD Screen
• Single Shot and Self-Timer Time Laps                 Time Lapse mode
• USB Streaming Webcam Function
• Multiple Mounts Included

Check out some of the side by side video comparisons on the web.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7gtYOIj_uY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al66YZjid8g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YegFb2sQlQ0

Now here are my takes on the camera.

Video quality is not bad. A little on the blue side but that has an adjustment I have not tried. It was designed as a dash cam first with a waterproof housing for motor cycles. The sound is not existent in the waterproof housing so I turned it off. I don't really need it. The housing works well. I like the lock better than the one on the GoPro. Easy to use. The battery life is only about 2 hours max, I think it is probably a little less. Has some neat features like video branding with the time stamp.Easy to configure. 

Here are some unedited video samples without the proper date set.

In the video below i Smacked the camera with my paddle and then dunked it in the water as a test. It worked just fine.

Rolling with the camera. This is after I set the date and branding.

Low light footage of the quiver. Looks good to me.

Overall review, sturdy camera in the case with decent video quality. The audio is non existent in the waterproof case. It comes with a second back with vents. This may improve audio but would not work for me. For the price I am very happy with the camera. I am disappointed by the battery life. It's not like you can change it on the water easily. It is easy to use and I can turn it on and off and start and stop recording with my 3mill mittens, that is a plus. It was made to be a dash cam and has features like clipping at intervals and writing over earlier clips when the card is full. 

If you are looking for an inexpensive camera it is worth checking out. Just beware of the knockoffs.