Taking rookies out...

Yesterday, Chuck and I took a couple of non-paddler friends of mine around La Framboise Island. I paddled my CD Storm GT, Chuck paddled his QCC 700X and my friends paddled my Perception Carolina 14 and Chuck's WS Tsunami 14.5.

I also was playing with my new camera (Pentax Option W80) and mount (Stickypod). I setup the camera to operate on interval shooting, which allows me to set a time interval (i.e. 30 seconds) for the camera to take pictures until the flash card is full or a set number of pictures is taken. It is a very neat feature.

We took our time around the island, stopping frequently to adjust the seats etc. in the borrowed boats and give a few tips on paddling, etc. We paddled through the channel/chute alongside the island... less than a hour ahead of us another couple of paddlers beached their boat, scrambled into the island, and captured more pictures of the moose (Yes, Dave P. was one of the two!).

We did have to use our hands to propel us through the last little bit of the channel/chute. When we got to the dike structure, the water was too low to get the fiberglass and carbon/kevlar boats across, though I went over and back in my plastic boat. So we headed out into the main channel and back around the end of the island. As we were coming around the end of the island, through the main channel, apparently a fishing tournament was ending. 20+ boats started coming through the narrow channel at the end of the island. The water got rough and we had to stop to bail some water on the borrowed boats.

Luckily, once we got past the end of the island, the water turned to glass and the rest of the trip was uneventful. Well, besides my camera battery dieing, a function of interval shooting I believe. I then spent a little time paddling backwards!

This trip was probably the longest it has ever taken me to go around the island, but it was still a blast just to introduce non-paddlers to the sport. We covered 6.5 miles.

May Paddle

Well, after the gale like winds of the weekend and the forecast winds for Tuesday and Wednesday, I decided on Sunday evening that I would paddle around La Framboise after work on Monday. To add a new twist to what is becoming a mundane paddle for me, I invited some "non-paddler" friends to come along; I also invited another Pierre paddler that I have been trying to paddle with to come along too. I loaded all three boats onto my rack and proceeded to the causeway at 6 PM.

From 2010-05-03

For various reasons, all of the "non-paddlers" bailed on me. But Sol B., a SD Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources engineer and fellow Pierre paddler joined me. Once I realized who he was a month or so ago, I have been trying to get him out on the water with me.
We started out by leaving the causeway and heading up to the bridges. Sol had a fishing rod along and wanted to see how well the fish were biting.

From 2010-05-03

There were numerous fishing boats out along the west shoreline, but Sol didn't get any bites as we floated past. So we continued on towards La Framboise Island.

From 2010-05-03

Obviously, I was paddling my (still new) Current Designs Storm GT. Sol was paddling a Perception Eclipse. He also has a Perception Carolina, but the older 14.5 ft. model rather my newer 14 ft. model. The picture above may be the first time I have caught a train crossing the railroad bridge; I was pretty stoked. Also, I am using my new camera, a Pentax Optio W80.

From 2010-05-03

From 2010-05-03

From 2010-05-03

We ended up covering 6.8 miles and had a great time. I am loving having a smaller camera out on the water too! I do plan on trying to get the some of my "non-paddling" friends onto the water again, probably sooner rather than later too.

2010 Earth Day Paddle

The forecast must have been enough to deter most paddlers, because only 7 paddlers showed for the South Dakota Canoe and Kayak Association's kickoff paddle/Earth Day cruise. We had a little rain early on, but were greeted with sunshine and blue skies for most of the cruise. We put in at the pow wow grounds north of Flandreau, SD. The small rapid/ripple that is normally there was completely submerged today. The banks, as normal, were quite muddy. We took out just above the low head dam in Flandreau proper. We covered just shy of 9 miles by my gps. It was a very enjoyable cruise. Lots of discussion of the upcoming SD Kayak Challenge too. See you on the water!

La Framboise Lesiure

The winds around Pierre finally decided to subside today. I sent an email out to the Pierre Paddlers email group, consisting of three other paddlers around Pierre that I know and three identities I have no idea who they are. I also sent an email to a paddler that should soon be adding himself to the email list. The plan was to meet at the causeway at 6:30PM for a La Framboise circumnavigation. Only Dave P. was able to make it down. We took one of the most leisurely cruises around the island I have ever had. I normally try to work on speed. We came across two different groups of young deer playing along the channel/chute that runs along the island. We also saw a pair of bald eagles in a tree (and nest). But, alas, we did not get a glimpse of the La Framboise moose.

Maiden Voyage

When the winds calmed down yesterday, I was too tired from my drive home to take the Current Designs Storm GT out for it's maiden voyage. Tomorrow is looking to be very windy, so I elected to deal with today's wind to get the boat wet. The temperature was in the mid 70s and the wind was ~20mph with gusts of ~30mph. I chose to launch from the gravel beach near the American Legion cabin in Pierre. I paddled into the wind down to Dump Island, came around the island and returned to the beach. I failed to turn my gps on when I first embarked , but I know from experience that it is roughly 4 miles. Once I had the gps on, I noticed that I was traveling as fast into the headwind as I could paddle my Perception Carolina 14 on a normal day. I fiddled around with the rudder a bit, but I felt more comfortable edging the kayak. I figure I will use the rudder in worse conditions or when I am too worn out to edge anymore.

From 2010-04-12

From 2010-04-12

From 2010-04-12

And my garage with all  three boats...

From 2010-04-12

Lazy Paddles

Sunday was a beautiful day, but I was short of time due to other commitments. I managed to get out for about half an hour. Which isn't too bad since my house is only a mile from the causeway. A few pics from the day:

I also got out yesterday after work. I felt obligated to go out when the high hit 81 degrees! Again, I wasn't out very long, about 45 minutes. I did take Indy out for the first time this year though. He did OK, but he is not like Scruff was yet. Scruff was fearless in his jumping into the water while Indy is happy to lay on my spray skirt the whole time. He gets in the way whenever he tries to sit up. We need to work on him sitting further forward on the deck or dust off the tandem. A few pics:


And lastly, we came across the fabled Missouri River rock gardens... the dam wasn't releasing enough to make them at all similar to real rock gardens though!

From 2010-03-30

Paddleswap.com

I found another site to find used gear or sell old gear: http://www.paddleswap.com/index.html Besides their own listings, they also show paddling.net classifieds and ebay listings.