Recent content by eckilson

I have practice assisted and unassisted rescues, both solo and tandem in an empty boat. For me, an unassisted solo reentry is tough. In my solo boats I can usually flip it and get it empty, but I fill it up again getting back in to the point that it is very unstable. Unassisted tandem reentry...

Good point - candace is another area that requites coordination/compromise between partners. As a general rule the bow needs to slow down their stroke rate slightly to give the stern time to execute whatever corrections are necessary. If you can keep the strokes in unison, it is amazing how fast...

I think we are saying the same thing. There are certainly situations where the bow paddler not only imitates the turn, but also provides most of the power for the turn - the duffek in an eddy turn or peal out is a great example. Having turning power in the bow and the stern is also great for...

The more I paddle, the more I find myself reaching out to other paddlers to paddle tandem. The advantages are obvious: you have two people to provide power, and you have paddles on both sides of the boat to brace in the event of an upset. Yet, for many, tandem paddling means a...

The longer version is here:

This weekend was the last release of the year on Fife Brook section of the Deerfield River in western MA, so when my buddy Aaron texted me looking to go, I was in. We talked about paddling solo, but decided to do our third tandem run instead. We were the only canoe with a bunch of kayaks – what...

My local club does a winter overnight camping trip each year the last weekend of December or the first weekend in January. Temps are usually high 30’s/low 40’s during the day, and low 20’s/high teens at night. Last year we had temps in the teen’s during the day and single digits at night. The...

This statement doesn't seem right to me. With a neutral trim (paddling more from the middle) the boat floats more evenly in the water, but I wouldn't say that it floats higher in the water or has a narrower waterline - at least in a way that would be less stable. With bow light trim as pictured...

My whitewater solos are trimmed bow light, but not quite that much. ;) That boat turns on a dime, rides up on waves and floats over holes. It also gets blown all over the place in the wind, but that is not my main concern in that boat. Like @Steve in Idaho, the rest of my boats have a...

Around here we also have the Maine Island Trail that has campsites on public and private property. https://mita.org/

It is pretty amazing that land owners allow it, but there are a lot of great partners who are coordinating and maintaining the campsites. We are lucky to have it.

Maybe, but wouldn't the view be better from higher up. Two different planes - one was black and one was yellow. There were plenty of leaf-peepers around. I had a hard time finding a parking spot at the Hooksett rest area on the way up Saturday moring.

The upper Connecticut River isn’t a real wilderness river. It flows past more cow farms and corn fields than wilderness. The campsites are often tucked into the narrow stretch of woods between the river and the farms, but they are usually well maintained with a picnic table, fire ring and privy...

That dark-hulled, radar-equipped, ocean-going, private super yacht is the Chantal Ma Vie. It's a bargain to charter at a mere $250K a week. Some people live in a different world..;. I haven't done any sea kayak camping yet. Harbor Islands are on my list, as is the Maine Island Trail.

More evidence that kayaks carry clowns ;) Yesterday's trip in Boston Harbor. I worked in Boston for 45-years, but this was the first time that I paddled there. Seemed like a place to bring the sea kayak.