Recent content by VA paddler

I’m with Alan, a $15 double-sided diamond stone that slides into its handle resides in the kitchen set. Cooky needs a sharp knife, and his sous-chefs and dishwashers can be a bit careless!

Not offering any opinion here, just evidence, neither for nor against. My wife’s great grandfather was the owner operator of Camp Caribou on the western shore of North Bay in Moosehead Lake back in the teens, 20s 30s and 40s - near a place on the map called Ogontz, though for a ‘place’, there...

I spent my formative years ('94-'20) in the Shenandoah Valley, and the forks of the Potomac and the Cheat were our playground, always just over the mountain, ready to paddle after any sizeable rain or good snowmelt. If you get the chance, run Smoke Hole Gorge (overnight trip and tricky to catch...

Awww. Methinks you and Fuddle are gonna miss yer ne’er-do-well mates, but we’ll be checkin’ on ya from Elon’s eye-in-the-sky. I’ll be sure to send ya a couple “cmon, you’re burnin daylight” rise&shine messages. At least this trip should be ice free. Be careful - you’re not 70 anymore!

Ok, not my best work, but it paints the picture.

I should do some write ups for the VA rivers. I've focused most of my TRs here and on CCR on the northern trips, but for 20 years I paddled dang near everything worthwhile in VA & WV, and dabbled in TN & NC, before I moved to ME. New River Gorge was our never-fail, go-to, ww option for a 4 or 5...

I'm sorry I didn't see this post sooner. I would have steered you to New River Gorge for sure. Great C2-3 water and none of it is technical - just fun wave trains for four days from Sandstone Falls to Cunard, mostly fantastic scenery, and no portages. Nice big beach campsites, too, and no...

I still break out the Mad River ME when I need something squirrely to have a play-date in.

Jmharrick - you must have one seriously zen disposition to take three daughters and the wife in one canoe. There's a special place at The End for guys like you. I've insisted that dad gets a multi-night paddle trip with each daughter each summer starting with the summer they each finished...

The guys at Accent paddle built me a carbon/fiber double blade that is 9' long with big scooped blades and clipped corners. Great for moving a big loaded canoe over flats or in a headwind. Actually, it is pictured at screen left - that's me & a Duke, a 160lb Newfie, in a loaded Tripper running...

I've always used the Update Location option. Seems somewhat accurate.

That comment made my day! Haven't looked at the footage yet, but a video will be forthcoming.

Responding to several posts: Re: never having finished a croquet game, you have my sympathies. It is delightfully absurd, strangely competitive, not very physically demanding, and can (should?) be played while enjoying multiple substances. You should give it another go. Re: 'topper' stories -...

Ben came across the Megiscane route over the winter, and one of us mentioned it might be a good run for us to do this spring. It seemed simple enough. Train from Senneterre about two hours to Monet, drag to the put-in on the lake. There are about 40kms of un-canoe-mapped lakes and twists and...

This Virginia Paddler now lives on the Maine coast and has become increasingly familiar with its waters. Is it possible to paddle the ME Island Trail in a canoe? Yes. Is it safe? Maybe. There are days in July and August when its a millpond out there - especially before noon. But if you are...