A Letter From Texas

Texas gal, Gail, spent three weeks here in Savannah this last November. She came for our boat building class, but also filled her time with kayak instruction and trips with ourselves, as well as Cheri and Turner the Green Team, who were also in the neighbourhood.
Apart from leaving town with a new SOF kayak, Gail also picked up a new Tiderace Xcite S. Gail's initial concerns with the Xcite were that it would be slow, as it scores very low for 'speed' on the Tiderace website. "Some kind of weird typo error" we said, as we know the Xcite S to be very responsive, agile and quite nimble. Anyway, Gail sent us this great update from the third coast.

Dear Nigel & Kristin,
Did my first kayak camping trip this weekend and it was wonderful.
Six of us paddled 9 miles out to the barrier islands and camped near the dunes. Going out we had 15-20 knot winds and coming back less wind, but a real choppy following sea.

It was a group of 4 very experienced paddlers, one other novice and me. I wasn't trying to paddle fast but ended up way out front. The Tiderace website is way off on the Xcite speed rating. It was fully loaded and more sluggish than I'm used to, but am delighted by how well it handled.
The trip leader was John Whorff, an avid Texas coastal paddler who has written a wonderful book called "Kayaking the Texas Coast". He is also a zoologist, so visiting the barrier islands with him was a special treat because he is so knowledgeable about everything we saw.
The dunes we camped on are amazing, stretching for miles, lots of wildlife, no people.
I'm sending you a copy of his book, as a thank you for getting me into the Tiderace and letting me take the workshop, and as an inducement for you to consider coming down here for some paddling.
We had 80 degree weather and 80 degree water, no dry tops required. You'd be welcome to stay at my house and there are lots of beautiful places to paddle, rivers, bays, challenging surf. So if winter gets you down, consider a trip to Texas.
Don't think many people know what great paddling there is on the Texas coast, especially when it is so cold up north. John Whorff's book is full of trip maps, writeups and photos so think you will enjoy reviewing. Here's the Amazon link and a description.
http://www.amazon.com/Kayaking-Texas
I found a beach not to far from my house where I can park and walk about 50 feet to the water with the F1 on my shoulder. I keep the Tiderace in a cradle at the harbor but have found a way of carrying it on my shoulder to get it on and off the car. Am so happy with my two beautiful kayaks. Many, many thanks to you both, and to Zak as well."

Gail

Great letter, Gail.
And thanks very much for John's book...it looks very good.
We sure hope that by the time we are seventy years of age we too are taking up new, adventurous hobbies and doing crazy boat building courses. You are rocking it, girl.
See you in Texas.
N+K.

Greenland Kayak Maiden Voyage

Last month, Kathryn took part in our Traditional SOF kayak building workshop. She built the traditional west Greenland design kayak, on the far right.

Greenland Kayak Report #1.
By Kathryn Propst.

December 2, 2012.

The Greenland float bags arrived yesterday along with gorgeous sunny weather, so today I went with a couple of friends for my SOF's first official "journey".
My primary and preferred means of kayak transport here is a bike and trailer. Our driveway is slightly elevated at the street and with my fiberglass boat, I have to walk the bike up the incline. Not today!! I made it to the launch in record time, too, without having that extra 25 or 30 lbs. We left from the Back River and followed the course of the Little Tybee Challenge (an annual kayak race for the local marine science center); it's about a 7.5 mile course that, as described in the race literature, passes "through narrow tidal creeks, broad tidal rivers, open coastal areas, and two surf zones".
The kayak handled remarkably well in all areas.
I stayed warm, comfortable, and dry the whole time.
As we entered the first surf zone, I took a couple of big waves; I'm not used to seeing the deck so easily washed over. Once, I was picked up and unexpectedly capsized by a large wave (large by Tybee standards...). Rolling was a breeze and felt completely natural and much to my relief, my spare paddle stayed secure in the deck lines. The spray skirt stayed tight and there was no water in the boat when we arrived back at the launch.
We didn't have to fight a lot of current or wind on this trip, but I felt that the boat handled very well and was responsive to correction. I was able to keep pace with my companions (in a Valley Nordkapp LV and NDK Explorer) who assured me they were paddling at their normal speed (though not their race speed). It was just a beautiful morning and I couldn't be happier with the boat.
I hope you all are having a good holiday season and that you're getting out to paddle some yourselves!
Happy Holidays,
Kathryn

Guy Fawkes Party - Nov 5th

Come on over for our Guy Fawkes Bonfire Party on November 5th @ 6.30pm....behind the shop.
The Skin-on-Frame boat builders will be in full swing, oysters will be on the grill, the guy will be on fire.. all along with some freestyle musical accompaniment. Think of it as a mini 'Burning Man' night.
Bring your beverages, bring your drums, bring something to burn. All are welcome, as we hail the fall paddling season.