Author: PaddlingSouth

by

Sweet Cheeks – well I certainly hope so

I’m hoping for very sweet cheeks from now on. Just fitted some Jackson Sweet Cheeks kayak seat inserts to the Njak. Great feel, just like settling into a bean bag. They are actually a bag of beans (like a bean bag) with inflator attached. You install into seat with side straps, inflate a little, sit in the kayak and let out the air, whilst squirming around to make it fit your shape. Then suck out the air, close the valve and you have a perfectly formed seat that conforms to your “rear end”. No more” rare ends” after a long paddle – well that’s the theory anyway. I will let you know how they work soon as I’m using them for a few days paddling around Wilsons Prom.
See more info on these at the Jackson site….http://store.jacksonkayak.com/products/Sweet-Cheeks.html  They are available in quite a few shops in Australia at about the same price as on-line. Look for some one who knows about play boats or slalom and they will have them.

Check out the video review posted 26/10/11

by

Sean McDermott – a book and photographs

Just been doing a home office cleanup or really clean out as most stuff is going out to the bin. Came across a bit of memorabilia on how I got into kayaking. Met a “mad professor” at a party in the 1970’s and he was into kayaking. Said something about just coming back from walking and rafting down the Amazon river. We became good friends and paddled together, held up the bar in a few pubs, argued politics, stuffed around with polo kayak designs and generally had fun.

“Mac” (few people knew his real name) had many adventures and if you check the secondhand book shops on the web you may even come across a copy of Amazon Journey..From the source to the sea- the adventures of three men and a girl. Author John Ridgeway.Published 1972. Would have been an “interesting” trip with Mac along. Check out Ridgeway’s daughter Rebecca, who became the first woman to paddle a sea kayak around Cape Horn.

Mac was indeed a mad scientist, working at the IMVS labs in South Australia, then the United Arab Emirates, before returning to Darwin to work in tropical diseases.

Sadly he passed away a while ago, from cancer. Not a fitting end for a mad man, but life is terminal. Luckily before Mac’s death his son John was able to take the many boxes of slides he had from the Amazon River adventure, restore them and put onto disk.

AMAZON JOURNEY 
Written by John Ridgway
Hodder & Stoughton 1972The first expedition to travel from the furthest source to the mouth of this mighty river. This is my adventure with John Cowie, Sean McDermott and Anna Asheshov: a race against time in the High Andes, struggling to reach the jungle before the rainy season. I was thrilled when Marie Christine flew out to join us in Iquitos. July 1970 ‘Already I had a pretty good idea the expedition would be on. There was the familiar feeling of elation connected with any act of positive living, and the usual sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach – once again I would know fear in anticipation and feel the calm out on the edge of life where one mistake means death.’

SOMETHING AMAZING
Written by Rebecca Ridgway
Hodder & Stoughton 1993At the age of fifteen, I wanted to do ‘something amazing’. The chance came nine years later, in January 1992, when I became the first woman to paddle a kayak round Cape Horn. This adventure in stormy waters forms the climax of the book, but there were also a few other amazing things, which happened to me long before the final chapters.

by

Nimbus Kayaks – Njak kayak for Xmas

I think I’m in trouble again. The shed is full again, Robyn’s yoga mat got rolled up out of the way and the Nimbus kayak Njak was installed in the kayak rack. Full kevlar construction ofcourse !!!. Nothing but the best. It was going to be Robyn’s new kayak, but once I had a couple of paddles in it it became mine and she’s still in the Seaward Cosma (and still loving it ).

I really love the construction on the Nimbus kayaks and this one is way better than the first one I bought in 1986. Full kevlar construction, vacum bagged, beautifully finished and even great to paddle. Super smooth finish on the inside making it comfortable even in bare feet which is great with summer now here.  I’ve got to get to work and add a few things such as a camera mount, allround deck-lines and thigh braces, but that may take a while.

by

New Kayak – Seaward Kayaks G3

Just thought I would give you an update on the Seaward kayak G3 double that Robyn and I have been paddling. Bought it a while ago, looking for a double kayak that paddled easily, behaved in rougher water and had enough volume to easily handle all our gear.

“Mission accomplished” as Bush once said. It is the best double we have paddled and we’ve had a few. We both felt comfortable straight away, although I have now moved both seats forward a few centimetres as we are both a bit short in the leg department. This allows better contact with the thighbraces which needed a bit of padding out as well.

Have installed electric pumps (automatic Rule 500) to both cockpits in case of capsize. We went out for a paddle and did some rescues. Problem no 1. Bloody difficult to capsize, with both primary and secondary stability being high. Had to work out a rescue technique to get both of us back in the kayak, but soon worked out that I could “scoop” Robyn back into front cockpit then climb into the rear cockpit whilst she braced..

Had a few more upgrades to do on the kayak, including a sail system. Will put up more on that subject when I have it completed.