PaddlingLight

In 1996, Dagger introduced their first composite sea kayak using techniques they had developed to build whitewater slalom kayaks. It was one of the first British-style kayaks made commercially in the US for the US market and that placed it squarely in competition with the NDK Romany, which would have been one of the most popular British-made boats sold in North America at the time. It had a big target, and I think it succeeded. The Dagger Meridian is still one of the best designed British-style kayaks of all time... Читать дальше...

One of my favorite day trips outside of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota is the Crescent Lake Canoe Route. The Crescent Lake Canoe Route is referenced on the US Forest Service’s website, but there are no maps currently offered. I’m adding maps in this post. I remember when you could pick up a paper map of the route at the Gunflint office in Grand Marais, but that isn’t available anymore. USFS Map of the Route About 10 years ago, I tried to get a copy of the old map and route guide from the USFS... Читать дальше...

With the paddling season just around the corner, I’m starting to look at what paddling gear I’ll be using for canoe trips this year. I have a couple of goals: As always, I like to travel with as light and as little of gear as I feel makes sense. I do carry camera gear, which won’t be included in my totals. While everything is dialed in, I may be testing a few new pieces of gear to review here. So far, I’ve accepted one piece that was offered (and testing is done), and I’ve requested an item that is brand new this year and looks great. Читать дальше...

On Saturday, Chris Knopf, Executive Director of the Friends of the Boundary Waters, spoke at the Hands Off Rally in St. Paul, Minnesota to deliver an urgent message about the current attack on the Boundary Waters. I’ve written about this before and you can read my brief article about the Threats to the Boundary Waters. The Boundary Waters is one of the most pristine wilderness areas in the world. The water is so clean that many people will dip a cup into the center of a lake and drink directly from it. Читать дальше...

As we move out of winter and into the early paddling season, we’re bound to see reports of deaths of paddlers due to cold water and not wearing life vests. This happens every year. Journalists will often write, “He was an strong, experienced paddler by all accounts,” but if they researched their actual experience they would often find that they weren’t. Instead they would find that they were considered to be experienced by their friends and family, but by any objective measurement they wouldn’t be consider that. Читать дальше...

For the last few months, I’ve been reviewing the FLEXTAIL Tiny Helio 600Z Headlamp, which is a new headlamp from the company that brought you the FLEXTAIL Zero Pump. I liked the Zero Pump, so when Flextail offered me a review sample of the Tiny Helio, I jumped on it. What is it? The FLEXTAIL Tiny Helio Headlamp is a lightweight 2.1-ounce with the battery headlamp. It ships with FLEXTAIL’s 650CHT battery, which offers three hours of runtime at the highest brightness. Users can upgrade the battery to FLEXTAIL’s 900cht battery... Читать дальше...

A new Siskiwit Bay skin-on-frame kayak has hit the water. This one was built by Daryl W.. He built this sea kayak starting in December and had it on the water for saran wrap tests by the start of February. He used undyed white nylon to finish the kayak. For the challenging bottom chines, he used the wet towel, and hot iron method and he reported that it worked well. He wrote me: I used a white pigment from Corey’s, in their urethane on the ballistic nylon. Time will tell what the UV does to the... Читать дальше...

I am, along with many outdoor equipment brands, such as Nemo, and the Outdoor Alliance, concerned by the reduction of workforces at the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. On the Superior National Forest, which is where the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is located and where I live, was already short of staff before the future reductions. These reductions put outdoor recreation, our safety, and public lands at risk. You can learn more and take... Читать дальше...

A version of this story was originally published in Ocean Paddler Magazine. I took the trip in 2011. The shore, obscured by fog, looked gray, and the hard edges of the three-story mansions separated by tall fences soften in the mist. At each house, a metal breakwall extended 30 or 40 feet out into Lake Huron, the second largest Great Lake. Pulleys and cranes large enough to lift a 20-foot powerboat topped the walls. I stopped paddling and pulled my hood over my head. My fingers – the skin shriveled... Читать дальше...

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota is one of the most beautiful places in the world, and it’s a place that changes lives. People who visit often return home with a greater understanding of the value of the outdoors and the need to protect it. It’s also America’s most visited wilderness with over 1 million acres protected. As far as canoeing, it contains over 1,000 lakes and over 2,000 campsites. The lakes are connected by portage trails. It’s not exaggerating saying that for canoeing... Читать дальше...