Discussion
Yeah, I do a bit. A good start boat wise is one of the rotomoulded plastic boats, such as a P&H Capella. If you're near the coast there is almost certainly a club near you, they will likely have some good started boats you can have a play in and get a feel for, and will probably run coaching sessions in the pool and in the sea where you can practice, learn some strokes, rolls etc.
There is some more here: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
And ask here:
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/forum/viewforum...
Cheers,
FT.
There is some more here: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
And ask here:
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/forum/viewforum...
Cheers,
FT.
Edited by Fume Troll on Friday 18th April 09:33
I've done it a few times of the kent coast, it's fun but surprisingly hard work on the upper body, at least for a cyclist who normally only uses his arms for balance and braking!
Not wanting to teach you how to suck eggs but don't forget to take account of tides and wind. A lot of people start off and find it really easy, then turn round to come back and realise that they now have to fight very hard to get back to where they started from.
Not wanting to teach you how to suck eggs but don't forget to take account of tides and wind. A lot of people start off and find it really easy, then turn round to come back and realise that they now have to fight very hard to get back to where they started from.
If you're going to go sea kayaking on limited experience you really need to go with a club. The sea is not to be messed with. Wind and tide can mean that you can easily completely knacker yourself making precisely no forward progress.
It's a fantastic sport but one that you have to approach with utmost respect.
P.s. my experiences have been in Canada, New Zealand and the UK.
It's a fantastic sport but one that you have to approach with utmost respect.
P.s. my experiences have been in Canada, New Zealand and the UK.
Edited by Olf on Friday 18th April 09:43
done it a couple of times after alot of inland and river / white water kyaking with the sea cadets (god that was a long time ago now) but havent done it since.
i want to pick it up again along with learning how to wind surf / kite surf as i live right on the coast with a big watersports population, plus it will be good exercise
as said, get some experience through a club first before venturing out on your own, it will prove invaluable
i want to pick it up again along with learning how to wind surf / kite surf as i live right on the coast with a big watersports population, plus it will be good exercise
as said, get some experience through a club first before venturing out on your own, it will prove invaluable
pablo said:
always wanted to try it so we are off to St Davids for a week next month to see how we get on.... loads of places around there offering day "experiences" or week long tutoring packages. well worth checking out
St Davids as in 'the b
hes'. Always wanted to go for a play there!Sea kayaking can be dangerous if you don't know what you are doing so get in with a club first. The lyme regis bay kayaking 'disaster' (was it there? long time ago now) was purely down to no-one in that group knowing what on earth they were doing.
Other advice for sea kayaking is don't fly back to the UK and walk into a police station 5 years later.
Just dredging this up again as i'm considering taking this up (what with living in Bournemouth at the moment).
I did a little kayaking at school and found I had to always use the longest and most unaesthetically pleasing boat due to my height. Is it going to be tricky finding something comfortable for a 6'4" bloke?
Cheers,
Ginger.
I did a little kayaking at school and found I had to always use the longest and most unaesthetically pleasing boat due to my height. Is it going to be tricky finding something comfortable for a 6'4" bloke?
Cheers,
Ginger.
Can you buy this in England?
http://bp3.blogger.com/_z83gOOJlbWY/SAEt9etfZTI/AA...The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.
I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
http://bp2.blogger.com/_z83gOOJlbWY/SA-hIsSPHWI/AA...
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
http://bp3.blogger.com/_z83gOOJlbWY/SAEt9etfZTI/AA...The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.
I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
http://bp2.blogger.com/_z83gOOJlbWY/SA-hIsSPHWI/AA...
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
Edited by carerra g tea on Tuesday 9th September 02:53
RDE said:
Just dredging this up again as i'm considering taking this up (what with living in Bournemouth at the moment).
I did a little kayaking at school and found I had to always use the longest and most unaesthetically pleasing boat due to my height. Is it going to be tricky finding something comfortable for a 6'4" bloke?
Cheers,
Ginger.
Sea kayaking is best done in long unaesthetically pleasing boats. As a general rule the more distance you need to cover the longer and thinner your boat should be. As a 6'4" bloke sea kayaking should suit you, a lot of the better manufacturers will fit a boats inners around you if you buy new. I did a little kayaking at school and found I had to always use the longest and most unaesthetically pleasing boat due to my height. Is it going to be tricky finding something comfortable for a 6'4" bloke?
Cheers,
Ginger.
If you only want to do some fair weather paddling a sit on-top or inflatable boat should also see you being comfortable in something that won't break the bank.
Depends on what you consider to be aesthetically pleasing....some of the long sea tourers (eg http://www.kayakmor.com/images/group_sea_kayaking_... look a lot nicer (to my eye) then some of the short play boats. The old style ugly boats that used to be common/ older club boats though are ugly. Newer boats tend to be a bit mixed but generally havea bit more 'detailing' (handles/ profiles etc) on them which can make them look better.
The final thing is that size isn't everything with the smaller baots- I'm 6'2" and can get into some small boats but not some of the larger ones- its down to where your legs bend.
If the URGB doesn't havea list of clubs in your area the BCU will
The final thing is that size isn't everything with the smaller baots- I'm 6'2" and can get into some small boats but not some of the larger ones- its down to where your legs bend.
If the URGB doesn't havea list of clubs in your area the BCU will
carerra g tea said:
Can you buy this in England?
The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.
I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
Just you and your dog is it?The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
Racing Redhead said:
carerra g tea said:
Can you buy this in England?
The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.
I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
Just you and your dog is it?The kayak is a Dragonfly XC 2 from Advanced Elements.I just love this kayak--it's so much fun! It can convert from a one-person to a two-person to a two-person-plus-pet boat simply by rearranging the seats. It's also dead simple to set up--I am now down to six minutes total time for unpacking it and inflating the chambers and setting off in the water. What I like best about it is the fact that it deflates and folds up so small that it can fit in a (large) duffel bag and fit in the boot of my car. No roof-racks to mess with, no heavy, bulky external loads that kill your car's mileage or give you headaches about proper securing so they don't fly off and kill someone. Weighs about 25kg. See picture below...you can buy both one and two-person skirts for it. 6'4" should not be a problem at all. Only downside is that it has a flat bottom so is not the best for tracking in open water. There is a keel attachment you can buy. I don't have it so I can't comment on how much difference it makes. But my dog and I do recommend this kayak wholeheartedly.
They have one-person kayaks too...and they are cheaper.
http://advancedelements.com/
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