by Moulton Avery Editor’s note: This is the second in a 4 part series on cold water safety by Moulton Avery. Moulton is an expert on heat and cold stress. He gave his first public lecture on hypothermia in 1974. He was executive director of the Center for Environmental Physiology in Washington, DC for ten years, and […]
Sea kayaking skills
Kayak Navigation Part 3: Crossing Current; How to Calculate a Ferry Angle
by Tsunami Ranger John Lull Introduction Tidal currents form in inland marine waterways in response to the rise and fall of the tide; the water from the rising/falling ocean flows in and out of bays and estuaries. Stronger currents will form around the times of new and full moon when the gravitational pull of the […]
Worst. Crash. Ever.
Editor’s note: Thanks to Charlie Teall for the photos of Neil and John at the slot. Eric loved autumn because it’s the start of football season. In fact, his video “The Tsunami Rangers’ Greatest Hits” was modeled after the NFL’s Greatest Hits films. One of his favorite things about watching football was a segment called […]
Kayak Navigation Part 2 – Compass Use and Dead Reckoning
by Tsunami Ranger John Lull In Part 1, I covered navigation by line-of-sight, using visual references, ranges, and no tools beyond a chart. This works fine until visibility is reduced by thick fog or when paddling in open water well offshore or on a long crossing. In those situations, you’ll need some other technique to […]
Kayak Navigation, Part 1 – Piloting (without tools)
by Tsunami Ranger John Lull Kayak navigation is the art of knowing (and keeping track of) where you are and following the best route to get where you want to go. The best route may or may not involve paddling on a straight course from point A to B. Sometimes when making a crossing in wind […]
Kayak Pilgrim – A Sea Kayak Adventure
Life should be one adventure after another. If not, you’ve lived too long. Whenever I become too mellow, my heart yearns and yearns for adventure. You take the high road and I’ll take the high road. Okay you take the low road and I’ll take the high road. Well, if you insist, you take the […]
For a Swell Time, Learn to Predict Surf
by Paul McHugh (Editor’s note: Paul McHugh was on the first U.S. Kayak Surfing Team that went to Ireland in 1988 and won top scores in the international kayak competition. He has published outdoor and adventure stories for many years, and currently writes fiction as well. His recent murder mystery “Deadlines” won regional and national […]
The Hazards of Sea Kayakers as Safety Boaters for Swim Races
by Wayne Horodowich (Editor’s note: Wayne Horodowich is the founder of the University of Sea Kayaking. USK was conceived in the 1980’s and officially founded in January of 2000 to enhance and promote sea kayaking. The USK website has 100’s of pages of information on sea kayaking. To check out the USK website, go to […]
Sea Kayakers and the Survival Instinct
by Will Nordby – Photo illustration by Will Nordby- The recent sinking of the Costa Concordia brought to mind a subject that has special relevance to those traveling on the sea: the survival instinct. When the cruise ship grounded, the captain, Francesco Schettino, chose […]
Sea Kayaking Seal Launches
by John Lull When sea kayak paddling in rock gardens it is very handy to be able to launch or land on a rock, an island, or the rocky shoreline, even in the absence of a nice sandy beach. In this situation you need to use a seal landing or launch. Eric covered seal landings […]
How to Teach a Beginner to Sea Kayak
Kudos to kayaking clubs, professional trainers, and organizations for introducing thousands of people to the wonders of sea kayaking each year. This essay centers on my opinions on how a seasoned kayaker can teach a greenhorn how to sea kayak. So here we go. First, I only teach beginners who are truly interested in learning. […]
How to Rescue a Swimmer who has Lost his Kayak in Surf
“Where’s Haruo?” Jim Kakuk, lined up just outside the breakers and next to me, shrugged. I scanned the surf zone again at Pillar Point and counted the boaters…one, two, three, four, five. No Haruo. “We’ve got to find him.” We were surfing at Microwave on a blustery day with good-sized swells crashing through every few […]
Paddling Pour-overs in Ocean Rock Gardens
An exciting and challenging kayak trick in an ocean rock garden is to paddle over a pour-over. In river running, a pour-over is a river current that flows over a rocky ledge into a hole below. In ocean adventure kayaking, a pour-over is a flat rock or a reef which a wave surges over into […]