Category: Uncategorized

Having a great time at the MAREMOTU seakayaking symposium on Sicily’s Aeolian islands. How can you go wrong with a setting like this! This is the view from the top of the active crater on ‘Vulcano’ island. Barry and I have run sessions on ‘fun and balance’ and ‘rock gardening’ but the emphasis here is really on fun and relaxation with some learning and kayaking thrown in. oh, and did I mention eating and enjoying a few drinks. Cheri Perry and Turner Wilson are here teaching rolling and it’s been great to hang out with them. Also Roger and Sonja from ‘Coastal spirit‘, a seakayaking company 5 minutes down the road from us in Wales. It’s great to see more of them than we usually do, despite living so close. Roger has been running BCU 4 star and 3 star courses.

now we are going on a tour of the islands for 4 days, aiming to end up on Stromboli, the other active volcano in the archipelago. It emits lava regularly and we’ll climb up the volcano in the evening to see the red lava being spat out at night. There was a kayak race yesterday – barry and I competed covering the 3.6 miles in under 45mins – I forget the exact times but Barry came 3rd ( after 2 people in epic 18 racing kayaks) and I came 4th so we were pleased.

better go and get my breakfast before packing my kayak for the tour!

The latest review of “This is Canoeing” is published in Hong Kong! Here is X-Life magazine‘s take on it! I’m sure it’s all good and it certainly looks pretty! And they spelt my name right, which is more than some ‘English’ magazines do!

The DVD was also reviewed recently by Australian magazine, “Outer Edge“, which I find easier to understand! I particularly like the last line, “If it doesn’t leave you wanting to hollow out a log and set off into the wilderness, there’s something dead in your head“!

“This is Canoeing” and all Cackle TV DVDs are available from the Cackle TV store. I don’t think  they are on sale in Hong Kong but in Australia, they are also available from “Expedition Kayaks“.

Valley seakayaks are making a new kayak & Barry and I have been lucky enough to try out their first prototype.

The idea behind the new kayak is to “introduce a new strain of DNA into the Valley range, one that is a little more contemporary both in style and paddling feel”. While I can think of a lot of very experienced paddlers who would never be seen in anything other than their trusty Nordkapp, there are other people who don’t get along with the Nordkapp. This new kayak aims to provide an alternative “contemporary sea kayak suitable for expedition style paddling whilst still fun and nimble enough for day and weekend work”. If you want to hear more about it in Valley’s words then visit their website here.

So what’s it like? Barry’s taken the kayak out 4 times and I’ve taken it out 3 times. We tried it on flat calm water, in chop, in a moderate tidal race and in a force 3/4 wind. Our initial thoughts are very positive – the kayak is a good length, it feels very stable & it seems to surf well. The cockpit shape has been changed so that there are pocket for your knees and thighs which is an improvement for me. The first prototype felt a little big for both Barry and I but we are at the bottom of the size range it’s aimed for.

We (and the other testers) have passed on our feedback to Pete Orton, the designer at Valley and he is already working on the 2nd prototype. I’m excited to try it! Watch this space, we’ll let you know what we think!

I paddle on Anglesey most weeks and love it’s beautiful coastline. However I’ve noticed that the amount of plastic rubbish floating in the sea seems to be increasing – unless I’m more observant as I get older!?

A few months ago we saw a razor bill on the sea struggling to take off and noticed it had got wrapped up in a piece of string from a balloon. Barry managed to remove the string from underneath it’s wings. There was a bit of blood but hopefully he recovered and was able to take off eventually. I’ve always removed bits and pieces of trash from the sea and beaches, but since then I’ve started to stop and remove any pieces of plastic that I see floating in the sea – usually a few pieces every time I go out. A month ago I picked up a plastic canoe barrel, completely in tact – all I need is a new lid and a canoe adventure.

Last weekend Barry and I took this a bit further and we filled our back hatch with a small number of the plastic bottles that have washed up in the back of Parliament House Cave under North Stack. I wonder how many visits it will take to bring them all back and put them in our recycling bin?

Fighting a losing battle? Perhaps, but if everyone collected a hatch full of rubbish every now and again then our oceans would be a nicer and less hazardous place for wildlife.