Any Lake/River Kayakers?

piedmontfields
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Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby piedmontfields » Fri Nov 16, 2018 3:26 pm

I am finally taking the plunge to get us our own recreational kayaks so that we can enjoy the Tennessee river and associated lakes just down the road from our place. We have kayaked on vacation (usually at the NC coast and inter-coastal waterways and sound) a number of times and always enjoyed it. However, we are far from expert!

Any great tips or insights on essential gear for colder weather lake kayaking? Yes, we are going to start playing with our new toys in winter! (it is the south after all, and in summer the lake is filled with power boats and jet skis)

I selected the Dagger Axis 10.5 as a compromise kayak---hardy and decent for tooling around the lake edge and inlets and okay for up to class 2 on occasion, but with a skeg for better tracking across longer stretches of lake.

texsuze
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Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby texsuze » Sun Nov 18, 2018 6:51 pm

I bought a Perception Tribe 9.5 (sit on top) a couple weeks ago. My plan is to kayak on a river which is about 25 minutes from me; we actually have nice warm days (yesterday sunny, 60F) sprinkled throughout winter.

No insights, since I'm a total newbie, but for me, I plan to use either a full or partial glove for hands, some easily removable top layers, and scupper plugs. Sales guy told me to get some Walmart foam (?) golf balls to use as plugs, as they are apparently a perfect fit for my boat. I'm thinking that keeping my rear from sitting in water is likely the most essential way to enjoy winter on the water, but others may have better ideas.

piedmontfields
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Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby piedmontfields » Mon Nov 19, 2018 12:10 am

I hope you enjoy your new river adventures, texsuze! We are about 3-4 minutes from the river and at most 10 from a couple of good put-in spots. Your boat should be super maneuverable. I will report back on ours. I'm most looking forward to watching sandhill cranes (who migrate through this region in winter) from kayak. We also have tons of osprey and bald eagles on the river.

I think of sit-on-tops as being for warm days (like really warm), but I have only used them in summer + light ocean waves. I got spray skirts to help us be happy in cold lakes. Yes, planning on being immersed is part of kayaking---not that it is necessarily that common on calm waters. Still, PFDs are a must. A not too thick wetsuit might be good gear for both of us (I'm going to wait a bit before getting one).

NancyP
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Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby NancyP » Tue Nov 20, 2018 2:19 pm

I bought a kayak (half-price/end-of-season clearance :) ) in September, but it's now store away for the winter.... I'm in Ontario!
I live and work 2 minutes from 2 beautiful lakes, with easy access to launching and used it 5-6 times before it got too chilly.
Can't wait for next year :)

I splurged on the lighter-weight carbon paddles.
My seat is very adjustable and comfy but I did get a boat seat cushion to give me some extra height...I am quite short and the cushion gives me an extra 2".
A paddling PFD is much better than just a regular boating one....shorter in the body so it doesn't shift up towards my neck when I sit down.
I also have a long flexible safety orange flag to put in behind my seat.

piedmontfields
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Location: E Tennessee USA

Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby piedmontfields » Thu Nov 22, 2018 12:06 am

The flag is a great idea, Nancy. I'm on a river/flooded to make a lake (TVA) and there are many, many powerboats and jet skis in summer. Not so much in winter (just die-hard fishers). Being visible is important, though!

I did not get fabulous paddles to start, as I was not sure of what we would prefer. I'll see how the "starter" paddles are to handle. I did get paddle style PFDs for us, so glad to hear that was a good choice.

Woost2
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Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby Woost2 » Fri Nov 23, 2018 2:57 am

We have a small fleet of Hobie kayaks with mirage drive. All sit on top. They are good fun in a lake that can have good chop and significant wind. Puts the work into the big leg muscles.

piedmontfields
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Location: E Tennessee USA

Re: Any Lake/River Kayakers?

Postby piedmontfields » Thu Dec 13, 2018 12:44 am

So about 10 days ago we did our inaugural paddle on the Tennessee River (which is called a lake near us because it is wide). It was 65 F and sunny that day :-) I am pleased to report that riding and spin fitness translated to easy paddling for me ("use the core") but my trim runner of a DH was like "why are you leaving me in the dust?!" We both need to study good technique (the dressage geek in all of us) because, you know, technique matters.

It is a really nice scene from the water, as you have lovely mountain views and even the lake house development recedes pretty quickly when you go around a bend. Bird sightings included cormorants, kingfishers, blue herons, and osprey. We plan to get back to it once work calms down and it warms up a bit. I was really glad I got the spray skirts and booties even at 65 F!

p.s. The Dagger Axis 10.5 AP kayaks are really quite decent. They don't track like a serious touring kayak, but they are not bad at all. We did not use the skeg on a day with winds of ~10mph. The boats are quite stable and maneuverable.


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