Another very nice autumn day. We have had a lot of those this year.
This Sunday I was out with 25 other kayakers from Friluftsfrämjandet (an outdoors organization) and we paddled about 15 km outside Lysekil. This is a town on the Swedish West coast (North Sea) and there is a nice archipelago outside the small town.
The weather forecast is now warning for snow and colder weather so it's best to enjoy every day possible.
I did a few rolls at the end of the trip. Working very good but I didn't test any "storm roll" as I have to practice more indoors first to have a solid roll. But the laid-back and butterfly rolls are almost perfect.
I am testing a new video editor, the AVS Video editor. It's better than GoPro studio but I will try Adobe Premiere Elements on the next video. I will also have a new computer next week, that will save me a lot of irritation. The one I have now is too old and slow.
A windy Friday I had some time to go out surfing with my Anas Acuta before going to Karlstad for piloting a ship. Very, very nice! It's getting a bit cold (8°C in the water and a bit colder in the air) but going in and out of the seas makes you warm.
I was at Ursands Camping where I tested the Black Pearl a week before. Almost the same height of the waves. But I feel a lot more comfortable in My Anas Acuta than in the Black Pearl. No wonder as I have about 2000 km in my A.C. That is a kayak I don't step in to, I wear it!
I think I have decided about what kayak to get next time. It will be a good plastic kayak for rock hopping, surfing and rolling. That is also good for lending to my friends and family. A Black Pearl will be used almost exclusively by me and it's not a practical kayak as its very small and can't take any cargo. Good mostly only for surfing and rolling.
Now it's only to decide what kayak to buy :)
We had a very nice kayak trip on one of Sweden's most paddled lakes. This is a 15 km long and narrow lake in Dalsland that is not connected to the Dalslands Kanal. In June, July and August this lake is probably the place in Sweden where you see most canoes, open canoes and kayaks. People from all around Europe come to this part of Sweden for canoeing and most of them end up in this lake sooner or later.
I try to avoid Svärdlång during that period and go there either early spring or in the autumn. This time I brought some friends with me who some of them had never paddled in the area. We stayed at a prepared camp site which is mandatory on this lake. Normally in Sweden "Allemansrätten" applies but as there are so many people camping here at summer the land owners like to lessen the impact by concentrating the visitors to certain spots. The camp sites are managed by DANO rangers and there are a fire pit, fire wood and an outhouse.
October can be very beautiful with all the colors in the nature and that was what we had. Very windy but int this narrow lake with high cliff sides we were not so affected by the wind. And in the night and morning it was completely calm.
Camp fire, evening kayak trip, sleeping outdoors, no rain, good company, good food and a lazy morning with some rays of sunlight. What more can you want?
I was very pleased that I could show my friends this paradise.
A blue lake
Nils & Magnus (son & father)
Frida and my daughter Paula are having breakfast in bed
I have now tested the Black Pearl for the third time. I love the kayak, it's narrow hull and tight fit. At first I thought I was going to have trouble to enter the small ocean cockpit but that was not any problem. And as I showed in the last post, it's very,very nice to roll with. An it surfs well also.
What are the downsides then? Well not really any downsides but the question is do I need such a kayak? I always need a new kayak, of course! But is this the right one? I do have my Anas Acuta which is a similar kayak, although more roomy, and I can roll that almost as easily. That is the kayak I use for shorter trips and for weekend trips. The Black Pearl is to small for taking gear for a weekend trip it will work only for a day trip. (At least with the gear I use)
I think I have more use of a plastic kayak for rock hopping and surfing where I do not like to take a fiberglass kayak. A plastic kayak is also better for lending to other people.
So my blog readers, what do you think? Please make a comment about it.
Yesterday i did my first real lecture about my summer trip to Alaska. About 40 persons came watching! More than expected and I think it went well.
The first indoors roll training session for the season. We have a local swimming hall where we can practice every Monday evening while the personell are cleaning the premises. Thanks to all nice persons working at Rådahallen!
This Monday evening I'm there with Anders and Kajsa to improve or rolls and try to master new ones. I have tried to make a storm-roll before without success. But with some help from a video (This is the Roll) I can now do it. Not very good yet but I'm on my way.
No photos this time a I was too busy to take any but I ave a small video.
The unusual warm Indian summer is now over. A strong north-easterly wind is bringing cold air down over Sweden. Not much rain but very cold and strong winds.
The day before this cold weather arrived was the first Sunday in October and I was out with Friluftsfrämjandet in Lidköping on a day-trip. We were 14-15 kayaks and had a very nice time.
As it is now October I have been kayaking 30 months straight. And every month on Lake Vänern!
Then I was out a windy day testing a home built kayak. This is a Black Pearl that Fredrik at Kajakguiderna has built and the design is by Björn Thomasson whom I met at Stocken kayak meet. I have plans to maybe build one myself. It is a very narrow and low-stability kayak, ocean cockpit and a lot of fun. Perhaps the weather wasn't the best for testing such a kayak? Or maybe it was? Anyway I had one and a half hour of fun and was really tired afterwards. Now I have to test rolling this kayak also. More about that in the next post.
Confusion at the start
Sara, one of our leaders in her beautiful Thae Greenland
