3 years

I have now been kayaking every month since April 2014. That is every month for three years! And I think that I have been on the Lake Vänern every month as well.

This day me and my friend Christer had snow, rain, wind with us, wind against, calm and sun. Spring weather! We started at the Yttre Bodane nature reserve and at the jetty a bit from the parking lot. Some ice at first but then open water and with a good pace we went mostly outside the islands upp to Vingens hamn and around Gåsön. 

As it then started to rain (mixed with some snow) we went ashore and into the trees to have our lunch. After a bit it stopped raining and the sun was back.

At the trip back we had some head winds and with my Gemini I had to paddle hard to keep up with Christer.
We saw the first ospreys for the season, probably getting their nest ready. 

All in all a very nice day and good training for a long trip we will have in Norway this summer. (More about that in a later blog post).

Some statistics from the day:

Distance = 22,1 km

Time = 5:17 

Travel time = 3:33

Average speed (whole day) = 4.1 km/h

Average speed (paddling) = 6.1 km/h

Max. speed = 8 km/h

Christer is getting ready to go out in the ice.

I put the GoPro on Christers kayak. Here we got some small surf.

Not yet summer!

Christer at our "fika" break

On our way back

Christer in his Arrow play

It's not possible to paddle into the quarry at Trollön  with this low water level.

My Gemini

Nice!

New kayak

I have now bought a new kayak. It's a Valley Gemini SP that I will use mostly for surfing and rock hopping as it's a durable plastic kayak. I got the kayak from Kajakguiderna where I also bought the Nordkapp and Anas Acuta.

Length=4,52 m (14'10")
Width= 0,56 m (22")
Weight= 26,5 kg (58,5 lbs)

After testing it a few weeks back I decided to by this model. As it's not possible to get one in black I took a red one, that will fit nicely with the rest of my gear.

I was out today with my friends Christer and Johnny and we started at the beginning of Göta älv (Göta River) where there is a current and no ice. It has been a very beautiful day with about -6° Centigrade at the start and about 0° when we came back. Partly a lot of ice and som nice places to cruise around in the ice fields. And breaking ice in some places.

The review of the kayak so far:

Easy to maneuver but not as easy as my Anas Acuta, but better than the Nordkapp. You could lean a lot with this one without tipping over. Slower than the Anas Acuta and a lot slower than the Nordkapp, it's a much shorter kayak. Great cockpit and seat as on all Valleys kayaks.
We didn't have much sea on this trip but the small waves that I found was enough to have some short surf. That I would not have on my other two kayaks from Valley. This will be a superb kayak for surfing.
I did one roll in the cold water, was working ok. Very good knee braces that makes a back sweep roll easy but the Anas Acuta is of course a much better kayak for rolling. You just have to be more thorough when making the roll in a Gemini.

It's going to be a great kayak and I can't wait to take it out in rough weather!

My new Gemini with my Anas Acuta behind it.

On the way into the water for the first time

Freezing on deck

We found a nice reef for a "fika" break.

Johnny and Christer

Nice kayak

The sun was very nice this late February day.

A new year

Then its 2017 and the kayaking year has started. My first trip was on January 3 as I was working the first two days of the year. This was a short trip at Sunnanå, close to home. Watch the video from that trip.
Then a few days later I joined Friluftsfrämjandet on a trip with 10 other kayakers. This was at Lysekil on the Swedish west coast and it was cold, windy and very nice! I did my first two rolls of the year and we had a hot sauna waiting for us after the trip! Very, very nice as we were a bit cold by then.

Photos from January 3

Not too cold, but freezing

No ice?

Sunnanå yacht harbor

40 shades of gray (and some red) Very sexy 😜

Me breaking ice (from my GoPro)

More grey scale and some red. (Thank you Photoshop)

Photos from January 8

Winter. -8°C when leaving home. Here about -2°C

Freezing on deck as the rest are preparing

One of the leaders, Anette.

Lining up for a photoshoot 

Congestion (efter this a made two rolls)

The winter is here

I have been busy and not had time to update on my blog lately. But here I am with a post from the Swedish winter.

First I was out on a very stormy day for some kayak surfing. This was while waiting at the pilot station for a ship to come. The canal was closed due to strong winds as they could't open the bridges.
A lot of fun! I shared the beach with two surfers. It was 24 m/s winds (about 50 knots) and that was a new record for me. It was very hard to get out to surf back and a bit more then an hour and I was too tired to continue. Watch the short video clip from my surfing session. And I didn't tip over one single time! This surf training is very good.

Then after a few days of snowing I took a trip from Sunnanå to Köpmannebro and back. Snow, ice and very beautiful. It was about -2° centigrade in the air and the only thing I was freezing were my feet. I have to get something better to wear in my kayaking boots. Thicker wool socks? I have new poogies, Snap Dragon "Hyper Hands", the best I've had for protecting my hands against the cold.
There is a video from that trip as well. That was the first time I edited a film with Premiere Elements and on my new computer. I am very pleased with this computer, the programs are not crashing for me now.

A one minute film made on my iPad for Instagram.

Wonderful!

I am not alone in the waves

Snow!

It can hardly be more beautiful

My hot Anas Acuta is cooling off.

No more ice

For the first time this year I didn't see any ice on the lake or any snow on the shores. I think the winter is over!
I did a short trip at about 20 km from Sunnanå and towards Köpmannebro. In the calm evening I practiced some kayak technique and went in and out of bays and through small reefs. A wonderful evening all alone out on the Lake Vänern.

This coming weekend is it time for Hunneberg Outdoormässa (Outdoors fair). I will represent Crossing Latitudes and NOLS. Come and visit me there!

Hunnebergs Outdoormässa

Very empty at the guest harbour

Some of all the boathouses at Sunnanå

Not very windy today

Selfie!

Exploring passages between reefs

I need a more narrow kayak.

Vänersborg

I have been working a lot last week and been to tired to go out the few days I've had the chance to go kayaking. But now finally after some hours sleep and with I beautiful weather I took the chance.

Not far from our pilot station at "Sanden" in VänersborgI started at the still empty marina. Then along the coast past "Skräcklan" and to "Nordkroken" beach. Turning back I took some coffee at "Långa Maja" first.
A wonderful afternoon and most of the time I didn't need anything on my head! A first this year. But as you can see on a couple of the photos there are still some ice.



In the background the old water tower of Vänersborg

A break at "Långa Maja"

Nice sun



This was as far as I got this way

The ice is still pretty thick. But getting soft

Back at Vänersborg marina, No boats at all in the water yet.