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.

Testing a Reed Chillcheater tuiliq

After much thinking a bought a tuiliq from Reed Chillcheater in the UK. I ordered it from them with my measures and two weeks later it arrived in my mailbox. I have the standard keayhole design without the fleece lining. I was thinking it was better to have more layers under and be able to use it almost year around instead of having one that will be to hot most of the year. I think I did the right decision!

With two friend, Anders and Kajsa, we went out on the Lake Vänern a very beautiful January 21:st. It was about 5°C when we started and close to 0°C when we were back in Sunnanå yacht harbor. The temperature in the water is just above freezing!

We went up to Köpmannebro and had som fika (coffee break) on the way. One of the most beautiful kayak trips I have taken on the Lake Vänern.

The tuiliq is great! I have a merino wool top and bottom and a neoprene sweater on. And a pair of old dry pants. (I also got new socks and for the first time this winter I didn't get cold feet when kayaking.)
It was cold at the start but as soon as we started paddling it got a bit warm. When taking a break I didn't need to put a jacket on and when we got back at Sunnanå I had just the perfect temperature. I did a roll in the cold water and that was cold! The tuiliq worked perfect but as I had no insulation on my head except the hood of the tuiliq my head got rather cold. But as you can see in the video I was ok.
For my first test I'm very pleased with the tuiliq. It gives me more freedom of movement than with a dry-suit and spray-skirt and it's better ventilated as it's open to the cockpit. I do get some water in at the sides of my face as I wear glasses, but it's tight around the neck and head so not much water will enter. My cockpit stayed dry except some water that came in with my boots. I'm looking forward to test it more.

Anders in his Rebel kayak

Anders again 

Anders and Kajsa

Me in my new tuiliq

The sun is on the way down, it's 4 pm (16:00)

Kajsa

The start of  Dalslands Kanal

Reed Chillcheater tuiliq

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)

Advent Sunday and Alaska video

What a beautiful day!
This is the last Sunday of November and it's also the First of Advent (Advent Sunday) this year. I was again out with Friluftsfrämjandet in Lysekil for a day trip with our kayaks. I think we were about 25 or 26 persons that took the trip around Flatön south of Lysekil on the Swedish west coast.
As it was a windy day and some were not that used to kayak in heavy sea we stayed inshore all the time. Good call as both the air and watertemp are rather low this time of the year.

I did have my GoPro with me but I didn't like the what I filmed this time. Too much salt on the lens. I did do a roll at the end in the frigid water and had my friend Anders filming with the GoPro. But he turned it around the wrong way :)
So instead I here post a long video from my trip in Alaska this summer..

Anyway it was a magical weather this beautiful day.

Getting ready

My Anas Acuta in the sun

My GoPro looks like a floodlight :)

The sun was shining like this the whole day. (Short days this time of the year)

My GearLab paddle

My friends from Mellerud, Kajsa and Anders

End of October

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.

At the start

A lot of kayaks!

Fredrik and Marcus, two of the leaders.

What a day!

Fredrik against the sun.

At our lunch break.

Svärdlång

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

Breakfast

October colors

Making coffee

Lena

Kayak morning

October morning

Kajsa and Anders

Kajsa

Night paddling 

Very low water on the lake this beautiful morning

Magnus is taking a morning trip

We are all having breakfast

Ghosts around the camp fire

Nils at late evening

Svärdlång

Susanne in the evening

Making waffles

Tea and coffee for breakfast

Sun is coming up also this day

Nils on a morning trip

My daughter Paula in my Nordkapp