Guest Blog

Biathlon and Dinner Cruise

Sun, 27 Jun 2010 21:53:14 -0400

Erik wanted to change up the hike this week and do a little more....so he showed up at my house with a plan. Some time ago we hiked into one of the Alpine Lakes (Granite Lake) and found an old boat that looked like it had been sitting around for years. Erik's plan...he bought a plug (missing last time we were here) and also picked up a couple of raft oars at garage sales - let's hike back up there and get that thing out in the water he stated. All I could think was that I haven't thought of doing something like that since I was a kid - search for an old boat and try to make it seaworthy...yea, sure.
Well, we hiked in the 5.5 miles and up 2700 feet to the lake.... and the boat was missing. After about 20 minutes we finally found it in some weeds. Well, somebody had already put a plug in it and we found a couple of old rotten oars that seemed like they might work. The boat was a bit dented up but we put it in the water and set out to cross the lake.
We were a bit concerned that Bear might overload the boat or cause us to tip so we left him on shore - he was not happy! He decided to swim along side of us for as long as he could. I was concerned about that to say the least so I dragged him into the boat - all 100 pounds plus twenty pounds of wet fur. He soaked me pretty good. So with all four of us, two kooks and two dogs, we started the second part of the biathlon and rowed around the lake.
Bear didn't know what to make of this adventure so he stayed pretty quiet in the bow and just looked around. Indy however was all over in the boat and kept jumping on my lap while I was rowing... came pretty close to being thrown into the lake during the “Bear”, Gary’s big Labfast-paced :) rowing.

Well, about 3/4 way around the lake we decided to turn this adventure into a dinner cruise. Out came the beer, chips, Bosnian sausage, and kielbasa. Yup, the biathlon ended and we just floated...and floated. Finally with the winds picking up and white caps causing us to rock we headed to shore. We stowed the boat back in the weeds and then toasted the end to the Biathlon and dinner cruise with a few sips of blackberry brandy. Not too much though as we Erik and Indyhad 5.5 miles to hike back to the trailhead. This was a great one and enjoyed by all.

Paddling in Hokianga Harbour, New Zealand

Sun, 11 Apr 2010 21:05:35 -0400

I thought you might be interested in some photos from a recent visit to the Hokianga Harbour, about 200 miles north on the west coast. The church in the last photo was celebrating its centenary and the marae played host to 500 people for lunch.

Greg Dunning

Note: I asked Greg what the marae is. His reply follows. Yackman

Greg: A marae is the modern version of the traditional Maori meeting place where visitors are welcomed and debates take place on the issues facing the tribe. There is usually some element of communal living with people(visitors) sleeping in the meeting house. There are hundreds of marae around the country some established in towns and cities in modern times to cope with the urban drift of Maori from their ancestral lands

What a beautiful country! I’ve got to paddle there! Yackman

Happy Camper’s Camp Gadget Gift Guide

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:47:41 -0500

This gift gadget Guide comes to us courtesy of YouTube.

Winter Kayaking

Sun, 13 Dec 2009 12:20:24 -0500

My friend Howard Jackson sends this along for all you house bound kayakers who long to be out in your boats this winter. That’s Howard’s daughter Tara with the paddle. Got to love those plastic boats!

Love My New Boat. Can’t Download Yackman.com

Wed, 2 Sep 2009 21:51:46 -0400

Don-

Great picture [Paddle.net Picture of the Week]. I bet that was a great trip. Did you go with an outfitter? If yes, who?
I'm going to submit a picture from this summer.

Did I ever tell you that it takes FOREVER to load you website. I have a new computer and DSL. I hate to say it but it takes so long that I give up. Have others told you that? Any suggestions so I can access it and keep up with your adventures.

I'm still volunteering for Rick [Rick French, Pack, Paddle, Ski]. I enjoy it. I get a look at his world. Man, he works hard!

I'm enjoying my Currituck. I get a lot of compliments. I find it versatile as I've been going in races (low-key) at Bay Creek, we kayak camped in the Adirondacks, and I love to play in the waves. Sue has a Hurricane Tempico. It's a nice boat but I'd like to upgrade it.

Take care,
-Bob Ames

Under Attack on the Russian River!

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:54:41 -0400

Kim and I went canoeing last weekend down the Russian River (north of SF). We invited a half-dozen friends to join us for the 4th of July (we paid some service to give us canoes and haul them back up to the start afterwards). The trip was fun, but not quiet and serene, like yours. It turns out that we weren't the only ones who had the idea of doing this on the 4th of July. So, the narrow, shallow river was clogged with canoes.

The average age of the boaters on the river was about 22, and our group was 10+ years older. It turns out that it is some kind of college tradition to hang out on the river on weekends... so most of the Brian and Kim on a much quieter and dryer day.boaters were lugging huge quantities of beer. They were all sunburned and drunk after a few hours, and that's when they turned ornery and sophomoric. Many of them were carrying huge water guns in their boats. Since we didn't know the tradition, and as the older, uncool group of 30-somethings quietly paddling down the river in our bright orange life jackets (the only ones responsible enough to wear them), we were just sitting ducks. At nearly every narrow bend in the river, the college kids were stationed with full water canons eager to pounce... and typically they manned the areas where a boater had to make a fateful choice: either A) come close to shore and get pummeled, or B) risk swinging wide into the debris and driftwood. Either way the kids had something fun to watch. In all cases, Kim and I took our punishment through "A", and we did our best to fight back with the only weapon we had... our paddles. However, one of our friends decided he had had enough and eventually chose option "B", only to find himself helplessly racked up against a fallen tree. His canoe capsized and then the drunkards ran over to him and pummeled him with their water guns anyway. So, that proved to us that option "B" is probably worse.

When the river widened near the bottom, there were fewer attacks and we managed to get some of the peace we had set out for. Like kayaking, canoeing is pretty fun, but I will say that the seats on canoes are not good... too hard. I also find that kayaks are better for my back.

Brian

Mountainman on Mt. Elbert, Colorado

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:40:24 -0400

Had a chance to go to Mt. Elbert in Colorado while visiting most of my family at a get together in Colorado Springs (youngster brothers house). We had great weather and a great time. Mt. Elbert is the highest mountain in Colorado (14,433) and the second highest in the 48 contiguous states...just behind Whitney (14,505)....and 22 feet higher than Rainier (14,411)...got the top three now! Celebrated with beer at the top....soooo good!!!
Climbing...
At the summit.....

A beer at the top....soooo good!!!

JVB’s Skin on Frame Kayak

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 10:49:04 -0400

Hi!
Attached are photos of the frame I lashed together for a Skin On Frame kayak I am building for our grandsons. I had a blast building it. Now I just might have to build one for myself.
This one will be covered with some of the Coverene material (the stuff used to cover piles of contaminated dirt - yes it is not used) I had left over from when I built one of Tom Yost's fold-up Sonnets.

Keep Smilin',
John Van Buren

Yost Sea Tour 13, side view

Yost Sea Tour 13, bow view

Yost Sea Tour 13, top view

Yackman’s Note: These photos are from March of this year. I hear that the boat is finished. How about an update John? If you have questions for John, post a comment below. I’ll be sure he sees it.

It’s Not Sea Kayaking, But a Hell of an Adventure Just the Same!

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 22:20:42 -0500

My brother-in-law, Gary Richer is an avid mountain climber. He lives in the Seattle area and climbs big mountains. (I call him “Mountainman”) He always sends trip reports and photos of his adventures. I find the stories and pictures so interesting I tell him he should do his own website. Last year he went to Africa to climb Kilimanjaro. This year it is Argentina and the 22,841 foot Aconcagua. Here is his initial report emailed home after coming off the mountain.

Gary’s Report:
Well, we finally made it back from Aconcagua. We did not make the summit but we did pretty well. This was quite a work out both physically and mentally.
Our main group consisted of Sean, Erik, an Argentinean, our guide and myself. We did have some others join us on the journey up but they were still mostly responsible for themselves - they included a couple of Iranians (now living in Canada), an Israeli, and some other Argentineans.
Martin, the Argentinean dropped out at the 17,000 foot level due to altitude problems affecting his health. The rest of us made it to the final high camp at 19,000 feet. Try carrying a full load on your back with minimal oxygen...very exhausting. We got up early the next morning and had a quick breakfast for the start of a long day for a summit bid.
I made it to 20,500 feet and was totally exhausted. It was taking a lot of effort just to work on my crampons. I was also starving - our break-fast only consisted of a small amount of oatmeal. Surviving on energy Gu and candy bars was not cutting it. Usually going down is pretty quick and easy but I was so exhausted it took quite awhile to get back to high camp. At one point I sat down in the snow to rest and fell asleep for a couple of minutes....not good. When I woke up everything was blindingly bright - very weird view. I got up and forced myself to just keep going. I ran into a Russian team camp near our site and they checked to make sure I was ok...I was fine but totally spent.
I made it back to our tent shortly after that. Our Israeli friend also checked on me and made sure I was set up for rest, food, and water. I at least made my original goal of topping out over 20,000 feet and made it higher than Denali....not the gold medal I was hoping for but bronze was ok for that day.
Erik made it another 500 higher so he hit the 21,000 foot level. He was totally exhausted too and it took him awhile to get down. He also stopped to rest and a Russian team that had also turned around came across him...told him to get moving and get down to camp. He made it down fine but had an eye edema and burst a blood vessel....he has blurry vision in one eye but should be ok.
Sean, who was almost told he couldn’t make a bid for the summit because the guide didn’t feel he was doing well, rallied and made it the farthest. He still had 2.5 hours and another 1200 feet to go to make the summit but the weather was turning bad so he and the guide turned around at that point. The weather was forcing all teams down. Just after they turned around Sean blacked out and took a tumble. He was ok but just totally exhausted. The guide was yelling at him to keep moving so they could get down quickly. They arrived back at high camp under white-out conditions but were ok.
The weather for the rest of the night was very windy, cold and snowy. It was so cold in the tents that frost was building up on everything and when the wind shook the tent we were showered with the frost. The next morning was clear and we headed back down. The trip down to base camp at 14,500 took a good part of the day....but good food and drink were awaiting us. We spent one last night at base camp before trekking to our pick up point the next day. That trek was 14 miles with another 4500-foot elevation drop. Our guide knew the park ranger so we got picked up and avoided having to hike the last mile....some may call that cheating, I call it awesome.
We stopped for beer and food on the way back to Mendoza.... best beer I ever had!!! It was dark by the time we got going again. We were all feeling pretty tired but happy to be out of the mountains. As we were riding back to the city someone asked me if I wanted an oxycotin. Having been satiated by food and beer, Pink Floyd was cranked up in the van, and I could see the Southern Cross in the night sky....I responded, naw....everything is just fine.

Paddling in the Bay Islands of New Zealand

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 19:51:11 -0500

FYI: It’s summer in New Zealand and the paddling looks lovely. Some of you may remember that I posted these photos earlier. I had to remove the page at that time because I couldn’t correct a number of technical issues. Hopefully this second attempt will be successful.
Yackman

Here are a few pictures showing a typical day’s paddling in the famous Bay of Islands
Regards,
Greg Dunning
A.K.A. Musselman

The beach at Urepukapuka Island

Thanks Greg!

The Return to Million Dollar Beach

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:51:30 -0500

After Ruth, Frank and Don paddled off to finish the length of Lake George, Alan, Karl, Phelps and I headed east over to the rocks that Frank mentioned were owned by a conservancy. There was a great jumping off ledge and a rope hanging to the water. Karl was trying to figure out how to get out and try the jump.
For us the day continued as it started, a great paddle south back to the St Sacrament Island campsite with stops on Mallory Island and a beach just south of Silver Bay on the west side. I think we got back to St. Sacrament about 4:30. I really enjoyed the last hour on the water, skirting in and out of the islands, the water was like glass, the sun raking low over the mountains and the fall colors were rich, tinged with the warmth of the late autumn sun contrasted against the deep purple sky. For supper Alan made linguini with a sort of Alfredo sauce with crabmeat and broiled up a pile of scallops, served of course with a nice Pinot. Another great meal by the master chef. We had a nice fire and Phelps joined us for yarns, tea and chocolate.
Monday morning we were on the water by about 10 am. We might have started earlier but Alan wanted to make omelets for breakfast. I'm lucky that I fit back into my kayak. We woke to a strong steady wind from the south and grey skies. It wasn’t cold but the wind looked like it might slow us down a little. But by the time we got going the wind died down. We stopped at Hen & Chickens Island and then at a beach near Camp Chingachgook for lunch. Phelps was interested in a boat on the beach that looked like a surfing kayak with a pontoon.
We stopped on the south end of Long Island for a break and then the last leg back to the Million Dollar beach launch. It was getting late, I was a little tired, there wasn't much in the way of conversation. The cars were still there, the only problem was all the sand we picked up unloading. Karl and Phelps headed off for Vermont and I was home by 6. Alan still had another three or four hour drive to PA. I figured we averaged about 20 miles a day paddling. It would have been nice to reach the north end of the lake. Next time.
All in all a great three-day paddle, great weather, great water, beautiful scenery, and best of all a great group of paddlers.
Bruce

A Rogue’s Gallery of Lake George Paddlers
Frank Montbriand and Don Yackel (Yackman) on Lake George.
Photo by B. Romanchak
Alan Lovgren, Phelps Holloway and Karl Riemer on Lake George.
Photo by B. Romanchak
Ruth Miller on Lake George.
Photo by D. Yackel
Bruce Romanchak on Lake George.
Photo by D. Yackel

Go to Yackman’s Blog, “Lake George End to End” for a report of the first two days of this trip.

Three Perfect Days on the Hudson River

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 10:45:40 -0400

Trip Report:

Last Friday (September 19th), 7 of us, including my youngest son Daniel, set out from Albany for a 3 day paddle that was part of the Hudson River Ramble. The weather was superb for the entire trip. First day we did a leisurely 9 miles to Schodack Island State Park where we had a special permit to set up our tents. A little hiking and some relaxing followed.
The next morning we did a small portage and put in on the East side of Schodack Island. From there we set out to paddle the approximately 13 miles to the Hudson River Islands to camp at Gays Point. There were numerous sightings of Herons, King Fishers and Eagles. We might have set a record by sighting 6 Bald Eagles in one tree at the same time.
Lunch stop was a little restaurant in the small town of Stuyvesant. Finally we returned the same way on Sunday. We could not resist another stop, at the same restaurant, this time for Sunday brunch. Later we kept to the West of Schodack Island past New Baltimore to end up back at the State Park for the end of a very pleasant weekend. Good company, good food and outstanding weather made this a prime Hudson Ramble event.
For those that participated and those that would like a photo tour, I have posted our pictures at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/mofridlich/Sept19th2008HudsonRiverRamble?authkey=Z2-nW6PqSx0#