Ocean Kayaks - keeping a family afloat.

       Further thoughts on family kayaking - in no particular order.

 

·       Wetsuits. We started by wearing shorties wetsuits, but as we became more adventurous we switched to full wetsuits – particularly good when kayaking in the spring and autumn months, and when surf kayaking in the summer. That said, if paddling a dry trip, I roll the upper part of my wetsuit down and wear a ‘skin’ under a drycag. Otherwise I get far too hot!
 

 

A beautiful morning at at Michael's Mount, Cornwall.

 

·       Drycags. My boys have been happy to paddle for hours, as long as they’ve been warm. Windproof drycags have done the trick.

 

 

·      Drybags and bungee cords. Very useful for carrying all things! Warm clothes for those onshore drinks/food stops. Small one are good for carkeys/cameras/phones et al! Ortlieb make great drybags. It’s possible to bungees the bags in various places on the kayak without compromising  its integrity.
 

 Ollie paddling on the River Wye

 

·       Trangia stove. We wouldn’t be without ours. probably the single most useful item in our outdoor store! That said, we have strapped a grill to the back of the kayak in order to grill sausages in the past.

 

·       Mackerel lines. There is no greater fun to be had than to be gently paddling  200m offshore towing a mackerel line. Not the cleverest of fish they seem to love being caught! Once we have enough for a meal we stop – and onto the beach for filleting and frying – on the Trangia. So .... a sharp filleting knife too.

 

 

·        Hats and suncream. Essential for a long day on the water - my hat's a Tilley, a long term favourite.  Sunglasses too - at sea I take mine off and put them in the drybag when I’m launching and landing - just in case.
 

A particularly difficult launch!

 

·        Bouyancy vests – essential.  Mine has pockets for suncream and a whistle.

  

 

·        Paddle leash – essential, particularly when surfing. Buy the best ones possible – I bought a useless one once, got flipped in a big surf, the leash snapped, the kayak tumbled into the beach and I spent the next ten minutes being beaten black and blue by the waves trying to get back to the beach – scary. The Ocean Kayak paddle leash seems virtually indestructable and has kept me in firm contact with my boat whenever I’ve been wiped out in the surf - often!

 

·        Ocean Kayaks. We’ve loved ours. The Malibu 2 XL is highly recommended for paddling with a child up front, and the sleeker fishing kayaks are fantastic for longer paddles and trips down the river.

 

 

·       Knowledge – I have been fortunate enough to attend a Plas Y Brenin Sea Kayaking course, and this has stood me in good stead for all the years I have been out on the sea with my family. Paddling out with the tide and timing the journey to return with the tide has given us some great trips out. The first thing we do when we arrive at the coast is buy the tide tables and start planning!

 

 

·       The River Wye – Fairly local and a great venue for many family paddles, our favourite being an April two day journey with a camp in the middle – at the most basic of campsites at Hoarwithy, with a tremendous public house next door - The New Harp Inn. Drinks and a cardgame followed by a campfire, marshmallows and a toasty sleeping bag.

Jo and the River Wye swans.

 

 

Finally - One great day Trip. Paddling from the Isle of Purbeck ferry terminal circumnavigating Brownsea Island in the middle of Poole Harbour. Landing on the far side of the island and then strolling down through the woods to the National Trust Cafe for Earl Grey tea and Carrot cake. Back through the woods, looking out for the giant ants nests, before paddling back to the ferry terminal. Then off to the Scott Arms in nearby Kingston for a well earned cider and a great meal – their cooking is outstanding!

50 things to do with the National Trust!

Getting ready for school this morning, and Radio 2 presenter Chris Evans is on the early show reading out the newly updated National Trust list - 50 things to do before you are 12.

It's a great list, and one to aspire to - wether you're a parent, child or simply looking for a good time!  I'm going to use it as the inspiration for a few blog posts, and on this occasion leaping straight to number 50, 'Canoe down a river'. A family favourite!

You can view the complete list  by clicking on this link:  50 things to do before you are 12


No 1 son Jonny is ten years of age and he and I are paddling our tandem sit on top kayak across Bala Lake in Snowdonia. The sit on top is a fantastic way to introduce children to kayaksport. They're incredibly stable and easy to climb back onto should you tip over. No fears of getting stuck underneath them in a cockpit.  You can leap on and off them at will, and they are superb to fish from on a warm summers day.

We have used our kayaks frequently to paddle away from crowded beaches  to find hidden coves, drybags attached laden with food and drink - Swallows and Amazon type picnics in remote spots only accessible from the sea.

 

 

 

 

We've paddled into huge caves, backing in carefully in order to keep our eyes on approaching swells. A little dip of the paddle is all that's needed to allow them to pass safely under the boat without pushing you too far into the back of the cave.

 

In this cave  we came across Arthur, a grand old man of a seal, who followed us around the coast for the next half hour, playing around the boats and even coming close enough to nibble away at the carrying toggle on the front of the our kayak!

 

 



Colour in the Cotswolds

Harmonious colour in Whittington village. Queen Victoria postbox!

Popped out of school at lunch time today for a cheeky little dash into the Cotswolds. But not before nipping into the dining room to line up my egg, sardines and couscous salad to provide nutrition upon return.

• No arm warmers today! Or windproof socks inside my cycle shoes! Gilet on .. more than comfortable!

D - 64 until the Tour de France 2013!

I've just been checking out the Tour de France website and they now have a super cool little countdown thing. Only 64 days to go!

 

And to keep us all satisfied we have the Giro about to start on Saturday - hurrah!

 

Will Bradley go for the win leaving The Tour open for Chris Froome? Who knows?  We're all disproportionately excited about it in our house!

 

The Cahill family holiday is now sorted. Cross the channel to Le Havre and then three days in the Loire before a night spent in Annecy - there we'll we'll almost certainly do the round of Lake Annecy before heading off down to Le Bourg D'Oisans - campsite booked near the foot of the Alpe D'Huez ready for Stage 18 when the peleton have to to do two ascents of the Alpe!

We'll be there, Union flag flying somewhere just above Dutch Corner - the orange swamped bend traditionally adopted by thousands of noisy, excited and often quite well 'oiled' Netherlanders! Fabulously friendly, riding through them is one of cycling's great experiences.

 

Between now and the beginning of the Tour I'm going to post various pictures and tales that we've enjoyed in our visits to the Greatest Race on Earth.

 

Commencing with this fellow in orange - having made his way up from the bend below - Dutch Corner - shaking hands all the way. It's scenes like these that make the four hours by the road waiting for the riders to go through so absorbing - there's always something happening!

Yellowhammers and Brimstones

Tuesday morning, out on a ride, and suddenly there’s a flash of yellow in an otherwise dreary grey morning light. There it was then ... the season’s first glimpse of a Yellowhammer!

Brimstone butterflies next, the colour of butter, and a sure precursor to warmer rides!

It’s a great colour, yellow. And it certainly attracts attention. The first daffodils of the year, the yellow label on a bottle of Wolf Blass wine, and of course the site of the yellow jersey in the Tour de France peleton.

Summer brings days of paddling in my yellow kayak, fishing for mackerel of the Devon Coast. And then there's custard, bananas, lemons, sweetcorn, peppers and pineapple.

Psychologically, yellow is the happiest colour in the colour spectrum.

 

Lovely wife Jo is also thrilled with the yellow jacket I ride in during the darker months. Pragmatically, I have grown to like it too. But I’d still rather wear black, because, even at the age of 52, I still want to look cool. The little Yellowhammer proves Jo right though ... a tiny glimpse and there it was.

As to being 52, this week the Times reported on exercise with regard to age. This was in light of an eminent journalist, Andrew Marr, suffering from a stroke hours after completing a gruelling training session on a rowing machine. Andrew Marr is 53 years of age. So this has made me think.

The Times also stated that, at 50, men are more competitive with each other than at any other time. I thought then of friend Nige and I, half wheeling each other on an otherwise pastoral ramble through the Severn Vale with our wives. Or Dave and I hitting a birthday balloon around until it became proper indoor volleyball, culminating in me breaking a rib on the arm of the sofa as I dived to retrieve his winning drive ..... with my six year old son’s birthday balloon! And finally, this time last year, of my ridiculous push to come third in the Common Room mileage competition – exhausting myself in the process – lowering my immunity levels and ending up a virus ridden mess for the next three months. But I did come third!

So, I’m still riding the miles, but I’m giving myself a break. I’m chasing the kind of fitness level whereby I can go for hours on end, but I’m happy to tackle the hills in the granny gear.  I’m making friends with my knees, instead of ignoring their irritating complaints. Slower perhaps, but possibly a lot further.

Footnote:

A few days later:  A Brimstone butterfly! Spotted whist umpiring on the Under 9’s cricket pitch. Spring may finally be here!

Tunnel vision In Mallorca

Now, I'd never ridden through a tunnel of any substantial length. The one above is in Mallorca, on the way to  Cap de Formentor, a lighthouse on the most north-easterly tip of the island. The fellow on the cycle preceded me, whilst I waited for a friendly vehicle to approach. I'd decided that I'd ride in front of it, using its lights to show me the road ahead. And sure enough it worked a treat, enabling me to zip through at a steady 17/18 mph!

 

The fellow ahead turned out to be Dutch, and he's stopped to take a photograph the other side of the tunnel. He asked me,

 

"Did you see the big rock in the road as you came through?"

 

No. I hadn't. And I can't have missed it by much either. So a close shave then, and the rock will undoubtedly be a boulder next time the story is told.

 

However, the tantrum booking of a short package to Mallorca proved to be a revelation. The Puerto Azul Suite Hotel in Puerto Pollensa was ideal - full of cyclists from Denmark on an organised Cycle Camp - and only a couple of hundred metres from the seafront. Three types of fish on offer at the evening buffet, porridge and honey for breakfast, and the Tour of the Basque Country on TV every afternoon. Bargain! 

 

In the carpark outside we bumped into Bradley Wiggins van, and later his man, wheeling the great man's suitcase from the hotel ready for the next day's riding.

Sadly we didn't see the Tour De France champion himself, but I did ride some of the roads he did on my jaunt to the lighthouse.

On the zig zags above I met two professional riders on a coaching session, their verbose trainer hollering orders at them from the team car, whilst they hurtled up the hill. I crawled up the hill, and enjoyed both the view, and the Kuota Korsa Lite Road Bike that I'd hired for the day from PollensaCycling. A flighty, stiff little aluminium number compared to my carbon Roubaix, sadly left at home - this being a short 'family' break after all.

 



Top tip now for 'family' holidays. Make sure that you sneak a pair of cycleshorts into your minimal cabin luggage (no lengthy checking in for us!). You never know if you're going to feel the urge to hire a bicycle! Forty Mallorcan miles on a narrow saddle in ordinary shorts? Only possible if you're a regular user of Brooks Saddles. Even then, you do end up feeling a little 'bruised'.

 

The Cap de Formentor ride was beautiful. A day of climbing and descending, with small amounts of level riding inbetween. Mallorca Cycling describe it thus.  

 

Although only 40km (25miles) the route is hilly and packs in 1600m (5200ft) of climbing.

 

However, like a lot of climbs in the Alps, the gradient is never too severe and the suffering is always tempered by the views. The coffee in the Lighthouse Cafe is improved by the environment, but the cakes are fabulous.

 

Arriving back at the hotel, recovery mode kicked in.

 

'I've a window of an hour in which to have a chocolate milkshake and some peanuts!'

 

This knowledegable, and desperate,  statement was greeted with, "Let's go then!"

 

Lovely Wife Jo was more than happy to venture forth to the Cappuccino Grande Cafe, now on the list of 'Great cafes we have known', there to have Olives and a Mojito.  

The Chocolate Milk Shake was of the finest kind, and greatly enhanced by the knowledge that I'd done the work to earn it.

As the drinks, peanuts, olives and the Sun went down, we soaked up the ambiance of a Mediterranean Cafe, and listened to Cappuccinno Radio. I'm listening to it now too, as I write this, next to the beautifully green, but constantly wet Cotswold Hills.

You could listen too, by clicking this link.

Cappuccino Radio

The Times, Bourneville and Velominati - reviews

Well .... time for some reviews, as all good blogs seem to have them.

First off, the Sunday Times Business supplement.  A section of the paper I rarely read, it proved to be the perfect solution when it came to drying out my drenched cycling shoes yesterday after an hours ride in the biggest downpour this side of Easter.

Next would be Cadbury's Bourneville Chocolate, four cubes of which prove to be just the fix one needs after lunchtime scrambled eggs. Not crunched between the teeth though, but rolled around and slowly melted between sips of post prandial tea - bliss.  This is the only chocolate that I am allowing myself between now and Thursday 18th of July - that being Alpe D'Huez Day on the Tour de France. 

 

The year before last I rode up the Alpe wearing my Frank Schleck Leopard Trek shirt - obviously not an option this year, him being nabbed for drugs and all.    Also, according to Velominati.com,   

Rule #17 states that, 'Team kit is for members of the team'. I'm a hypocrite here, as I stated the same with respect to football and rugby kit in an earlier post Postmen on Pashleys. What was I thinking?

This year I have my eye on a jersey from Shuttvr.com. Slightly slimmer in the fit, so action is being taken, lunchtime Bourneville consumption a small part of a bigger picture.

 

Which brings me to Velominati.com itself - the website where you can find all the rules of cycling. They state, 

 

'We are the Keepers of the Cog. In so being, we also maintain the sacred text wherein lie the simple truths of cycling etiquette known as The Rules. It is in our trust to maintain and endorse this list.

 

I found this site quite by chance. Lovely wife Jo has ordered me to buy a cycling cap with a peak, to wear under my helmet. This to protect my nose, already a little damaged by the sun. Duly obliging, I type Cycle caps into google and find an entire article on 'How to wear a cycle cap' on Velominati.com. A hugely entertaining and informative site. I shall be following Rule #22 to the letter - Cycling caps are for cycling.