Coosa Canoe and Kayak Trail Lay Lake Open

Back in March, I joined 34 other anglers on Lay Lake to kick off the 2014 season Of the Coosa Canoe and Kayak Fishing Trail, organized by Coosa Riverkeeper. http://coosariver.org/kft/ It was a dreary March day complete with cold, clouds, and wind. Wait, did I mention the wind?
I had never fished Lay Lake, so I spent a little time searching the satellite photos looking for a likely spot. During my research I found out that there was a huge glitterboat tournament happening the same day. That, coupled with the wind, led me away from the numerous boat ramps in search of a secluded cove.
I slid in at daybreak at my chosen launch point and began casting over the grass. 3 hrs later, I was still casting over the grass, with not so much as a splash. I had seen numerous bass boats trying the same strategy, so I stuck with it, and was rewarded with a nice 17.25 fish to get me on the board. I continued this for another hour or so with nothing. I knew from my efforts and those of the observed bass boats, that it was a tough day for everyone. I decided then to head back to my starting area, and tie on something small just to get my card filled. This netted me another decent fish and several small ones. Nearing the end of the day with a full card, I went big ...more

Also posted on playak.com

Back2Basics Substance Abuse Residents Take Kayaking Class for the First Time

 

Current residents at Back2Basics Outdoor Adventures, a long-term substance abuse treatment program in Flagstaff, AZ, learn to kayak safely for the first time and develop an understanding of equipment and paddle strokes in preparation for next week's wilderness therapy trip to the San Juan River.
"I think that [the kayaking course] teaches [residents] to listen and trust, which are two things that they struggle with in their early part of their sobriety," said Francisco Rendon, Back2Basics residential program director who also took his first kayaking class with the residents.
For many residents the biggest challenge they face in class is learning to "wet exit," which is ...more

Heart and Stroke hosting fun kayak event

 

 It's only fitting that a fundraiser event for the Heart and Stroke (H&S) Foundation in Timmins provides an excellent cardio workout. And it's fun.

Timmins H&S program coordinator Alana Toner is organizing Kayak For The Heart Of It, which has become a regular attraction at the Great Canadian Kayak Challenge and Festival, which takes place in Timmins on the weekend of August 22nd, 23rd and 24th.

“This really is an excellent cardio workout,” said Toner, who said she is excited about the fact that the H&S kayak event is one that usually attracts many novices to kayaking, who then fall in love with the sport.

“This is a fantastic way to get some exercise in. And it's really a fun way for people who haven't experienced kayaking before. It is a good way for people to expand their physical activity,” Toner said.

Participants don't need a kayak, Toner explained. She said three-person teams are invited to join because the Heart and Stroke foundation provides very stable three-man kayaks for the event.

“We provide the kayaks. The thing you have to bring are life-jackets. We've got everything else you need,” she said.

Toner said she is urging all kayakers to join ...more

Making better kayaking videos with minimal effort

I have been making video for around 20 years now, and making video professionally for around 15. I have to confess that I am not big on filming my own kayaking adventures, preferring instead to leave that to others on the trip and focus on my own paddling. However I have produced kayaking videos in a professional capacity as promos for coaching and kayak companies, which has involved taking cumbersome camera gear out onto the river.

The biggest difference between a professional and the results that they get when compared to an amateur mainly lies in the time taken and the gear hassle a pro will put up with. To get good shots involves blood, sweat, and tears. Frankly put, making a video to a professional standard is actually a complete pain in the backside, but we put up with all the hassle because we are employed to get excellent results.

An amateur does not have pressure from a client to do this and instead simply wants to get a good record of their day out. Having said this there are many paddlers out there who would like to get better results. For younger paddlers having a trust fund or a parent to buy a swanky £6k or more camera for them is also not on the cards, and most full time employed dads wouldn’t be spending that sort of money on a camera to film their kayaking adventures with either.

Most paddlers are equipped with GoPro’s or other equivalent cameras. The GoPro is generally popular due to the abundance of mounts and the overall quality that it now produces. There are many ways in which you can get much more from your GoPro, particularly if it is a Hero3 or Hero3+ Black Edition. It would take me a long time to go into each of the ways you can set up these cameras, and I will save it ...more
Also posted on playak.com

Grand Isle guide says speckled-trout action is worst he's ever seen

 

Danny Wray may be the busiest man in America right now. Not only is he in the midst of planning the largest kayak tournament in the world, he's working extremely hard every day to put clients on speckled trout in the waters around Grand Isle.
He said the former has been a much easier task than the latter.
"The trout came late this year. In June, there were two weeks when it was pretty easy to go round up 45 or 50 trout, and ever since then, it's been like playing a game of ...more

2014 USA Canoe/Kayak Sprint National Championships

 

The 2014 USA Canoe/Kayak Sprint National Championships will be contested at the Lake Lanier Olympic Venue in Gainesville, GA, beginning on Thursday, July 31st through Saturday, August 2nd.

Organizers have chosen one of the world’s most perfect locations for the premier teams to battle one another in this elegant sport.  The Lake Lanier Olympic Venue is slowly being returned to its once global prominence, thanks to local leaders who understand the treasure we have in our backyard.

This is the site of the 1996 Olympic venue for ...more

Deadliest year on the Arkansas belies safety record

Buena Vista – This year has been the deadliest on record since Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area began tracking boating-related fatalities in 1990.
Seven people have died in boating-related accidents. Four were private parties. Three were on commercial rafting trips. There have been additional fatalities, including a man who drowned this week after disembarking from his inflatable kayak.

After 2 years without a single boating-related death, the recent string of victims serves as a grim reminder of the Arkansas River’s inherent risks.

“‘Safe’ is a word we do not use,” Echo Canyon River Expeditions owner Andy Neinas said. “I cannot guarantee your safety – all I can do is provide you with the best service possible, the best guides possible and the best information possible, which is of paramount importance.”

Fatalities do happen, and AHRA records indicate the number of ...more

Ride the Bull, world's largest kayak tournament, will smash last year's record

 

Last year, 488 anglers stuffed themselves into little bitty boats, paddled out into Caminada Pass and dropped natural baits to the bottom in hopes of running across a redfish big enough to win Ride the Bull IV. The event set a record for the largest kayak tournament in the world.

If tournament organizer Danny Wray is correct, this year's crowd will eat last year's for lunch.

"I told the caterer to plan on 700. We're at 400 right now, and we still have two and a half weeks," Wray said Wednesday. "My phone rings five times a day with Ride the Bull questions, which is a good gauge of ...more

Summer on southern Colorado river fulfills adventure-seeker's dream

 

It was in April 2012 when Joel Cook, an appeals lawyer in Texas, was injured in a car wreck.
It was a pivotal moment in Cook's life, leading him to wonder if he should pursue all of those lingering pipe dreams before it was too late.

"I really just decided it was time to do new things," says Cook, 36. He was single with no kids and nothing holding him back.
Cook went to Costa Rica and surfed for a winter and then moved to Silverthorne, where he spent a season waiting tables and snowboarding in Summit County. Another idea lingered, though: spending a summer as a raft guide.
Cook grew up in Alaska, exploring the rivers there, but he wanted more experience - enough so that he ...more

Rafting through ANWR, to protect the 'Last Great Wilderness

 

 The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge has long been considered the "Last Great Wilderness" of the United States, and it's no surprise why. Located on nearly 19.3 million acres of tundra in the northeast corner of Alaska, this natural treasure is the largest and one of the most remote refuges in the U.S. It also happens to be one of the most threatened.

 

Thanks to the Wilderness Act of 1964, the refuge continues to thrive, but the onset of oil and gas exploration in the refuge's northern coastal plain, also known by petroleum companies as Area 1002, may soon change that. Only about 40 percent of the refuge is officially designated as a protected wilderness area. This area, known as the Mollie Beattie Wilderness Area, includes 8 million acres of arctic, subarctic and alpine ecosystems that are home to caribou, polar bears, moose, musk oxen and seals.

 

The map below offers a better understanding of how the petroleum industry is encroaching on the environment. The areas in red represent privately owned drill sites and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. Though the refuge's Area 1002 is small in contrast to the National Petroleum Reserve (the largest stretch of undisturbed public land in the U.S.), its coastal plain landscape happens to be the site of ...more

Message II / Satoru Yahata / Rough seas will help you become tougher: Adventurer

 

The Japan News This is the seventh installment of the “Message II” series, in which marine adventurer Satoru Yahata describes his epic journey by kayak in stages from Australia to Japan and what he learned through encounters with fishermen.

* * *

I’ve spent about 20 years of my life with the sea, traveling around Japan and other Asian nations by sea kayak and working in Okinawa Prefecture as a guide to help people have real wildlife experiences.

When I was a novice kayaker in my mid-20s, my kayak sank in rough seas between Iriomotejima and Haterumajima islands in Okinawa Prefecture. It was the most dangerous moment of my life. I had to swim for about six hours to reach land. The accident was caused by my own immaturity. I did not closely check the weather forecast and the kayak’s condition. In rough seas, it is pointless competing with other people in a kayak. Everyone is weak. Under such severe circumstances, people are forced to think seriously about how to ...more