What's in my quiver.

This is the current contents of my quiver.  On the left is the original tip design of 

the paddles I get from Shaman kayaks however, since I also use my paddles as tools, I 

asked John if he could redesign the tip for me making it a bit shorter and stronger
which he gladly did.  The paddle in the center is the result of this change with the
paddle being made of spruce and is quite a bit heavier than the original red cedar he
uses on his standard Greenland paddles.  The paddle on the right is "The Beast"!
Same new tip design but a full 1/2 inch wider.  I love this bad boy!
(See the post below for more info on my paddles.)

Ok, so it's been awhile...

I was out paddling a week ago or so when a couple friends of mine happened upon me while I was practicing my self rescues and one of them asked why I stopped adding to my blog.  "Good question!" I replied and wondered just why I had stopped.  Ok, so I'll start again and see where it leads.

I finally got back out on the water after a month's absence.  Why a whole month without paddling I'm not quite sure but that period is history and I'm "back in the saddle" as they say.  I forgot how nice it was to just get out there and paddle around the Santa Monica Bay or better yet,  drive up to Channel Islands Harbor to play in the pond or head out to platform Gina.  I've had tons of hobbies in my life and have enjoyed them all but I do have to say that sea kayaking is far different from everything I have tried so I think I'm going to stick with it.  Not only is it great exercise but if you need some peace and quiet or a good adrenalin rush there is no better way, in my book anyway, to achieve either.

Recently I purchased a custom built Greenland paddle from John Petersen of Shaman Kayaks.  This one I had a hand in designing as I wanted something with a wider blade,  a tiny bit shorter and a lot heavier for my wild adventures and for a good overall workout.  And I got exactly what I wanted and I call it...."The Beast"!  I've handed it over to a few people who gasp at it's weight (made of Spruce) but I'm quite use to it now and really like it.  It's not a paddle I would use for a long haul but I find the swing weight  amazing.  I'll admit that it takes a bit to get it going but once you do it has this amazing fly-wheel effect.  That and the 4" wide blades make for a good workout.

I also wanted to play with the strokes river kayakers use so often like bow rudders, etc. and this paddle really performs well in that arena.  You have to remember that river kayakers mainly use Euro style paddles with really wide blades for fast response when digging in.  My new paddle is kind of a cross between the two.  Next I want to have one built with the same dimensions but out of red cedar like most of John's paddles to eliminate some of the weight.  'Course I have to wait for John to get home from Alaska or where ever he is.