A muggy mission to see a man about a kayak

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How about that sudden change of seasons we had this week. I had this feeling it would be instantaneous this year, what with the way “spring” dragged on forever. I had hoped the transition wouldn’t have been sudden. I need time to acclimate.

But no, we went from the 40s to the 80s overnight! Last Saturday as I tried to stay motivated and get some work done around the house, I found myself returning to the lemonade bottle about every other minute!

And while Sunday wasn’t as hot, it was uncomfortably muggy. I ran into and out of half a dozen rain pockets on my way south to Auburn late in the afternoon. But muggy or wet I didn’t much care, because I was on a mission to see a man about a kayak.

We met on the Internet about a month ago. He had a boat he wanted to sell. I was in the market. It took about three weeks of crossed e-mails and missed phone calls (he works nights in New Hampshire, I days), but we finally made contact Sunday morning and arranged to meet at the Park and Ride lot at the Auburn exit on the turnpike.

He and his wife showed up at the appointed hour and we talked kayaks and paddling. I came back to Bangor with another kayak. This one’s a British design by Valley Canoe Products of England. I think I’m going to like it.

I couldn’t get on the water with it until Tuesday evening with a class of beginner paddlers at Pushaw Lake being taught by Karen Francoeur of Castine Kayak Adventures. I was invited to lend a hand with this friendly group. Much of our short time on the water was spent pretty close to shore going over some basic strokes. My group seemed pretty competent for first-timers.

Wednesday evening’s dripping, threatening skies didn’t do much to encourage being out on the water so I spent a couple of hours cleaning and waxing my latest acquisition. The kayak cleaned up well and looks almost new. Sure, there are a few scratches, but I’m sure there’ll be a few more in the coming months.

By Thursday night the anticipation of getting on the water was too much. I headed for Pushaw Lake and let the boat take me where it wanted to go – Moose Island, Hardwood and Dollar. A gentle breeze kept the emergent cloud of mosquitoes at bay and helped make the outing a pleasant sunset cruise.

I’ll get more on-water time in shortly and I’m sure I’ll develop a lasting friendship with my new boat. Now I’ve got to decide on whether to keep my “old” boat – how many boats does one person need? (The answer is at least two, maybe three?)

True colors

After a recent column about on-water kayak visibility and a radar study, I received an e-mail from Ben Fuller, a sea kayak guide and member of the Maine Association of Sea Kayak Guides and Instructors, who wanted me to pass along another suggestion to paddlers – the use of bright colors.

In addition to a colorful wardrobe, PFDs and paddling jackets and bright boat colors most of us adopt, Fuller suggests that the use of “day-glow” paint is “great for paddle blades. The paint needs to go over a white base, and I recommend staying away from edges, tips and the spines of the back face of paddle blades as these are high-wear areas. You can get day glow ‘gaffer’ tape that seems to stay on and is easier to use. You can use it to tape over the deck seam of your kayak and improve the basic boat visibility. In fact, the day glow makes more difference than the basic boat color. I have dark green and black hulled boats with day-glow tape seam lines that show up better than the usual white bottom, yellow or orange top.”

Continuing, Fuller said, “You should note also that the SOLAS (safety of life at sea) type reflecting tape is only good when a light hits it at night.

“There is a good reason that day glow is sold by the gallon in stores catering to fishermen,” Fuller said.

He makes a good point. Anything you, as a small-boat operator, can do to make yourself more visible is worth trying. Even though SOLAS reflective tape works only when struck by light, don’t dismiss its use. Other boaters including kayakers carry lights and at night the reflective tape may be the only thing that makes a paddler’s boat visible (other than shining a flashlight) since colors are invisible at night.

I’ve found that paddles, no matter what the color, are distinguishable by their distinctive shape at a distance rather than their color, particularly in lower light situations. When paddlers get closer then colors become more distinguishable. Despite bright colors, moving paddle blades and colorful boats, kayakers should think of themselves as invisible to other boaters. It’s smart never to assume you are going to be seen and to be on the lookout for approaching motorboats and to stay out of heavily traveled channels.

Arnold Portage Trail cleared

Steve Clark of Waterville sent me a press release the other day about a weekend project undertaken by the Arnold Expedition Historical Society – clearing and opening the Benedict Arnold Portage Trail over the Great Carrying Place. The trail was used in 1775 by Arnold’s expedition on its way northward to attempt to capture the fortified city of Quebec, Clark told me. The trail was known by only a few, he added.

It’s 13 miles of portage between the Kennebec River south of the town of Caratunk, proceeding out of the river valley directly west, incorporating the three Cary Ponds, and eventually reaching the Dead River. Both ends of the route now lie under impoundments: Wyman Lake on the trail’s eastern end and Flagstafff Lake on the western end, Clark said. “But most of the original trail is still intact.”

During the past few years members of the Arnold Expedition Historical Society have been upgrading the trail so the public could follow it.

During the weekend of May 20-22, Clark said, five volunteers removed blow downs, pruned brush, painted new blazes and installed new interpretive and directional signs. The crew consisted of Clark, Casey Clark of Clinton, Ron Curtis of Milton, N.H., Jay Leggett of Portland, Ore., and Jim Thomas of Mexico.

If you’re looking for a walk through history, you could begin at the Pleasant Ridge Road in Pleasant Ridge (across the river from Caratunk) near Bingham. The trail begins at Carrying Place Stream on the shore of Wyman Lake and goes westward, Clark said. The trail can be hiked as a day trip using a series of trails and tote roads through the Carry Ponds as far as the Long Falls Dam Road, north of the town of North New Portland. The Appalachian Trail uses part of the old portage trail between Middle and West Carry ponds, Clark said.

For more information on the trails, contact Daniel Warren in care of the Arnold Expedition Historical Society. RR 4, Box 6895,Gardiner 04345.

Calling all racers

I was asked to pass along a reminder to anyone who hankers for some competition while paddling (racing and paddling to me oxymoronish). Today (Saturday) at 9 a.m. is another in the multitude of MaCKRO-organized paddling races – this one at the waterfront in Bangor. The Maine Canoe and Kayak Racing Organization is dedicated to the promotion of races throughout Maine and New England.

Suffice it to say there are classes for just about anything that floats and is propelled by a paddle, so come on down and see how you stack up. I’m told there are precise means of handicapping your boat so your finishing times can be fairly compared in the 4.5- and 9-mile races.

And there are a slew of classes based on your age – all the way from 5 years old to 60-plus, as well as adult youth and adult junior classes. Contact Harrison Clark at 848-0745 or check out MaCKRO’s Web site at http://mackro.org/rules.htm for all the details.

Jeff Strout’s column on outdoor recreation is published each Saturday. He can be reached at 990-8202 or by e-mail at jstrout@bangordailynews.net.