Expedition Paddler

New Expeditions

2012-02-26T14:08:00.001-08:00

Hi Guys (and gals) I hope everyone is well and settling in to the New Year, plans for most will be well under way already on the expedition front for this year.

I shall be returning to Norway this summer, teaching in Lofoten, then returning North to Nordkapp, along with Nick Arding, we shall be doing a short journey up to and then around Mageroya island, hopefully taking in short explorations of the beautiful Finnmark coastline and then start our recce for the overland section down to the Gulf of Bothnia.

This isn't until July however, so hopefully to keep you stimulated until then we also have several other projects going on........

A good friend of mine, Robert Bodrogi from Hungary, shall be heading up to Norway to build his own Skin on Frame Baidarka and then setting off to paddle the Norwegian coastline solo and unsupported. Robert has been Sea Kayak guiding professionally since 1997, mainly in Patagonia and then in the Mediterranean basin in more recent years. Robert, is also a natural medicine man, having studied various oriental healing therapies, traditional Hungarian bone setting and also North American healing ceremonies, he hopes to be able to join up with as many Norwegian paddler's as he can during his journeys in the North, a keen mountaineer Robert is hoping to take in a few peaks along the way too.

We have several other expeditions which we shall be featuring over the summer months so keep checking in for details

Jeff

A Busy Season

2011-11-02T06:25:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks, sorry for a big absence over the last few months. A very busy season at SKC has left me very little time for posting updates.

I now have a slightly easier schedule and I am about to start training for next years expedition. Several projects in the pipeline - first and formost is the overland section to my Scandinavian exploration/circumnavigation led by Nick Arding. Our objective is to finish of the final part of the sea kayak section, circumnavigating Mageroya Island before heading south by Ski to the Swedish-Finland border, where later on in the season we hope to continue back to Goteborg by sea kayak. Planned training trips to Austria and then France for skiing and Arctic survival techniques over the winter; and then the expedition begins in March.

Lizzie and I have also recently purchased a small yacht, the 26' Frances, named Verity, will be used at some time in the near future to act as mother ship and support vessel for various plans up and coming.

Lizzie helming Verity across Falmouth Bay for its winter mooring

Vaughan has just finished the DVD 'Into the Wind' and copies are in production as we speak, if you are interested in purchasing a copy please email me at skalybax@hotmail.com or contact Vaughan at romanyproductions@gmail.com

The best piece of news I have had all year is that my son has just returned home from active service in Afghanistan, not made it as far as Cornwall just yet, but any day now - welcome home Ollie you have been greatly missed mate. I am hoping Ollie will spur me into training - my legs after a very long season of seakayaking are far from being strong enough for 400km of cross-country skiing!

Ollie playing the Harmonica to Afghan locals at the end of the Ramadam celebrations, the man to his left is playing a tune on his armpit whilst dancing, out of the picture and behind the cameraman are about 30-40 locals watching on.

Surfboat racing at Watergate Bay

2011-07-11T00:12:00.000-07:00

Porthtowan girls breaking out through the surf

I have struggled since returning home from Ireland to really connect to things again, expeditioning is my highlight in life - its where I feel most in touch with myself and after my trip with Harry and Vaughan I struggled to accept an end, I tried to keep that feeling alive by jumping back into my Scandinavia journey.

In hindsight I should have given myself a bit more recovery time from Ireland and allowed my body to heal, instead I seem to have driven some of the injuries to nerves and tissue even deeper, numb hips and continuous pins and needles in my toes and fingers is still a reminder of both expeditions. Thankfully being married to an Osteopath/Sports Masseur has meant that care is never far away. Nor inspiration either, for the first time this weekend I went to see her compete for Porthtowan Surfboat Team at Watergate Bay.

Gary Walters helming and girls 'A' team with oars shipped surfing to the beach

Originally the surfboats were developed for rescue off the beaches of Australia but the popularity of the sport has reached around the globe and has been a feature of the North Cornwall beaches for some time. The rules of the race are simple, teams stand knee deep in the surf and on the command leap aboard and pull for all they are worth, they race hard out to a marker buoy several hundred metres offshore, they make a turn around the buoy and try to pick up a wave back to the beach. Fairly easy stuff you could imagine? If it wasn't for the environment, the boat at 27 feet long makes for a fairly large projectile, especially in the surf zone and when things get big on the wave front, carnage can take place and although several times boats were turned broadside on to the wave, no collisions occurred. This time.

Once the boat hits the beach a sprinter leaps ashore and races for the flag, first man or women home wins the race. The teams are all really competitive but Porthtowan seems to be the team to beat. You may recall a mention of the mens team in my Around Ireland blog earlier on in the year when they managed to make it out to New Zealand to compete against the Kiwi's and Aussies on their home turf. They did very well achieving a third place as well as having to negotiate monster waves at Piha. The waves at Watergate Bay were not as big as piha at the weekend, but it was still an exciting event and great to see Lizzie in her element.

Lizzie in her element

http://porthtowansurfboat.com/about

Home again

2011-06-24T04:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in getting this post up, I have now managed to attach some images on the last four posts from my Norwegian excursion - a lack of internet meant that my previous posts were being relayed home via text messages.

On the last leg of Sea Kayak Scandinavia we had to abort earlier than we intended due to a medical emergency, so we didn't manage to finish off the end of that section. With no bookings on our commercial expedition to Havnomaden I decided the fitness I had gained from 'Around Ireland' would stand me in good stead for completing the last section of my Norwegian leg quickly - from Skjervoy to Honingsvag via Nordkap.
Arriving in Skjervoy two things I hadn't counted on affecting me during my trip was the sun and the heat, it wasn't until the final day that the weather turned overcast and we had a little rain set in. It remained very windy for the entire time I was there, the winds a product of the exceptionally warm weather as well as the strong east and north easterlies which were prevailing at the time.

Because of the heat, I had real trouble being able to sleep for more than an hour or two at a time, so I took to paddling most of the day and night. I have never suffered from insomnia until this trip, by the time I reached Mageroya Island I was feeling pretty run down. The East and North Easterly winds which had been in for some time, had in the main, resulted in a sheltered sea state as I progressed up from Skjervoy, but as soon as I came clear of the northernmost point of Knivskjellodden this all changed and now the sea state became very rough.

The Cape is where three expanses of water meet, the Norwegian Sea, the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean, and these are also fed and affected by the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf Stream, as you can imagine all of these factors make for an extremely variable and unstable environment.
I managed to get around Knivskjellodden, which was a massive mistake in itself, the strong wind and the race that had formed was too big and in hindsight, I should not have even attempted it - taking a roll was enough to make me realise that from that point onwards, things were only going downhill. I got back through the race to the relatively safe side of Knivskjellodden with anxiety coursing through my veins, with several days of gale force winds affecting the area and more to come. I didn't need to deliberate too long over my options. I started to paddle back towards Gjesvaer, after a couple of hundred meters I started to reconsider. Had I really given it my best shot - I was beginning to feel like I had failed. I thought about going back to have another go again and then realised my ego was now dictating the whole thought process, which was the wrong move - and I carried on paddling back to Gjesvaer, remembering the ocean rower who was lost at the cape several years ago in half decent weather.

Time constriants for work meant I didn't have the time to sit out the bad weather, so I have managed to complete what I could of the Norwegian coastline for now, so far the journey which started in Gothenburg four years ago has been plagued by calamitous events at the end of each section - this leg was going to be different.
I am now ready to enter into the overland section of the Scandinavian exploration with Nick Arding next year. If we have time we shall try and put in a circumnavigation of Mageroya Island or at least attempt the Cape once more, before we set off next February or March time.

I owe a really big thank you to Bjorn Eines of Bjornes Kayaks in Tromso, for kindly allowing me to use his Taran, it is a fantastic sea kayak, capable of covering long distances economically; very comfortable in rough seas or calm and has exceptional load carrying abilities. If anyone was thinking of paddling in this region then I would strongly recommend they contact Bjorn.

The other guy I would like to thank from this trip is Magnus Nilsen. Magnus resides in Honigsvag and was fantastic in helping me to get to the ferry port in time to catch the Hurti Gruten, I called him at an exceptionally godless hour to change his plans and he never batted an eyelid. Magnus is intending to paddle the Norwegian coastline next year from Lindesnes to Honigsvag and you can follow his blog at

http://magnus-nilsens.blogspot.com/

I heard a very profound parting comment after the trip, which is often said by mariners in Norway being bade good luck and I would like to leave it as my final words for now on my Norwegian section. If I recount it incorrectly then I am sure someone will put me right....

‘Do not wish me luck, but that my back should always stay strong’

DAY THREE/FOUR Norway: Cape Fear and Beyond

2011-06-21T13:09:00.000-07:00

...... I reached Knivskjellodden - an innocuous low lying headland, which is the true, most northerly point in Europe, that lies before Nordkapp. I had not reached my destination and something inside was pushing me on. The wind has me hugging the base of the cliffs for two hours, steadily inching forwards, I can see the tide has now turned and there is a race running off the headland, big oily swells starting to change shape and form as they feed the flow. Three days of north easterly gales is now opposing the tide and the friction is causing them to peak and break towards the east. I wait just outside the eddy line, hiding from both the wind and the waves. I've never felt so unsure nor felt so alone and vulnerable - everything was telling me to turn back.

Knivskjellodden, a rather innocuos looking headland when compared with the scenery around, yet still the northern-most point of Europe.

My subconscious mind is playing tricks on me - I push it all to one side and break out into the flow, pushing my fears to one side...and then I see it. 'Oh my god what is that?' - how could I have mistaken any of the lesser headlands for Nordkapp? I'm shaken and stirred at the same time. Wearing a drape of cloud like an executioners cloak I cannot believe the size of it, standing like some granite castle straight out of hell - Nordkapp stands before me.
Then it disappears behind a huge wave, I realise - I've made a monumental error. I shouldn't be here - tired, alone, in appalling weather conditions surrounding the intimidation of Nordkapp - I realise that I have pushed myself beyond reach, beyond my capabilities.

Leaving Knivskejellodden behind, I paddled fast and clear and found my phone. I was scheduled to be picked up on the other side of the cape. Magnus had agreed to pick me up from the harbour at Glasvaer about 10 km away, by now my adrenal surge had dissipated and I was now feeling far less than mortal, every muscle, tendon and sinew was stretched and I hurt all over. It became the longest 10km of my life. By the time I arrived in the harbour and met up with Magnus I had deep shudders of cold through my body, he recognises I'm very cold and takes me to his place for a shower and soup - a recipe his father, a fisherman had taught him. It worked a treat.

I'm now sat in the ferry, just woken by an irate stewardess. I fell into a deep sleep as soon as I put my head down and writing this blog for my gorgeous wife to post - I cannot believe the last few days that I have had, life is great!

DAY THREE Norway - Cape Fear

2011-06-21T10:10:00.000-07:00

Approaching Magaroya Island

After a long day on the water I eventually crossed from Masoya to Mageroya Island - a horrible headwind plagued the crossing and left me feeling miserable. I started working my way around to Glasvaer, the cliffs and scenery is spectacular; I've have had such fanatastic weather that I could have travelled all week in my smelly helly. But now it is back to arctic weather, clouds have taken away the heat, I feel intimidated as I draw closer to the cape, in reality looking back I was mad in continuing. A very tired mind and body, goal orientation and eagerness to be home led me astray and I carry on.....

Day TWO Norway : Paddlers Heaven

2011-06-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

I sat much of yesterday afternoon out, waiting for the wind to die down. I met a lovely couple in Bergfjord - who invited me in for coffee after I asked if i could refill my water at their home. Coffee became tea and I learnt that they had made a recent move to the village from Holland - they figured that Bergfjord is a great place to bring up their three kids, I couldn't have agreed more.

The view across the river at Bergsfjord

I left about 8pm and headed out towards Oksfjord and after several hours of paddling I decided that on balance - the energy spent gaining miles in the strong wind, was worthy of a break, particularly when I found a perfect camping spot - my body is till feeling the after effects from the Ireland trip and paddling long hauls has been harder than usual. I've been sleeping in my bivvy, but last night I decided to put the teepee up and I was sure I could hear the snorting of a nosey reindeer outside ( or perhaps I was dreaming about Harry) - but I was too tired too look, I slept like a log. Woken by my alarm at 03.45 - I had left my kayak just below the high watermark to save hauling it over boulders - timing it just right.

Packed, fed and away before 5am. I had a mixed day of paddling - it ranged from cursing the wind to staring in awe at the amazing scenery; the weather was changeable too, sometimes it is like a mid summers idyllic day, next I am shivering in the shadow of the mountain as strong gusts threaten a capsize.

Now sat about 5 miles south of Kvaloy with about 150 Km to complete. My body is sore but the discomfort of Ireland is often forgotten as I paddle through Finnmark - an astonishing place of beauty, a true piece of paddlers heaven...

Jeff

Day ONE : Scorching Sun and Reindeers

2011-06-18T12:24:00.000-07:00

View of Skjervoy from the deck of the Hurti Gruten

I left Tromso on the Hurti Gruten and arrived in Skjervoy at about 22.00. I was changed and ready for launch at 23.15, heading out across the fjord towards Finnmark. I felt pretty knackered by around 4 am, so I pulled the kayak up, above the high tide mark; then slept until 8am.

0230 in the morning and feeling knackered, the heat and constant daylight makes for insomnia and for the next three days, little sleep and warm yet windy conditions ensue

I woke up to searing hot sun, hotter than anything I've experienced this year which surprises me being so far above the Arctic Circle. Numpty here, only brought a dry suit so I am sweating buckets. The heat is creating a very strong sea breeze from about midday onwards - hence my decision to night paddle. The coastline is very remote and as stunning as ever - with sea eagles and the occasional reindeer to keep me company.

Off to find somewhere to top up my water.........

Norway : Ready to Go

2011-06-17T06:55:00.000-07:00

A view over Tromso

I arrived in Tromso, late last night, Bjorn was at the airport to pick me up and had sorted me out with a bed for the night. Meeting up early this morning we headed in Tromso for coffee and some breakfast before sorting through my equipment which has grown a little mildewy since leaving last year.

Taran packed and ready to roll

I am now all packed and shall be catching the Hurti Gruten back up to Skjervoy tonight, the ferry has already arrived on the dock at Tromso and should get into Skjervoy around midnight. Depending whether I have managed to get some sleep or not will depend on when I start paddling. I have sent several Spot messages whilst being here but none seem to have gone through ok, Bjorn tells me that they have trouble picking up satellites this far North. Anyway lets see what tomorrow brings, probably a head wind knowing my luck, - once more, the wind shall rule.

Jeff

Heading North

2011-06-15T00:10:00.000-07:00

I shall be heading off to London today with Lizzie, then tomorrow morning I am catching a plane out to Tromso, where Bjorn Eines will be meeting me. Within the next few days I shall hopefully be setting out towards Nordkap. I spent half an hour looking for my torch the other day, then stopped and said 'Idiot' 24 hours of daylight.

Once I have sorted through my equipment and packed my kayak I shall catch the Hurti-Gruten back up to Sjervoy, which was the last port of call we made before having to abort last years attempt at getting around the Northern Cape.
It will be sad that Jim is not there to accompany me this time, he was a great paddling partner and someone I could trust implicitly on or off the water, always a bonus on any expedition.

Deb Pinniger gave me an excellent piece of kit the other day from a company called Backpacking light, it is a small very lightweight-single pole tippee tent that I shall take to replace the Lavu that we used last year.

I shall be taking a new SPOT locator with me and also updating the blog with images along the way.

Cheers for now

Jeff

Images from Ireland

2011-06-13T13:34:00.000-07:00

Vaughan has been busy lately, not only editing the 'Into the Wind' DVD but also working through the hundreds of images we took along the way. To show case some of the Round Ireland pictures I have put up a new gallery on the Expedition Paddler web site. Go to http://www.expeditionpaddler.com/ and click on the gallery section of the web site. More images to follow shortly.

Jeff and Harry

Into the Wind presentation's

2011-06-09T03:45:00.000-07:00

For those people who may be interested, Team Expedition Paddler shall be presenting at the following venues, the Kanumessa in Germany on the 18th-20th September 2011 and the UK Storm Gathering, organised by Mark Tozer, to be held in Anglesey on the 22-24 October 2011, followed by a BCU skills week on the island.

So if anyone is interested in hearing a bit of blarney straight from the horses mouth about our 'Round Ireland' expedition, do come along.

You can find out more about both these events at the links below:

Kanumesa: http://www.kanumesse.de/

Storm Gathering

we shall also be posting on the web site http://www.expeditionpaddler/ a full list of dates for future talks and presentations as and when they develop.

Jeff & Harry

Small boats and big seas

2011-06-08T07:34:00.001-07:00

I went for my first paddle since returning from Ireland a couple of days ago, I was trying to hook up with my daughter who was leading a group out on the Roseland Peninsular, but I had not been paddling for more than an hour when my hands started to play up. The blisters left over from what ever affliction occurred on the trip had started to react to the salt water and were stinging, this was a bit uncomfortable, but worse than this, the pain in the bones of my fingers, which I assume to be bruising, was really quite aggravating. This ailment, along with several other aches and pains, must all have been masked by the constant application of pain killers through out the last three days of our paddling. I have to say this is all a little bit disconcerting when my departure date for Norway is only a week or so away!

Anyway on to another, far more interesting subject, I have just got off the phone with Patrick Winterton-Patrick has another project in the offing, an open crossing by sea kayak, from Shetland across to Norway, hoping to leave with Mick Berwick and Ollie Hicks, in or around the 18th July, good luck guy's I wish you luck. For more on Patrick http://www.patrickwinterton.com/

Staying with Patrick at the moment is Chris Duff.

I first met Chis in Anglesey about ten years ago, when he was doing a presentation on an expedition around New Zealand's South Island, an inspirational talker, his words set my feet on fire and prompted me to go to Japan to conduct a journey of my own.

Chris Duff is probably America's most experienced expedition sea kayaker with circumnavigations not only of NZ to his credit, he has also paddled around Great Britain, Ireland and Iceland as well as an 8,000 mile solo sea kayak trip around the eastern third of the US and Canada which kicked his whole expedition lifestyle into play in the first place.

Chris is now about to embark on another adventure, still in a small boat and still crossing through big seas but this time he will be rowing, his journey will take him from John O'Groat's in Scotland, across to the Orkney Islands, then on to the Shetland's, the Faroes and finally a 250mile crossing to Iceland.

This will be a fantastic adventure to follow guy's and you can do so by looking at his website: http://www.olypen.com/cduff/Frames.html and then following his blog from there.

Anyway I shall be heading back over to Norway soon folks and hope to be able to keep you updated as I go

cheers for now

Jeff

Expedition Paddler - The next chapter

2011-05-29T00:53:00.000-07:00

We know we live in a priveleged society when we have the liberty to chose our challenges

Welcome - maybe this is your first visit to our team blog. We hope that you enjoy reading about our adventures in the world of Ocean paddling.

I am going to re-start this blog with the last but one post from the 'Around Ireland' blog and re-insert the trailer that Vaughan has edited for the 'Into the Wind' DVD, if only to see Harry's cheeky little grin from when we were being blown sideways during the lightening storm off the North coast of Donegal and out towards Tory Island, we certainly saw some changes in the weather that day!

It was the first time I think that Harry had been caught out in an electrical storm and being a tad bit taller than Harry, I was trying to encourage him to get his head above the height of mine, he wasn't having any of it however and must have been laughing at the idea of me getting frazzled.

What's next?

First of Harry, you may remember when back in Tramore, the gauntlet was thrown down in the pub to the 'Around Ireland' crew, which festooned all around the table to 'get their record back'. Well, we have heard through the grape vine that this may be occurring sooner than we think.

Mick O'Meara has purchased our Rockpool Taran's from Mike Webb and Harry, along with his mate Andy, have agreed to paddle the kayaks back across to the Emerald Isle, going from Holy Island to Dublin to deliver them to Mick.

Harry shall be letting you all know how the crossing goes as well as giving you regular updates from 'Old Father Thames', and we shall be keeping a close eye on the boys we met in Tramore - what are those Taran’s for Mick?

Norway?

I shall be returning to Norway to hook up with Bjorn Eines from Bjorn's Kayaks to pick up my expedition equipment and to try and get around Nordkap once more, the aim is to do a lightening visit to complete the last of the section that we couldn’t achieve last year during my expedition to explore and paddle the coastline of Scandinavia. You may recall that I set off with Mark Schoon from Gothenburg several years ago, in an attempt to circumnavigate both Sweden and Norway. Due to work commitments, the expedition has been staged in sections and last years route was supposed to end at Honigsvag on Mageroya Island, via the 'Great Northern Cape’ or Nordkap as it is more correctly termed.

The expedition last year managed to get from the kayakers hostel on Husvaer, where Bent and Inge of Havnomaden hosted us at the start of our journey, and then on, through the Lofoten Islands and up as far as Sjervoya, before we had to abort and return home for medical reasons.

I have spoken with my wife, Lizzie and Simon, my business partner, and they are both happy for me to shoot up there and try and finish this last few hundred kilometers alone.

In the spring of 2012, I shall be joining forces with Nick Arding, who is a very able sea kayaker and also a world class mountaineer, who has volunteered his services to lead the overland section and to help train me up for this part of the challenge.
Next spring, together we shall be retracing the Sami Reindeer migration route between Magaroya Island and the Sami town of Karashok, before progressing further south to the Gulf of Bothnia and then onwards, once more by sea kayak back to Gothenburg.

So welcome Nick aboard Team Expedition Paddler, your experience is just what we need and you will be a most valued asset to the team.

If you haven't seen it yet folks, here is the trailer from Vaughan at 'Romany Productions'.

'Into the Wind'

Pina Colada's in Ireland and a Mule to support us on the way..........

2011-04-08T09:56:00.001-07:00

We had some great news today.......

On the last leg of the Scandinavian expedition, Jim Frampton, one of the team, got in touch with

'Mule Bar' an energy fuel company specialising in 'Adventure fuel' for outdoorsmen. These energy bars are fantastic, they certainly kept us well fuelled in sub zero temperatures and strong winds North of the Arctic Circle and were a fantastic addition to our on the water energy needs, not only were they great fuel, they are super tasty too.

Mango Tango..........Hunza Nut.......Pina Colada.......Liquorice......Chocolate Fig Fiesta are just some of the flavours available.

Mango Tango and Pina Colada's were my favourite bars by far and I am looking forward to introducing Harry to these. If he's not cooking on the Black Gold that is. I have the feeling that with all of the training Harry's been putting in on the Thames it will be me, needing the extra energy and I will have to be rationing these out with a little bit of extra fuel going my way.

Anyway Mike Story sent me an email today to say that the Mule Bar team were on board for the

'Around Ireland Expedition' and were going to be able to offer us product support us for our challenge, so from team Expedition Paddler, to team Mule Bar, a really big thank you.

We shall be stocking Mule Bars at our new shop at 'Sea Kayaking Cornwall' so if your ever down this way and fancy a nibble, call in and we shall see what we have in stock for you to try, great emergency food and also great for refuelling when your burning the calories.

2011-03-11T23:24:00.001-08:00

Test blog

Thunder on the Thames

2011-03-10T07:44:00.000-08:00

Harry's present yesterday, a brand new shiny Taran.

Harry in his new Taran, all wrapped up and no where to go

I have known Harry for the last eight years or so, in that time he has managed to put a hole in almost every kayak I have leant to him, in fact on one occasion he even managed to knock the bow off of one and on another he came home with an Explorer I had leant him with no fewer than 6 holes. So when I took him his brand new Taran for our Ireland expedition I also mentioned that it came with instructions from both Mike and John at the Rockpool factory.

'Look after it, please!'

Harry took this to heart and for the first hour refused to even take it out of the wrapping, it wasn't until he spied the Thames refueller some distance off down river that it all became to much and ripping the polythene clear he made a hasty dash for his new wing paddles and steamed off after its wash.

Harry soon became just a mere speck in the distance, bobbing around in the wake and heading inland at a rapid rate of knots.

First proper salty swim

2011-03-04T14:10:00.001-08:00

Took my first proper open water swim of the season yesterday, Swanpool beach to Maenporth Cove, just over a mile away to the west.

Several days of Nor -easterlies had a nice ground swell running into Falmouth Bay, certainly a lot more movement than the pool at Helston has to offer. It was also considerably colder, the water temperatures have been at around 9 degrees C lately and this certainly kept me moving throughout the time I was in the water.

The first half mile went well, my technique felt sound, concentrating on high elbows and good catch and I seemed to be making sound progress; swimming in a wet suit felt alien however, especially after spending so much time in the pool these last few months - Legs floating abnormally high and restricted shoulders started to inhibit me as I rounded Penance Point, only to be greeted by glaringly bright sunlight in my eyes. Now where's that coastline I asked my self?

Luckily I had Debs along in her slalom kayak, taking a few piccies, she kept on telling me when I was wandering to far off course, which occurred several times over the next three quarters of a mile.

Eventually I made it to Maenporth Beach, landing with wobbly legs through the surf, boy was I cold, I decided to jog back along the coast path to Swanpool to try and warm up, but the jog lasted all of two minutes before I was picking my way gingerly through the pebbles.

Jeff

Enter Romany Productions

2011-02-25T10:12:00.001-08:00

I had an email from Vaughan a couple of days ago, to say that he had put together a piece of video, did I want to see it?

I had asked him to give me a little insight into how he envisaged the video for the 'Around Ireland' expedition was going to be...this what he came up with

Nice one Vaughan, can't wait to start the paddling, a very inspiring bit of filming and editing..............

Jeff

Drawbacks of paddling on the River Thames

2011-02-24T03:12:00.000-08:00

I have been training well for the last 10 days now getting up early, dropping into to London on the ebb, in the dark and then wash hanging the morning ferry as it chugs its way down to Putney to collect the suits that work in the city.

If I get it right its a 3 to 4 mile surf, working the bow wave of the ferry or on Tuesdays surfing the Thames refuelling barge.

Wash hanging is fun but it takes a lot of concentration and building up professional relationships with the skilled skippers who navigate this ancient tideway. Unfortunatlly with the heavy rain comes the sewage, last year the tidal Thames got 34 million cubic meter's of sewage pumped into the river, which believe it or not is perfectly legal (pumping shit into the river).

If the water quality is bad its not worth going on the river, but then I head over to the pool and burn off my frustration.
The Thames is a fantastic training ground, in the next 10 years our Victorian sewage problem will be solved but till then on bad days I affectionally know it as my river of shit, which I feel is sad for such a great water way.

Regards

Harry

Back to training in Thailand

2011-02-23T18:34:00.001-08:00

Back into the training routine once more, have been away for a few weeks working on and fixing sailing boats locally, but now glad to be able to paddle again, doing between 5 and 12 miles a day in the kayak . and a longer paddle an Sunday's.
I have also started swimming most days as well as 20 mins of press-ups then sit-ups when I get up in the mornings and before going to bed, feeling a lot stronger and fitter but my kayak timings are about the same, I think I need more time in the boat so I will address that . Hope all is well in the UK and not too cold.

Chris

South Devon

2011-02-12T22:14:00.000-08:00

I managed to get away for a few days this week and visit a friend up in South Devon. Nick Arding came along to help us run a corporate training package for Lloyds bank in November of last year, it was during this training that I had the privelage of meeting Nick for the first time and also got to listen first hand to a very inspirational talk about Nick's successful expedition to climb Mt Everest back in 2003, it wasn't just the climbing of the worlds highest mountain which made this expedition successsful but also due to the rescue of a fellow climber who had sustained a broken leg during an attempt on the final pitch to the summit.

Nick is modesty personified, and the delivery of this unique story is told in a very matter of fact way, almost as if anyone could have achieved such a result. Anyway when Nick invited me along for a couple of days of paddling, exploring his local coastline I jumped at the chance and during the two days we managed to take in the best of what South Devon has to offer.

The first day we left from Slapton Sands and paddled along to Start Point,then headed west as far as Lanacombe Beach, there was a fresh southerly breeze and a solid ground swell of around five feet still running from the recent gales and this made the rock hopping as well as the race off Start Point very interesting indeed.

The following day we were joined by Debs Pinniger who happened to be staying at the Dart country park, Deb a very successful river paddler and slalom competitor in her own right is no slouch in a sea kayak either and we made a great days journey from the Inland port of Totnes, down river to Dartmouth and then east to Brixham. Good swell and strong winds accompanied us throughout the day and this made for exciting conditions along this beautiful stretch of South Devon coastline. All in all a very enjoyable two days of paddling.

Nick and his business partner Lee Pooley are running several sea kayaking expeditions this year, one to Skye and the other across to the Scilly Isles, so if anyone's interested you can go to their website

http://www.seakayakinginternational.co.uk/

for further details.

Jeff

PS Images to follow, as soon as I can find that cable......

Bouncing down the Thames

2011-02-08T01:18:00.001-08:00

It's been windy here in London for the last few days and today I paddled against the incoming tide to Tower Bridge and back.

Heading east I had the wind behind me, the kayak was surging on the waves, which were building up where the river reaches were exposed to the full force of the wind. Under the bridge arches with the tide in full flood I was having a great time. I waited for the ferries to proceed through the bridge arches and then followed them; wash bouncing off the walls and hitting the kayak from all angles. Using wings the trick is to keep the kayak moving fast, surfing from wave to wave edging and leaning with out using any ruddering stroke, it was so warm I took off my cag to lose the heat I was generating.

When I turned to head home I had the flood accompanying me; however as I battled into a strong head wind, whilst cag less, I rapidly chilled off . The bridge arches which were previously fun were now like a wind tunnel, paddling into a icy blast with the kayak plunging and kicking up water. Finding a quiet eddy out of the wind I put my cag back on; 4.5 miles later I was back at base.

I have been using my epic wings for a while now but feel its time for a change and will be getting out my Lendal Archipelago's, also have heard from Rock pool that my Taran will be ready in the next few days, tomorrow I will be back on the river, the days are getting longer and life is good.

Harry

PS Jeff just called to say my yellow and white Taran has just been popped out of the mould :)

REC Level 4 Course-Castlebar, Ireland

2011-02-04T04:26:00.000-08:00

REC Level 4 Course-Castlebar, Ireland

Photo Vaughan Roberts

I headed across the water to Ireland last weekend with Vaughan Roberts from Romany Productions to attend a remote emergency care course with Paul Cahill figuring that it would constitute sound preparation for our ‘Around Ireland’ expedition. It's great getting fit and being able to paddle like a banshee, but what if one of us gets injured? The West coast of Ireland is remote enough, especially when you consider the fact that 'Remote' is classed as being more than one hour away from medical help.

I first met Paul when he came with us at Sea Kayaking Cornwall to Norway's Arctic coastline for a week long expedition last June. I didn't realise at the time what his job was but during the following seven days spent under canvas I learned much about his passion for the life outdoors and also, for all things medical.

I decided to get Paul over to Cornwall to run a level 3 REC course last autumn, just prior to our symposium- it was a good move.

Over the last 30 years I have, like many, attended numerous first aid courses, but in all this time and on all these courses I have never met a guy more dedicated to his profession or able to deliver a subject with such precision, passion and ability. Previous forays into the first aid world had always been more about fulfilling pre-requisite requirements for coaching awards or whilst in the military had been an obvious requirement for all service personnel, my previous lack of interest wasn't due to not realising the importance of the subject, but the delivery of the subject matter had always been less than inspiring I guess.

For the first time first aid became not only interesting but I also left the level 3 course with a very strong desire to learn more. So when Paul emailed me to say that he had developed a REC level 4 course aimed specifically at the Expedition sea kayaker I was hooked.

The course was well attended by numerous sea kayaking experts, Jim Morrissey, Ali Donald, Eileen Murphy and Sean Pierce to name just a few, were there to refresh or learn new skills about how to maintain vital life care for clients as well as friends in a wilderness setting.

Eileen Murphy and I had met before when she was competing in the Hebridean Challenge adventure race.

In 2005 Eileen completed the first Solo Female Circumnavigation of Ireland by sea kayak and I took the opportunity to speak with her about her trip, she highlighted numerous refuelling stops (Guiness) along the way, as well as many other points of interest.

Various subjects were covered over the two and a bit days of training, all of which related to medical situations which can and have happened to paddlers on expedition and I would thoroughly recommend anyone heading out into a remote area to attend one of Paul’s courses, he is probably one of the best instructors I have had the good fortune to train under.

Paul was supported admirably by his wife and father throughout the course as well as having Aebhric O'Kelly who assisted in the teaching, Aebhric also teaches wilderness medicine and bush-craft skills further south in the country.

We shall certainly be getting Paul and Aebhric over to Cornwall to provide further courses for us in the future.

Jeff

Life's good in the tropics

2011-02-01T22:57:00.000-08:00

Hi Jeff, Harry
Just a quick update, training is going ok but I am not getting in as many miles as I would like. Paddling to work, which is about a 4 mile run or so. Then I paddle back home again after work.
I am planning on pushing my Training route out and around a few nearby islands, to see if my times can be improved upon. I had a bad day a few days ago when I paddled out to Koi Myton, an island off Phuket, it's only 8 miles away but it took me 3 hours and 35mins to complete. A strong head wind and a choppy sea slowing me down, I was looking forward to a good surf home on the return leg, but the wind died down and the sea with it so no joy there, a real bummer. Upon hitting the beach I was cheered up by what appeared to be a Ukrainian, Spaghetti and postage stamp club on the beach, one of the perks of Thai life.

Chris

Gaybo "King"

2011-01-22T12:03:00.000-08:00

Nope, it’s not a reference to my sexuality, but my training is moving on. This kayak 'King' is made by Gaybo and is what I am using at the moment, the boat must be 20 years and is No13 off the mould.

John Willacy the designer of the Taran comes from a white water racing background, you can see this in the boat he has designed, Chris, myself and yes - OMG Jeff Allen, are all looking forward to putting through its paces.

Anyway, cross training (not a reference to anything other than paddling) in WW racers is like a relationship in many ways, Its difficult at the beast of times! However the security of epic wings makes it more positive. I am out side of my comfort level wash hanging in the King but it makes training a bit more exciting.

Regards

Harry 'the one and only' Whelan

Regards

Harry 'the one and only' Whelan

West Coast of Ireland

2011-01-20T01:29:00.001-08:00

Found training to be a bit frustrating lately, work sort of disrupted my schedule and when I returned to swimming yesterday after several days out, it felt as if I'd taken three steps backwards. When ever I feel like this I click on the following link and it reminds me why I'm heading over to Ireland:

http://www.youtube.com/user/relentlessenergy#p/u/14/1swPZzxv0tI

A big thank you to both Mark and Debs for helping us to support the Ovarian Cancer Action charity...cheers guys

Jeff, Harry and Chris

2011-01-17T05:04:00.001-08:00

Monday, 17 January 2011

Porthtowan surf boat team head south to the world championships in NZ

I just thought I would put up a quick post on behalf of a friend of mine called Nick Healey from Porthtowan Surf Boat team. I went out for a sunday roast with him and Lizzie last night and it came up in conversation that he was shortly heading out to New Zealand to compete in the world surf boat championships (like that sort of comment comes up in conversation every day!)
I was taken aback that I hadn't heard anything about this on the news or in the local papers and it made me wonder just how many sports we have in Britain where by we have teams which compete at international level and excel against the worlds best.

Here we have a tiny surfing village on the North Cornish coast going up to represent Britain and compete against the worlds very best at an international event, lack of financial support and minimal sponsorship means that the team will have to pretty much fund the venture themselves which (A) shows a massive amount of commitment on their behalf, but (B) also indicates to me just how much we support some of the more widely recognised sports, but have little in the way of help in other lesser known activities of which we in the sea kayaking world are also no doubt aware of.

The team from Porthtowan will be the only British team competing against the world's best in a country where surf boat rowing is as popular as soccer, they will not however be going to NZ as complete under dogs, they are the current european champions. How great an achievement would it be if they came home with a medal or two, with approximately 6000 competitors the odds are certainly stacked against them, but knowing how hard these guys have trained and committed they are, I wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't a little bit of bling floating around North Cornwall again in the not to distant future.

For more information on the team where you can show your support, view video and images of them all in action go to:

http://www.porthtowansurfboat.com//

Sunday, 16 January 2011

Stiff Legs and a paddle with Rob Feloy

Training

I have had a couple of emails recently from Mick O'Meara and Dermot Blount, both wishing us good luck for the challenge and an offer of support when we are in their vicinity. Great to know guys, so thank you from us all.
Mick also gave me some sound advice for training - the need to focus on core development, so yesterday, for the first time in several years I headed down to the gym with my wife and she started me on a core development programme. Lizzie is an osteopath and personal trainers and also knows when I am slacking. She didn't spare the rod and I suffered, waking up this morning with stiff legs. We should have warmed down and stretched; I hear you say....we did, I'm blaming it on being almost 9 years the wrong side of forty. Anyway we concentrated on starting to develop what Liz termed the spiral chain of muscles which are so integral to our paddling. We finished off with some rowing to warm down and then stretching out on the mat. I have my work cut out.Looking forward to catching up with you, Mick and Dermot on the trip

Rob Feloys new C-Trek 16
In the afternoon I met up with Rob Feloy, designer of numerous kayaks including one of my all time favourites the Inuk. Rob has just redesigned the C-Trek, now coming in at 16'5".
Conditions were good if not a tad windy, SSW F6 but mainly off shore, localised wind eddies altered direction slightly and there was a two to three foot ground swell wrapping up from around Manacle Point.
I was really impressed with the C-Trek 16 I've got to say, probably something to do with Rob's background of being a naval architect, his designs come straight off the drawing board rather than someone else’s idea being chopped apart, sort of copied and then filled and faired to create something termed as a new design. The kayak is going to hit the market in the very near future and I'm sure will do well as it was very fast, easily as fast as most 17'-18' kayaks on the market but also turns on a sixpence and very stable as is the larger C-Trek. It will in my mind make an excellent kayak for rock hopping and guiding. Good luck Rob, I hope it does well mate and a big thank you to Gordon, Joan and Roger for supporting us in supporting the Ovarian Cancer Action charity

Jeff

Thursday, 13 January 2011

Just Giving page now active

Apart from paddling around Ireland being a massive big adventure and hopefully a lot of fun, we shall also be trying to raise awareness and money, for the Ovarian Cancer Action charity and we have now initiated our just giving page which can be visited on-line through the following link:

http://www.justgiving.com/AroundIreland2011

We have chosen to this charity because of the loss of Anne Bird, my wife's mother who lost her life to ovarian cancer in 2007, a very big thank you to Deb and Bob, the link was only active minutes and they had donated generously, so cheers guys.

We have set the target of £3000 as this is the amount of miles the three of us will have to paddle to complete the trip, so if you are feeling generous then please do donate, this 'Silent Killer' can affect women anywhere and is a very worthy cause for consideration.

Harry, Chris & Jeff

Monday, 10 January 2011

'When Harry met Taran'

Image & film courtesy of Vaughan Roberts of Romany Productions

Met up with Harry yesterday and he instantly started to examine the lines of the Taran. I could see he was itching to get in and go for a blast, so this morning after a healthy dose of coffee, the need for caffeine bought about by the previous evenings activities we set off down river towards the city. I gave Harry my Epic Wings so that he could kill two birds with one stone, eager to find a wing that suits him for 'Around Ireland'.

The smile on his face gave me a good indication as to his thoughts on the boat, as he went haring off after the Thames River police launch, in fact he was like a rat up a sewer pipe on every launch that welcomed him aboard their wash. Vaughan from Romany productions and I didn't see Harry for the next half hour as he disappeared into the distance, taken away at about 14 knots, not in handcuffs but certainly locked into a watery groove just feet away from their transom.

Harry eventually returned and Vaughan and I joined him on the water, once more setting off down river. Vaughan now had the chance to film both Harry and I taking it in turns wash hanging the power boat. Harry, being somewhat shorter than I could not reach the foot pedals to control the rudder but this didn't seem to hinder him much when it came to controlling the boat on the face of the wave, in fact both Vaughan and I were incredibly impressed at Harry's skill and agility when only inches away from a propellor blade.

Harry's verdict on the Taran? A resounding 'Thumbs up'

Commenting about just how well the boat surfs I could tell that he was happy with converting to Rockpool, and asked me if I could take his Rapier away with me.

We both ended the day with a swim in Chelsea swimming pool and now having a refreshing pint of beer in his local boozer.

Cheers for now

Jeff

P.S Don't try this at home

Porthtowan surf boat team head south to the world championships in NZ

2011-01-17T04:30:00.001-08:00

Transferring blog to Expedition Paddler

2011-01-17T02:42:00.001-08:00

Hi guys, just thought I would let you know that I am transferring the blog across to this new URL address so that it can continually run through future expeditions. Sorry for any inconvenience for those people who may have added the 'Round Ireland' web address to their favourites.