Inflatable Kayak Blog

In a recent internet search I found a web site that has some good information that kayakers in California may find useful. It’s called the ‘California Boat Launch Ramp and Put-in Index’. You can find it here. The site includes maps, which allow you to easily find a locations to launch your kayak, as well as other helpful information. The web site is interactive, too. You can add your comments on places you have been, read what others have discovered and add replies to posted comments.

I personally appreciate being able to easily find convenient launch locations. It’s especially helpful when traveling to unfamiliar areas. Even though my inflatable kayak allows me the luxury to launch almost anywhere, I still prefer a regular boat launch area for safer parking and general amenities.

Whether you’re outdoors braving the cold and paddling a kayak or indoors, just trying to stay warm this winter, dry, chapped lips can be a problem. Although there are several over the counter treatments available, here’s a natural method that is an excellent way to soothe, soften and lubricate chapped lips. Rub some Olive Oil on your lips two to three times a day. Your lips should feel better immediately, however, if the skin has cracked from being neglected too long it will be a couple days before your lips will start to heal on their own. Olive Oil is anti-inflammatory, too. And, oh yeah, it’s an excellent antioxidant when you use it normally … like cooking with it!

Early in 2009 PakBoats introduced their new line of XT folding kayaks. The new kayaks were created to add a true touring kayak to the PakBoat stable. Previously, the Puffin Swift, which has since been discontinued, was the closest PakBoat to a touring kayak. The Swift did have a flatter hull than other PakBoat designs, but at 14 feet long it wasn’t quite long enough to completely qualify as a touring model.
The XT series went through several developmental designs and testing procedures before PakBoat designer Alv Elvestad put them into production in late 2008. In fact, many of the advanced design elements of the XT series have been integrated into the new Puffin models, the Saco and the Saranac. The XT series features the XT-15 (15 foot) solo kayak and the XT-16 (16 foot) which can be used as a solo or a tandem kayak. As is the case with all the PakBoats, the XT folding kayaks are a great value for the money compared to other folding kayaks on the market.

Sea Kayaker magazine featured an excellent PakBoat XT-15 folding kayak review in it’s December 2009 issue. You can read the review by clicking on the link, then paging down to the specified link on the folding kayak page.

I wish I could take a pictures like this but I’m not sure I’ve got the guts to kayak with whales. That’s right, whales! Fifty six year old Duncan Murrell of Paignton, Devon in the United Kingdom is an extraordinary wildlife photographer. He is surely an excellent kayaker as well. I read about him in the “Daily Mail”, a newspaper web site recently. The story features pictures he took of humpback whales off the Alaska coast from his kayak. Humpbacks can grow as large as fifty feet long and Mr. Murrell often gets as close as fifteen feet away to snap his pictures. The humpbacks cover some distance as well and he sometimes has to paddle for 30 miles to get the images he wants. It’s an impressive collection of pictures and an amazing story. I’m not sure how long this article will be online, but if you care to read the complete story, you can click here to read the full article.

I realize that this is the ‘inflatable kayak blog’ and I know Mr. Murrell uses a hard shell kayak, but this story was so interesting, I thought it would appeal to anyone who’s ever been in an inflatable or folding kayak or any small boat for that matter. Just imagine what it would be like to be that close!