Plane Zones

Plane zone, Saturday:


Plane zone, Sunday:

Noon to two,
woo hoo hoo!

Holly the Sailing Co-Chair's post-sail comment - "Anyone who didn't plane today is doing something wrong".

What a splendid Sebago weekend it was!

Columbus Plus Nine

Group photo while beached on Ruffle Bar. Photo by Gary.

Nine paddlers observed the legal Columbus Day Holiday by paddling from the club house, across Jamaica Bay to the Warf Restaurant on Far Rockaway, and back.  The wind was minimal, the sky blue, and the air temperature in the low to mid 70's.  Lunch was enjoyed at the Warf.

For a fuller and only slightly biased and embellished trip report, read the post at Summit to Shore.

The Youth Paddle That Wasn’t

What do about a dozen Sebago volunteer paddlers do when the youth they were expecting to introduce to kayaking do not show up? They go kayaking, of course. They go kayaking longer and farther than they would have if they had been introducing the youth to kayaking. Read more about the trip on my blog, Summit to Shore, a post which includes a link to photos from the day.

Sebago Member Marcus Demuth Presents Tierra Del Fuego Expedition Plans

Sebago Canoe Club member Marcus Demuth and his paddling companion Biff Wruszek recently talked about their upcoming Kayaking Expedition to Tierra Del Fuego. Read more about their presentation, with links to photographs from the evening and to other sites related to the event and the expedition, at Summit to Shore.

Marcus Demuth Expedition site: http://tierradelfuego2010.com/default.aspx

Cruising the Great South Bay

Avi, John W., Elizabeth, Walter, Beth, Pete, Phil, Tony and I (photo top right) started arriving at the Club House around 8:00 AM Saturday morning. By 9:00 AM nine kayaks were on five cars and leaving Sebago, headed for Heckscher State Park, and perhaps the last cruising trip of the season.

After the fifty mile drive we all pulled into the parking lot at Heckscher State Park, just feet away from the north shore of The Great South Bay, and by 10:45 AM we were on the water (photo second from top). The water temperature was around 48-50. At put in the air temperature was 52 but warmed up to 58 by later in the afternoon. Most of us were wearing dry suits but a few had donned wet suits.

After crossing the Great South Bay we beached on Fire Island, near Sailors Heaven Center, around 12:20 PM. With the picnic area to ourselves we enjoyed a true picnic lunch. After refueling we tied up our kayaks against any rogue waves and followed the boardwalk into the Sunken Forest where we were treated to a close encounter with a five point buck. Passing through the Sunken Forest we emerged on the southern shore of Fire Island and briefly visited the Atlantic Ocean before heading back to our boats.

Putting in from Fire Island around 2 PM we paddled back across the Great South Bay (bottom photo right) from whence we had come. With wind and tide combining to provide one to foot waves for our enjoinment, the water was just a little more rougher for our return trip than it had been earlier in the day. Every once in a while it seemed like waves were over two feet, but those were few and far between.

By 4:00 PM were back on the beach at Heckscher State Park, changing, and loading boats for the return drive. Before we pulled out we were treated to a spectacular sunset over the Great South Bay.

Back at the club we unloaded and stored boats and gear, said our goodbyes, and signed out by 6:45 PM.

I have posted a more embellished report about this Great Day on the Great South Bay on my blog, Summit to Shore, complete with a link to more photographs from the trip.

Columbus Day Paddle

Why Should Columbus get all the credit?

In 1492
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
517 years to the day
Sebago kayaked Jamaica Bay

Eighteen paddlers, 6.9 miles, 3 ½ hours. Read all about the Columbus Day Paddle at summit to shore. A link to photos from the trip is at the end of the post.

Early Morning Early October Paddle

Tony, Michael, John W. and John H. enjoyed an early morning paddle Tuesday, Octoober 6, 2009, under almost perfect conditions. Water in Jamaica Bay was around 62. Air temperature at put in was near 60 but warmed to the high 60's by trip's end. There was little wind and the water seemed unusually clear. Paddling east into Spring Creek and Hendricks Creek, they paddled 11.8 miles, averaging 3 mph over the trip. A fuller trip report, with a link to more photos, is available at Summit to Shore.

Academy for Conservation and the Environment visits Sebago

Late last Thursday afternoon and early evening, September 3, 2009, the Sebago Canoe Club, for the second year in a row, hosted rising ninth graders from our neighboring high school, the Academy for Conservation and the Environment, Michele Ashkin, Principal. It was a short paddle up Paerdegat Basin toward the school but a good paddle nonetheless. Look at the photos and see for yourself. We were on the water by about 6:00 PM and off an hour later before the sun set. Most of the students paddled sit-on-tops while faculty, staff, and Sebago volunteers paddled traditional kayaks.

08/02/09 Jamaica Bay Circumnavigation

Bonnie (pictured right) and I enjoyed an excellent long distance paddle last Sunday, August 2, 2009 after both of us had crappy weeks and after the storm passed over Jamaica Bay. It was my second longest paddle ever, longest this season, and the best trip Bonnie ever cancelled. We have both written about our five and a half hour circumnavigation of Jamaica Bay on our respective blogs. Photos accompany both posts. Read out posts and see our photos by clicking on the hot links above.

Jamaica Bay Sundy

Vicki and I had intended to paddle our sit-on-tops to The Raunt where we planned to enjoy a picnic lunch but after paddling for two hours into a strong wind opted to beach on Ruffle Bar instead. As we approached closer to Ruffle Bar we saw a couple other kayakers that ended up also being from Sebago. Meanwhile Sebago sailors were tacking to and fro in the strong breeze.

We beached, dragged our boats up on the shore of Ruffle Bar, and ate the lunch we had intended to eat on the Raunt. Our Subway subs and Cherry Cokes tasted better out of the wind and under the sun than they would have ever tsted in the restaurant. As the tide came in and lapped against our boats we packed up and headed back to Sebago. With the wind at our backs and surfing a few waves our return trip seemed to take half as long and was twice as enjoyable as our paddle out had been frustrating.

Back at Sebago, as we were taking our boats up to the wash racks, we met Bonnie. She had returned just ten minutes earlier from her paddle all the way from Governor’s Island. We congratulated her on the accomplishment and then rinsed our boats, packed up our gear, and headed home.

All in all it was a good afternoon on Jamaica Bay. The water was warm. The sky was blue with a few high clouds. Power boat traffic was minimal.

July 10, 2009 Youth Paddle

One of the things I like about being a member of the Sebago Canoe Club is the expectation that the club and its members will give back to the community. One way we do this is by sponsoring youth paddles. I volunteered to help with a youth paddle last summer but the youth never showed up. After waiting around an hour or two most of us who had shown up to help went paddling on our own. Willing to give it another try, and responding to a desperate e-mail plea from Tony, I volunteered to help with the paddle last Friday, July 10, 2009.

The youth and an adult leader from the 68th Precinct (Park Slope) arrived a little late but still with plenty of time to get out on the water. Once all the youth and Sebago helpers were on the water we paddled out under the Belt Parkway Bridge, beached for a break, and then paddled back to Sebago. Back at the club we washed boats, put gear away, played volleyball, ate lots of hamburgers and hot dogs, celebrated birthdays with a cake, and said goodbye.

All in all it was a good day. The weather and the water were nearly perfect. I am glad I volunteered. I had the opportunity to paddle and catch a few rays, meet some great young people, reconnect with Sebago members, and meet a few members I had not met or paddled with before. I have posted photos from the paddle at Picasa.

2009 Open House

I was able to be at the Open House only from noon till 2:00 PM but while I was there I took a lot of photographs which I have posted to Picasa. The weather was nearly perfect even if it did look like there was snow on the ground. We seemed to have had a lot of visitors and a good number of them joining. While Sebago offers some great sailing and kayaking, Sebago is more than water sports. Sebago is people, from those who have been members for decades or more to those who have just joined, from experienced paddlers with American Canoe Club certification to teach and coach to beginners just learning how to paddle.

This was only my second Open House so I do not have a lot to compare it to, but this year we seemed to have more of a variety of visitors: young, middle age and older from various racial-ethnic backgrounds and from three or more of the five boroughs. For awhile on Saturday, Sebago looked like a miniature New York City. There were so many kayaks, canoes and sailboats coming and going from the new dock that at times it resembled the Staten Island Ferry Terminal (photo at right). There were so many people moving about on the new dock that it felt like the BQE, Jackie Robinson, or Van Wyck during rush hour.

If our Open House is any indication of the future, it looks like we are off to a great 2009 summer season of paddling, rowing and sailing.

Boaters Rescued in Windswept Jamaica Bay

Fellow Sebago Canoe Club member and NOLS alum John Huntington distributed this link to a story about a rescue of boaters in windswept Jamaica Bay. There is also a follow up link to a story in the New York Post. The boaters were in a fishing boat, not a kayak. Nevertheless I think there is a lesson to be learned here.

I have paddled in Jamaica Bay when the there has been hardly any wind and the water was like glass. Likewise I have been out kayaking in the Bay when there was a strong enough wind over enough fetch to create white caps and standing waves over shallow shoals. The danger lies in calm condition luring inexperienced boaters out into the open bay far from shore only for the weather to drastically change for the worse with little if any warning, catching the boaters unprepared. This is why it is wise to know how to assist in one's own rescue as well as to assist others in being rescued and to practice such rescues (pictured top right) before they are necessary.

With six or seven years of paddling under my PFD, Jamaica Bay does not intimidate or scare me, but I still respect it because it demands respect. Becoming familair with rescue techniques is one way of showing that respect.

Trip Report: Empire Kayaks, April 17, 2009

Last Friday, April 17, 2009, Walter (Pictured top right), Walter (Pictured bottom right) and I (What? No picture?) put in at Empire Kayaks, located on the waterfront at in Island Park, NY along Nassau County’s South Shore, just west of Jones Beach.

We put in around noon. Four hours and 7.8 miles later we took out after an enjoyable paddle though open bay and marshland. Once gain I paddled the Necky Chatam 16 club boat that I had paddled before and that is currently my favorite boat. Walter and Tony paddled boats they own.

With a water temperature around 50 and air temperature around 56, all three of us wore dry suits with minimal insulation underneath. The water and wind were generally calm but the wind picked up a little near the end of our trip. Waterfowl were numerous, but not being a birder, I cannot really report what we saw.

Presbyterians call the church owned hosing clergy live in a “Manse” but I felt right at home, and not at all out of my element, when we were paddling through a channel bisecting “Parsonage Island.” Can I claim I was working at home when I was actually paddling?

Marcus Demuth peddles to Sebago

I have posted two other photos and some personal reflections on Marcus Demuth's recent talk and slide show on my own blog, Summit to Shore.

Jones Beach February 28, 2009

For the third time this year and the second Saturday in a row, members of the Sebago Canoe Club trekked to Jones Beach with the hope and expectation of seeing harbor seals. The trip was organized by Steve Heinzerlin. Tagging along were George Sullivan, Vicki Moss and John Harris.

Conditions were again windy but because the wind was blowing out of the north rather than the west (as it was the previous week) there was less fetch and so the water was not quite as choppy. Last week the trip circumnavigated the islands clockwise. On this trip we circumnavigated counter-clockwise.

Having crossed the channel and paddled into the marsh islands, as we approached an island I could see from a distance that something was on the shore. At first I thought it was sand or birds but it turned out to be seals, lots of seals. I would estimate between two and three dozen seals were sunning themselves. As we approached they started to climb into the water and disperse. Eventually the four of us found ourselves in their midst as they swam aroud us.

Afterward, trip organizer Steve Heinzerling wrote: “Today George Sullivan, John Harris, Vicki and myself went out to Jones Beach for a paddle with the seals. I was a little afraid that I may have missed them, and they'd already moved on to other waters. About twenty minutes out we spotted an island that was covered with seals. We counted at least 30 seals. We approached cautiously not to scare them in the water. After one went in most of them followed. Soon they were popping up all around us. It was a great experience and a very exhilarating paddle. When we returned to the cars I vowed that I'd come back and do this paddle every year. It's truly an awesome experience.“

For the record, we put in around 10:10 AM and took out two hours later, paddling 3 miles. Our average speed was reduced because once we encountered the seals we tended to paddle in place so that we could watch them. I have created a short slide show from the trip using original photgraphs.

Combat Rolls

Balanced brace in eddies and combat rolls... This is something to aspire to.

Sebago Canoe Club Does Good at Blackburn Challenge

Preliminary Results 2007

Paddle above the water.......

If you don't like the water ,
paddle above it.....

http://www.foilkayak.com/

Forward Stroke

See Olympian stroke



Hank McGregor




Disected for stroke-by-stroke