Boat Handling

After two weeks away from my own boat, I was pleasantly surprised at how well I can maneuver it.

I paddle a Valley Argonaut, a discontinued model which is essentially a high volume (HV) Aquanaut. It is, plainly, too big for me. When I get around people who know boats and tell them what I paddle, they all state, or ask, "isn't that a little big for you?"

It is, but I've learned to manage it. I can edge that boat very well, and it turns well on an edge - and only on an edge. Turning without an edge makes it a one-boat parade, marching across the water in a long processional arc.

So yesterday I spent some time getting familiar with it. It takes effort to hold and edge, especially when stationary, but it does take an edge well. On the move, I was able to make very tight reverse stern rudders, turns in place, and carving turns. Even simple edging with a forward stroke works well.

It's a bit of a relief, because I'm not nearly as proficient doing this with the boats I paddle at the shop downtown. The Montauk I settled on last year is gone. I do pretty well in a Force Cat 4, but I've decided to try making a Tiderace Xcite my go-to boat for teaching and guiding.

I can roll the Argonaut as well. I made easily eight attempts, and got them all. Admittedly in a couple of cases I needed to brace up after my hip snap, but the roll is there - and the Argonaut is a lot of boat to roll.

I've considered selling the Argonaut. Having been in better fitting boats it's really tempting. However, now the urgency is off. It's not a terrible boat. It's a camper, it's a Lincoln Town Car. May be a bit big, but it's totally manageable.

Solo Spring Paddle

I took a short jaunt this morning, short but challenging.

I had hoped to paddle as far as Alpine, but a strong, steady wind from the north hampered my progress. After leaving Inwood, and then paddling past Spuyten Duyvil, I crossed, working against some chop most of the way, hoping that perhaps I'd find some shelter on the western side of the river. I had no such luck. As I paddled into the wind, I had a good rhythm going, but I was thirsty, and it dawned on me that the farther I paddled north, the more following seas I would have to contend with on the way back south.

I pulled out at a small beach somewhere across and north a bit from the Bridge to Nowhere. With small waves pushing in from the north, I had to rudder in, first on one side and then another. I got out and had tea and M&Ms, the wind nonstop as well as the waves. Mind you these were not ocean waves, but there was a shallow run and they gathered speed quickly. After about twenty minutes, I hopped back in and launched.

Getting out was a little tricky, but once I was back on the river proper, things were a bit more straightforward. By then, the current and wind were in the same directions, and I edged towards them to cross the river. This was remarkably easy, and is new technique I am trying out. The idea is, edging against a countervailing force, whether wind or current, narrows your profile, thus reducing its influence. It was only when I had to turn south, chased by little wavelets, that I got more than a little annoyed.

Once back, I put everything away and got out of my drysuit. I stayed inside but watched the scenery from the boathouse, a sunny, if windy day unfurling. While I didn't go far, I got a lot of experience out of this paddle, managing the wind as well as the current.