The kayaker is 36″ tall from the baseline of the kayak. The waterline is shown in red. The size of a wave when described in feet is the wave height. The lowest wave in this diagram is two foot. The next two waves are three and four foot. The largest wave in the diagram is a six foot wave.

I wrote in the last article:

In the excellent Sea Kayak: A Manual for Intermediate and Advanced Sea Kayakers, Gordon Brown lists a nice standard rule for sea kayakers and canoeists, “If you have a distant horizon the waves are less than one metere. If your horizon is the crest of the wave immediately in front of you, the waves are over a metere.”

Using this rule, you’ll know that if you can see the horizon, the waves were less than 3′. If you can’t, they were over 3′. To refine the rule further, when under 3′ if you loss sight of just your partner’s boat when they’re in the trough of the wave, then the waves are 1′. If you lose sight of your partner’s shoulders and just their head is visible above the crests of the waves, then the waves are 2′.

Estimating wave height on overhead waves is much harder. To get a reference sit on the floor in the kitchen and look to the top of the refrigerator. Most refrigerators are 6′ tall, so if the wave looks like a refrigerator coming at you, then it’s probably 6′ tall.

Remember when in a kayak, the waves always look bigger than they are.

Other Resources

• Waves and beaches: The dynamics of the ocean surface: This is one of the best subjects on waves. If you can find it, buy it!

For this project, you need:

• 80 grit sandpaper
• 120 grit sandpaper
• Masking Tape
• a little epoxy or varnish
• 8-Inch 4 In Hand File and Rasp
• Compass

You also need a comfy backband to replace the poor excuse of a backband supplied with the kayak. I heartily recommend this one:

• Immersion Research Reggie Backband

For this project, you’re going to lower the back of the seat using sandpaper and a rasp, install a new backband, and make everything look pretty.

Steps:

1. Apply masking tape to the back of the seat. See the picture.
2. Decide how much lower you want to drop the seat back and set that measurement on your compass. Start with 1/2″. Using the compass draw a line on the masking tape that follows the shape of the seat back. Note: You can also reshape the back of the seat to fit your posterior better. I made the drop from the hull attachment point to the back of the seat steeper.
3. Rasp and file down close to this line. Sand with 80 grit to reach the line.
4. Remove the masking tape.
5. Finish sand with 120 grit.
6. The edge will appear white. You can leave it this way or cover it with a touch of epoxy or varnish to make it look better.
7. Install the IR backband according to their directions through the hole already drilled in the seat. Depending on where NDK/SKUK decided to drill the day they built the kayak, the hole may have to be moved further back. On my kayak, the holes were drilled uneven when compared to each other, so I measured from the front of the seat to a location further back on the seat.

Notes: You could also try to wrap some thin minicell foam around the back of the seat to fix the pinch. Some people like foam backbands, which eliminates the pinch without having to change the seat.

Further Notes: Many NDK/SKUK seats are put into the kayak wrong. They can be offset from the centerline or put in at an angle. And for some reason, they seem to break often. Here’s a way to fix the seat problem using a foam seat.

Bill Mason Films

If you’ve never taken the time to watch one of the original paddling documentary film makers work, then it’s about time you did. You’ll be captivated by his love for the Great Lakes and northern woods.

Watch online: Bill Mason’s Films at the National Film Board of Canada
Sample:

César’s Bark Canoe

A short documentary without commentary about building a birch bark canoe.

Watch online: César’s Bark Canoe

Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s St. Lawrence: Stairway to the Sea

Jacques-Yves Cousteau! Do I need to say more? Red hats. Up the St. Lawrence exploring the Great Lakes.

Watch online: Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s St. Lawrence: Stairway to the Sea

Canadian Landscape

This documentary follows painter A.Y. Jackson on his canoe trips and on foot to the northern wilderness of Canada in autumn. This leading member of the Group of Seven discusses his approach to his subject matter and shows some of his paintings.

Watch online: Canadian Landscape

River of Life

This documentary focuses on the Yukon River Quest, the world’s longest annual canoe and kayak race. Athletes come from around the world to test their endurance, racing day and night along 740 kilometres of rugged river shoreline. The film chronicles the experiences of the all-female 2006 Paddlers Abreast team. By following them from the moment they climb into their boat in Whitehorse to the cheers that greet them in Dawson City, the film tells an exhilarating story of a group of women who have faced death and understand how precious life is.

Sample:

Shipbuilder

This film recreates the true story of Tom Sukanen, an eccentric Finnish immigrant who homesteaded in Saskatchewan in the 1920s and 1930s. Sukanen spent ten years building and moving overland a huge iron ship that was to carry him back to his native Finland. The ship never reached water.

Short and fun.
Watch Online: Shipbuilder

Kayaking: Brett Heyl

Two years ago, Brett Heyl sought to improve his stock within the American kayaking scene – so he packed up everything he owned and moved to Charlotte, N.C., the new home of the U.S. Whitewater Center.

Sample:

Into the Tsangpo Gorge

In a remote corner of Tibet, seven young world-class kayakers take on the most feared whitewater river on earth, through the 18,000 ft. deep Tsangpo Gorge. Excellent!

Watch Online: Into the Tsangpo Gorge

Kayaking Sri Lanka

Watch Online: Kayaking Sri Lanka

Canyoneering plus kayaking.

Watch Online: Reunion Island Canyaking

Do you know of others?

Measuring Wave Size

The measurement of a wave is typically given in height and period. The height of the wave is measured from the bottom of the trough to the top of the crest, and the period of the wave is the length of time it take for the next crest to pass a point that the previous crest just passed. The period could also be defined as the length of the wave in seconds. Paddlers should give wave size in both to accurately describe the difficulty or thrill of paddling that sea state.

One of the common errors paddlers commit when telling the size of the wave is to use a length measurement of the period of the waves. I’ve heard paddlers describe the waves as huge, because they were x feet. When questioning them further, what they’re describing is the length of the wave along the side of the kayak or canoe. This provides an easy reference, because if the boat is 18′ and the wave runs half-way along the boat, it is 9′ long. The problem with this measurement is that the wave height could vary significantly, and a larger (higher) wave will mean a steeper wave for the same length. Paddling in 1′ waves that are 9′ long is a much different experience than paddling in 3′ waves that are 9′ long. Generally speaking for the same wave height, shorter periods are harder to paddle in.

Kayaker surfing on a 1' wind wave.

The other most common error is in estimating the wave height. Most of the time, paddlers over estimate the wave height while they are in the boat. In the excellent Sea Kayak: A Manual for Intermediate and Advanced Sea Kayakers, Gordon Brown lists a nice standard rule for sea kayakers and canoeists, “If you have a distant horizon the waves are less than one metere. If your horizon is the crest of the wave immediately in front of you, the waves are over a metere.”

Using this rule, you’ll know that if you can see the horizon, the waves were less than 3′. If you can’t, they were over 3′. To refine the rule further, when under 3′ if you loss sight of just your partner’s boat when they’re in the trough of the wave, then the waves are 1′. If you lose sight of your partner’s shoulders and just their head is visible above the crests of the waves, then the waves are 2′.

Estimating wave height on overhead waves is much harder. To get a reference sit on the floor in the kitchen and look to the top of the refrigerator. Most refrigerators are 6′ tall, so if the wave looks like a refrigerator coming at you, then it’s probably 6′ tall.

An Easy Reference

I suggest that when talking about the size of the waves, paddlers should use references like surfers do. Surfers often say ‘waist high’, ‘head high’, ’shoulder high’ and ‘over head.’ In a paddler’s case, these terms are ’shoulder high’, ‘over head’, and ‘double overhead.’ For most people these terms will result in a more accurate description of the waves that they were in.

Examples of Wave Height

Wipe out on a 3' to 4' foot wave day.

Surfer heading out through the 3' to 4' shore break into a 12' day.

Sea Kayaker surfing in on a breaking wave. Waves that day about 5'.

Kayaker surfing on a wave over 6' to 8'.

Landing in a dumping 1' to 1.5' wave.

Other Resources

• Waves and beaches: The dynamics of the ocean surface: This is one of the best subjects on waves. If you can find it, buy it!

Initial Thoughts Upon Receiving the Tarptent

When I decided to purchase the Double Rainbow, I noticed a waiting list, so I exchanged emails with Henry Shires, the owner of Tarptent. He quickly answered all the email I sent to him before the purchase, so I made the assumption that the customer service would be quite good. Settled on a long wait, somehow my Double Rainbow showed up at the door a little earlier than I had believed it would. The waiting list for this tent was long, but, maybe, his production was faster than expected. This was a good as I’ve often believed in the concept under-promise and over-deliver, but I was slightly disappointed with the product right out of the box.

Upon initial inspection, I found several problems. The worst was a hole between the tarp and the bug netting. It looked like during production, the seamstress forgot to sew about a 1″ section of the netting into the seam. This was also noted as a problem in another online review. It was also missing a small bungee required to engage the bathtub floor. Having found several problems, I decided to look the product over more extensively and ended up finding overall bad stitching and loose threads. Now, I understand that silicone nylon is extremely difficult to sew, but I expect better in a $250 high-end product.

Double Rainbow’s Bug Protection

One of the reasons that I decided to try a Tarptent instead of just a tarp, which is what I’ve been using outside of the bug season, is because in the BWCA and the Northland, the bugs are unbearable for much of the June through August summer camping season. I love camping under tarps, because of their openness, but a tent has always seemed to me to offer much better bug protect. The product seemed to offer the best of both worlds. A tarp with the protection from bugs.

Unfortunately, with the hole in the netting it wouldn’t provide bug protection until I fixed the hole. Luckily, I live with an expert stitcher, and she fixed the hole. (Note: I contacted Tarptent twice about the hole and never received a reply.)

Problem solved until I found a “design feature” that allows bugs into the tent. At the point where the pole exits sleeve there is a section of bug netting which isn’t stitched into the tent. This allows no-see-ums, black flies, and mosquitoes to come into the tent as they please. It’s a very small hole, but non-the-less is there and could allow bugs in.

Setting up the Double Rainbow

The Tarptent Double Rainbow tent can be set-up in two ways, either freestanding via the use of trekking poles or by staking out the corners. The freestanding way is interesting for those that hike with trekking poles, because it allows you to set the tent up quickly and easily move it around if you have to. Unfortunately, I tore out one the pockets the trekking poles fit into. The stitching looked to be backed up upon itself, but very little force caused the whole row of stitches to fail. I emailed Tarptent for a replacement, and they quickly sent it to me.

That wasn’t a huge setback for me, because generally, I’m a paddler and not so much a hiker, despite that fact that I’ve thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1996. So, for me, set-up hasn’t been negatively affected by the loss of the trekking pole pocket. To set-up this tent, you thread a pole through a very tight pole sleeve, it gets hung up at the center when the sleeve runs under the permanent pole in the center of the tent. After fiddling with the center pole, the main pole threads out to a confusing jumble of stuff at the grommet. The pole is then inserted into a grommet on each side and the four corners are staked out. On rock beaches, you must tie rope extensions to the tent’s corner to tie around rocks.

The main pole’s sleeve is made from a silicone nylon and isn’t very durable. Somehow, before the seventh night out, I ended up putting a hole into the sleeve.

There are several options for set-up that I haven’t tried. The most interesting is the ability to have one or both of the vestibules propped open and upright using trekking poles or paddles. This allows a more breezy set-up for days without rain or with rain that is falling straight down. I like the concept and it reminds my of the way I can set-up my old Sierra Design tent. The problem with the set-up is the extra flap of material required to make it work is constantly getting in the way when the set-up isn’t used. There is a ribbon that is suppose to tie it back, but the ribbon doesn’t seem to hold a knot. A minor problem, but annoying. Plus, if you dump water onto this flap, the water comes into the sleeping area, so it’s unlikely to get used during heavy rain when more ventilation is needed to reduce the condensation issues this tent has.

Generally, set-up is relatively quick and except for the center pole bind up and the confusing mess of “stuff” at the grommet it is painless. If you’re not a fan of tents that require staking out to set-up, then this tent isn’t for you.

Tarptent’s Livability

The Double Rainbow has much going for it livability-wise. It’s roomy and long. It has plenty of headroom – enough to allow two people to sit-up and play cards. It has two doors and two small vestibules. Great for storing shoes and other small items. The double doors are wonderful for getting in and out of the tent during the night without waking up your partner. The width is just right for a couple. It’s a bit tight for two friends. My significant other describes it as “cozy.”

The Tarptent is also very breezy on windy day, but on calm damp days it fails to breath. This failure combined with the lack of a double wall creates the perfect situation for major condensation problems. We found on typical Minnesota calm all night soakers the walls and ceiling of the tent become so saturated with condensation that when the rain picks up and starts pounding on the tent, the drops force the condensation back into the air in the form of a light mist. During one of the nights on which this occurred, I contemplated going out to the cooking tarp and sleeping under it. Some people may note that what we experienced was silicone nylon leaking through under pressure, but my cooking tarp is made from the same silicone nylon material, and the underside was completely dry. The problem is associated with a lack a ventilation, IMO.

We also noticed that the Tarptent Double Rainbow seemed to be warmer than sleeping under a tarp, this came in handy on a surprise sub-freezing night kayaking on Lake Nipigon in Canada. I only had a 30 degree bag with me, so I enjoyed the extra warmth the tent provided.

A last livability issue deals with the floor. It’s twofold; first, the floor is sold as being a bathtub. This bathtub floor should keep rain from running under the tent and into the living area. The bathtub is created by pulling bungees attached to the ground cloth out around the stakes. It’s a nice idea, but any inside pressure from a sleeping bag, book, pillow, etc… cause the bathtub to collapse. It doesn’t really work with two people. With just one, it seems to hold up better. The second issue is that the floor is made from silicon nylon, which is very very slippery. Despite following instruction to caulk lines onto the floor to help stop mattress pads from slipping around, they still do. Set-up on any slight incline and expect to find yourself at the other end of the tent shortly.

A little nit-pick is the size of the zippers, these are extremely small and hard to pull with gloves or cold hands. The small size also leads me to believe that they will fail at some point sooner rather than later, but I haven’t seen a failure yet. I’ve seen it in other items using a similar sized zipper.

Rainproof?

Overall, the Tarptent Double Rainbow is waterproof, but is is rainproof? I’ve found a couple of faults. The first is that this tent is extremely difficult to seam seal correctly. The instruction mention that it should be done twice, which I did, but still in the field the seams would eventually end up dripping. Expect to work on seam sealing much longer than you’d have to with a normal tent or tarp.

A second is the way the tent’s canopy ends above the ground at the narrow ends of the floor. If there is a lot of splash coming from the rain, it comes in the ends. I woke up one night to a soaked hat!
And the condensation issues mentioned above make this a wet tent on some nights. Much wetter than a traditional double walled tent or a 8′x10′ tarp. Tarptent sells a condensation barrier. They claim this solves some of these problems.

In the Wind

On several occasions, I’ve had the Double Rainbow in strong winds including a wind storm with sustained 20 knot winds gusting up to 30 knots. The larger trees were swaying around us and I set up the campsite, so the Tarptent would take the brunt of the winds and my friend’s Hubba Hubba would be the most sheltered. Impressively, the Double Rainbow withstood these winds without much collapse on the windward side. With the pole facing into anticipated winds, I suspect that the tent could withstand stronger than Gale force winds. Especially, with a line attached to the guy point.

Take Down and Packing Away

One of the reason that I love camping under a tarp is that when I’m ready to pack up, I can stuff all my gear into portage packs, dry bags and remain dry while doing it. The ground cloth even remains dry on one side when I pack it up. The tarp comes down last and if soaked stays outside the waterproof seal of my pack. If it’s a sunny day, the tarp can come out a lunch and sway in the wind for 15 minutes and get dried.

The Tarptent, on the other hand, doesn’t retain any of the goodness of tarps. You can pack your gear up, but the ground cloth is attached to the tent, so it’s going to get wet when you pack up the tent. Combine this with the sticky when wet pole binding sleeve, the snake like stuff sack and it feels like your trying to stuff a wet slipper snake into a hole too small for it. During the process the entire tent gets soaked. Then at lunch, to dry it, you have to spend time setting the tent up, which takes too much time, so it doesn’t get done. And if it rains all day, when setting the tent back up, it’s soaked and primed for a misty night. Even with a sponge or towel to wipe up the water, it is a wet affair.

In some regards, the packing away of the Tarptent is worse than a standard tent. With a standard tent, at least, you can separate the wet rainfly from the dry canopy. And I’ve never seen a tent stuff sack so oddly and oblongly shaped. It only works well if you tightly roll the tent around the poles and stuff the tent into the bag rolled up.

Overall and Conclusion

I have formed the general opinion that the tent is flawed and not worth the $250 that I paid for it. The general stitching and quality problems plus the failure of the trekking pole sleeve and the pole sleeve leave me wondering and waiting for the next failure. The condensation issues and wetness of the tent had me often regretting I just didn’t take a tarp or something else like my Big Agnes Seedhouse 2 SL.

The comfort, ultralight weight and livability of the tent for the perfect conditions and the strength in the wind are pluses for this tent, but not enough to keep the tent in my closet. I traded the tent for a Tarptent Cloudburst 2 early in 2009. After putting the Cloudburst 2 through some impressive conditions including sustained Gales with gusts to 50mph, I’ve concluding it is a much more impressive tent. If you’re looking to buy a Tarptent, skip the Double Rainbow and get a Cloudburst instead.

The great news is that you can download NOAA Marine Charts for free and with a little hacking convert the charts to a format that can be manipulated using a standard image manipulation program, like Photoshop. This allows you to make a chart the size and with the coverage you need.

Note: You should have an understanding of computers and image manipulation programs for this project.

Downloading NOAA Charts for Free

Sample Resized NOAA chart for the Apostle Islands

NOAA charts are available for free in two formats: Raster Navigational Charts (RNC) and Electronic Navigational Charts (ENC). The later are for use in computer programs and plotters, and RNCs, which contain a digital image and cartographic information, are the charts that will convert into a format that is usable by image manipulation programs.

Steps:

1. To download RNCs, proceed to the NOAA RNC Download agreement page. You’ll need to agree to NOAA’s terms to continue.
2. Select from the two options. If you know your chart number, it’s much easier to download it from a direct link, otherwise proceed to the option that allows you to select and browse from a map.
3. The map viewer is slightly confusing. Zoom in using the zoom tool. When ready to pick maps, switch to the select tool, click on the map, and push the “Add to Chart” button.
4. After all the charts are in the cart, press “Place Order.”
5. The next screen allows a selection of a chart with updates or updates only. Uncheck “Updates Only.” Press “Order Selections.”
6. The NOAA website will  spend some time compacting and packaging your order. Do not navigate away from the page until the “Download” button is shown. Then download it.
7. Unpack the .zip folder to extract the charts. With Windows, right click and select “Extract All.”

Conversion Tools

The computer program that converts the files just downloaded to a usable image file is called libbsb. This an open source program freely available for download from its project page at Sourceforge.

After you download the program, extract the files as in step 7 above. Once extracted view the folder the files are in. The two most important files are bsb2png.exe and bsb2tif.exe. These two programs will convert your RNC to either a png or a tiff. I like png files, but either file will do as long as the image manipulation program that you are going to use will accept the file.

Both of these programs are command line programs, so if you don’t remember working in MS-DOS, spend time  reading more. Basically, you’ll only need to know how to change directories in DOS, which is the CD command.

Running bsb2png

To run bsb2png.exe or bsb2tif.exe, you’ll need to open up the command prompt. Go to the Start Menu, Click Run, and type “cmd” and press enter. At this point both the command prompt window that appears after pressing enter and the Windows Directory Explorer will be used.

1. At the command prompt, navigate using the CD command to the directory that contains your downloaded charts.
2. Click back on your desktop and using Windows Explorer find the folder with the bsb2png.exe file in it.
3. Right click the file and select copy.
4. With Windows Explorer find the folder with with the charts and paste the file into it.
5. Back in the command prompt window type “dir”. This will show you the files in the folder. You should see a chart number xxxxx_1.KAP. Where the xxxxx is is the number of the downloaded chart. This is the main chart. You may also notice charts numbered xxxxx_2.KAP. These are usually the inserts on the chart like harbor details.
6. At the command prompt type “bsb2png.exe xxxxx_1.kap xxxxx_1.png” and press enter. Let the computer work and it’ll spit out a png image file of your chart.

The next step is to open the png image file into your favorite image manipulation program.

Format and Print the Chart

Next, open your favorite image manipulation program and open the png image file in it. I use Photoshop, but GIMP is a free program that works the same way.

1. Adjust the dpi of the image to 300dpi. You’ll find this in the Image Resize dialogue. Make sure not to change the overall pixels of the image. Resizing the dpi makes the scale correct. You can actually increase or decrease the scale of the image by either making the dpi higher or lower, respectively. This won’t add detail to the map and if you increase the dpi the text on the map will be smaller and harder to read.
2. Next, open the canvas size dialogue. Change the canvas size to the size of paper. Most printers don’t print completely to the edge, if yours doesn’t consider making the canvas size the printable size of your printer.
3. Now move the chart around using the move arrow until you find the section that you want to print. Align it within the canvas.
4. Save As a jpeg using the Save As command. I label each new jpeg the name of the chart and a letter designating its part. Example: xxxxx_a.jpg, xxxxx_b.jpg
5. Repeat step 3 making sure that you have some overlap between the last section you saved.
6. Once everything is saved, print using the Windows Pictures and Fax viewer making sure that Windows doesn’t scale to paper size.
7. You can select all the jpegs that you’ve saved double-sided to save paper and make your chart load lighter.

Carrying Maps on Your Kayak

There are many different map cases available. These are two which I’ve used on 100s of miles of paddling trips. Both have worked great.

• SealLine Map Case: I like the 12″ x 16″ size which works perfect if you print your map on 11″ x 17″ paper using a canvas size of 11″ x 15.5″.
• Pacific Outdoor Equipment Map Case: These are on closeout, but are solid and have two closure systems. Dry even in surf landings and the clips will keep the map case on your deck. Get one quickly before they sell out.
• National Geographic Adventure Paper: Waterproof, tear resistant, and prints on any inkjet. Nice for printing multiple charts for everyone in your party if there aren’t enough map cases to go around. I also stash a waterproof chart in the day hatch for my local paddling areas just in case I need it on day paddles. 8.5″x11″, Legal Sized, Tabloid Sized.

Free Image Manipulation Programs

• GIMP: GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It works on many operating systems, in many languages.
• Paint.net: Paint.NET is free image and photo editing software for computers that run Windows. It features an intuitive and innovative user interface with support for layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools. If you’re a Windows user, you’ll need NET Framework 3.5.

Recommended Books On Navigation

• Fundamentals of Kayak Navigation: This is the best book on the subject of sea kayak navigation. It should be on your shelf.

Other Chart Tools

• BSB Import: BSB Import is a Adobe Photoshop® plugin for reading NOAA BSB format charts. $20 I haven’t tested this.

This interview appeared on WTIP and The Roadhouse with Buck Benson and Bob Carter. The interview is covering my (Bryan’s) Around the Great Lake Expedition 2009.

Click Here to Listen: Around the Great Lakes on the Roadhouse with Buck and Bob [22mb, mp3]

Learn more about the Around the Great Lake Expedition 2009.

“With this trip, I plan to call attention to the increasing pressure placed on this area and highlight the world-class paddling opportunities. I believe that by increasing paddlesport participation, we will advance resource and wilderness protection,” Hansel said. The Great Lakes contain roughly one-fifth of the world’s fresh surface water, they’re surrounded by eight U.S. States and one Canadian province, and have over 10,000 miles of shoreline. Formed just under 10,000 years ago as the last glaciers retreated, this young drainage basin is home to over 33 million people. This unique resource is under constant pressure from pollution, invasive species, and urban sprawl.

During the trip, Hansel will update his expedition blog found at http://www.aroundthegreatlakes.com with journal entries, photos, and descriptions of the areas he’s paddling past. Using his cell phone, he plans to post to frequent updates to Twitter (http://twitter.com/bryanhansel/), an online service that allows people to stay connected. “With the website, I’m building a resource for paddlers who want to learn more about all the great places to paddle on the Great Lakes. I want to provide testimony that great expeditions are possible near home, and for 33 million people the Great Lakes are that home.”

Along the way, Hansel will meet up with local paddlers to resupply, and for short day or overnight paddles. He believes it’s important to connect with locals to discover their experiences and passion for the lake. “The more we can share our individual passions for the Great Lakes, the greater that passion will become,” he said. He’s asking interested parties to contact him from his website.

Hansel estimates a finish date of September 25th and he’s planning to paddle home to Grand Marais with a group of friends. After the trip, he’ll produce a photography book about exploring the Great Lakes from the viewpoint of a kayak. But more important, he said, is the experience of exploration and the people I’m hoping to meet.

Bryan Hansel’s Around the Great Lakes Expedition is sponsored by Kokatat Watersports Wear, Epic Kayaks, Enertia TrailFoods, Java Juice, Seals Sprayskirts, Pacific Outdoors, Action Wipes and 6d6Designs. Sponsorship opportunities available. Learn more at: http://www.aroundthegreatlakes.com

Contact Bryan Hansel at:
Around the Great Lakes Expedition
phone: 218/387-2502
email: bryan@bryanhansel.com
web: www.aroundthegreatlakes.com

###

Canoecopia sale floor from above:

Description

Experimental: Since the Siskiwit Bay plans became available on the Internet, I’ve received requests for a plywood version of the kayak. The SB was originally designed as a multi-chined boat for plywood building using the excellent HULLS software. I’ve taken the original file and used Delftship Pro to clean it up and fair the lines. From this cleaned up original file, I’ve produced a dxf and a text file of offsets. These are available for plywood builders. A deck is included, but it is extremely experimental.  The stems should also be rounded. Round the stems with a 2″ radius, but, please, contact me before you do this.

Note: This is an experimental design. It has not been built yet.

Hydrostatics: Generated for 295 pounds, which is the number used for Sea Kayaker Magazine’s reviews. (195 pound paddler + 45 pound kayak + 55 pounds of gear).

Design Name: Siskiwit Bay MC

• Design length17.000ft
• Design beam1.757ft
• Design draft: 0.417ft
• Length on waterline: 14.908ft
• Beam on waterline: 1.649ft
• Displaced volume: 4.741ft3
• Wetted surface area: 21.075ft^2
• Displacement: 0.132tons
• Block coefficient: 0.3805
• Waterplane coefficient: 0.5243
• Prismatic coefficient: 0.4837
• Vert. prismatic coefficient: 0.7259
• Midship coefficient: 0.7868
• Longitudinal center of buoyancy: 7.878ft
• Longitudinal center of buoyancy: -4.171%
• Vertical center of buoyancy: 0.248ft
• Waterplane center of floatation: 8.000ft
• Entrance angle: 2.481Degr.
• Transverse moment of inertia: 2.431ft^4
• Longitudinal moment of inertia: 159.45ft^4
• Transverse metacentric height: 0.761ft
• Longitudinal metacentric height: 33.882ft
• Longitudinal center of effort: 7  .803ft
• Vertical center of effort: 0.233ft

KAPER: KAPER is a resistance program used by Sea Kayaker Magazine for their reviews. SK uses a weight of 250 pounds plus the weight of the kayak to calculate the resistance. It is provided here at the same weight for comparitive purposes.

• 1 knot – 0.24
• 2 knots – 0.87
• 3 knots – 1.81
• 4 knots – 3.35
• 4.5 knots – 4.66
• 5 knots – 6.87

Drawings: Two formats are available. DXF and offsets in text.

• DXF developments
• Text offset developments