January 23, 1999

Paddle in the rain? Are you crazy?

Trip #4

Maybe, but it's still fun when there is no wind. Since I wear glasses, rain can be a big pain if the wind is blowing. But this morning the rain was falling down straight and a waterproof hat with a large overhang is all it took to get me on the water. I'm sure anyone that saw me thought I was crazy, but I've slept in foxholes in worse weather and the solitude is good for the soul.

From Mason Neck State Park I headed east into Kanes Creek. My main goal for the day was to try out my new Greenland style paddle that I had just finished building on Saturday. I've had a control problem with my kayak that has gotten a little better each time I go out, but I suspected a part of my problem was applying too much power in my forward stroke. I was hoping the Greenland paddle would allow me to slow the boat down but maintain a higher cadence.

Aside from the ever-present ducks on the water, today I encountered several Bald Eagles and several flocks of geese. About a mile into Kanes creek I came across some restricted area signs prohibiting any further progress. A quick marking of the waypoint with my GPS and then it suddenly dawned on me that I had paddled all this way without any problems with control at all! The Greenland paddle had allowed me to keep a straighter course and since there were few correcting strokes, I was also maintaining a much higher speed. I had made up my mind to add a rudder to my kayak, but now I was undecided again. I wondered how well I would track in following seas and wind? I also notice there are some black specks now on my paddle between the loom and the root of the blade. I washed them off and forgot about them.

I headed back out of Kanes creek but not before noticing how the steep, sandstone/clay bank was literally falling into the water as I passed it by. Several trees had fallen recently and I made sure to stay far enough offshore not to let any trees fall on me. Several large clumps of mud slid into the water as I wondered how much erosion must take place in this area.

At the mouth of the creek I hugged the shoreline to the right. Many real *nice* homes along this shore. A lot of floating logs in the water today, and at times I felt more like I was on an obstacle course rather than Belmont Bay. As I came up on Fairfax Yacht club the rain stopped and was replaced by a slight wind out of the west. If the wind picked up it would make the ride back to the park easy since it was due east of me. I gawked at all the huge yachts under all the covered slips for a few minutes as I slowly passed by. I check my paddle again and I notice the black specks are pieces of my paddling glove. My paddle has only an oil stain finish and the bare wood has been chewing up my rubber palmed neoprene gloves. I pull out some duct tape and make a smooth gripping surface on my blade so my gloves don't wear through.

Further up river I passed under the Railroad Bridge and route 1. The wind seemed to have really picked up but I thought it might be because of how narrow it was through here. About half way between route 1 and I-95 I decided to eat lunch in the boat as the wind blew me back past Occoquan harbor. Next to the harbor was a large barge piled with sand anchored next to a cement factory. A long conveyor belt carried sand far up the bank.

Having finished lunch I realize the wind is really picking up. This will be a good test for my new paddle. I can't make out the park in the distance so I use the GPS to give me a bearing and then rotate the kayak to line up my compass. Now with a good point picked out on the shore to steer towards, I head off with the wind and waves at my back.

A mile from the park the waves are 8-12" high and the kayak is tracking great. The paddle makes it easy to make correcting strokes and when I get too far off I lean and bring the boat around in a hurry. I did learn a slight trick here: If I make a correcting stroke while the cockpit is on the crest of a wave, the boat spun almost like a top. If the cockpit was in a trough (bow and stern on a wave), the boat did not turn at all. Another way of bringing the boat back in line was to leave the paddle blade to the rear and use it as a rudder. I found this to be effective to keep me from broaching when I stopped to rest. Simply by trailing the paddle as a rudder I could keep the kayak pointed towards the park and maintain forward momentum without paddling.

Ok, I'm tracking well with the wind and waves directly to my back, and I already know the kayak tracks great straight into the wind. How about at angles? No time like the present to try. At first the kayak wanted to broach, but leaning solved that problem. I wasn't the best in the world, but was several orders of magnitude better than the first time I took the kayak out in this type of wind.

50 feet from the boat launch and time for a little bracing and sculling practice. I practice this every time I go out but so far haven't been in conditions where I needed a brace. I do use sculling to pull me in parallel to the shore and sometimes around tight spaces. The waves are dumping hard at the boat launch and there is no protected area to land. To make matters worse the launch is lined with heavy logs and rocks. I understand the need to protect the shoreline of the launch, but it makes landing in these conditions hazardous. Not to me, but to my kayak. Having one of these waves drop me on top of one of these jagged rocks would not make me happy. With about 5 feet between my bow and a log and another 5 feet between my stern and some rocks I slowly edged my way into the bank to suddenly be picked up and set down hard onto the shore. Another trip under the belt.

My Greenland paddle was a test paddle made from 2 - 1x4" pieces of Douglas Fir laminated together to make a 2x4. My next task will be to epoxy up some leftover cedar strips from my kayak to make a cedar paddle. And my decision to add a rudder is back on hold again..