NE 3/4 becoming 4/5, occasionally 6 in east; slight, occasionally moderate at first in east; mainly fair.
The whole family turned out to help launch the boat at the old lifeboat station, where the expanse of shingle and sand is easier to cross.
Called the Coastguard, and then Lydd Range Control to find that there was no firing scheduled today. Punched out through a couple of modest surf breaks, pushed the deck cargo back into place, and then turned for the west. It was a long slog past Lydd range with a force 4-6 on the quarter, as this boat has no skeg, and its primary stability is a bit too solid when fully laden[1]. Things got a bit easier when the sandstone cliffs started at Cliff End in a fondant of pinks and ochres.
Met a gent on a sit-on-top at Hastings - only the second paddler of the trip (the first having been a geology student in N.Kent).
Difficult recovery up a steep shingle bank at Pevensey, but worth it for the excellent Bay View campsite behind the gap in the houses at GR TQ 6495 0263, where the wardens greeted me with a mug of tea and the offer of a lift into Eastbourne (gratefully accepted). The marina at Eastbourne is frightfully chic, so I enjoyed sitting by the waterside, wearing headtorch and Chillcheater coverall, munching fish & chips.
I had some alterations done to my drysuit just before setting off, and the overcuffs are starting to chafe badly. On the water, you don't notice what's happening, but when the sores dry out you do!
Notes:
[1] A properly trimmed sea kayak will drift bow to wind, or maybe beam to wind. If you want to travel with the wind on the quarter (i.e. almost in the same direction as the wind), it helps to lower a small fin, called a skeg, near the stern. This helps slow the stern's drift downwind, and therefore has the effect of holding the boat on a downwind course. Trouble is, my boat doesn't have a skeg.
Edging is rotating one's hips so that the hull heels to one side. You do this while keeping your torso more-or-less vertical - otherwise you capsize. The purpose of edging is to induce or maintain a turn away from the lowered side of the boat (imagine a warship turning at speed). Paddling "on edge" can therefore compensate somewhat for the lack of a skeg (and is also used for other purposes). To do this, it helps if the hull rolls easily a few degrees either side of vertical (little "primary stability"), but then stiffens up and becomes more stable beyond that ("secondary stability").
The whole family turned out to help launch the boat at the old lifeboat station, where the expanse of shingle and sand is easier to cross.
Called the Coastguard, and then Lydd Range Control to find that there was no firing scheduled today. Punched out through a couple of modest surf breaks, pushed the deck cargo back into place, and then turned for the west. It was a long slog past Lydd range with a force 4-6 on the quarter, as this boat has no skeg, and its primary stability is a bit too solid when fully laden[1]. Things got a bit easier when the sandstone cliffs started at Cliff End in a fondant of pinks and ochres.
Met a gent on a sit-on-top at Hastings - only the second paddler of the trip (the first having been a geology student in N.Kent).
Difficult recovery up a steep shingle bank at Pevensey, but worth it for the excellent Bay View campsite behind the gap in the houses at GR TQ 6495 0263, where the wardens greeted me with a mug of tea and the offer of a lift into Eastbourne (gratefully accepted). The marina at Eastbourne is frightfully chic, so I enjoyed sitting by the waterside, wearing headtorch and Chillcheater coverall, munching fish & chips.
I had some alterations done to my drysuit just before setting off, and the overcuffs are starting to chafe badly. On the water, you don't notice what's happening, but when the sores dry out you do!
Notes:
[1] A properly trimmed sea kayak will drift bow to wind, or maybe beam to wind. If you want to travel with the wind on the quarter (i.e. almost in the same direction as the wind), it helps to lower a small fin, called a skeg, near the stern. This helps slow the stern's drift downwind, and therefore has the effect of holding the boat on a downwind course. Trouble is, my boat doesn't have a skeg.
Edging is rotating one's hips so that the hull heels to one side. You do this while keeping your torso more-or-less vertical - otherwise you capsize. The purpose of edging is to induce or maintain a turn away from the lowered side of the boat (imagine a warship turning at speed). Paddling "on edge" can therefore compensate somewhat for the lack of a skeg (and is also used for other purposes). To do this, it helps if the hull rolls easily a few degrees either side of vertical (little "primary stability"), but then stiffens up and becomes more stable beyond that ("secondary stability").
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