Keep a Kayaking Logbook

Many sea kayakers keep logbooks, and if you don't have one yourself, you might want to start the practice on your next paddling adventure. Not only is a kayaking logbook a great place to record logisitical data and weather information, it can be a wonderful way to re-live your favorite kayaking moments years or even decades later.

Kayaking logbooks also allow the observant paddler to record water features and obstacles in areas that they regularly traverse. Seasonal weather, wind, and ocean patterns can also be documented in a logbook, along with local wildlife and any other paddlers or boaters. This is also a great place to record different launch sites, and the conditions you encounter at each of these sites. This can make your next trip to the same area a much safer and more pleasant experience.

Some paddlers think of their logbooks as sort of journals, where they can reflect during quiet moments about their lives and their adventures -- both past and present. Photographs of a trip are great, but there's nothing like a journal to record the way the ocean smelled on a particular day, or the joke one of your paddling buddies told the night before beside the campfire. This can also be a great way to share your kayaking adventures with grandchildren and other family members years later, or even pass them on after you've gone.

These logbooks can be as sparse or as detailed as you want. Some kayakers keep such detailed accounts of their trips that they eventually turn their logbooks into published guidebooks of a particular area or region of the country. At a bare minimum, you'll probably want to record several categories of information, including: the date, time, launching site, local weather conditions, tide conditions, surf conditions, and wind conditions. You'll also probably want to note who was with you on the trip, and any extra supplies or gear that were needed or used along the way.

Understandably, everyone on your trip is probably not going to want to keep their own logbook. Many paddlers don't want to be bothered, they just want to jump in their boats and enjoy the day and the moment. You can designate someone as the "official recordkeeper" on the trip, or just do it yourself if you feel so inclined. This isn't a homework assignment, after all, and it will benefit the person keep the journal more than anyone else.

If you don't currently own a logbook, there are several models available from almost all of the major online and offline sporting goods stores.

Good Camping Gear -- Don't Leave Home Without It

If you're planning an overnight or multi-day excursion, you're gonna need some good camping equipment. Being in the backcountry with lousy gear or the wrong gear can be a miserable experience, trust me on this. Always buy the best equipment you can afford, and consider quality, weight, and overall design before choosing on a product.

Retail sporting goods stores are great, but most only carry a limited selection of camping supplies, and expect to pay the full retail price. Online merchants, on the other hand, offer a wide selection of name-brand camping gear and supplies, and at discounted prices. And online shopping offers a convenient, comfortable alternative to driving all over town looking for that hard to find item.

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Tips & Tricks

Emptying a swamped boat

Once you've had the unfortunate experience of
bailing out from a capsized kayak, your next task
will be getting that water out of your swamped boat.

If you're whitewater kayaking and you can get the boat out of the water, you can achieve this one of two ways.

If you're alone, flip the kayak upside down and lift up on one end. Then use a seasawing motion to drain
the excess water out of the cockpit. If you've got a
partner, you can perform the same operation, this time with one person holding each end of the boat and seasawing up and down. Any remaining water can be pumped or sponged out.