Krazy Kayaks

Pictures

2008-05-27T08:48:00.000-07:00

For anyone who is still reading here are a few pictures from the trip :)

Final Thoughts

2008-05-11T22:23:00.000-07:00

Well the final paddle has gone in the water on this trip, so, some days on I feel its about time to put the closing comments in.

Questions I have been asked

Q Was it hard?
A Yes it was a living hell, but it was good as well.

Q Best bit?
A Setting off after months of planning and we get off onto a flat, calm Thames, tunes the wife put on my ipod were very emotional, obstacles and problems( sure beats suduko), shooting down tidal Trent that baby sure does move, home coming, money raised.

Q Worst bit?
A Having to set up camp at night in the cold and putting my gloves on in a morning!

Q Best laugh?
A To many to detail, swan attack, traffic chaos on the A road, tunnel vision, water fever when you see up hills on canals, pimp my canoe.

Q Low point?
A Hypothermia was near on two occasions.

Q Every close to giving up?
A Never even entered my head, it was a case of when, not if we would finish. Some people said I could not do it and I put this in my head for motivation if needed when I was ready to quit but never needed to call on it.

Q Do it again?
A Not the same stretch, but maybe ……………to………………….!!!

Q What about canoeing in the future?
A Yes bring it on! I love it. Have found a brill hobby. Just need another boat and another plan.

Q What you going to miss?
A Planning for this event since July o7, I have done nothing but plan for 11days in April , it's left a hole in my life.

If you have given or helped or read this blog thank you.

DAVE x

The end.

Daves radio interview part 2

2008-05-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

Dave was on radio Sheffield again this morning.
If you want to listen then scroll right to the bottom and turn the video off first or you won't be able to hear it :-)

boomp3.com

Thats all folks!

2008-05-04T10:14:00.000-07:00

Hi All!

It’s now 24 hours since Dave & I arrived back into Sheffield to what I can only describe as a welcome far beyond anything I could ever have dreamed of! Banners, bagpipes, a kayak armada and a huge crowd ensured it was a moment that brought a lump to my throat and a moment I’ll never forget.

Looking back now it’s still a little hard to believe what we have achieved, 275 miles in kayaks from London to Sheffield in 10 days raising what’s looking like a final figure of around £2500, I know that money will be put to the very best of use. I don’t mind admitting that this has been the single most difficult experience of my life, it seemed at times like everything was against us, from bad weather to all those dreaded locks, we faced it all and came through it. I’m so proud of what we have achieved.

There are a few people I need to thank and so I’m going to do it here. Matt from the Leamington Boat centre (www.leamboatcentre.com) for all his advice at the very start, Deb Mather for highlighting our cause to all of the relevant media, Cath for setting up the website and all your support, Uncle Colin for getting us to London, Fran and Dave for letting us take over your house, the various British Waterways lock keepers for all of your advice and for granting us a safe passage along the way and the many people who stopped us for a chat and to wish us the best of luck. The Hemel Hampstead Canoe Club for letting us spend the night in your gaff even though you didn’t know us from Adam (excuse the pun) and the land lords of the Ferry Boat Inn, Church Laneham for taking us in and keeping us warm at our lowest moment, you’ll never know just how grateful we were. Of course to everyone who sponsored us, without you the whole trip would have been for nothing!

To my family for all of your messages of support both before and during the trip and for being there at the finish line one and all - I love you all and am so proud to call myself one of yours - Rocky won!

To Katie - where do I start! Thanks for all your patience before hand, all your running around during and for being there to sort me out after - coming home to you is what kept me going, I love you all the world Barnpot, thank you!

And finally to the other half of the Blisworth Two and co-founder of ‘Pimp My Kayak’! Dave - you are a living legend. Never in all my life have I met anyone so determined, so committed and so supportive as you. I wouldn’t have got through this without you and I take my hat off to you, the biggest pile of respect I give to you and to quote Superman Christopher Reeve himself, ’A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles’ - that’s you - be proud.

And so that’s it. Would I do it again? Well not today, but maybe tomorrow…..

In the meantime, I have a kayak for sale, one owner from new and used just the once, 275 genuine miles on the clock, very comfortable on long journeys and would suit similar plonker thinking of doing something a little bit mad but very worthwhile!

Thanks for reading and much love

Adam x

A Heros Welcome

2008-05-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

The day started off with the boys having a bit of a well deserved lie in as they didn't have many miles to go to get back to Sheffield.They set off around 930am and paddled as far as Tinsley Locks where they met up with the Sheffield Canoe Club. They had very kindly said they would like to follow Adam and Dave into the Quays. At around 12pm Dave called me to say they were on track and due to land in the Quays on time. At around 1.25pm Adam called Katie to say they would be 5 minutes or so. We all waited impatiently. Adams family were there and had made a fabulous banner saying 'Yo Bliss, you did it!'. It even had a picture of a Kayaker on it. Also lots of friends and colleagues were in attendance to congratulate them. We all got into position on the bridge to cheer them in and Gordon Dale, who had kindly come to play the bagpipes, stood on the side of the canal. Dave Wood, Katies Dad, had had a crash course in how to open the lock so he could let them in. Then in the distance we saw them. In they came slowly followed by the Sheffield Canoe Club.

I was stood on the side of the canal with Corey and Katie was at the side of me. Gordon began to play his bagpipes and i must admit to shedding a tear.

It was quite emotional seeing them finish this 300 mile trek. They have faced awful weather and are really in effect novice Kayakers and i couldn't be more proud!

Dave opened the lock and in they paddled. Dave immediately did an eskimo roll and exited his kayak, Adam paddled to the side and got out of his boat, i don't think he wanted to get wet!

They both greeted family and friends and then Dave decided to get wet again and dived in like the maniac he is! They posed for many photographs and there was a photographer there from East Midlands trains. All in all it's been a really great day. Both of them should be extremely proud of themselves, i know i am. I'd just like to say a massive thank you to everyone who has helped. Far too many people to name but you know who you are. And a massive thank you to everyone who donated money. Today we have smashed through the £2000 mark with more pledges to come so it's been pretty amazing.

I'm sure that Dave and Adam will be adding there own Epilogues so please continue to read and watch other for more pictures!

Cath x

Arrangements for the final day

2008-05-02T14:15:00.000-07:00

Well, what an amazing trip these guys have done, its fantastic that they have gotten through the awful weather, freezing cold 5am starts and sun burn!

They plan to arrive into Sheffield at 13.30 tomorrow afternoon. The Sheffield Canoe Club are going to meet them at the last lock near Sheffield Arena and paddle into Sheffield Quays behind them. Gordon Dale from East Midlands Trains has kindly offered to play the bagpipes as the kayakers sweep round the corner into Sheffield Basin! EMT's Comms Team has also arranged for a photographer to meet them at the finish line.

Family, friends and colleagues will be meeting them to welcome them back! If anyone would like to come and cheer them on to the finish line, i know Adam & Dave would love to see you there!

Well, thats all from me as Adam will be adding his posts from tomorrow. I would just like to say thankyou so much to everyone who has sponsored and supported them throughout this. I hope you have enjoyed reading our blog updates for the past 9 days!

Thanks again

Katie

Day 9 - THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!

2008-05-02T01:09:00.000-07:00

Well the Kayakers set off on their final full day of paddling at 05.30 this morning! They departed from Keadby Junction (Keadby Port), the sun was coming up and looked set to be a lovely day.

09.30 - They have reached Thorne, done 10 miles and just having some thing to eat!

15.00 - The kayakers are somewhere near Conisborough but I cannot remember exactly where. They are really pushing hard to get as close to Sheffield as they can to make the last day a leisurely one! Dave said that they've had a few head winds but luckily the seat belt signs didn't come on!

21.00 - The kayakers ended today at Rotherham Central Ralway Station. They did 34 miles today! Without food!! I picked them up so they could get themselves scrubbed up for their final 5 miles in Sheffield Quays!

Day 8

2008-05-01T13:47:00.000-07:00

Much better day weather wise today and the River has been kind. The run from Church Laneham was restarted at 0530 to catch the out going tide to Keadby. With an out going tide and a tail wind and none stop mental paddling and in boat weeing( into a bottle), 30 mile was completed by 1100. Normally this would be a full days paddle. The next problem was to then get off the River as the banks are high and muddy.

The boys will resume tomorrow at Keadby ready for the final stint home, some 40 miles, hoping to land on Saturday between 1200 and 1400.

Day 7

2008-04-30T04:45:00.000-07:00

06.30 - After a really bad night of heavy rain and high winds, Adam & Dave set off towards Newark Castle.

07.45 - Radio Sheffield interviewed the kayakers live!!

09.30 - Adam called to say they have reached Newark Castle and were grabbing a quick breakfast before they started their trip towards the tidal stretch of Trent. They were both very tired because the weather was so bad in the night, they hardly slept due to checking their canoes hadnt blown away!

Listen to Dave on Radio Sheffield!
boomp3.com

19.00 - Well today has been the roughest day yet. They have had rain lashing down on them for most of the day and it got so bad that they had to finish the day earlier(5pm) than usual otherwise they would have been dealing with hypothermia. They still managed to do 30 miles. They took refuge in a pub in Laneham called The Ferry Boat Inn and would like to express their gratitude to the landlady there who was very hospitable. Lets hope that after some rest they are able to plod on tomorrow.

Day 6

2008-04-28T23:22:00.000-07:00

06.00 - Well the start of another day! It had been raining in the night so it wasnt very warm this morning whilst Adam and Dave were loading their boats up again - the weather forecast says rain, rain, rain all week now! They Kayakers set off from Proctor's Country Park at Barrow upon Soar this morning and making there way up through Nottingham into Newark, hopefully arriving there at around 19.00 - hopefully there wont be as many locks as yesterday!

10.30 - The kayakers were one mile away from the famous Trent Junction where EMT's trains pass over on their way to/from Loughborough. They then paddled up to Nottingham. Cath and Corey met them at Trent Bridge where they had some lunch before setting off again!

20.00 - Arrived at Gunthorpe. They tried to get into a hotel because its cold and raining but there was no storage for the canoes so they have had to set their tents up on a nearby campsite. The weather turned on them this evening so its very cold and theyre soaking so they have gone to seek refuge and some tea! They've paddled around 32 miles today, making up a couple of miles from yesterday but still about 6 miles short in total. They had to stop for about an hour in the afternoon cause Dave got so cold and couldn't carry on before warming up.

It was so great to see Dave this afternoon. I took a few pictures on my phone(not the best!) but you get an idea :)

Day 5

2008-04-28T19:29:00.000-07:00

06.00 - Set off from the locks at Kibworth, its very cold this morning but the sun was coming up so hopefully they can get a good way to Loughborough before the rain comes! Both are in very good spirits after having a bath and a sleep.

19.00 - So it's been another tough day with far too many locks. I think they'll be glad to see the back of them! They managed to paddle around 24 miles today, about 3 short of their target, this was mainly due to the locks. The weather was kind to them this morning but turned rainy this afternoon. They have finished in Barrow upon Soar and have somewhere warm to stay this evening. Hopefully tomorrow will be better for them and less locks!

End of Day 4

2008-04-27T21:00:00.000-07:00

Well the Krazy Kayakers have finished for another day.

They have done in excess of 35 miles and caught up on lost mileage from previous days and are now just a couple of miles behind.

The day started out well with nice weather but this afternoon they encountered a thunderstorm and had to take shelter under a bridge. Also Dave had a fright when a swan decided to attack him and landed on the kayak!

They are now near a place called Kibworth and have somewhere warm and dry to stay tonight and hopefully will have a good nights kip!

Day 4 - Past the 100 mile mark!

2008-04-27T13:55:00.000-07:00

15.00 - Kayakers have stopped just before Foxton Locks to have some lunch. They have just past the 100 mile mark which is great news as they are on schedule! Theyve done 24 miles so far today and have another 5 hours of daylight so they may even be able to do more than the planned 30 miles per day!

I will be meeting them again tonight so i will able to add another picture of them later!

Day 4

2008-04-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

7.00 - Well the lads are off to a good start. 5.30am start this morning. They managed to paddle an incredible 7 miles in 90 mins! They have been met with a series of locks now so are doing a little bit on foot. they are currently at a place called Weedon. Hope you get some good weather today chaps!

Day 3

2008-04-26T07:24:00.000-07:00

14.30 - What a gorgeous day today!! The sun is shining, its lovely and warm-the kayakers have asked me to bring them some suncream because theyre getting sunburnt! They called at 14.30 to let us know that they had stopped for lunch at Stoke Bruerne, just before heading into Blisworth Tunnel (2 miles long). I think theyve made their minds up to go out to the sea so i will be meeting them tonight near Billing Aquadrome to take them more supplies.

16.00 - Adam and Dave have decided to follow our railway line and come up through Leicester!

19.30 - Arrived at Nether Heyford to see Adam and Dave. They were pitching up on a campsite by the canal. When we arrived, they had just put their tents up and were cleaning their boats. I took them clean clothes, fruit, nut energy bars and a couple of beers to have with their fish and chips! They have met a couple of people enroute who have kindly given them a donation, so for those who may read this, thankyou very much for your kindness!

They have decided to come up through Leicester due to expected high winds on the day that they would need to cross the Wash. Me and Cath are relieved they arent going that way - hopefully they could shave a day off and arrive in Sheffield on Friday 2nd May! Come on, get paddling boys!!

Day 2

2008-04-25T00:33:00.000-07:00

05.55 - Phonecall from Adam. They were setting off again at 06.00, they managed to get some sleep ready for the 45 locks they have to go around today!

09.45 - Dave called to say they hadn't actually been in the water as yet as they were trying to navigate some of the locks on foot. It's hard work for them getting the boats in and out of the water so at this point it's easier on foot. they're now at Berkhamstead.
Also just wanted to say a HUGE thankyou to Hemel Hempstead Canoe Club for their hospitality last night!

19.30 - Well the end of another day. They've managed to notch up 26 miles today which is around 4 short of what they wanted to do but this is probably due to the fact they had to walk around 8 ,miles this morning around locks. Hopefully tomorrow should be better as the locks are much closer together. They have managed to find a small campsite near Bletchley so at least they'll be able to get a hot shower. Hope you're not to sore guys! xx

End of Day 1

2008-04-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

20.30 - Adam and Dave have paddled 29 miles today!! Theyre are very tired but theyve met a canoe club tonight and told them about their trip - theyve given them their club house for the night!! Nice hot showers, electricity, toilets - and even a pub across the road!! Theyre having a shower and going for their tea now. An early night tonight ready for a very early start again tomorrow! Sleep tight Kayakers xx

Day 1

2008-04-24T12:51:00.000-07:00

Updated throughout the day.

0830 - Dave and Adam set off on the jaunt at 520am. The River Thames was very calm and they navigated this fine. It was on the Grand Union Canal that problems arose. Well not exactly problems but having to get the boat out of the water for all the locks has slowed them down and tired them out.

1242 - They have stopped for lunch at Denham Deep Lock and gone about 15 miles. The wetaher is bad, chucking it down.

The Kayakers and The Leicester Mercury

2008-04-24T09:38:00.000-07:00

Adam and Dave are in the Leicester Mercury! For anyone who would like to read it, they are on Page 7. They have also been approached by Derby Radio Station to broadcast a live interview tomorrow morning whilst theyre paddling!

T Minus 1 - This is it!

2008-04-23T20:36:00.000-07:00

Hi All

As the title suggests - this is it! At 2.30AM tomorrow morning we'll begin our drive from Leicester to London where we will set sail from Chiswick Bridge at 5.00AM and attempt to paddle all the way up to Sheffield; thats a distance of about 300 miles in (hopefully) no more than 11 days.

As promised here are the details of our route(s).

Plan A

Day 1 - Chiswick Bridge to Aspley - Travelling through Rickmansworth and Watford

Day 2 - Aspley to Woolstone Bridge - Travelling through Hemel Hempstead and Milton Keynes

Day 3 - Woolstone Bridge to Billing Aquadrome - This will see us turning off the Grand Union and onto the River Nene, will also be taking us through Blisworth Tunnel which is 1.8 miles long! Day 4 - Billing to Oundle Bridge - Travelling through Wellingborough

Day 5 - Oundle Bridge to Dog in a Doublet - Travelling through Peterborough. Dog in a Doublet is where the River Nene turns into a tidal river

Day 6 - Dog in a Doublet to Crabs Hole (So many puns with this one!) - Travelling through Wisbeach. Crabs Hole is the start of The Wash

Day 7 - Crabs Hole to Boston - Across The Wash and also around RAF Holbeach which is an RAF bombing range! Boston is just the other side of The Wash on the River Witham

Day 8 - Boston to Washingborough - Travelling through miles and miles of nothing.

Day 9 - Washingborough to West Stockwith - Travelling through Lincoln, turning onto the River Trent and through Gainsborough. Lincoln will see us pass under the famous 'Glory Hole' bridge. The River Trent is tidal.

Day 10 - West Stockwith to Barney Dun - Travelling past Scunthorpe and onto the South Yorkshire Navigation

Day 11 - Barney Dun to Sheffield Basin - Travelling through Doncaster and Rotherham.

Now if we get bad weather and decide against going over The Wash our route will be........

Day 1 - Chiswick Bridge to Aspley - Travelling through Rickmansworth and Watford

Day 2 - Aspley to Woolstone Bridge - Travelling through Hemel Hempstead and Milton Keynes

Day 3 - Woolstone Bridge to Whilton - again will take us through Blisworth Tunnel but will stay on the Grand Union Canal as opposed to turning onto the River Nene

Day 4 - Whilton to Newton Harcourt - Travelling through Crick Tunnel, Husbands Bosworth Tunnel and Saddington Tunnel and down Foxton Locks. Will also pass by Market Harborough

Day 5 - Newton Harcourt to Kegworth - Travelling through Leicester (behind the football stadium), Loughborough and also past Pillings Lock which is the big waterfall type lock you can see from the train just south of Loughborough station.

Day 6 - Kegworth to Fiskerton - Turning onto River Trent at Trent Junction and travelling through Nottingham.

Day 7 - Fiskerton to Marton Drain - Travelling through Newark

Day 8 - Marton Drain to Mauds Swing Bridge - Travelling through Gainsborough and turning onto the South Yorkshire Navigation

Day 9 Mauds Swing Bridge to Sheffield Basin - Through Doncaster and Rotherham

Whilst the routes are as above the start/end of day points could alter dependent on if we get ahead or behind. Both Katie and Cath will be updating this website with details of our progress.

With that we'll be off, thanks so much for all the support and sponsoership to date, we're sure we'll smash through the £2000 barrier which is amazing! It'd be great to see as many of you as possible at the finish line when we get back into Sheffield and we'll apologise in advance if we don't smell too fresh!

Thanks

Adam & Dave

IT'S SHOWTIME

2008-04-23T14:07:00.000-07:00

Well the time for talking has come to an end.

Its time to go!!!!

The weather looks average and a cold snap is promised.

Thanks need to be said to the wife who has put up with me training every spare moment. I love you.

Sorry to the boy who i have neglected a little bit.

Thank you to the canoe club of Sheffield for your help, my company who have sponsored me and all the other people that have given money ( nearly 2 grand) and time to this event.

Lets do it!

OPTIONS - YOU DECIDE WHICH IS THE CASE?

1 - I have just spent 7 days in America at the high altitude training camp in California ready for the mission.

or 2 - I have just been on my holidays to the USA.

T Minus 3 Days

2008-04-21T11:29:00.000-07:00

Hi All

Well we are now just a few days away from setting off on our Krazy Kayak from London to Sheffield.

I've just got back from Birstall after doing a 'test run' with the boat fully loaded. There was actually more room on board than I realised and although the boat weighed a LOT more it still floated no worries! I was expecting the extra weight to make paddling a lot harder but it actually felt easier with the boat seemingly cutting through the water with greater ease, am sure it won't feel like that by mile 25 on day 8! I also got to play with my new canoe wheels that I picked up at the weekend, they're just the job!

Had a phone call today from a lady at the Leicester Mercury and she was wanting details of what we were doing so that she could put a story in the paper, seems like the word is spreading!!

I will post again before setting off on Thursday with the route details but for now here are a couple of pictures from today, the first is of everything thats going on the trip, the second is of everything on the water!

T Minus 8 Days.

2008-04-15T02:34:00.000-07:00

Hi All

Well we are now one week away from setting sail and it’s fair to say that the nerves are starting to kick in a little bit! All I now think about is the trip and the size of the challenge we are taking on, it’s massive! I feel as ready as I’m ever going to be, all my kit is bought and ready to go and the transport to London is sorted, in many ways I wish we were getting going tomorrow, I really want to get it done now. We’ve been keeping one eye on the long range weather forecasts and it’s looking like we’ll be paddling in the wind and rain, typical!

Dave and I spent Friday night together in the swimming pool practicing getting in and out of boats so that we can get round the locks without falling in the water at every stop and also practicing rescuing each other should we go over in the middle of the Thames or worse still the middle of The Wash. It doesn’t look pretty but we can back in the boats from the water should we need to.

I have about 3 more sessions out on the water before we get going, one of which will be a test run with the boat fully loaded. I know Dave tried this at the weekend and found it to be ok, I weigh a bit more than Dave though and so I’m cautious that I might just sink, what a nightmare that’d be - anyway up Kate will be on standby with a camera and so some pictures will follow soon.

We have two routes in mind now, the ‘Plan A’ route which go’s out to the Wash and the ‘Plan B’ route which takes us up through Leicester along the Grand Union canal. Plan B is just in case the weather is bad and makes crossing The Wash too much of a risk. Before we leave I’ll post some accurate details of the routes and where we hope to get to each day so that you can follow our progress if you wish!

That’s about all for now!!

Adam

More donations

2008-04-12T12:24:00.000-07:00

More great news! A chap called Jez Grice who runs a wine tasting club in St Albans ( he also runs a business,see link, selling wine ) is going to donate the voluntary entrance fees from his next event to our worthwhile cause.

Thank you very much, hic!

Wine and the Vine

Super Settees

2008-04-08T13:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday

Found myself on the canal again, two things struck me(not literately). The Sheffield and Tinsley canal reminds me of a scene from a star trek movie. About the genesis planet that experiences all kinds of weather within a short space of time (he's been at the canal water again editor),
I set off in mill pond calm, 10 minutes late rain drops start to fall, making beautiful bubbles on the surface as if a thousand fish were blowing bubbles from below. Then it got choppy, then 5 mins later the wind got up and we had waves. Then a klingon appeared on the starboard bow.

Point 2

Two things have always been a companion on the canal this last week , a 2 seater sofa and matching arm chair, not submerged but floating in up right position.
Now because of rising sea levels are all settees designed to float? I know they have a fire resistant mark on them , but should they have a flood resistant mark? If interested they are burgundy red, buyer must arrange collection.

SUNDAY

I am doing the canoe safety test , this is week two where we get to rescue each other from the water, chilly or what in the summer.
So what greets us on this day. A covering of snow and ice cold water, a few dips in the water gives me brain freeze and i have a flash back that i have said i will canoe 300 miles . But at least the flying unicorns have stopped.

Finally - I OFFICIALLY DECLARE MYSELF READY TO GO, ALL CHECKS ARE DONE, ALL KIT IS READY. DEFCON 1.

Dave

Full Steam Ahead........

2008-04-01T05:29:00.001-07:00

Hi All, hope you're well.

As Dave mentioned in one of his recent posts I've had some fantastic news and have been offered the chance to train to be a Train Driver, I'm chuffed to bits about this, what an amazing opportunity!

As Dave also mentioned, this does complicate the Kayak plan ever so slightly (as in quite a lot to be fair!). We'd been planning and training towards setting sail in July which was difficult enough however as my driver training starts in May we'll now be setting sail much much earlier and we are now literally a few weeks as opposed to a few months away from getting going!

It's fair to say that this really up's the pace! We've both been out shopping like mad for all of the kit we need (tents, sleeping bags etc) and of course it's going to be a lot colder going now as opposed to July so we've had to factor that in when buying stuff (we've gone for the eskimo range!). We've also had to re-look at tide times for some parts of our route and to stay on schedule it looks like we'll be doing some paddling through the night, could be interesting.

Every spare moment is also now being spent in the boat training like mad! There is no doubt that paddling into the wind in bad weather is hard work but it's getting easier and my arm muscles are generally not on fire every day now! I'm using a stretch of the River Soar near me at Birstall to train and it's exactly one mile in length between two locks, you have seriously no idea how boring this stretch of water is becoming after paddling back and forth up it 10-15 times a session - I've even starting racing a stray tennis ball that I found floating down river in the current, it's like a game of Pooh sticks between me and the ball, I've drawn a face on the ball and called him Wilson......'It's OK Kate, I'll get the door, It's the men in white jackets for me'.

All for now

Adam

PUMPED UP AND READY TO GO

2008-03-31T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hi
Today i thought i would see if i could fit all the kit in the boat( see below).

After packing I am delighted to say it all fits with some room to spare, so i can take even more stuff!
Now if the boat floats thats another thing.

In physics, buoyancy is the upward force on an object produced by the surrounding fluid (i.e., a liquid or a gas) in which it is fully or partially immersed, due to the pressure difference of the fluid between the top and bottom of the object. The net upward buoyancy force is equal to the magnitude of the weight of fluid displaced by the body. This force enables the object to float or at least to seem lighter. Buoyancy is important for many vehicles such as boats, ships, balloons, and airships, and plays a role in diverse natural phenomena such as sedimentation.

Got that?

Finally can i thank Ish who is a top bloke in all that he does, who i work with, for producing a set of wheels which you may say don't look much but then i gave him a budget of nil and paid him the sum of one cup of tea.
This is the mark two set after the first set weighed slightly more than the boat, after he mis-understood the brief. I said no cost, he thought i said wrought iron embossed.

Dave x

Easter Unicorn

2008-03-23T19:09:00.000-07:00

With a strong north wind, freezing temperatures, add a mix of sun, rain, snow and hail and it was the back drop to the most serious training run so far in which i managed to blast through the 20 mile mark.
Could i have gone on for 30 which is to be our daily target? Yes, if time had permitted I feel confident that i could have done that. Could i repeat it day after day is another question.
The Sheffield canal was the scene for this epic struggle as i made 4 trips from the basin to the first Tinsley lock.
3 miles distance were being hit in under a hour which again is our target speed
Do canals have waves? It was that windy at times that waves with white horses were forming , or was it i had swallowed too much canal water blown up off the boat bow and was hallucinating?

Got to go I have just seen a unicorn ridden by Lord Lucan sat on the bird table.

Dave

2008-03-16T11:58:00.000-07:00

The river was a bit more lively today as the rain had improved the levels so had a nice tip down it finishing off with dropping down a weir which was in stopper mode (Grab your boat and keep you there as the water recycles at the bottom). So much so that the instructors set up rescue lines with live bait ( a man with a rope ready to dive in and pull you out the other side) and placed a canoeist along the bottom of the weir to paddle in and support you.
I managed to slide down the weir and battle out the other side but a couple of our group needed live bait rescue.
I have learnt that there are smiling and frowning weirs, one is better walked round.

Problems and joy.

My paddling partner has had some great news, he has got promotion, well done Adam!

However because of the training needs of this job we are now scrabbling around for a date to go, which could be july, august or in the next 8 weeks. Talk about focus your mind!, as i scuttled off to buy the rest of my gear, and think of how many paddling days between now and 8 weeks time.

Dave

Preparations

2008-03-07T19:55:00.000-08:00

With all this canoe training going on it could be easy to forget the base station which will monitor our progress and up date the worlds media.
So to over come this we have invested heavily in the latest tracking systems ( see picture below).
This will be able to track our progress across the country and pin point to 50 square miles and nearly a full day as to where we are!

Dave

Edith Murphy Foundation

2008-03-07T01:08:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

Dave and I were chuffed to bits this week to learn that the Edith Murphy Foundation has pledged a donation of £500 to our cause!

In 1992, Edith Murphy set up the Edith Murphy Foundation which has since given away more than £3 million mainly to medical and animal causes. A good friend of mine, Chris Blakesley, is involved with the foundation and mentioned our Kayak challenge at a recent trust meeting which resulted in the donation.

I would like to say huge thanks to the Foundation for the donation and also to Chris for championing our cause, Dave and I really appreciate it.

We're only a whisker away now from the £2000 mark!!

Adam

Our launch site

2008-03-02T13:29:00.000-08:00

Many thanks to Caths friend Marie who, whilst on her footy trip to Fulham, scouted out our launch site.
Here are a few pictures.

Maiden Voyage!

2008-03-01T04:31:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

As promised a few photos from my maiden voyage! Have just spent a very cold, wet and windy morning on the River Soar in Leicester, in fairness I was fairly warm from paddling but Kate's lips were blue and I figured that's probably not a good thing (sorry Kate!).

Anyway the boat was great and a good choice for the trip I think. With Dave and I both having the same boat we should keep a fairly similar speed to each other. I couldn't help but think though that 300 miles still seems like a long way to be sat in this little boat!!

Had to add the picture of the boat on top of my car, with the matching colours it's almost as though they were made for each other!!

Hope you're all well, oh and just out of interest, if you want to make comments on any of the posts feel free, it'd be great to know people are stopping by!

Adam

To Brum and Back.....

2008-02-24T12:11:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

I saw this cartoon and it made me chuckle! I'm sure Dave will appreciate it too! As regular readers will know, Dave spends his Friday nights at a swimming pool where they hold kayak sessions, Dave's been going for some time and kept telling me I should go along. Well a few weeks ago I took him up on his offer, I've never seen so many kayaks in one place in my life, it was like a minature Spanish Armada! People in kayaks everywhere were capsizing, rolling and practicing new moves. It was a good opportunity for me to make sure I could get out of a boat safely should the need arise (I'm still with the theory that I'll be staying dry) and so with the help of the canoe club staff I did a bit of capsizing and got out fine. I couldn't grasp rolling back up again but am happy enough not to master that one, am not sure my nose could take any more chlorine! Dave and I managed to master a move where we helped each other to roll back up so that was good.

Today has been a good day, I dragged Katie along to the National Boat, Caravan & Outdoor show at the NEC in Birmingham. I had decided that the time had come to go out and buy the boat that would be taking me on this voyage. The kayak section was in the very last hall and so as I walked past all of the massive motor boats (some even had crew quarters!!) I couldn't help but think that Dave and I had chosen the wrong mode of transport! At last we came to the kayaks and the first person I came to was Matt from the Leam Boat Centre who I had met last year (see previous post) and it was nice to see a familiar face. Matt was, again, really helpful and took the time to take me through all the boats available and which would be best. Anyway after much deliberating and bartering between different stands I stumped up 400 of the Queens English pounds and took home the same Kayak that Dave has (except mines in blue). I'm well chuffed with it and am looking forward to taking it on it's maiden voyage this week. Once again huge thanks to Matt (www.leamboatcentre.com) and also to Dan from Desperate Measures (www.desperate-measures.co.uk) in Notts who put together a good deal for me. If I can drag Kate to the canal with me this week I'll post some shots of the new boat.

It was fantastic to see the sponsorship total smash through the £1000 mark earlier this month, a huge thanks to all who have donated so far, it's brilliant! There's still loads of time between now and when we set sail and so wouldn't it be great if we could get the total to two grand!! With a bit of luck, there should be some media coverage in the newspapers over the next couple of weeks which might generate further interest, thanks to Debbie Mather for sorting.

Think thats about all for now. Today marks the end of my seventh week of no smoking, it's going well!

Adam

Grim up North

2008-02-17T15:39:00.000-08:00

Was a tad cold up here this Sunday!!!

Something for the weekend

2008-02-12T06:50:00.000-08:00

Very productive weekend when it comes to paddling
Baths on Friday,

Saturday went on the sea at Flamborough and did a little 10 mile paddle, hard work but a very nice day.

We decided to stop for lunch at Filey bay so we paddled for the sands, all the waves were ankle high to a grasshopper, then I paddle in and from nowhere this bigger wave decided to break right on top of me, lucky i adopted the correct approach leaning into the wave and got a fantastic ride to the beach. It was like old spice advert (ones with surfing in) crossed with a saga holiday promotion video to watch me go.
See picture of north landing, hardest bit was caring canoe back to the car park.

Sunday, went on the river don with the club but it had been that dry it was more like rock climbing as we banged along the river hitting rocks as we went.

Dave

Dave reveals his new plans to get Adam paddling faster!........

2008-02-10T06:35:00.001-08:00

2008-02-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

Fantastic news!! We have now gone through the £1000 barrier in terms of contributions or pledges, just that small matter of doing the paddle now.

Thankyou to everyone!!

Up, down and up

2008-02-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

For the last million weeks i have been working on a sculling support stroke in the baths , which means the canoe is sort of on its long thin slide side and you are still in it whilst you are laid flat on the water bit like the letter L , you being the bottom foot of the L. This has been driving me mad. I can do it tipping to the right side, but on the left i am not so good. Anyway, after rolling over more times than the lottery roll over i managed to do it as the session at the baths came to a end, hope i can remember what i did next week.

Saturday, because of the poor weather, snow in north yorkshire, meant the trip to Flamborough was called off, then Saturday turns out weather wise to be the best day in several, how frustrating.

Sunday, the cold wind blows, and i get a chance to attempt my 3 star test, which means (amongst different skills/strokes paddling) the following skills have to be attempted - roll, Eskimo rescue - now thats a tough one, where do you find a eskimo in Sheffield? But basically you tip up side down and a canoe pulls up at the side of you, then you reach up from below the water, grab the boat and right yourself, thats followed by deep sea rescue (at least i am ready for rising sea levels), so if you get swamped when the sea rises 10 mile, i can help.
So that is it, i am now 3 star.
I did this all whilst suffering from a jippy tum.

Big thanks to all at the canoe club who have given me so much advice, without them i would still be sitting in the boat backwards and frequently upside down.

Dave

Adam ponders his next move....

2008-01-27T09:05:00.001-08:00

Adam takes delivery of his new canoe.........

2008-01-24T00:43:00.001-08:00

Video

2008-01-22T10:17:00.000-08:00

I'm the second one in the blue helmet.

Dave

A wet weekend

2008-01-21T07:16:00.000-08:00

Saturday - Despite heavy rain I feel the urge for a paddle so off i go to Carsington water. Now, ever thought that the worlds against you (conspiracy theory)? First i get lost on the way there, 1 hour run takes nearly double, the lake is massive but you are only permitted to paddle in one small corner and United lost against Wednesday ( I couldn't face it on telly).
The the final cue de gar, had to walk down a small bank to the lake. I slipped holding the canoe, i hit the floor, the canoe bounced in the air , and then hit me around the head, and guess what, i had people watching.
So onto the water and what has been worrying me for months is the lack of distance practice , i spend a lot of time allegedly improving my skills but not much on strength, so today we address that.
After 20 minutes i thought 35 miles a day will kill me or my arms will fall off(which evers the worst), however, i discovered that i wanted to paddle like i was in a race and by slowing down my rate i could keep going. The trick i feel is like when i ride a bike, not to free-wheel, so to keep paddling at a slower rate. I managed a good hour and half before darkness reclaimed the day.

I still have issues with my back rest, it was killing my back, however the thigh braces i fitted do the task , stops me moving around the boat.

So onto Sunday

Went to the club waters on the Don and after a inspection the club official declares "It's a wash out, the club can take no responsibility, if you wish to paddle its on your own shoulder".
So I and some people who know what they are doing venture up the bank to assess our route down.
We are given some rescue training , which will come in very handy.
We inspect the water and its like a roaring dragon, and its the first time I have thought about the power of water from the point of view that in 5 minutes i got down stream.
Then fellow paddlers (that are normally instructors ) remind me of the risk of the trees in the water which basically strain it but also can trap and kill you.
But plenty of water available to miss it.
So off i launch through two waves, then there it is, the big tree i need to miss right in front of me, frantic paddling left, get the nose(bow) round it but the back catches it, and over and in I go.
It felt like a life time but i managed to get out and off i went on my wild water ride without the boat. It's a bit like going down the steepest slide at a water park but without an end and its cold, the waves push your head in the water.
I follow what i have been told and a rescue canoe guides me safely down the channels before the rescue lines fly in i catch hold, then I am pulled to safety.
Water running out my sleeves and every other opening, the only thing missing was the fish in my mouth.
So after that did i go home?. No i went back for more and this time i beat the water(more like a goal-less draw) and did the full trip without coming out.
So did i leave it there? Err no! I went for another go. This time I got past the tree fine, but trying to break out of the fast flow i went in. I thought let's try a roll, and it worked, up i came.
However after a few seconds of me grinning from ear to ear i went over again, this time i got out and got rescued again.
Some one said I was still smiling when i went over again, yes i was well impressed with my first white water roll.

Back to Business

2008-01-17T08:31:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!

Firstly I must apologise for not posting on here in far too many months, there are no excuses! And also whilst Dave has been going paddling mad in the swimming baths and River Don I've not been out in a boat in a while. There is no-where local to me thats doing canoe hire now which has made it difficult to get out, however my saviour turned up in the brake van of a HST! (Thats a High Speed Train for non railway readers). Imagine the looks I got from smartly dressed commuters as I walked down a packed train platform with a canoe over my shoulder! The temptation to start shouting "The flood is coming, I'm ready but are you?" was almost too tempting. My hugest of huge thanks to Mr Brian West who has lent me his canoe for practice, it'll make a massive amount of difference to me and the amount of time I can spend paddling in the run up to the main event in July. Next time I see you Brian the beers will be on me. The borrowed canoe can be seen in the above picture (would you believe that it's actually a fairly short boat!) and I'm as pleased as punch to be it's guardian for a while.

Dave has also managed to pull in £600+ of sponsership money which is fantastic and well on the way to the £1000 target. I'll be doing the rounds at my end very shortly and so expect to see me begging for whatever of your hard earned cash that you can spare, it really is for a great cause, BLISS really do make a huge difference to the families they are involved with.

As Dave has mentioned in his posts the route has changed ever so slightly again with the bulk of the route now being the Grand Union Canal and River Nene as opposed to the North Sea, it's a shame that! Years ago canal boats were pulled by horses that walked alongside on the tow path and therefore if anyone has a spare horse lying around that they wish to donate for a week in July please get in touch.

In other news, I have made a start on giving up the fags which I know will come in handy when I'm paddling 30 miles a day (or not depending on how mad looking at nothing but river and fields for a week sends me!). It's been 11 days now and so far so good. 11 days doesn't sound like much I know but all things have to start somewhere, we're planning on travelling 300 miles in canoes in 11 days so when you think of it like that............

Thats all for now, promise not to leave it so long next time!

Oh No!!!

2008-01-11T10:34:00.000-08:00

A stowaway!!!

2008-01-01T09:07:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year.

Started the year off with a new years day paddle on Damflask reservoir (near Sheffield) the club had arranged a trip there.

The weather was calm it was like a mill pond and air temp was warm too.

Took the opportunity to complete my two star award , which has to be done part Kayak and part done in a open top canoe.

Then did a bit( and I mean a bit ) of distance paddling, after quarter of a mile i was Christmas cracked. Blimey 30 mile a day seams a lot of water when we do the trip.

The route we intend to paddle has firmed up ( if water can firm up) and it looks like cast off on the Thames at either Kew or where the boat race starts, up the grand unions 1 million locks to carry the boat round as you cant go in them. Onto the River Nene and bit of the Wash back in at Boston , onto Lincoln, onto tidal Trent, before the South Yorkshire Joint water way to the quay at Sheffield.

Its only about 31 miles a day paddling, sounds a lot walking let alone paddling.

2007-12-31T06:47:00.000-08:00

Just so happened to be walking across London in December (not the whole of December I hasten to add but 4o minutes of it) cause I need to get to Waterloo ( the station not a flood damaged toilet).
So when I cross the River Thames I just had to stop and think forward to July when I will insert myself into my kayak and paddle home.

One picture is of the life boat station which I hope I don’t need, but one thing that struck me is if I am not careful I may go left instead of right and go totally the wrong way. That would be embarrassing and we may end up getting to Sheffield via Wales.

The other thing dependant on the weather reports, decides which way we go , inland or out to sea, however, we blast off when the tide wants to push us out to sea , fine if we wish to go that way , but problematical if we want to go the other way.

Some more thought needed.

Father xmas was good to me and I now have a spare paddle (no good being up the creak without a paddle if the other one snaps )

2007-12-22T10:18:00.000-08:00

Baaaa humbug.

Great day out with the canoe clubs antidote to Xmas shopping.

A trip to Flamborough on the north sea.

The new boat found its place in life , going from a lumbering hard to turn vessel on a fast flowing river to an easy to control boat on the sea.

The chap i went with made the mistake of eating a sandwich prior to setting sail, nice sea swell and after 30 minutes he was green.

The sea was very enjoyable as we nipped in and out of the caves on the coast, punctuated by a stop at a cove to have a picnic (no deckchairs for rent though).

Was it cold ? The only time i was cold was when i was out of the boat at the start , picnic and end.

After lunch we headed out onto some waves and enjoyed the surf.

No one believed me when i told them the sea was rougher around Ibiza in September when i hired a boat.(see previous posts) but it was.

It was somewhat warmer though in Spain.

So what else is happening, fund raising is going well( event though on line shows nil) , lets not forget what all this fun's about.

The object of all this is to raise funds for Bliss who are the premature baby Charity , as a thank you for my sons life. As he sits by the side of me i think back 4 Chrismasses ago when he lay in a incubator hooked up to monitors where he stayed for some months , and my days were filled with day after day sat in hospital watching the saturation levels of oxygen in his lungs.

Merry Humbug to you all.

Dave

To Hell and back

2007-12-09T05:05:00.000-08:00

Up early and off to the Canoe club to try the new Kayak.

The river is swollen by yesterdays heavy rain. As the boat is bigger than what i have been used to i find it very hard to manoeuvre together with the faster flowing water. The instructor says we can go down stream over some weirs, gulp, and he expects me to tip in with my top big touring boat. I make it down without and problems, then the hard bit. I have to carry the boat about a mile back up stream. Then, when i am back on the river, the bits i know, the water catches me broadside and over i go. First there's the shock of cold water, then i have to get out whilst upside down, then the force of the rapids rushes me down the rapids in a sat down position. CRASH, my coccyx area gets full impact on a submerged rock(i am still hurting some days later!).

I managed to scramble out and regain my boat and paddle. Then i thought whilst i am wet i would try a roll. First one works, second one fails(see picture).

That's it until next week when i try the North Sea!

Dave

To Hull and back

2007-12-08T05:01:00.000-08:00

I set off for Hull with the boy in tow to buy a canoe for my adventure.

Some 3 hours later i return with a Kayak, Spray deck(skirt that plugs the hole you sit in), paddle, buoyancy aid and helmet(all shiny and new). Weather is a bit rough. Could do with getting the canoe out and using it!

Dave

Carpet Burns

2007-11-25T10:00:00.000-08:00

In order to become a 2 star paddler i have to learn how to paddle in an open canoe. So in order to do this you have to kneel in a damp boat with grit in it. So, 1hr later, i have very scratched knees! Try explaining that one when you get home.
On a positive front someone has kindly lent me a canoe. I had to carry it through derby and put it on the train. Got a few strange looks and a few jokes.
Now need to get some roof bars on the car to move it.

Dave

2007-11-14T09:37:00.000-08:00

Hi , sorry for the gap in entries but i have been a bit under the weather for a few weeks, but apart from man flu i am better now.
So whats been happening on the kayaking front? Not much really. I am now confident in my roll ( ability to return to the surface the right way round without coming out of my boat).
The only other party piece is i managed to re-enter an upturned boat , attach my spray deck and right the boat , i was well impresed with myself.
Paddling on the River , i have one thing to say ,, its Bloody cold , and its not even cold yet.

Dave

Buenos días! (or good morning in Spanish)

2007-10-01T10:39:00.000-07:00

Have just returned from two weeks in Ibiza, in which time I spent scouring the island for a kayak to use.

Managed to track down this water sports centre close to where I was staying, but because he had no licence he could not rent me a kayak. But because Spain is in the European union like us they choose to not follow the rules so strictly so a compromise was reached in which I was a nemployees friend. This was in exchange for 4 cans of San Miugel and I was lent a boat. The bad news was it was a flat top ( like a hollowed surf board what you use paddles for) not a kayak, but it gave me a feel for the sea.

As a zipped around the bay with the sun on my back all was well with the world until I spotted a motor cruiser boat in the distance. I was some way out to sea by this point so I carried on with my course. He(the boat) is bound to change course around me(no restrictions on navigational channels for him).
When you are a little bit of a plastic sat on the sea you don’t half feel vulnerable to any vessel. As we both carried on the same course, which I had now decided was collision course, i still felt sure this guy would pass behind me but no, on he came.
I them took evasive action and changed my course, and he passed some 10 feet in front of me at speed, churning the water up so I had to turn the boat swiftly and frantically to hit the waves correctly so as not to take a dip into the sea. As he passed I noticed the German flag flying on the back, say no more.

Further looking through the internet found a guy who specialised in sea kayaks, and he would drop me one off at a stated location and pick it back up some hours later. So at 11am we met and I signed a declaration which I could not read as it was, I think, in Spanish, which may have said I am responsible for my own safety or I have now joined the French foreign legion.

But I was quickly kit out with sea faring vessel, spray deck, dry sack etc.

A brief discussion on the very calm breeze, and how I would use it to push me back when tied if I paddled into it on my out bound leg.

I had explained to the wife where I was going, drawing her a map as she had stayed at the pool. If I didn’t return by 7 pm she would alert anybody that would listen as I would have been blown into Libyan state waters by then.

So back on the beach I set off going like a train across the sea, along the coast sometimes about a mile out where the coast formed a bay, the wind had shifted and was behind me.

Thing I learnt is to keep a pee bottle with me. As I had to keep putting fluid in (hot sun and all that) it had to come out. Well I could not get out of my boat as on your own you cant get back in. I took a ribena bottle. Memo to me - need a bigger rim bottle(big boy and larger contents) hey ho. I now know my prostrate still works ok as I had to stop, empty, and refill my bottle in one go shall we say..

Some two hours later and 5 and half miles away reach Port de Lleo, which may sound grand but amounted to 6 german tourists, one bar and a few boats.

Time for a spot of lunch (3 bananas and some fluid and sun cream (applied not drunk)

Things seen on outward leg - few Heron’s or similar and a few startled nudists when I went passed rocky enclaves what no one normally sees.

And then there was troubles as they say on Thomas the tank engine(so I am told). Rule number one, never canoe alone, well I was on my own.

Return leg , into the wind which had now got up and I battled up against some heavy swell ( first time on the sea in a canoe), waves braking under me , spray in my eyes couldn’t see. Usual what if a tipped over now going through my head, I would have been in a spot of bother. But I concentrated, and paddled and paddled as the sea broke over the front of the kayak time and time again. It was like a scene from TRAWLER MEN

I recalled the story that the guy who lent me the boat told me about 4 Germans who lent his crafts. Basically one tipped out and the other 3 then got out and swam to shore leaving the boats to float away.

I scanned the coast to see if I was moving forward as things were getting bad and sure enough I was. Blisters now formed on hands and I was dripping wet, but far from miserable, I was loving it , why have I waited all this time to do somat as daft as this.

Well I made it back, and docked waiting for the guy to pick his boat up.

Shortly he turned up in his van and said, 'God when I got to the coast and saw the wind I was worried about you, but your back and all is well'.

Hmmmm a little idea came into my head for another day , its 3 paddling days round the coast of Ibiza !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 75 miles.

Dave

Ship wrecked in Majorca......

2007-09-23T09:46:00.000-07:00

'Please Dave, can we go back to the pedalo idea as this one looks like fun!'

Hi All

Kate and I have just returned from a week in Alcudia, Majorca (fantastic place, loved it) and what was the first thing I saw when I wandered on to the beach? You guessed it, a row of various pedalos! There were no canoes in sight though which was a dissapointment!

Now maybe it was the sun, or maybe it was because I was away from home, or maybe it was just the effect of the all inclusive San Miguel but as I stood there next to the pedalos I couldn't help but reflect on how far this charity project has come since Dave and I first came up with the idea earlier this year of pedalo-ing from London to Paris. When I think about it, quite a bit has happened since then.

Obviously our transport mode has changed from pedalos to hydrobikes and then to canoes, the route has also changed and we're now going from London to Sheffield and not Paris as first thought, we've tried various types of canoes out with some comical results, we've spoken to and visited various canoe outlets and made some decent progress in getting the kit we need as cheap as possible, Dave's learnt to capsize - a lot, we've spent hours on the water practicing, a start date and time for our journey has been decided (11th of July 2008, 06.43, London Bridge), a route has been finalised and we're near to deciding where the overnight stop points will be, this website has been set up by Cath and I'm blown away and really pleased that it's already received 200+ hits! It always makes me smile when someone tells me that they have been looking at the website, so thanks for that!

Dave and I have also become really good friends and there's a real determination to complete this journey and raise a shed load of money for BLISS.

As you know, the bit that worries me is the part that takes us up the coast to The Wash. And so to try to settle my 'sea nerves' a guy I met in Alcudia who'd been sailing all his life offered to take me out in a small 2 man catermaran that was for hire alongside the pedalos. It was all going well, despite a fairly choppy sea we were going very fast and in no time at all we were overtaking a huge container ship that had looked like a dot on the horizon from the beach. Thats when I heard the huge crack and we came to a stop rather rapidly. Shit. The 'front stay' cable that was holding up the mast had snapped and as such the sails were useless. I looked for comfort from my experienced sailor mate who told me we'd have to 'try to limp home'. Try? Limp? As luck would have it a very large and expensive yacht passed by after about ten minutes of us 'trying to limp home' and its captain agreed to tow us back to shore. Concern soon turned to embarrasment as our 25 euros an hour dinghy was pulled ashore by a £2million luxury boat to the amusement of everyone on the beach including Kate who was in fits. I'm sure it won't happen in a canoe though, will it?

As I write, Dave is on holiday in Ibiza so expect another 'pedalo/canoe on beach' type photo from another part of the Balearics next week!

Jonah

Captain's Watch...........

2007-08-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

Spent some time on the lake (in a boat) with Adam (in a separate vessel) Because I had took the boy with me (son, aged 3), for safety reasons I took a flat top/sit on top canoe, basically a unsinkable vessel (like the titanic).
Adam, after a bit of paddling, thought he liked the look of this sturdy vessel of mine and went to shore and decided to try one of these boats.
The problem being he tried a one man version ( I was sat high and dry on my 3 seat titanic with no ice burgs in sight). After 10 minutes on this new command of his his morale sunk as his arse went from damp to soggy in a short space of time. These flat tops have built in draining which works both ways so the lake was draining into his boat, he soon (Adam) abandoned his boat and declared the day over.
His final words being , think I may do it (the event) in a canoe (the ones look like boats as opposed to kayaks what have key hole cockpit ), it will help with carrying the gear.
Now slight problem number 1 then, this page is called Krazy Kayakers, so now we have to re- name this page to Krazy kayaker and (something that starts with a c) -----------------Krazy Kayaker and a Cxxx in a canoe. Can’t think of owt can you?

Got my Kayak 1 star award on Sunday , which means that I must have a shaver point and three towel rails in my boat, and a bed side lamp. Well that’s what it says in the English tourist guide book for 1 stars establishments.

I am a bit obsessive with this kayak stuff at the moment with every stretch of water I see. I imagine boating down it, as I gaze longingly at my sons 3 foot round paddling pool.

Pictures from yesterday.............

2007-08-24T05:46:00.001-07:00

Just a few pictures of our outing yesterday...

Leamington Spa Outing....

2007-08-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

Greetings readers!

As I mentioned in my previous post, we have been contacting a few kayak outlets recently to see if any would help us out with some of the kit we need for our crazy voyage next year. One of the outlets who has been very helpful is The Leam Boat Centre at Leamington Spa. They offered us the loan of a boat for the trip and also discounts on any other kit we'll need (huge thanks to Matt at the centre for this massive generosity!)

And so us two Krazy Kayakers decided to take a trip down there today to have a look at the boats they have. I met Dave at Leicester Station and once I'd buckled him up in the car and given him his bag of boiled sweets we set off into the sunset towards Leamington on a little jolly boys outing.

The centre at Leamington is top class with a good selection of boats both for sale and for hire and has excellent facilities. There was also a host of friendly staff on hand to help everyone out, in particular the clueless and so in no time at all we were surrounded! We got to meet Matt who told us that the boat we were going to loan had now been sold, d'oh! However he is going to try to source another boat for us which is really grand of him. He also gave us loads of advice on what sorts of boats we'd need and also the timescales needed for our trip, he reckoned that we should be able to do it in 10 days. He also mentioned that we'd probably be in a fair bit of pain at the end of those 10 days, don't you just wish that people would just lie to you sometimes?

We took a couple of kayaks out for an hour and really enjoyed a trip down The Leam and back, the sun was out, the paddling was nice and easy and the scenery was lovely. Our boats were good quality too and fitted with skegs (small rudders) although we didn't find this out til we got back! It's a great way to relax just paddling down a river, I love it, although I think Captain Waverider is really looking forward to tackling some heavy white water, apparently 300 miles of canoeing is not really enough of a challenge!! (Don't worry I'll remind him of that when we're swollowing salt water and floaters!) Dave got to show off some of the moves he's been learning at his kayak classes and talked me through some of the rescue procedures he's been taught, I think you must need to be a contortionist to do one of them and as I'm not one of them I'm sticking to my plan of 'I'll not be going for swim on this journey'!! It's worked so far!

We have both come to the conclusion today that what we really need now is a couple of boats of our own so that we can practice more and also get used to a regular boat. Every time we hire a boat at the moment it costs us about a tenner each which soon adds up. That said, to buy a boat and the kit needed will probably be about £500-£600 each (we can't get the loan boat til at least October) and thats on top of the £80 to buy the roof rack kit to go on the car. So I think I'm going to have to start doing some overtime and saving the pennies as well as scouring Ebay for a bargain. If you're reading this and know someone with a half decent kayak that they no longer require, please get in touch!

Thats about all for now folks, Dave took a couple of photos at Leamington which he'll post later, and if you're ever in the Leamington area, don't just look at the river, paddle down it!

Adam

Dave's Log

2007-08-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

(written one, not a visit to the loo!)

Had my first taste (quit literally) of moving water when I went on the River Don.

Learnt the mysterious art of ferry gliding where you go across the river against the stream flowing the other way, without paddling (much).

It is really a dark art, but when you do it is quite satisfying.

I also met a loads of people called Eddie who were just resting their canoes in calmer waters, my instructor keep saying go into them Eddie’s.

Apparently there is some Eddie etiquette, must be like the freemasons , funny paddle touching and stuff.

I shout bye Eddie as I leave calmer waters and head off down stream, no one shouts back, perhaps they didn’t hear me.

Top tip I have learnt this week- you need to be going faster than the river or slower than it to be in control of your boat.

Captains Log 16th August...................

2007-08-16T01:46:00.000-07:00

Firstly I would like to express my thanks to all the guys at the canoe club for the advice which they given so freely. It is priceless information.

Secondly having read Adams complimentary blog entry about me I thought I should return the favour!

Suffice to say Adam is hiding his true canoeing skills under a bushel. He was the undefeated white water champion for 5 years running, in his own bath tub. He only lost his crown when he moved to a house that had a shower only.

I have been reading a few books on canoeing and it states that women have an advantage when caneoing as they have a lower centre of gravity because of their body shape (i.e. weight in hips/pelvis etc).
I believe with the right high fat diet, rich in sugar I can replicate that lower centre of gravity.

It's only just begun.......

2007-08-14T08:58:00.000-07:00

Hi

Let me introduce myself, I'm 'The Nutter'!! Well that's just what Dave calls me which is unfair really as this whole escapade was his idea, now who's the nutter!!
I'm Adam and a colleague of Dave's, we spent quite a bit of time together earlier this year as I spent 12 weeks on one of his most excellent courses, as such we became mates and I signed up to his fund raiser for 2008, kayaking from London to Sheffield.

As Dave has explained, the route has changed a bit from the first plan, initially it was London to Paris (but we needed far too many euros for this) and now we are on to London to Sheffield. Currently we'll be going via the sea and then onto canals and rivers. Now unlike Dave 'Let's go play with the great whites' Stannard, I'm more Ratty from the Wind in the Willows than Steve Irwin and would much rather we took a tranquil paddle up a canal then test our steel (must be a Sheffield thing) on the ocean, however I'm going to give it a go and see what happens. I'm sure happy days will abound as we cruise through the North Sea littered with it's small brown floaters that definitely shouldn't be mistaken for buoys.

As you can see from Dave's blog entry we have tested a number of different vessels, we wanted a pedalo initially but this was just not to be, even the titanics engine room didn't have to work as hard as our little pins did, and then there were the hydro bikes, fantastic fun and an ideal choice for the trip but again, money stood between us and them. And so it's kayaks. Now I've done a bit of Kayaking in the past and loved it, what better way to travel indeed, however I was a few stone lighter then and a good few feet shorter and so it was a shocker as to how cramped these little vessels now feel! Numb feet and legs look like they might both be passengers on this voyage!

As I live in Leicester and Dave in Sheffield we are both having to train apart however we do meet up when we can to get in the water, only the other weekend we were at Rother Valley resembling a pair of Whirling Dervishes as the wind kept spinning the boats around. So at present my main training base is Barrow Upon Soar not far from my home in Anstey, if any readers fancy a good laugh of a Sunday morning you can come take a look!

Between you and me, Dave is taking his training very seriously, he's signed up for Kayak lessons, has loaned two 'How to Kayak' books from the local library and can even tell you how a dented boat will affect your performance, he's starting to make me feel a tad guilty, surely it's just a case of sitting in some moulded plastic, paddling and praying? And so I'll leave the science to him, I'm going to be doing plenty of paddling to build my arm strength up and will start to worry about dents when they are being caused by my head or worse still those floating brown buoys I mentioned earlier.

I have tasked myself with the navigation of the journey, working out routes and distances, places to camp at night etc, Google Earth and myself have become very well acquainted! It's going to be a long long way that much I can say, but I'll be in good company and it's for a great cause.

Before I sign off my first blog I would just like to thank a few people, firstly Cath (Dave's good lady wife) for setting up this site, the just giving site and for all the emails she has sent to canoe outlets championing our cause and trying to get us some good deals on the kit we need, like boats and stuff. Also thanks to all of the said outlets who have responded to Cath with really generous offers, we're really grateful, who says all business is heartless. And finally to my good lady Katie, we don't get a great deal of time together and when we do I'm buggering off paddling, nice one Adam! But I'm so grateful that she's shown great patience so far and long may it continue!

If you're reading this, thanks for stopping by, but don't just stop there, pass this site on to all your mates and keep coming back to see how we are doing, we'd like that very much!

Adam

So what's all this about then?

2007-08-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

After doing a charity cycle ride from London to Sheffield in June 2007, which meant taking up cycling in December the previous year( I was not a cyclist), I , with the little help from a friend decided to (well plan to) canoe from London to Sheffield.

I did this to raise money for the neonatal unit at Jessops Hospital in Sheffield where my son was born 3 months early in Nov 2003. This time we will be raising money for the Premature Baby Charity Bliss.

Initially this idea started out as a pedalo trip from London to Sheffield. More about that later!

So can I canoe, err no!

When I started out on this project my time in a canoe was 40 minutes when I was about 14 at Matlock. I am now 45, and I would like to say that my old skills came flooding back(pun intended) but alas they did not.

So how did we begin?

I had this idea that we would pedalo from London to Sheffield, so on the 8th of July sea trials began (well not really the sea but a big lake). Me and my co paddler (nutter) met for an hour long pedalo trial. Off we set into the swell and lasted for 30 minutes. The thing we were peddling would not have got us across the Thames let alone along it.

So plan two, we meet up at Barrow upon soar for another sea trial (sounds better than canal trial) where we trailed a different pedalo. Much better than the first but still 300 miles appeared a pedalo too far. With the wife on the stop watch we also did a time trial 100 yard dash. Two ducks and a black Labrador beat us into third place. I consoled myself saying that it was a time trial not a race.

Next was a hydro bike. My legs were up for this fresh from my marathon cycle ride , these things could really move, but someone put a spoke in the works by telling me that they cost a grand and half each to buy.

Finally, got in a canoe with my co nutter. Two men in the same boat caused steering difficulties with straight canals but it appears we had a possible winner as we sent a bow wave over the Labradors head.

In the time trials the pedalo was slowest the hydro bike and canoe tied.

So it was decided that we would canoe from London to Sheffield, in June 2008, (and probably July, Aug and most of September as well).

Slight problem to solve. Apart from the lack of a vessel, I can’t canoe and all my strength is in my legs.

To solve this problem I have joined the Sheffield canoe club (they don’t know what a nutter they have in their mists yet).

Day one at the club.

'We will show you some strokes and then the capsize drill later', said a helpful chap.
30 seconds later I discovered the capsize drill, over and over again.
At one session they showed me the stern rudder. He kept shouting at me to keep my arm straight. I see why they call it the stern rudder, this guy was very stern.
Next we show you how to stop, put your paddle in the water 4 times on alternate sides.
I stopped very quickly on doing this, but unfortunately, the canoe carried on as I fell out.

I have been there a few times and at the end of one session I demanded to learn the roll over and back up drill (no doubt it will have a technical name).
Great joy when I did it, left the club on the crest of a wave..

In discussion with my co nutter I bullied him into incorporating a sea leg into our adventure next year. The route as it stands at the moment is down the Thames, round the bobbly bit in the east and hopefully in land at Boston( still being assessed if its possible), then up the Trent.

Back to the club, and time for some rolls as I was doing so well.
I knocked off 4 straight rolls, but then it all went wrong, and try as I did I could no longer do it.

Left the club that night, considering suicide, not drowning though, been upside down in the water most of the night all ready and the water gets up your nose.

For the arm strength, I am visiting Rother valley (big lake) frequently and doing trips round it, and have managed 3 trips round in about a hour, god was I bored, left thinking “I am glad I am not a duck”.

2007-08-01T09:22:00.001-07:00