A Pedal Kayak

 Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and when talking about a car repair or a plumbing need and when they talk about who will help them out, they say... "I got a guy.."  

Well... for me, when it comes to kayaking... gear and upgrades... I got a guy!  Actually I have a few guys... the guys at Shaker Hill Outdoors!    The owners Tim and Greg... and their 'goto guy' Russ... and the rest of the crew (AJ and more!) ... are all great!  

They want their customers to be happy.  They want people to be outside...and this time of year they are all about their landscaping business AND KAYAKS!!! 

I have come to know these guys over the last few years.  Russ sold me my newest Old Town Loon, the 126, a couple of years ago... and since then he has replaced the seat from my Old Town Loon 160T, the tandem boat I use to take Gladys with me, with the exact same seat that is in my new Loon.  It took some 'yankee ingenuity' to do it, but he did... and it works perfectly!  Gladys and I can stay out much longer on the water!  

They promote my book and encourage people to follow me on social media, including here... and I promote them when I can and have attended their Demo Days in the past.  (The demo days are the last weekend in June!  Stay tuned for additional information!! I can't make it this year, but it is a great opportunity to try various kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards!) 

So... a few weeks ago... Tim reached out to me and asked if I would do him a favor...

His ask? To use a pedal kayak for a while and give him honest feedback about it... to see if it is one he wants to carry as part of his sales fleet.  

Ummm... YES PLEASE!!!  

So yesterday I picked it up! 

It is an Old Town (Yay!) Ocean Kayak, Malibu Pedal Kayak.  

I will do a full review after I use it more.. but here are some initial impressions!  

I hoped to get out for a longer trip yesterday but between the rain and wind I only got out for about 30 minutes.  I launched from the Gambo Rd. Launch to get to the Presumpscot.   (I posted a few videos to my facebook page if you want to see it in motion!)

The water was so calm!  And while I tend to lean towards the sunset colors in the Old Town family, but I really liked this green/blue color combo! (It is a heavy kayak... I would say 80-90 lbs... I will get the specs soon!The pedal shaft alone weighs probably 20 lbs.)

Getting on the kayak was pretty easy.  I can see why some people prefer a sit on top kind of kayak...

I felt like I was really high on the water and for some reason my instinct said I needed to put a seatbelt on! I think it is because the seat was higher.  

I pushed off, lowered the pedal shaft and started pedaling!

With a view like this... how could it not be fun?? 

This thing can travel at a pretty good rate!  I was pedaling pretty slowly but I was going along pretty well.  I felt a bit awkward about my arms... what to do with them... I took pictures and do think that it would be cool to use it in a place where I wanted to have my camera easily available to capture some wildlife!  But when not using my phone my arms just kind of hung by my sides... there are no armrests...which I am sure is for the fishermen and women who would be annoyed by them... but it would have been a nice feature for this non fisherperson! 

The clearance factor!  I was nervous going under the bridge... I wasn't sure I was going to make it under because I was up so much higher.  I did make it under, but I bet there are places I usually don't have to worry about the clearance where this would be troublesome.  (I think I want to go try it at Runaround Pond!!) 

 I didn't experiment too much with this... because I was just getting the basics down.. but need to play with it in how shallow it can go (gotta be careful of the propeller) and play with pedaling backwards!  I will also go more into detail about how to steer etc!  

Initial impressions are all positive!  

I will have this kayak for several days.  If you want to try it, please let me know.  Email me at mainekayakgirl@gmail.com or send me a message on my fb page!  I would love to give others the chance to try this out!  

 

Paddling is in Full Swing!!

Hello!  I have not posted any new locations yet this season because I haven't been to any new places... but I have been out on the water!  I have been to the Presumpscot in Westbrook twice, the Presumpscot in Gorham twice, Tenny River twice, and today I hit the Brownfield Bog!  I will include some pics from each place below.  Click the links above to find the usual directions and fuller descriptions!  I will be doing some new places this season... just haven't had a chance yet and I prefer to do familiar spots as the water warms up!

Westbrook Presumpscot, from Lincoln Street Launch... the first paddle of the season!  April 17th! 

She survived the winter!!!  So happy to see her again! 

Tenny River... April 21

The culvert... water was pretty high so the water here was moving faster than usual... easy on the way in... a bit challenging on the way back! 

There was still some ice! (Very little!) 

You all know how much I love turtles!!!  

Presumpscot Westbrook - May 11th!  

This was a FitMaine Social club paddle! 

 Presumpscot Gorham - May 12th

This osprey   had caught a fish that was so big it could not fly with it! 

I paddled as far up this section as I have ever paddled!  The water was high and there were places where we really had to work for it!  (Michelle Obama arms here I come!)  

Tenny River May 18th...

 My friend Rico was in town from Denver.  We wanted to paddle but it was sooo windy!  I knew just where to go where we could still get on the water safely... Tenny River!

This was Miss Gladys's second adventure!  She didn't settle well, but seemed to be happy! 

A Bale!  (Group of turtles!) 

Another osprey!  This one could carry its fish, but landed in this tree! 

Today's adventure... Brownfield Bog

I wanted to be on the water by 6:30 or so... but decided to sleep an extra hour... was on the water around 8... it was so peaceful and warmed up quickly!  

Blackflies were pretty active when I first got there...and even more active once I returned to load up my kayak... I made sure to wear long sleeves and pants when I was loading/unloading to make the bugs more tolerable!  

It was so peaceful!

I saw something moving in the water and it was a snake!  Didn't get a great photo, but... eek! 

I am not a birder... not sure what kind of bird this is... but there were so many! 

Eastern Kingbird!

Red wing blackbird! 

Turtle!!!  I saw a few, but this was the most photogenic! 

Look at the teeth on that beak! 

BEAVER!  This was a busy one!  

I love that this keeps winding... and feels so private and isolated! 

Ferns! 

Kingfisher

I hope you are out paddling!!!  I am hoping to get to some new places and will share soon!  I promise! 

2019 Season is OPEN!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 

(That's Happy New Paddling Year!!!)  

I am kicking off the 2019 paddling season blog with some photos from my first two trips out this year!   I got out Wednesday 4/17 on the Presumpscot, launching from Lincoln Street.  (Click the link for directions from a previous post.)  Then today I got out and went to Tenny River! 

Both were PERFECT for what I needed them to be... a way to relax and connect with myself in a way I can only do with paddling... 

This week included the tenth anniversary of losing my mom... the person who inspired me to kayak...  Oh how I miss her... and how lucky I am that kayaking is one of the gifts she gave to me!  

Please enjoy!  (I will make sure to post some new places this year that will include the directions and my other typical format... I just wanted to include some pics and a few notes for this first paddling post... plus, these two locations are probably my most frequently visited, so I didn't think I needed to share again!)  

Happy Paddling! 

[By the way I have had a busy winter!  For my non- kayaking adventures, check out my other blog here!]

My FIRST time on the water this year! 

As I was coming around this corner I wondered if she would be there... and how she had survived the winter...

She survived!  And looks good!  Love this tree!  

THE tunnel!  

There were cows in the fields!  I was hoping they would be closer to the water, but not today! 

This was the only set of Canada geese I saw!  

A well camouflaged cormorant! 

Not sure which kind of bird... maybe a turkey vulture?

Muskrat!

MYRTLE! 

 The Presumpscot was a little chilly on Wednesday... but it was sooo good to get out!  

Then there was today!  I debated about bringing Gladys, but I wasn't sure how conditions would be... so I opted to go solo.. but not before taking time to embarrass her...  by the way... I TOTALLY forgot that this week marked her 3rd birthday!  WHAT?! I am a bad dog momma!  I haven't reminded her yet because I only thought of it today... will celebrate with her this week!  

Despite being less than thrilled for the bunny ears... she is adorable!

(Oh the shame!) 

"Seriously... can we take these things off?"

Tenny River... is one of my favorite places because I always see wildlife!  Today was no exception. 

 I was happy to see some kayak friends on the water, Peter and Sarah!  They have been on the water more than me this year... so far!!  Love that they love it! 

I came home and found that Peter had taken some shots of me too!  (Ignore my bad hair!  ha!  I did not expect to see anyone let alone be photographed!)  

Ok... back to what I saw! 

The water is so clear!

The culvert!  Water was high and moving fast through here.  Paddling from Crescent to Panther was easy... Panther to Crescent was a bit harder!  

I am a creature of habit.  I always have to check to see if the pitcher plants are still here... they are!  (Carnivorous  plant!)

 

 The temperatures today changed a lot from one part of the stream to the other and depending whether or not the sun was out.  I had a t-shirt on under a long sleeved active shirt... and was fine! 

There were a couple of kingfishers flitting about... I got some shots of them which is hard to do, they are so fast! 

There were a couple of iceburgs!  

DUCKS!

At times the water was so calm! 

Turtles were out!  

OK.. This is a good one... bad picture but good story.. I came around this point and looked to my left and saw a beaver... on the shore... man don't hey look cute when they sit like that... I froze... I wanted to take a photo of it on the shore looking so cute.. but I have had a similar experience before which resulted in the beaver charging at me... so I froze... and it decided i was not going to charge or stare at me any longer so it jumped in the water and swam away.  I missed the photo opp... DAM!  

(see what I did there?!) 

I love when I get to see the yellow bellies!  

These guys were not as willing to be photographed... 

Tiny turtle! 

I am SO glad to be back on the water!  

A few things to remember... I am an ambassador for Women Who Paddle!  

PLEASE reach out to me if you are a woman who wants to learn to kayak or if you are a woman who has limited experience and wants to go more to gain confidence!  

Also.. keep your eye on my facebook page, I will be organizing a few paddles.  (A few of them will be exclusively for Fit Maine Social Club, but some will be open to all!)