the darn thing wont keep you warm but it will save the family from panic. I took SPOT and issued several OK messages which kept the computer geek at home happy.
I second the "what do I do with 13 hours of dark" when I am solo and it is raining.
I quickly ran out of books on Junior Lake in Maine a couple of weeks ago. But you see I had had three months of too much togetherness with the retired other of 44 years and I am still in good enough shape to escape. So I did.
The tent was warm enough..but I was bored. And you know how us old uns have to pee more than we want.
Have you paddled at Lake Powell? Fall there is not too crowded, and the water is still warm, days warm to hot, nights pleasantly mild. You can sleep under the stars (no bugs). Call out for echoes in many alcoves. Go swimming and hiking. Relax. It is a place I know I’ll miss being (relatively) close to.
If paddling starts to seem like a chore with all the “kit” and need for planning, pick places that have more margin of safety if you don’t want to set alarms for your starting time. And avoid places with cold water when you’re in that frame of mind. You’ll still need to be careful about wind conditions in any body of water that is large.
thermos of hot water to warm up my neoprene gloves as needed. Drysuit, half poly sweats underneath.Mukluks. Towel, some clif bars, spare shirt and sweat pants in the drybag. Baggie of lint and a lighter.
Joints Plus it’s terrible for old joints to be lying down in a tent for 12 hours straight. The trick is to go to bed as late as possible, which involves some labor-intensive hunting for wood and maintaining a fire. I like to read and write by the fire at night and in the early morning.
Days are longer in the spring but then you’ve got bugs to contend with.
It’s all good. When you’re out on the water on a fabulous fall day you’re glad you went through that cold, long night.
thank you for saying that I own both. Among my wetsuits I have a jacket, shorty, and 3mm farmers. Among my drysuits I have a top and full drysuit.
I probably wear the drysuit 20% of the time if that. If it’s warm but the water is cold, I usually wear a wetsuit combo because in my drysuit I sweat like a pig. (I challenge the “breatheable” myth).
last year, we were so deprived of nor'easters for swells and snow, that I spent most of the winter mtn biking and hitting the gym (well, the latter I do year round consistently...).
Just rolling with the punches, as it were...
Use it or lose it.
sing
PS. Oh I did a get one good winter session in in San Diego last winter. Thanks, seadart (val). :)
What I do I switch to a dry suit for day trips. I switch to wool(the scratchy military surplus stuff) with lite poly underneath from poly/nylon for tripping. I also stay real close to shore when tripping-more to see that way anyway. I bring more clothes,footware and a warmer sleep bag. A fire,which I often do without in warm weather,is great,so I bring I saw ect. and pot trivit and sometimes a cotton fly to put my portable stove under in the rain. I drink more hot drinks. Because of taking more stuff, I paddle my big solo(Swift Osprey) to hold it all. I bring a headlamp and books for the long night and sitting up watching the fire helps pass dark time.
winter paddling habits I used to just stop paddling from November to March. The last few years I started trying to get out at least a couple of days each month. I pick my days according to the weather. I stay away from the high volume rivers (like the New) and more difficult runs and like to paddle small creeks. I carry a sleeping bag in my hatch for rewarming after a swim. Usually I wear a semi-dry suit, with fleece pajamas. I like to keep my hands warm. Sometimes I’ll wear both Pogies and neoprene gloves. Very important to get all the wrinkles out of the sprayskirt on your stomache and back so water doesn’t puddle up on you. I wear wool socks over my drysuit feet and put on booties. An old rug or mat is helpful for changing, standing on, so I don’t mess up the dry suit feet. I always wear a beanie to prevent ice cream headaches if I should flip but that sometimes causes me to overheat. It takes forever to get dressed and undressed (I’m fatter, and slower in the winter) but it feels great to get out and now I actually look forward to winter paddling. In the winter all my paddling trips become short day trips but that’s what I do most of the time, anyhow. The biggest problem I have is finding like minded folks to paddle with. Most of the whitewater crowd that paddle in the winter like harder runs. I definately step it down a notch. I’ve experienced a cold water swim on the New River 20 years ago and learned to respect how quickly cold water zaps you. I can’t imagine doing that again- older, fatter but wiser.
A.) Protect body with proper clothing for Immersion
B.) Weather, wind, wave reports crucial
C.) Thermoses, food, backup supplies of food
D.) Survival Kits - shelter, fire, warmth
E.) Planning Ahead - SPOT units, letting people know
F.) Personal Responsibility - knowing what we can handle
G.) Daylight Factor - it gets dark fast
Plenty of Autumn fun to be had on the water.
It just needs some pre-planning and thought
before launching on a whim when the sun shines a bit.