Drone shot of rolling practice at QTC last year:
Looks like a great place to learn to roll with a GP, but not this year since my vacation time is already scheduled. Plus, I donāt have camping equipment.
Hell yeah- why not?
Rookie, you donāt need camping equipment. most (but not all including me) stay in the various cabins in the camp. You are close enough that, assuming a 9-5 Monday - Friday job, you could come down Thursday night after work or Friday AM. Thumbs up and agreement for Dianeās skills.
Back on topic - No, not really - its more the Tern or the Rival or the Indy, etc. I do have a friend that has names on all of his though.
They have cabin accommodations (bunks with mattresses) at QTC ā though I have lots of camping gear and several sleeping bags I just brought a travel sheet set, full sized pillow and a couple of fleece blankets last year. There is only one cabin with electricity and they reserve that for people with a medical necessity of having access to power outlets.
The somewhat rough āboy scout campā group accommodations for sleeping were the one thing I did not like all that much about QTC. Iām no wimp and used to backcountry camp and backpack year round. Guess I am getting old ā¦
I must say that I prefer my tent. My social skills arenāt up to sharing a cabin.
I always brought a tent and stayed in āremote storageā Some like the cabins.
When I was considering the event this year I planned to bring my 8ā x 7ā x 6ā āglamping tentā and inflatable queen-sized air bed. I did not sleep well in the narrow bunk in the cabin, though that was probably a blessing to my cabin mates since I forgot to bring my anti-snoring mouth gadget (yes, they work). The tent camping area is quite nice, sandy, flanked with trees and near to the beach. I think it is closer to the shower house than the cabin I was in.
Still have mixed feelings about deciding not to go. I really did like the instruction and many of the folks that I met there. But the solo drive is too tiring and I canāt justify the expense this year.
Thatās precisely why I wished theyād allow day paddlers: the accommodations stink if you donāt have your own camping gear. I saw photos of those cabins when they used to be shown on the Qajaq TC website. Nope, nada.
After a day on the water I like creature comforts such as a hot shower and uninterrupted sleep in my own space.
I looked into renting a cottage on Herring Lake on VRBO ā there are a few and it could be do-able if one had several other folks pitching in on it. Other option would be to rent a self contained motorhome, like smaller class C or class B. One would have to paddle back across the lake to a cottage or to the parking area every evening, but that is only about a 15 minute jaunt.
My ex and I used to rent small class C motorhomes for our trips to the deserts and mountain ranges of the Southwest and southern CA and owned a 17ā tow-behind for more local trips. I used to scoff at RVās in my younger days as a die-hard backpacker and backcountry guide, but have grown to appreciate the comfort and freedom that they offer. With the generator, propane heaters, full kitchen, self-contained water and septic systems, you can enjoy a hot shower, cold drinks and a dry climate controlled place to stretch out and rest or sleep after a long day of adventuring. We even calculated that it cost about the same to rent a motorhome (about $100 per day) as it did to rent a car plus pay for lodging.
Yes, motorhomes eat more gas than a rental compact car, but since you sleep wherever you park it (usually near your hiking or paddling location) you drive fewer miles to reach lodging destinations in remote areas, like Death Valley or the Sierras (where the scarce local lodging runs to 3 figures per night) so gas usage works out the same in many cases, not to mention the time that you save driving back and forth from motels in the hinterlands (and donāt get me started on bedbugs!).
Plus once you stop after picking up the unit and stock it up with groceries, you save a ton over restaurant food by making your own meals (and are less likely to get crappy food and food poisoning). Also saves time in that you donāt have to keep packing and unpacking your stuff ā you fill the drawers and closet the day you get the RV and are good to go until the end of the trip.
In the case of QTC, the food is excellent so bringing your own (if you brought an RV) would not be necessary. But I would sure prefer to have a private bathroom and bedroom at the end of each day. Maybe something to consider for next year.
Hereās one example of a rental on Lower Herring Lake ā 3 bedrooms (2 queen, one with pair of twin beds), 2 baths, with its own dock for $233 per night. If you could get 4 to 6 people to bunk together thatās a manageable rental for 3 nights. Itās at the north end of the lake and only about 600 meters directly across from the dock at the camp.
Only one named anā dat be me 1978 Old Town Tripper - Olā Mukmukwum
Reckon it means āUpā¦ Upā¦ yerāsā in olā Tlingit. Least dat waar wat de Mingos always told me.
a related question: have you written the name on the boat? if so, what did you use? considering a good old-fashioned laundry marker but wondering if thereās something betterāpaint, etc. (for a rotomolded plastic boat)
Only when I drop it on my foot.
@chad9477 said:
a related question: have you written the name on the boat? if so, what did you use? considering a good old-fashioned laundry marker but wondering if thereās something betterāpaint, etc. (for a rotomolded plastic boat)
Not mine but a friendās. He buys letters (marine maybe?).
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I named my current boat, the āNatasha Annā, after my mother. I bought it (a Sterling GI) with some inheritance money after she passed away a couple of years ago. She rarely ventured out. I think she was a bit scared of the world. But she liked that I enjoyed travel and paddling and adventure and so on. It seemed fitting.
Find a shop that does vinyl stick on letters. I named a boat with about 12 characters. To have it cut from self adhesive black vinyl in wide block letters 3" high was about CAD$ 20. I marked out a slightly curved baseline on my bow and carefully installed it. I had them put it on a backing (for which I canāt remember the name) thatās low tack and is the ONLY way to apply vinyl letters with professional results.
Iāve had a few people confuse the custom name for a kayak make/model. I even had a guy insist he had seen another identical one, but pretty sure he was full of BS.
Only had two professionally lettered with vinylā¦
Ekimiā¦ on a Pygmy Arctic Tern. Quiet/peaceful from the forest Pygmy language.
Misty āBouāā¦ on a CD Caribouā¦
Iāve ordered name labels from RapidVinyl on Ebay with good results. Their order process allows you to type whatever text you want and then test over 100 different fonts and scale it as you wish before placing the order. Quite cheap, just a few dollars per name if I recall correctly (I ordered 5 at once, 2 of each name so I could stick them fore and aft). The text comes pre-spaced (kerned) on easy peel-and-stick backing and so far the names Iāve stuck on the hardshell and the skin-on-frame have held up for several years of immersion and exposure. I also put them on a couple of my folding kayaks and overlaid clear nylon repair tape over the lettering to seal it against peeling on the flexible fabric. Photos below of a couple of them. The miscellaneous designs (peace dove on the Easky) are also vinyl stick-ons I got from HippieMotors.com.
