Need some info. Interested in your sport as a means of training. I live very near a few lakes but they are both “no body contact” water resivoirs. They allow fishing and I see that they allow canoes and Kayaks as long as they are not sit on top and they are over 10’ long. My questions are: Has anyone had any experience kayaking at either Diamond Valley Lake or Lake Skinner? How easy is it to launch a boat without body contact with the water?
Im a senior athlete (age 58) and I do triathlons and am a runner. I want to start doing some Adventure races that include kayaking. So I need a boat that isnt a barge but not so unstable that I end up getting kicked out of above mentioned lakes for spending more time in the water than in the boat. Any suggestions? Any info about the lakes? Thanks in advance -trexx
Is there a dock?
Most boat launch ramps have a dock. Launch from that and you avoid all body contact.
I’ve never paddled the lakes or reservoirs you mentioned. The water tastes funny - it needs salt.
I Am Also a T. Rex
A dinosaur. If it was me I'd get a used plastic sea kayak. You can go to the launch area; set the stern in the water; get in; push the boat the rest of the way in with your hands. It scrapes the hull but with a used plastic boat it's no big deal.
It's funny how they let fishermen use lead sinkers and chuck beer cans in the water (you know they pee in the lake), but you're contaminating the water if you roll!
I like WS Tempests. At 165 pounds I fit the smaller of the two. How much do you weigh?
Rex (road bicycle addict)
Chota’s
You could get a pair of Chota boots or any rubber boot would do. You dont need to be deep to launch. A few inches will do.
I agree with the above post about boaters using the lakes for a toilet. It is not just the fishermen though.
No body contact!
Is there really such a thing? This is new to me. I currently live in Minnesota, “The Land of 10000 Lakes” and before that I was in Florida with more than 10000 lakes plus a gulf and a ocean. We could jump in any one of 'em and get as wet as we wanted; sometimes by accident. Don’t the fish do their business in there? Do they have a geodesic dome over it to protece the lake from seagull bombs? Worse yet, pelicans! And all those micro organizms!
If ya fish in one and have to stick your hand in the water to release the fish do ya need a full body condom in case you fall in?
…(Oh I guess that would be a wet suit or better yet a dry suit).
Maybe I just live to far in the sticks to have heard of no body contact lakes. I can understand a resivour that is fenced in, man made and lined; no fish anyway
I do agree with and practice low impact whenever and where ever I go. I do pack it out or bury it on a long trip, but no body contact? I don’t think I’d want to even paddle there.
I Don’t Know About Trexx’s Lake…
but this T Rex lives near a man-made reservoir that doesn't allow swimming. Gasoline engines are banned on the half of the lake where the treatment plant is. The lake manager told me he didn't care if I rolled my boat but he asked me to be very discrete about it.
(Once I forgot to dry my hair and one of the wardens gave me hell as I was taking out)
The thought is that…
they want minimal contamination possible. If you step for a sec to get into your kayak, no big deal. They just don’t want people swimming and polluting the water, so they keep people out. Here in Cali (I’m originally from OH/MI just a few months ago) is that the water resources are scarce and they don’t want intrusion for any reason. You hand won’t fall off if you get in, lol!
What is interesting to note, I was going to go yaking at the closest lake here near Carpinteria, CA and found out I have to quarantine my boat for 10 days at the lake because of zebra mussels have been contaminating the lakes. They want to ensure no boat brings in any zebra mussels.