Stand Up Paddling

That's why I advocate for local shaper interaction... They'll show you what's up in terms of board construction and best shape for your use. Even a regional surf/paddle shop should be able to lead you in the right direction. Hand shaping is a badass art, so fun to watch. Many many hours of foam dust and patience :)
 
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  • #28
Squish, I hear ya loud and clear, I experienced the same thing. What worked for me was going to a place that had knowledgable sales people and a lot of boards you could try out, that is important imo cuz 2 peeps of same dimensions might feel good on 2 different boards even though the boards might look highly similar, they will likely feel different in use. To buy without trying could be a problem. And I think some people who have tried sup and didn't really like it may be because they were on a board they didn't suit them- since I've been 'hooked' , Ive tried some different boards that really didn't agree with me at all and thought wow I'm lucky I didn't get stuck with this board in the beginning cuz my interest would have ended before it got started. I bought a used board that really felt good when I tried it and I still love it now. Of course lately I'm thinking about stepping up to something with more speed and therefore range, and of course a higher price tag :|:

Treetopflyer, that sounds awesome.

Finding a shaper sounds like an interesting idea but I don't know of any near me and I would think, but don't know, they would be more expensive than a board mass produced.
 
We've got a local shop that sells/rents but I'm quite certain they don't make any boards in house. I guess in the spring we'll just start renting a few different boards. More than likely my wife will be renting and finding a board that works for her and hopefully I'll be able to use it a bit too. I'm a classified junky so I too am always watching in my area and hoping to score a deal, problem is it's hard to know what's a deal with SUPs and beyond that then whether the board is going to be a fit. Gotta try before you buy I guess.
 
I have friends that are into it. In fact one couple just got married and then SUP'd down a stretch of river in wedding garments while everyone else rafted. Twas cool. Sawyer paddles and oars are made right here. I've had 3 sets and love them
 
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  • #31
I've been doing majority of my paddling on Long Island Sound which is a big place, no end of places to explore. Was in Maine this week paddling on a beautiful clean deep lake. 1000's of times smaller than LI sound but holy shite, paddling on glass smooth fresh water and seeing the bottom and fish etc, it was epic.
 
Here it's been so cold I haven't been out paddling so I'm envious to hear of your holiday Cory. I would go, but just been giving 'er firewooding and getting everything ready for winter. Which feels like it's coming early this year.
 
Sounds like a great time Cory! We've been on the kayaks an hour or two a day for the last few days getting scallops. I'd love to try the board but I'm headed down the road right now to look at a couple more 'yaks my wife saw for sale.
 
Here' those scallops we got snorkeling out of the kayaks this morning. The tide was high so we had to work a little harder than usual but it's still fun and good exercise to boot. My wife fixed some Alfredo style when we got home and it was brutal!
P9090163.jpg
 
Sure must be nice to be able to find dinner in the wilds.
All I can find to eat, apart from berries, is mushrooms.
Fortunately my Swiss wife makes a hell of a mushroom risotto:)
But I do get a bit envious, sometimes.
 
It is a pretty cool thing to be able to pluck your meals from the water, woods or sky Stig. I believe having the ability to be self-sufficient should the need arise is a good thing. I'm not as familiar with wild fungi as I should be, there are a lot of edibles here but hunting them is not popular like in the northern states.
 
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  • #38
Indeed, cool pics and info re living from the land. Good stuff!!!

The weather here has been quite warm, up in Maine too, so it was perfect paddle weather.

We were in LLBean at one point, I asked the salesman which he sells more of, yaks or paddle boards. He said probably yaks have the edge. He added that 4 years ago when Bean first started selling SUPS, they sold 60, last year they sold "thousands". Crazy!
 
uploadfromtaptalk1441938346129.jpg View during a lunch break on the Detroit River.

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Heck of a score there, Ray. I see a number of scallop chowder recipes on the web. Never had it, but it must be good. Scallops are good raw too (did I say that before?), but possibly some health concerns, it occurs. I'm not sure how they consider it. I see more and more recommendations saying that raw seafood should be frozen first before consuming. If you are cooking up some rice, chopped up scallops and mushrooms cooled with the rice makes for very tasty, and a nice compliment to another dish main course.
 
We've eaten a bunch of them raw right out of the water Jay with no problems, the same with oysters. We never hear of local people getting sick from eating raw shellfish and trust me, they are consumed here in great quantities, especially oysters. The problem usually comes when they are held in the oyster house and then shipped to who knows where. Time and temperature are usually the culprit although I would hesitate to eat them out of places like Tampa Bay. My bride made seafood lasagne with chopped scallops and shrimp a few nights ago and it was fabulous. My mother-in-law made a scallop dip that was outstanding as well. We'll have to try the rice, scallops and 'shrooms, the wife said it sounds good to her. If I find a bad way to fix 'em I'll let you know.
 
I got a awesome day of kayaking ahead of me tomorrow. Mabel lake. It'll be fantastic. Not much for fishing opportunity though. Still a good time to be had.
 
Don't mention bears.
Now Butch won't sleep all night:lol:
 
Had a gorgeous paddle yesterday. The lake was just glass. A day I'll remember for a long time, my daughter had a blast with me and we even took our little dog with us who just chilled and took in the scenery too.
 
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  • #49
Fresh water paddling rocks!!
 
One of our last warm days too. By tomorrow the high will be less than half of Saturday. From 31 to 15c, boom. I doubt we'll see 30+ again this year.
 
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