Friday 14 February 2025 Cuttagee

A quick St Valentine's Day paddle between showers to play some more with the new kayak.

We launched at 8.40am and had another serene and happy paddle.

The Seaward Mantra kayak

We disturbed quick a few fish on our travels, L had one leap shoulder high out of the water right beside him.  And there was a lone prawn that skittered across the top of the water beside me.  It must be one of the few that escaped the many nets of the Christmas prawners. 

After paddling up to inspect how much water was under the bridge we headed down the northern side of the lake and got a good view of  a rare visitor to this area - the dark morph of the Pacific Reef Heron. We've only seen one once before, a few years ago down at the entrance to Mogareeka.

Shortly after we heard the young Sea Eagles chirruping for food. Following the sound, I found them in the same area we saw them a few days ago.  Being further back in the bush I wouldn't have spotted them if not for an adult flying out and perching in a tree close to the water.

Backtracking his/her flight I spotted the young ones, last years brood who probably fledged sometime in late October into September.  The parent had just delivered a fish to one of the young. The light coloured patch on the branch indicates this is a favourite dining perch.

 Having watched them for awhile, I paddled back to the northern side of the lake to rejoin L and we explored Woolybutts Bay before pulling in for morning tea. After which we poddled quietly back to our launch spot.

Boat stuff for those who are interested:

Firstly, the stated length includes the rudder.  The actual boat is only 414cm/13'6" long.

On this paddle I used a thin gel pad on top of the seat and my right foot didn't go numb and I was more comfortable.

Pros and cons purely from my perspective.

It takes a lot less effort to get up to speed compared to the Castine 145, but seems to require the same amount of effort to keep that speed. 

It tracks better than the Castine when not using the rudder, and I found the Mantra more responsive when using the rudder for direction, instead of the paddle, to drift closer to the Sea Eagle .

Compared to the Castine there is not much freeboard in a Seaward so it will be interesting when traversing choppy water as I don't use a spray skirt.

And of course, the reason for the purchase - it is much lighter.

We were lucky again with the weather, a change came through during the tea break and as we launched again it died away.  We got home, washed the boats off, got inside and only then the predicted rain began.

Wednesday 12 February 2025 1st paddle of the new boat Cuttagee

 I love my Castine 145 however it is a hefty beast weighing a tad over 30kgs and as decrepitude marches onwards alongside our advancing age we are finding it increasingly hard to lift and carry around. The search for a lighter replacement has been seriously hampered by the recent discovery that kayak outlets in Australia are closing down en masse.  For instance the two in Canberra selling sit-in recreational/touring kayaks have both closed. Of the five in Melbourne selling similar products only two remain. The two in Huskisson have closed.

Chances of finding a suitable replacement for the Castine were looking decidedly dim when I found a website, Synergy Paddlesports, a wholesaler based in Huskisson advertising an Ascente sea kayak and the kayak pictured below - its blurb stating it was designed for larger paddlers! 

As the company's most recent social media activity was back in 2022 I didn't hold out much hope as I dialed the number. Much to my surprise the owner, Ross, answered and yes indeedy, he still had a couple left. Turns out that Synergy Paddlesports was the importer of Delta Kayaks and was licenced to build Seaward Kayaks in Australia (Ross built L's Chinook) although the Mantra was imported from Canada.

The visit to his workshop was fascinating. Kayak moulds galore. I don't know if Ross is making kayaks any more as his latest project is a huge catamaran that has taken 6 years to build from scratch and is now nearing completion. If anyone is interested in everything fibreglass or how catamarans are built by hand Ross has a You Tube site, Life on the Hulls. L has been sucked right in. Compared to a catamaran making kayaks must be a doddle.

Anyway, to cut a long story short we came home with a new kayak. Due to other commitments, windy days, rainy days, windy and rainy days, today was the first chance we had to try it out.

We set off for a short paddle, with plenty of stops faffing about adjusting foot pegs, back rest etc until we got things right. Along the way we spotted a pair of immature sea eagles perched in neighbouring trees which called for another stop. 

We saw plenty of kangaroos along the shoreline; most scarpered when we approached but this mother and youngster warily stayed put as we glided by.

Halfway down the lake L took over the GoPro. 

Here is the result.

After a break at the end of  a little bay we headed back. In the same area we spotted one of the immature sea eagles.

As we approached it jumped to another perch as L pointed to its sibling flying in

We watched it land

in a neighbouring tree.

 L had disappeared when the camera had been stowed so I had a lovely period of paddling in quiet solitude until turning into the straight where he was waiting.

We saw three Greater Egrets today.

At the end of our paddle and feeling very happy.

That enough for now. In the next blog I will talk about, from my perspective, the pros and cons of the new kayak. Someone has already enquired about the Castine 145, but I will be keeping her. Nothing can beat it for spaciousness and load carrying - perfect for multi day kayak camping (while we still can!)

Trip notes:

See previous entries for Cuttagee Lake

Wednesday 29 January 2025 Jaggers Bay, Bermagui River

 Another early start to take advantage of the 1.9m high tide.

Getting ready.

After a slight delay whilst L kindly retrieved my gloves from the car we set out, an hour before high tide, as three screeching Corella's flew by.

Having cut through the mangroves we paused on the river to make a plan. As none of had all day and as R has a dodgy shoulder we decided to take advantage of the tide height and circumnavigate Jaggers Bay, something we had not done for awhile and a first for R.

Sticking to the left hand side of the river we saw quite a bit of bird life as we paddled upstream. Including this lone Whimbrel?; a migratory visitor from the far northern latitudes (with, in the background, a Greater Egret  on the flooded saltmarsh).

Upon entering Jaggers Bay we found the 1.9 tide gave us enough water to mostly paddle between the mangroves and the shoreline. 

Our breakfast stop was at the site of an c1875 logging ramp (remains of which can be seen in the water), where timber was rolled along logs onto barges called droughers/droghers which then floated down river on the outgoing tide to the mill in Bermagui.

Other than a couple of mozzies we had a very pleasant break before setting off to finish the circumnavigation of the bay. Back out on the river we headed across and paddled down through the mangroves before crossing the river for a brief stop whilst L flew the drone to take some panorama shots. The brief stop morphed into morning tea and we sat on the edge of the saltmarsh watching oyster boats, paddleboarders and kayakers make their way up and down the river.

About to get back into his boat L discovered his coffee flask was missing. So while R and I floated back down the river, weaving our way through a variety of paddlers working hard to make headway against the outgoing tide,  L returned to Jaggers Bay to retrieve his flask thus adding an extra 3 or so kms to his paddle. 

 With our boats loaded and gear stowed R and I were ready for L's arrival and it was only minutes till we had his boat, gear and him loaded. I think we were home before 12.30pm

Here is the video

Trip Notes:

High tide at Entrance: 8.51am 1.9m

Put In/Take Out: Slipway Beach

7.8kms (11kms for L)