Відео

Grandma’s marathon route is along the Lake and results in some closed roads and traffic congestion making our shuttle pick up a bit complicated.

The shirt is not wind proof, I wear just for visibility. The tag says Paragon - I got it at a race so I didn’t purchase it myself.

On this run the water was in the low 40s.

The water temp was 39, max speed was 15 mph. We have several launch/landing site that are protected which helps tremendously but handling the skis can be tricky in the wind!

I am glad you enjoyed it! I am looking forward to paddling the Gorge for the first time in July! From what I hear the Gorge is known for clean waves. Did you have good conditions?

Thanks Rhett!

Thanks! I use the Epic seat pad plus some custom hip pads and calf pads that are attached with PVC tape. I need the seat pad to prevent chafing of my tailbone. The hip and calf pads help keep me connected to the ski.

You’re right, the cable is a small diameter but it must work fine. The buoys also have a GPS and if they depart too far from their designated position they will send an alert.

A PLB. I also carry a VHF. I would love to get to NZ some day!

@@ttrayn1000 Thx. Nice come over mate. You'll love it. Nice waves too!

Thanks! It’s taken me a while to get to this point and living on Superior provides lots of opportunities for learning. It’s a big learning curve but rewarding and fun!

Yes, definitely too fast for me to get the big ones!

It was fantastic, we were smiling ear to ear!

Yes, lots of linking of runs on Mille Lacs, more so than on Superior, due to the shorter fetch waves don’t achieve the same velocity - seems easy after paddling Superior!

You are right on the water temps. Here is a response to the wetsuit/drysuit considerations I posted elsewhere: I briefly considered a dry suit when I first started but there were a couple reasons I went with wetsuits. Firstly, I knew I was going to be in the water a lot, and as it turned out on some of my first runs I would remount 10-15 times. I don’t think dry suits are as good for frequent remounting (I have never seen a surfer wear a dry suit). Secondly is cost, I got 3 good wetsuits for under $600 total, which is about half of what a good dry suit costs. It seems most touring kayakers do use drysuits and I can see the advantage if are rarely in the water and not doing a lot of remounting and can roll with a spray cover.

@@ttrayn1000 Thank you! What wetsuit do you like? What thickness? Do you wear wetsuit socks? Thanks.

@@tommyrq180 I have three Excel Infinity wetsuits. A 5/4 hooded, a 4/3, and a 3/2. I use the Excel Drylock booties, I have a pair of 7mm and a pair of 3mm.

@@ttrayn1000 Appreciate the answers! I’m gearing up for a major haul in Lake Michigan so I’m interested in how you guys handle the cold water.

@@tommyrq180 What are you planning for Lake Michigan?

😸

Hi Dave, the total distance of this run is 14K. I averaged 14 kph for the middle 12K.

@ttrayn1000 thanks for that. That's a great avg speed! The runs look fantastic. Mesmerising!

@@daveneal2960, Thanks! I am fortunate to have Superior in my backyard so that I can enjoy such conditions.

Awesome conditions and paddling!

@@zachhandler Thanks Zach!

Paul, I did seem to get the angle right on the head camera - luck? I did not adjust the color, when the sun is high or at my back you see pretty true Superior blue. If it’s dark and grey Superior looks stone cold. When the camera is facing the sun it’s just a lot of glare, but it can be dramatic sometimes. Yes, John paddled in HI. I let him know about your comment, maybe he’ll chime in?

Hi Paul! Thanks for the compliment! Tim usually manages to catch my better moments. I would say that my first reaction to paddling on Lake Superior was amazement at how similar the conditions were to those I was used to in Hawaii (I did almost all of my paddling on Kauai, tho I did paddle OC1 in the Pailolo channel and OC6 on several other channels and islands). So overall, I would say the lake is quite similar when it comes to the complexities of various swells, wind waves, and refractions. There are also currents in the lake that Tim and do not fully understand (and neither do the marine scientists we've spoken to) but that we definitely feel. All that said, in addition to being much colder, the lake also feels more powerful and less forgiving, at least compared to the ocean in similar wind conditions. We've been told that the lower density of fresh water makes big, open-lake waves more steep and breaking than the rounder swells in the open ocean. I definitely feel that and it can be quite intimidating! It is nice to that I don't have to rinse off my canoe after every run tho! Where do you typically paddle?

@@johnteschner Thanks John - you are confirming some of my impressions from Tim's videos. And maybe I have some direct experience to compare with yours - the three trips we've made for paddling in Hawaii were all to Kauai. We were chaperoned initially by Tom Bartlett and later by Michael Wood (who has now moved back to Bellingham full time). We do most of our downwinding in Bellingham Bay which gets no ocean swell. It gets big only with pretty high wind, but it often is somewhat technical because of the way the wind can angle in off of neighboring hills at odds with whatever the usual prevailing S, SW, or SE fetch is doing. We get to the Gorge for the Champs race and often get at least one other trip there per year. My impression about the Gorge is that it is mostly much more orderly than the ocean paddling I have done and only gets intimidating (for me) with fairly high wind and/or maybe before summer when the snow melt water is colder and the higher flows create more resistance and more squirrelly currents to paddle against.

@@paulreavley5900 You and I have probably paddled together! Tom and Mike are both great people and good friends of mine. Tho it's been a while since I've seen them. Please say hi to Mike for me next time you see him. He has an incredible reputation on Kauai. One of the most generous people around. I'm sure Bellingham is a great place to paddle. It's certainly a beautiful spot. I started a cross country bike trip from there in 2007.

Thanks!

Yes, that was a favorite of mine too. Wish I hadn’t of just missed the second one surface.

So glad you enjoy the videos! You’re right the Lake is a wonder and I am so glad to have it in my backyard.

That would have been cool, wasn’t prepared for doing that.

It’s our shortest run, 6 miles.

Truth!

Thanks!

Thanks, I am glad you enjoyed the video! You’re right, the GoPro does flatten the waves. The air and water on this day were. Both about 38 F. I am lowers to paddling the Gorge for the first time this summer.

I briefly considered a dry suit when I first started but there were a couple reasons I went with wetsuits. Firstly, I knew I was going to be in the water a lot, and as it turned out on some of my first runs I would remount 10-15 times. I don’t think dry suits are as good for frequent remounting (I have never seen a surfer wear a dry suit). Secondly is cost, I got 3 good wetsuits for under $600 total, which is about half of what a good dry suit costs.

Drysuits keep you dry but you still need something underneath for insulation. Modern wetsuits are kind of like drysuits in that they are just as flexible, and so well sealed they don't depend on a layer of water to enter and warm up like they used to. Once it's on, the wind is blowing, the spray is flying you don't even notice it's there but are sure glad it is. Kiters, wingers, and surfers can't all be wrong.

@@bentz98125 Clearly many folks are making wetsuits work. But there are plenty of surfskiing Swedes and Norwegians who paddle in the upper North Sea who make drysuits work also. "Modern" wetsuits are not all the same - they are not all equally flexible, perfectly fitting, or equally well sealed. Tim got 3 wetsuits for under $600? I suspect he found some of them on sale. You cannot get a good "modern" wetsuit that is well sealed and fits you well for $200 unless you get some kind of bargain. It is difficult to have a complete discussion via youtube comments, and I am a big fan of current wetsuit technology, but I would be a little careful about overselling or oversimplifying the choice process here.

Thanks, we will!

Not sure how my hand came off the paddle, that has never happened to me before, but I thought for sure I would get knocked off. Do you SUPER or prone? What sort of conditions do you get there?

@@ttrayn1000 I paddle surfski. I remember my slipping down and off the paddle once. I also managed to no come off the ski as well. Conditions vary with the wind and ocean swell. Spring time can bring strong NW winds that run down the west coast of California.

Yes, we definitely have to respect the Lake. We love Duluth too. I grew up in the Cities but I am sure glad I had the opportunity to move here!