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Sign Up Now For Autumn Gales
The Autumn Gales, led by BCU Level 5 coach Greg Paquin, will take place Nov. 1-3 in Fisher's Island Sound, Ct. The main event is preceded by British Canoe Week Oct. 28-31. Autumn Gales is entering its second decade of being a premier rough water event on the East Coast and is held in one of the few areas in the U.S. that has tidal currents worthy of holding British Canoeing's Advance Sea Kayak Leader Training. Fisher's Island Sound provides paddlers a great location to learn and gain experience with rough water paddling.
High level coaches and rough water guides create an environment where paddlers can test their comfort zone, gain confidence, and continue their skills' growth and seamanship. A low coach/guide to participation ratio allows for a lot of individualized coaching. The event is geared towards a variety of paddlers - those that have a solid foundation on flat water and have experienced some bouncy water to those looking to hone their skills in the bigger stuff.
Be a part of a fun community and sub-culture of rough water paddlers that are empowering to be around - sharing knowledge, exploring, and building confidence.
Click here to see profile of coaches who will attend.
Click here to register.
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Increased CO2 Levels Help Tidal Wetlands
According to an article by Andrea Michelson in the October 3, 2019 smithsonian.com newsletter, the effects of increased CO2 in the atmosphere may actually have an unexpected positive effect on salt water marsh plants in the very areas of highest concern as sea levels rise.
Most of us are aware of the positive effect on plant life of higher CO2 levels, since the gas is a necessary precursor to photosynthesis. More CO, more photosynthesis, more plant growth, natch. But, as Michelson writes:
"A team of researchers at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) working in a marshland on the Rhode River in Edgewater, Maryland, recently took a closer look at how high levels of CO2 affect marsh plant growth. They knew that carbon dioxide has a positive effect on the overall biomass of marsh plants and assumed that individual plants must be producing bigger stems. But the results of the study, recently published in Nature Climate Change, actually showed plants producing smaller but more plentiful stems."
According to the study that the author references:
"The total biomass of marsh sedges growing in high-carbon dioxide chambers increased by 20 percent, but the biomass of individual stems shrunk 16 percent."
This effect is apparently caused by a change in the ratio of carbon dioxide to nitrogen available to the sedges, causing the roots to grow deeper into the soil in search of nutrients. As clonal plants, marsh sedges also grow new stems as they spread their roots. But because of the relative lack of nitrogen, these new stems are "shorter and skinnier."
"The wetlands of today will be able to survive a higher rate of sea level rise than the wetlands of yesteryear. While the rates of sea level rise are accelerating, there are mechanisms by which these ecosystems with their plants and microbes might be able to increase their rate of elevation gain."
Another way the marsh plants help build up soil is with their stems, which can slow water flow and allow sediment to settle. Even though the study found that individual stems were less robust in the presence of the gas ratio change, the clonal aspect of the plants meant there were more stems, largely counter-acting the effect. The marsh soil level has a net rise due to the change, increasing the world's wetlands' ability to buffer against the increased ferocity of ocean storm surges. That, plus the ability of the marsh to trap and store carbon in the soil, makes it a key component of the planet's ability to withstand the worst effects of climate change.
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Moulton Avery's Birthday Fundraiser
For cold water guru Moulton Avery's birthday this year, he is asking for donations to National Center for Cold Water Safety. Its mission means a lot to him and he hopes people will consider contributing as a way to celebrate with him. As he says:
"Every little bit will help me reach my goal...Accurate information on cold water safety is vital to anyone venturing onto cold water, whether their sport is canoeing, kayaking, sailing, fishing, hunting, paddle boarding, board sailing, surfing, open water swimming, scuba diving, rowing, surf skiing, or motor boating. It is also mission-critical for risk management, occupational safety, emergency management, search and rescue, and any commercial or military operations in which immersion in cold water is a possibility.
"The National Center for Cold Water Safety was established to reduce the incidence of close calls,
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injuries, and fatalities due to cold water immersion. Research and program activities at the Center are devoted to bridging the gap between basic scientific and medical research and the practical application of that knowledge in support of cold water safety. We believe that the most effective way to promote cold water safety is to:
* Provide information that is medically and scientifically sound, practical and easy to apply, and based on real-world experience.
* Focus on prevention rather than after-the-fact treatment.
* Expose misinformation.
* Partner with any individual, group, or organization interested in the promotion of cold water safety.
The National Center for Cold Water Safety is a valuable resource to which both individuals and other organizations can turn for accurate information, technical assistance, and training on the subject."
Happy Birthday Moulton!
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Hoffmeister Attempts North American Circumnavigation
Just when you think adventure paddler Freya Hoffmeister may hang up her paddle and write her memoirs, she's back at her amazing ability to conquer long distance paddling in sometimes impossible conditions. She has paddled around two continents - Australia and South America - and is now on her third, North America. Like South America - Hoffmeister completed the expedition in stages between 2011 and 2015 - she will paddle North America in stages as well, in a time frame of eight years - or 11 or 12. She's not sure. Her solution to completing the 30,000-mile circle, which will end in New York Harbor, is to approach it from both ends, paddling north in summer and south in winter. She started in Seattle in March 2017 and this past summer followed Alaska's wild west coast. Between trips, she returns to Germany to see her son and run her businesses - two ice cream stores and a Christmas store. Unlike many of her other expeditions which are solo, she has a companion - Fylkir Saevarsson - making the epic journey with her. All he has to do is keep up. Freya's normal distance is 25 miles a day, more when she's solo. To follow the expedition, visit http://freyahoffmeister.com/
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Florida Coastal Challenge 2020
The Florida Coastal Challenge starts Feb. 28, 2020. It is an expedition-style adventure race for kayaks, canoes, and small sailboats sponsored by WaterTribe. The race follows the entire coast of Florida starting near Alabama and ending at Fort Clinch. It merges with the Ultimate Florida Challenge, a shorter segment of the larger race, at Tampa Bay. Paddlers have the option of crossing over the state using the St. Mary's and Suwannee Rivers including a 40-mile portage connecting the two rivers.
The Challenge has five stages and the optional stage to complete the loop. The first stage is the Alabama border to Cedar Key, then Cedar Key to Fort DeSoto, then the Everglades Challenge to Key Largo, Key Largo to Sebastien Inlet, and from there to Fort Clinch. WaterTribe also has challenges in North Carolina and more recently Minnesota.
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Not All Plastic is Forever
There's bright news in the plight of Great Pacific Garbage Patch - floating plastic bits that swirl in a giant cocktail in the currents of the Pacific Ocean, twice the size of Texas. Scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Mass., have determined that polystyrene - best known as Styrofoam in disposable coffee cups and food containers - is not quite as lethal as once thought. Previously scientists said that polystyrene could take thousands of years to degrade. But in a new study, five scientists found that sunlight can degrade polystyrene in centuries or even decades, according to a recent article in the The New York Times. Most are aware that sunlight can cause plastics to degrade. The new study demonstrates that sunlight goes further and breaks down polystyrene into basic chemical units of organic carbon, which dissolves in seawater, and trace amounts of carbon dioxide considered negligible. The new findings will help provide a more accurate, and possibly optimistic, accounting of plastic oceanic pollution.
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More News on Ocean Plastics
In October, one year after its test launch of System 101/B, Ocean Cleanup has announced that its plastics capture system is working. Ocean Cleanup created a third-of-a-mile-long tube with a dangling screen to gather up the floating plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch between California and Hawaii. Engineers say the system is not only collecting plainly visible pieces of plastic debris, but also large ghost nets associated with commercial fishing, and microplastics as small as 1mm, a feat the company says it was pleasantly surprised to achieve.
The device aims to cut the amount of plastic in that area by 50 percent in five years. Ocean Cleanup raised a staggering $40 million for the project. The company said its main challenge was slowing down the system with a parachute sea anchor, to allow faster-moving plastic debris to float into the system. Next task up is returning the plastic to land for recycling.
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This is a photo of a found kayak in Salem Channel, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019. Coast Guard Station Gloucester rescue crews got underway in search of a missing kayaker reported earlier that day and were able to locate the man alive less than an hour later wearing a life jacket. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicole Groll.
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Coast Guard Rescues Missing Kayaker Off Manchester, Mass.
Coast Guard crews helped find a missing person Saturday, Sept. 14, near House Island.
A good Samaritan reported seeing an overturned orange kayak near Salem Channel to Sector Boston watchstanders at 2:24 p.m. Shortly after, the wife of the missing kayaker called Sector Boston watchstanders reporting her husband overdue.
Two rescue boat crews from Station Gloucester and crews from the Salem and Beverly Harbormasters launched. When they arrived on scene, the kayak held a dry bag containing a set of keys and a t-shirt.
After searching for about an hour, the Beverly Harbormaster rescue crew found the kayaker wearing a life jacket. He floated in four-foot seas for about three hours.
"A life jacket really saved this man's life," said Ensign Isabella Stoyka, the duty public affairs officer for Sector Boston. "If his kayak was labeled, we may have found him sooner."
The water temperature was 66 degrees and winds were about 20 knots.
His kayak was not labeled.
If you are going out on your kayak, the Coast Guard recommends you check the weather, tell someone where you are going and when you will be back, wear a lifejacket, have a sound-making device, and label your kayak. If you are paddling at night, make sure you have a light.
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A Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg 29-foot Response Boat-Small II boatcrew rescued two people holding onto a capsized canoe in Bullfrog Creek near Apollo Beach, Florida. The survivors were transported to Williams Park Marina in Riverview, Florida. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class David Micallef
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Coast Guard Rescues Two From Capsized Canoe In Apollo Beach, Fla.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. Oct. 9, 2019 - The Coast Guard rescued two people from a capsized canoe in Bullfrog Creek near Apollo Beach, Florida, Wednesday morning.
A Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg 29-foot Response Boat-Small II boatcrew arrived on scene and located two people holding onto a capsized canoe and retrieved them from the water.
Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders received a 911 notification from Hillsborough County Sheriff Office who also responded with a fireboat and salvaged the canoe. The two people and boat were safely transported to Williams Park Marina with no medical concerns.
"It was an outstanding effort between the Coast Guard and local agencies locating these two people from the capsized vessel," said Chief Petty Officer Kris Rady, executive petty officer of Station St. Petersburg. "We were glad to see both people wearing their lifejackets, and we always encourage the public to do so for these instances."
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