Last Sunday we had an indoor pool kayak training session in Göteborg. Practicing in a pool is very thankful, at least in our latitudes at this time of the year. It gives us great opportunities to practice rescue exercises in calm and warm conditions.

It is time to register to the Surfski Spring Camp 2012 in Sweden. It will take place the 10 to 13 of may at Barnens Ö, about 100 km north of Stockholm. I was there last year and it was the first time I tried Surfski paddling. It was really great and I can highly recommend it. I’m going back this year. One of the best surfski paddlers, Dawid Mocke, is attending this year and will be holding classes.

Barnens Ö is located close to the Stockholm International Airport, only 80 km, if you are interested in attending.

Dawid Mocke in Norway, during the ASKR 2011.

The program contains:

• Beginners courses
• Downwind paddling
• Paddling technique
• Re-mounting technique
• Paddling classes with the elite paddlers for input and advices
• Surfski Safety
• How to choose the right Surfski

More information is found at globalsurfski.com.

A good technique for rescuing a fellow paddler in trouble is the Hand of God. SeakayakingTV has done som instructional kayaking video clips on youtube. Unfortunately they have lots of ads on the latest videoclips. Some of them are in two versions, as this one:

2011 was a great year for paddling. Here are some of my best kayak trips from the past year.

February

Still winter in Sweden. The winter was really long and cold during 2011. I bought a new kayak and my Qanik from Seabird arrived in mid february and no chance to paddle it until late march.

April

Fjällbacka is one of the most beautiful archipelagos in Sweden. We did a great trip in the end of april. Cold but beautiful. Read more about Paddling in Fjällbacka Archipelago

May

I tried a surfski for the first time and I got stucked. Surfski is great fun. Later on I bought a surfski. Read more about Surfski Spring Camp.

A new competition in paddling was held in the harbour of Göteborg at the same day as the world biggest half marathon in Göteborg. I didn’t compete but I got some great photos. Maybe I will compete in May!? Read more about Paddelvarvet.

June

My friend Maria and I went for a weekend trip in well known water. This is normally a period when I hardly do any kayaking due to my allergy. Great weather and some new spots discovered. Gothenburg archipelago is really great for paddling. Read more about Paddling in Göteborg Archipelago.

July

The Gothenburg Canoe Association (GKF) had an evening with two really good sprint kayakers who gave us instructions. read more about the Paddling instructions event.

The annual kayak gathering at Valö south of Gothenburg was greatas usual. There was a kayak incident that turned out well. Read more about the Valöträffen.

North of the arctic circle is a great kayak event held every year. We attended for the first time. Loved it! Read more about Arctic Sea Kayak Race.

August

Paddling in Lofoten

Paddling holiday

September

The best kayak symposium i have ever been to. Nigel Foster, Gordon Brown, Dubside and many more. Great Instructors, great arrangement and great weather. Read more about the Tjäröfestivalen.

October

I have been more into surfski during the fall than ordinary sea kayaking. Read more about Testing a drysuit andsearching for waves.

November

November was a month with hardly any paddling at all. We had a weekend of gray paddling. Read more about the gray Weekend paddling.

December

The year ended with great weather and we had a beautful paddling trip to Valö. Read more about the paddling trip.

Finally is the weather decent enough to do some kayaking. Just in time for the new year and the winter… My friends Pia, Erik, Patric and I had a great paddling in Göteborg Archipelago. The days between christmas and new years eve is pretty soft at work. I could work from “home” and my home yesterday was Valö!  A great way of ending the paddling and working year.

Happy new year everybody. Let 2012 be a great year for kayaking!

The sunset was magnificent.

Dramatic clouds but hardly any wind.

Pia is paddling her green Skim kayak. When she is not paddling, hardly ever happens, she is creating really nice silver jewelry.

Sunrise at Valö

The winter is coming closer. Frost on the deck this morning.

Patric has bought a new kayaking hat! Orange…

I had to break through some ice to get ashore.

Great weather but the ice will make it harder for me to launch the kayak the next coming months. Today it was easy to break through.

The Arctic Sea Kayak Race is a paddling event held in the archipelago of Vesterålen, Norway, in the end of July every year. ASKR as it’s commonly called has been arranged since 1991. It started as a project among friends who paddled together and lived in Vesterålen. They really liked kayaking together but they needed a reason to meet in the winter months when the darkness and more colder weather gave less opportunities for kayaking.

Kayaking in Norway is great! Kayaking in Vesterålen is no exception.Vesterålen is located just north of the Lofoten Archipelago, in Nordland, Norway. It is not okay to equate Vesterålen with Lofoten. It’s like saying to a Dutchman that they are from Belgium.

I have been kayaking in Norway several times before. This year my friends Maria, Patric and I decided to visit the ASKR.
We traveled by car from Göteborg in Sweden to Vesterålen. The journey to and from Vesterålen is a long trip, 24 hours non stop driving. The trip through Sweden is a perfect opportunity to observe how our beautiful nature changes. I can highly recommend it.

We arrived at Vesterålen the day before registration started and we stayed the night at the Sortland Camping. Sortland is the capital of Vesterålen with about 9500 inhabitants. Registration is held in Skjellfjords small harbour just 10 km west of Sortland. Upon registration we definitely decided for the activity we had preliminary booked in advance. There are three different activities to choose from. ASKR Ramble is a three-day guided tour of Vesterålen with day trips at about 10 – 20 km. ASKR Long Ramble is a three-day guided tour with longer day trips, about 30-40 km around a major part of the Vesterålen archipelago . The third option available is a sea kayaking course, the ASKR Camp, which starts from the picturesque fishing village Skipnes. Skipnes is also the finish for both the short and long ramble. After observing weather forecasts and getting some advice from the organisers, we decided to participate in the long ramble.

Once we had unloaded the kayaks and parked the car in Skjellfjords harbour, we could paddle to the first night camp on Sunday evening.

On the website of ASKR you can find information about the climate in Vesterålen. It may vary. The temperature differ from 8 to 25 degrees Celsius during this time of year. The registration day was really nice with clear blue sky, sunshine and a temperature above 20 degrees. But the first paddling day became gray and cold. We paddled in probably one of Norway’s most beautiful fjords, but because we had a thick fog, we could only guess how beautiful it was. This stage was also the longest on the ramble. It was approx 38 km paddle. The opportunities to go ashore was limited, at least for a group of 35 kayakers. The time in our kayaks became quite long. When the weather is a little less nice, it is important that everyone in the group keep time for the launch and during stops so that no one should have to wait and risk of freezing. That was the only major concern I had for paddling with such a large group but it worked surprisingly well. The guides had good control even though we were 35 kayakers. When we came ashore on Gaukvaeröya the first evening, clouds began to ease and eventually crack up completely. Then we got our reward for the entire day’s hard work.

The scenery from Gaukvaeröya was stunningly beautiful. After supper we gathered by a campfire, where the guides informed us about the environment and tomorrow’s stage.

We woke up to sunshine and clear blue sky. The paddling from Gaukvaeröya was varied and fun.  The first day’s dreary weather was completely forgotten. The remaining two days we paddled in fine weather with light winds. The pace during the ride was relatively high for being such a large group but we also had time to explore and play some in the whitewater close to islets. If you are interested in paddling the long rambe, make sure to do some paddling before attending. We were very lucky with the wind and the current. If we would had headwind and countercurrent it would have felt much harder. If you are not that frequent with your paddling I recommend the shorter Ramble.

The paddling continued and we came to more amazing places. Åsand was our guide’s favourite spot, which was not hard to understand. A long white sandy beach with great views from the tent sites. The guides were very good at bringing together all participants every evening in front of a campfire. There, they gave information about the area and the next day’s trip. They also created a pleasant atmosphere where we as participants got to know each other a little better. The participants came from different parts of Norway, a large group from Denmark, a brave Italian and we were four from Sweden.

The long tour passes quite exposed coastlines. North Atlantic waves can grow significantly here. The tide is also significant here. It can be as much as three meter between high and low tide. It requires a security approach that we are not so accustomed to in Sweden. Therefore, there was a following boat close to the group and when we paddled one part that was exposed we also had some coastguard vessels not very far away.

The wildlife is fascinating in Norway. We saw eagles and porpoises every day. Lots of seabirds. We passed an island with thousands of puffins flying back and forth searching for food. There was a herd of killer whales in the area that we unfortunately never saw but we saw white sided dolphins that was playful. The last day of the tour, we paddled into the old fishing village of Skipnes. The last kilometre into Skipnes we paddled traditionally in a V-formation. Here we met up with the participants from the short ramble and those who had done the sea kayaking course. Skipnes is a small fishing village that is very isolated. The only way to get here is by sea or air. Here is also the heart of the ASKR located. It is an idyllic place with only a few houses and sheds. When participating in the ASKR it is possible to rent huts in Skipnes. We stayed at a campsite above the village with magnificent view of the surrounding areas. After arriving on wednesday a dinner was held in the local restaurant for all who participated in the ASKR.

Thursday was a day off from paddling to prepare for the Friday’s two kayaking competitions. Some chose a soft day and spend time on in Skipnes to care for their blisters. Others made an top tour to the nearby mountain top, Tinden. A fun kayak building competition was held in the harbour. We were divided into different groups. Each group had to nominate three participants who received a large piece of cardboard, a wooden board, tape, a couple of knives and pens. The task was to build a kayak in 15 minutes which later should be used in a kayak race. An entertaining and fun competition. Only one of four kayaks managed to finish but all participants tried to make is as long as possible.

Friday is the last day of the ASKR and is the official day of competition. For several years the competition has been a marathon for sea kayakers. Now, is also a Surfski race held. For the second consecutive year, ASKR organised a race in the International Canoe Federation Surfski World Cup. This year the competition attracted three great surfski paddlers. Dawid Mocke from South Africa, Sean Rice also from South Africa and Joep van Bakel from Holland. The Surfski Race this year became a struggle between these three in which Sean Rice followed up last year’s victory and finishing in front of Dawid Mocke and Joep van Bakel.

The entire ASKR ends with a very nice banquet. Great local food and a very fun host. Participants in the races was awarded with generous prizes. A brand new sea kayak is the first prize in a lottery among all participants in the ASKR. The draw for the kayak was determined in a very exiting and entertaining way. To sum it up. The whole experience was very good. A good arrangement, fun paddling in wonderful surroundings and new friends from all over Europe. If I’m going back? Absolutely! Maybe not every year, because of the distance from Göteborg. This is a thing you should have on your to do list, especially if you are a paddler from Scandinavia.

Trent, Patric and I paddled to Valö today. It was quite hard because we had both the wind and the current against us! I have started to test a drysuit from Ursuit. It feels really good to have a drysuit when it is getting colder in the water.

Trent is heading home and it is getting dark.

Ursuit makes drysuits for paddling and sailing

What is most important to know as a new paddler? I haven’t given any kayak classes for a long while and my girlfriend Gabriella is fairly new to kayaking. So it is time to resume my old skills. Today we paddled to Eskilsholmen in the Archipelago west of Göteborg. Previously, we have only paddled short distances, about three times, without any special instructions or exercises. I have just given basic kayak instructions such as forward paddling strokes and reverse paddlings strokes. Gabriella have felt some uncertainty about being able to evacuate from the cockpit and what her reaction will be when she hits the water. I have good experiences to practice wet drills and evacuation from the cockpit early on to increase the development of paddling technique. Early exercises makes the paddler feel secure and increase the confidence.

Gabriella is paddling the Qanik in the harbour of Hinsholmen.

Summer is coming to an end and the boats have decreased in number in the archipelago.

On Eskilsholmen, we had a really good time with good drinks and food. Besides eating and drinking we practiced on basic under water exercises, wet evacuation and basic rescue techniques. Gabriella enjoyed the excercises and was eager to learn more. On the way back home I noticed a big difference in the attitude of pushing the limits in edging the kayak and also the paddling strokes were more powerful and distinct.

Gabriella doesn’t look to unhappy about the kayak drill.

On the way back was Gabriella’s paddling strokes more powerful.

We have another week off. Hopefully with good weather and some more kayaking.

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