Wrote most of this awhile and only now realized hadn't sent this to the list. The latest round in this. I launched the Pygmy Coho kit built kayak this weekend. Fun boat, though a bit of an adjustment from the rotomolded double. Anyway, my daughter was on shore with my wife when I launched it, and my daughter was not happy to be left on shore. She didn't stop crying until I came back to shore, hauled the boat out and let her sit in it. Both frustrating, trying to enjoy the inaugeral paddle of a new boat while hearing the wails and cries, and proud that we've succeeded so well in having our daughter enjoy kayaking... We ended up going the "Pungo" route, having a boat with an extended cockpit opening so parent and child can be in the same boat. ----------------------------------------------- Thank you for the tips and advice about kids and paddling. Yes, it will mostly be for shorter trips at first, longer as we all get the hang of this. Other trips will be done while we have a sitter. I'm ready for longer trips, but my wife is taking a more slow and careful learning curve. We've been to Olympic Outdoor Center, and they are a great shop, but the kids classes are for much older kids, and I think I've heard a better range of suggestions on this list than there. Sticking to more protected waters as well was in in the plan. We'd also planned to attend at least part of the West Coast Sea Kayak Symposium in Port Townsend this September. Has anyone received registration information, or know exactly which weekend it is? I do like the idea of the outrigger, that's about the best so far. I just need to figure out how to attach an outrigger as needed, but still have usable singles the rest of the time. Maybe even something we can rig into outrigger or seperate and store the parts while on the water, as an alternative to letting her paddle and then tow combination. We've done the one adult and our daughter in a double, it just ends up being a lot of boat for one person to paddle, and we need to look into ballast to adjust the trim. The "pungo" with a large cockpit worked a little better, but I'm nervous about the large open cockpit. We'll probably rent one from time to time. Getting a spray skirt to fit adult and child might be challenging. We thought about a triple, but would rather have several singles in the water, so if one boat goes over, the others would be available for rescue assistance. If I was going to get or build a single "family" boat, the Pygmy "wineglass werry" is on the top of the list, add a small sail to it, and have fun with that. Or just break down and buy a small sail or powerboat. Maybe even a small enclosed cabin boat. Its a slippery (and expensive) slope. Maybe if we got a big enough power boat, we could carry or tow the kayaks to spots that would normally be out of our range, and use that as a base station.... Trying to keep it fun for our daughter so she learns to grow into it. Yes, we are also doing pool sessions to get her used to being in the water, though there is quite a difference between the temp of pool water and Puget Sound water. Again, thank you for all the suggestions. Its just a little frustrating at this age, you want to get on with enjoying the outdoors, but skill level, attention span, and additional stuff or issues with a toddler can really slow you down. Also waiting for her to turn 5 so we can get her as a passenger on a motorcycle, and maybe rig up a light trailer to tow a kayak behind the motorcyle... Scary flights of fancy. dave -- Dave Uebele (daveu_at_sptddog.com) Spotted Dog Systems http://sptddog.com/daveu.html *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
-----Original Message----- From: Dave Uebele <daveu_at_sptddog.com> >Trying to keep it fun for our daughter so she learns to grow >into it. Yes, we are also doing pool sessions to get her used >to being in the water, though there is quite a difference between >the temp of pool water and Puget Sound water. Sorry bout jumping in on the end of this thread, but I would like to mention a couple of things. My daughter Brooke is a bit older 11 but she started paddling when she was very young. On all of our paddles together we play the sponge game, this is where we throw the sponges at each other using the paddles only, she loves to get daddy wet. We may not paddle long distances but we have a lot fun playing games (not to mention the games help to sharpen her paddling skills). Does anyone know any more games we can play? We also bring one of her friends with us as often as possible, they use her old Zephyr. Bringing a friend means so much to her, I guess when she becomes a teenager she will want to go paddle with her friends and leave daddy behind. I guess I'll cross dat bayou when I come to it. I'm hoping she will not loose interest and continue to grow in the sport, I think it is a fine line we parents walk to keep our little people's interest in any sport. Brooke loves nature so, what better way to experience our great mother than in a kayak. Arthur Hebert *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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