My packraft and my two kayaks have each had an end of year outing. None of them had been out of their bags for months. Last time I used one was back in July (re. blog post 25/07/24) and after that it had been far too hot to spend time on the water, and then, come Autumn, a project to renew the roof on my shed/workshop took priority. As the end of the year loomed I felt it was time to give them an airing:
On Sat. Nov. 30th. I took my Gumotex Halibut kayak to Playa de Freila for bit of quiet paddling on the Negratin Reservoir. It was a very typical morning on Negratin; starting with a gentle breeze from the top of the reservoir, creating a bit of a chop on the water, then, as the sun rose higher in the sky, the breeze died away leaving the water mirror-like. By 2:00 p.m., when I was back on shore at Playa de Freila, the reflections on the water of the badlands on the opposite side were magnificent. Time on the water was 3½ hrs. and distance paddled 9.0 kilometres.
On Sun. Dec. 8th. I took my packraft to the coast. Conditions in open water were a bit uncomfortable for a packraft, so I stayed within the confines of the sheltered bay at Punta Parda. It was only the fourth time I had used my packraft and I'm still finding out its limitations. Was on the water for 1½ hrs. and covered 3.5 kilometres, in circuits of the bay.
On Sat. Dec. 21st. (the Winter Solstice) I was back at Punta Parda with my Neris Smart 1 kayak. Despite a bit of a swell on the sea, with added chop from a light wind, I was able to spend 2 hrs. paddling around the headland, outside of the bay, including passing around the little island 'Isla Cama de los Noviost' (see blog posts 28/11/22 and 29/4/23). Wouldn't have liked to have been out there in my packraft, but I have confidence in the The Smart One in such conditions. Distance paddled was 7.0 kilometres.
