|  Posted on March 31st,2013The Chine bLog family is back from a tropical vacation to Puerto Rico. While there,I did get my paddle on:I finally explored the stand-up paddleboard (SUP) phenomenon. No photos exist,this by fortune,not by design. There was a strong breeze and the water was choppy. My windsurfing experience served me somewhat from a balance standpoint,but it was definitely a “first outing”performance. I enjoyed it,made a little progress,and fulfilled a long-overdue need to try this paddling form. So,what do I think? I don’t see myself rushing out to add a paddleboard to my fleet. The skills and body motions required are unique and there is no doubt you get a different workout than in a canoe or kayak. I like to take in the surroundings and explore while I paddle,though,and,while there is no doubt one could use a paddleboard in this way,it feels like these craft require more concentration on balance and such than I would care to devote. It is clear that stand-up paddleboarding is the latest thing in recreational small boating,getting some of the mass-audience buzz that kayaks did 15 years or so ago. If paddleboards continue to be a big piece of the paddling establishment I would be completely fine with it. From a holier-than-thou,natural-power-purist standpoint,paddleboards are absolutely legit,especially if the lot is liberally sprinkled with non-plastic offerings like Chesapeake Light Craft’s Kaholo. Many people can and should have fun with them and I hope they do. This said,though,I expect stand-up paddleboarding to be like windsurfing,not like kayaking. Windsurfing got huge buzz in the 80s and then tapered when many recreational users found the sport too hard to do routinely. Kayaking came on because of its simplicity,particularly with beamy recreational designs. You still see a good bit of kayaking rental traffic because the kayak form is genius in allowing someone to cover some distance without having to get too distracted from the surroundings. I think stand-up paddleboarding will prove to be too hard for the average recreational user to enjoy over a longer term and this wave will crest and the sport will be left to a smaller number of core enthusiasts. We’ll see what happens,I guess. Posted on May 6th,2012 We had a nice family paddle at our standby put-in of Mason Neck State Park. Mostly overcast,but warm and calm,good for trying out the rebuilt ama. I’ll have to test it more,but my initial observations are that we working the aft end SEEMS to make her a touch zippier (biased observation noted) and,as planned,water mostly stayed out of it. The main hull is also drier thanks to some touch-up of the skin seams at the bottom of the stems. And fun was had by all. Good to be underway again. Posted on October 26th,2011 On Sunday afternoon I took AL DEMANY CHIMAN out for probably the last time this season. It was a stunning Fall day and there were only a few other folks out with me on the Patuxent River. There were some birds about and a couple fish jumping,but,for the most part,things were quiet and autumnal. As I put the boat back on the car and drove home I reflected on what a great boating season it has been. The story of the season was obviously AL DEMANY CHIMAN. This was her first full season in existence and she gave me all I had hoped she would. From the first paddles in May,she continued to prove light and easy to transport. She took the whole family out and did fine (except for the part where we all leaned to starboard) and even carried my boss and colleagues. From there she carried me and five days gear around Muscongus Bay,ME in what will go down as one of my great voyages. This is the adventure she was built for,whether I had articulated it or not,and she served me fabulously. The heat of summer and my desire to complete the sailing rig slowed us some,but when September arrived,AL DEMANY CHIMAN became my social yacht. I had some great outings with friends and,a couple times,with friends and sons. She proved a great draw and a fun boat for talking or for fishing. Throughout all these interactions,I was thrilled with the reception AL DEMANY CHIMAN got. I have been so touched by the clearly sincere compliments she has received. People have been drawn to her and it has been thrilling to see and hear. It will now be a long wait for the Spring… Posted on June 20th,2011  I have now gotten out twice this season in my skin-on-frame outrigger canoe,AL DEMANY CHIMAN,a much better pace than with the Peace Canoe,PEACE OF THE PUZZLE. I am really liking the boat,overall. She is light enough for me to car-top myself and easy to assemble at the shore,but,most of all,she paddles well. There is something about that feeling of readying a boat in the water and then stepping in and pushing off for that first glide. I know I dump about 40 gallons of worries in those first few yards.
The outing was at Leesylvania State Park,VA. It was a pretty typical summer morning here –still and hot. A great blue heron sat majestically in a tree and ospreys circled here and about. I wanted to do a long,straight outing to get a sense of speed,so I just crossed the river and back. As best I can figure I did 3 knots-ish going at a modest,comfortable pace. Bigger adventures now await… Posted on January 6th,2011 Heads up:Paddling.net has a new,cool-looking tool that shows launch sites on a Google Map and allows you to add new ones. I will be taking a look and seeing if I can contribute;please yours too. This will be extremely valuable when built out. Posted on December 21st,2010 I just saw this story on the AP wires:Kayakers recount deadly crocodile attack in Congo. Yowza. The boaters –two Americans and a South African –traveled some 1,000 miles of river this way,through some of the densest concentrations of man-killing wildlife in the world. They were on a quiet stretch of the Lukuga River in Congo,paddling just 4 or 5 feet apart,when a crocodile slipped up from behind and ripped trip leader Hendri Coetzee from his red plastic boat.
This crew certainly knew what they were doing and what the risks were,but this is why nature must be respected. Posted on October 26th,2010 One of the questions people have had in looking at the skin-on-frame outrigger canoe AL DEMANY CHIMAN under construction was “will it hold more than just you?”I confidently said “I certainly hope it will take the whole family.”From the design,I was pretty confident she would be fine with us all aboard,and when I launched her and noted plenty of available freeboard with just me aboard I felt even better. A week ago Sunday,however,the theory got put to the test and the results were perfect. We took the boat out to my favorite launching spot on Jug Bay on the Patuxent River,in Maryland. Its a spectacular spot –extensive wetland / forest preserve and not too heavily traveled. It was a stunning day,but the river was close to empty. We all go in Al DEMANY CHIMAN and she rode nice and high in the water. We set off upriver and she tracked well and moved along easily. The kids (8 1/2 and 6) played in the water and seemed comfortable in the center section while my wife manned the bow and I the stern. As we moved up-river multiple Vs of geese flew over and a water snake popped up to check us out before darting back underwater. When we got back to the ramp some kayakers were in and Al DEMANY CHIMAN got some nice compliments. It was a wonderful outing. I am really going to like this boat. Posted on August 29th,2010 Posted on February 15th,2010 …orrrr maybe not… 
Posted on September 12th,2009 I got out in the kayak last weekend for the first time in a few weeks and followed in my paddle strokes from our first and only outing in PEACE OF THE PUZZLE a couple weeks before that. The spot? Mattaponi Creek,off the Patuxent River in Maryland. The canoe trip served to discover this sweet tributary. We went some of the way up and had to head back. I resolved to finish business as soon as I could. The creek meanders through a gorgeous marsh with abundant wildflowers,bird,and butterflies. Both voyages gave close encounters with bald eagles,along with the usual herons and osprey. The paddle ends where the beavers have gotten to the creek –there were a couple of obvious lodges along the way. Spectacular find. Anyone in the Mid-Atlantic should check out this area (see directions here).
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