Breathing New Life Into An Old Kayak: Upcycling Project

Join me and Grace as we take on an upcycling project to give her discarded kayak a new life. Having sat for a number of years gathering moss, I made Grace an offer. I would help her upcycle the kayak, making it once again lake-ready, if she was willing to give kayaking a second chance.
Thanks again for tuning in, if you enjoyed this one please give it a thumbs up, and I hope to see you next time for wherever me and the camera end up. Hope you all have a great week!

[@marybullock5146]

Super content keep the videos coming 😊

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

@@marybullock5146 Thank you Mary ❤️

[@BOTG_Adventures]

Apaonge attachment on a power drill.. Arrr that grey slate in the houses reminds me of Ambleside.

[@malachev]

I hope this helps: the old kayak you brought back to life is a river/white water kayak. It's designed to surf waves, turn quickly and roll easily. Try paddling a kayak designed for flat water, you will find it tracks a lot better.

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, the plan is to take it out on the river and see how it handles in its natural habitat! Hopefully, as you said, we’ll notice the difference 😊

[@RhodySeth]

Well that was a great effort, even if Grace didn't take to it in the end. The kayak lives again!

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thanks Seth! Yes absolutely it’s now got a new lease of life and I’m not giving up on getting Grace back in the boat 😊

[@BushKayakersCampingAustralia]

a little more practice and you will both become kayaking addicts . then upcycle that kayak for something more suitable for lakes , although its a great kayak , its stable and its unsinkable . it will get you from A to B safely and reliably . no real need to upgrade

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thank you for the vote of confidence! Certainly need more practice, but I’m trying my best to convince Grace it’s worth sticking at. It does seem like a pretty reliable craft, scrubbed up well! Have a great week

[@m__r1100]

You need to keep sitting up more - engage core and hold it with knees and feet to help steer as you paddle.

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thanks for the tips, I’ll get Grace to give them go when she’s next on the water 😊

[@kenwebster5053]

You can paddle a white water kayak in a straight line. It just takes a few outings a day or 2 apart. The main thing is to just go nice & slow easy at first. Most people overdo it & then loose control. It just takes a little time for your body to learn how to react to keep the boat under control. White water kayaks are designed to be highly maneuverable. They are deliberately directionally unstable so that a with a little practice you can turn the boat very quickly. Wind and waves present additional challengers, so make the 1st few outings on calm water. To help understand what is going on, it is easiest to start by talking about touring kayaks as this will help clarify how control works in a simple way. A touring kayak is primarily steered by edging the hull, but not the torso. If a touring kayak is level, it will go in a straight line. By tilting your pelvis while keeping the upper reasonably upright, you can make the hull tilt (edge) left or right. If the kayak is edges left (lower on the left side), the kayak will gently turn to the right & will continue to gently turn while it is maintained on edge. Bringing the kayak lever again will cause the kayak to resume a straight course, though it may take a few seconds to do so. In calm conditions, a touring kayak can be controlled effectively just by edging. In more challenging conditions of wind and waves, appropriate paddling strokes are needed as well as edging. Some touring kayaks are also fitted with skegs or rudders to assist with control in even more challenging conditions. It is important to coordinate all 3 control methods to assist each other. You do not want to have your turning strokes fighting against your edging as that will prevent effective control & simply wear you out. OK, so now you have the basic idea, it get a little more complex with white water kayaks. Once a white water kayak begins a turn, it builds turning inertia very fast & will soon be going sideways. So, if you have edged left, the boat will begin to turn to the right, but it's inertia will continue to carry the boat along it's original course. So not your boat is pointing to the right but traveling sideways to it's left side. The water begins to pile up on the left side & before you know it, you have been flipped over on the left. So, while it is correct to initiate a turn by edging left & doing a forward sweep on the left, once the turn begins, you should immediately edge towards the inside of the turn to counter the flipping effect of side drift. This is essential if you want to remain upright in a white water kayak. Now, while the boat has forward speed it will resist your attempts to cancel a turn. The faster the boat is going, the more stubbornly it will resist cancelling the turn. So, just take it easy, let the boat slow down to get it back in your control, or you can do a stern rudder or reverse sweep to correct an unwanted turn as these stroke will slow the boat down & make it more controllable. it won't always be so difficult to control & you won't always need to resort to slowing the boat the regain control. As you build skill, you will not need to slow the boat for control, but as a beginner it is really the best strategy, because the alternative will be a fight you can't win, it will sap strength and endurance from your muscles faster than your body can learn the requires coordination. So go slow, relax & enjoy the day, recover, then build on that experience again another day as soon as you can. So, now you know a some things that took me many years to experience & fully understand. I hope it helps you.

[@BOTG_Adventures]

Ya sure the back isn't the front?

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Haha she went for the stuff the airbags in somewhere and hope for the best!

[@BOTG_Adventures]

Nice 1 bets.. Dosnt beat a sup 😂

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Grace would totally agree with you there 😂

[@NorwayHikesTrails]

Nice work 👍

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thank you 😊

[@CraigDroneAdventures]

Great work upcycling the kayak! 💚Doesnt look in that bad of shape now. Loved the "washed away the eco system" comment and positive outlook. Im sure we could all do something similar with stuff we have laying around. ♻👍👍 Looking forward to part 2 😃

[@TheGirlGoneNomad]

Thank you Craig! Glad you enjoyed it. Something a bit different, yer it actually looks in reasonable shape now. Just got to convince Grace to keep paddling 😊 Yes absolutely, reckon we all have something in the back of the cupboard we could give a new lease of life 😊