Summit to Sea

I'd suggested to the "Event Organiser" that a Menai Challenge meet on the 31st December might be a good idea, as it runs from 1/1 to 31/12 each year, and it would be the last chance to bag a good time, giving the rest of the world no time to respond. The idea was developed and it was stated that "fancy dress all round and no racing allowed!". In any event, the Menai Challenge is not a "race", but a time trial.

I turned up in my Chicken Suit, to comply with the "rules" & participation criteria laid down by the "Event Organiser" and then discovered that a couple of paddlers were taking this seriously. Imagine my surprise, there I was finely tuned racing machine, who had led the field for months, having his longstanding record time threatened by the these interlopers from over the border (the Menai Challenge is not a local time trial for local people, I really should make this clear).

Still working!!

Photo Courtesy of the Willacy Collection

Unfortunately, I was in no condition to compete with these rapid, record-raiders after a two month work enforced lay off, 6 days of excess consumption and being trussed up in a chicken suit like the aformentioned avian.

Photo Courtesy of the Willacy Collection.

I could just paddle sociably (or unsociably if you saw my position relative to the rest of the group). The chicken feet were not particularly comfortable on those footpegs, and if I'm honest the boat I'd chosen was possibly a little small, so I struggled to maintain the high standards that I'd set for myself on previous occasions and bimbled along at the back of the group.

Anyway, suffice to say that the border raiders beat my time by three minutes and seven seconds. Congratulations to them, next year as my old school reports used to say "must try harder!!

Name	Time	Course
Ian Tordoff	01:20:25	Advanced
Pascale Eichenmuller	01:39:01	Advanced
Ben Nelson Jeff Parker	01:20:33	Standard

The full results for 2011 can be found here

On the Tenth Day...

2012-01-03T22:00:00.000Z

We've given you (and ourselves) a rest on our twelve deals of Christmas, but here's todays:
On the tenth day of Christmas Summit to Sea offered me a nice mat for Sleeping

The Penguin Paddle

2012-01-01T16:41:00.001Z

Yesterday we took part in the Inaugural "Penguin Paddle", so called as the "Event Organiser" (He's not a Race Director, he told us in the pub afterwards) chose to paddle the route desssed as a Penguin.

22 hardy paddlers braved the weather (although at one point down by the Swellies, the sun came out and you'd have thought it was July!)

The wind was blowing quite strongly from the South West and because I'd been rushing to get out of the shop to the meeting point, I'd grabbed the boat that was closest to hand rather than one of my usual "go to boats". The boat was the Overline Aretusa, it was a three piece model without a skeg, which on the basis of my recent inactivity (too much time spent in the shop and developing the website has led to no time on the water for just over 2 months) combined with a slightly increased girth over that period of inactivity and a week of stuffing my face over Christmas meant that I wasn't feeling as comfortable as usual in the boat. I then made things more difficult for myself by donning a chicken suit over all my paddling kit.

(Thanks to Dave Jones for the Picture)

When I managed to get the boat running in a straight line, it was really nice to paddle, but my ability was a little limited and without the skeg, I have to admit that for the first 45 minutes or so I was struggling with it, but as I grew accustomed to it's handling (and listened to a couple of top-tips from the "Event Organiser"), it became easier to paddle.

We stopped for a mass raft-up and the "Event Organiser" passed around a big bag of sweeties, which were well received.

Some elected to complete the full Menai Challenge course, while others decided to play on the Swellies.

Eventually, we passed under Menai Bridge and paddled on to Gallows Point.

Some had to leave straight away to be with family and friends to see in the New Year, others retired to the pub where some "fishermans tales" were exchanged about the years paddling exploits and the world was put to rights.

I'd like to thank everyone that came for their company and a pleasant paddle and thank the "Event Organiser" for taking the time to make it happen. Roll on the second "Penguin Paddle", after all there's a full years paddling between now and then to make the most of!

Happy New Year!

Blwyddan Newydd Dda!

Pete

On the 7th Day of Christmas...

2011-12-31T00:51:00.000Z

Summit to Sea offered me, a rescue kit for swimming.

Throwline, River Krab, River Knife & Rescue Tape

Later today we'll be paddling the Menai Straits, despite the weather just to make sure that we bag another day on the water BEFORE the year ends.

On the sixth day of Christmas...

2011-12-29T23:53:00.000Z

Summit to Sea offered me, a short boat for playing,

Five Shiny things

a guidebook full of words

a Powerstretch fleece (mens)

women's are also available here

Peak Neoprene Gloves

and a Petzl Tikka XP

On the third day of Christmas...

2011-12-27T00:33:00.001Z

Summit to Sea offered me, a powerstretch fleece mens*

* the womens fleece is also available on the same deal, but mens, rhymes with hens, we're trying to keep to the meter of the song!

Peak Neoprene Gloves

and a Petzl Tikka XP

On the Second Day of Christmas...

2011-12-26T00:48:00.000Z

Summit to Sea offered me, Peak UK Neoprene Gloves.

Of course there's also the deal of the day to consider, the Sea to Summit Bilge Pump.

Happy Boxing Day!

Happy Christmas & Welcome to "The 12 Deals of Christmas"

2011-12-25T11:22:00.000Z

Happy Christmas or Nadolig Llawen if you're closer to us.

From today we begin our Twelve Deals of Christmas Promotion, a new deal every day for the next twelve days, but rather than running for a single day, we add to it until twelfth night when we close the offer. Watch this space for updates on the offers.

On the first day of Christmas, Summit to Sea offered me, a Petzl Tikka XP

Of course , we're still running our popular deal of the day alongside this offer.

Have a great holiday and I hope you get out paddling.

Pete

Fairy Glen

2011-12-21T10:43:00.000Z

Local Activist, Andy Butler and a couple of chums ripping it up on the Fairy Glen, North Wales. ENJOY!

glen run fun from ROOT DOWN productions on Vimeo.

Last Chance for Christmas...

2011-12-20T10:10:00.000Z

well almost, todays the last chance for "First Class Post" according to Royal Mail, but there's still 2 days left if you want to pay more and get it posted by Special Delivery.

We've got some great gifts in stock:

What do you give the man who has everything? How about a s**tbag??

The Podsacs Waste Management Sack is a bag for those who really follow the leave nothing but footprints ethos when in the outdoors.

If the person you're buying for like's a tipple when out overnight, then there's the 0.24 litre Stanley Hip Flask
suitable for most beverages, it won't keep your tea warm, but the contents may well warm the cockles of your heart.

If you don't fancy the Sound of Music again on Christmas afternoon, then how about an inspirational DVD, Into The Wind. Showing the hardships endured by Jeff Allen & Harry Whelan on their record breaking circumnavigation of Ireland in the Spring? It'll certainly make the post christmas dinner wash up seem less of a mammoth undertaking.

With corks popping all over the place, then the serious outdoor types would love to be reaching for the Gerber Crucial Multi-tool with Corkscrew. It has a bundle of uses, but at this time of year, it's "Crucial" use would be to open the next bottle of Merlot.

Christmas is a time for giving and it's a time when you give gifts that people might not buy themselves, but would find incredibly useful. The Folding X Bowl from Sea to Summit (no relation) is just one of those gifts.

Finally, it's all too easy to let yourself go and stop training over Christmas, so why not spend some time at least working on the theoretical aspects of sea kayak rescues by watching this well produced DVD, Sea Kayak Rescues, looking at Fast, Simple & Effective techniques.

Happy Christmas from Pete and the team here at Summit to Sea

Twelve Deals of Christmas

2011-12-18T22:06:00.001Z

On Christmas Day, we begin the "12 Deals of Christmas". We're going to be giving you the chance to stack up our deals, these will be in addition to our usual "Deal of the Day", which will still be a limited offer. Between Christmas Day & Midnight on 12th Night, we'll be making some awesome offers, that you'll be able to combine into a delivery as a single consignment.

Just watch this space.

Next Accompanied Paddle -11/12/11

2011-12-05T13:00:00.000Z

Less than a week until our next accompanied paddle, "The Mince Pie Paddle", so called because you can come back here for a cup of coffee (or tea) and a Mince Pie after you've paddled.

Sunday 11th 09:00 meet for an 09:30 start. don't miss it, it'll be clear, windless and sunny, I've booked the weather for the weekend!

As busy as July!!

2011-12-03T21:40:00.000Z

We've had a hugely busy day over here on the Island today, demo boats out, boats sold, boats ordered, drysuits, paddles and more.

I was also busy finishing the racking for the new boats. It was a good job I went in early with so much to do today.

Today's "Deal of the Day" is the Rab Silk Sleeping Bag Liner at just £30, but the offer only lasts 24 hours. Mummy shape camping

and if you're interested in the weather, it's still really windy.

One Day, One Boat....

2011-12-02T22:56:00.000Z

Our best deal of the day yet, the P & H Cetus Classic, today only just £1,750. There's just one of these available, so get in quick.

It's still windy here on the island.

Racking my brains.

2011-11-30T21:55:00.001Z

We've been busy for the last couple of days, refurbishing tables (well times are hard!) and building a new rack for displaying and storing sea kayaks. Why?

Well the tables are for the impending Paddlers Cafe we're opening and the racks are for the new boats that we have coming in now that we're a North Shore dealer.

It's a work in progress and we'll post more pics when it's finished, but we thought that if you're bothering to read the blog regularly, you might like to read something other than "here's some more kit we'd like to flog you!". Oh and the weather hasn't improved since our last post either!!

*the link is to the "Deal of the Day", in case you missed it. X

Wild & Windy on Anglesey

2011-11-26T16:32:00.000Z

Well after a few days of strong winds, the sea state has picked up. The forecast for tomorrow looks like the best day of the coming week, winds dropping down to just force 4 late afternoon and through the night, before picking up to a peak of 41mph on Monday. An interesting week ahead for paddlers on Anglesey.

Porthdafarch this afternoon.

While taking photos, we noticed that the ebb tide was still being blown UP the beach, as you can see in this short video.

It's certainly not a day for the faint hearted to be on the water. We've had a surprisingly high number of callers in store today though.

New Feature in the Webshop - Deal Of The Day

2011-11-22T13:09:00.001Z

Deal of the Day

Every day we'll bring you a great new deal, some will be limited by quantity, others purely by time.

Each deal will last for a maximum of 24 hours, those which have a limited quantity available will obviously last for less if they sell out.

It might be one that's worth adding to your favourites, just click the link below to see what's on offer today.

Deal of the Day

Crazy Pete's Kayak Shack

2011-11-21T10:53:00.000Z

or the Summit to Sea Promotional Podcast as it's officially known.

I wanted to wear a chicken suit or a stetson, but had to be sensible. However it was a great opportunity to showcase some of the products we have in store and the services we offer.

Accompanied Paddle - 13/11/11

2011-11-20T17:48:00.000Z

Once a month we run an accompanied paddle from the shop. It's an opportunity for people to meet other paddlers outside of the usual club settings and just paddle.

The weather was fine, the winds lighter than in recent months and we had a good turnout.

There was a little swell in places.

Which was enjoyed by a few.

But only a few!!

They paddled past cliffs.

As they paddled on they saw wildlife, including climbers.

These guys were on "A Dream of White Horses", an absolute classic of North Wales climbing.

They paddled out to stacks.

Around them.

And back again.

As you can see the weather was really quite pleasant for November.

Thanks to David for the pictures.

Wrapping Paper

2011-11-19T13:14:00.004Z

We've just received a delivery of quality wrapping paper from Justine Curgenven of Cackle TV & This is the Sea fame. The design was produced by Shawna Franklin of Body Boat Blade. It's beautiful, have a look below.

Each sheet measures 70cm wide x 50cm high.

It's available here in our webshop, £1.50 per sheet or 5 for £6.00

Don't try wrapping your loved ones new sea kayak in it though, it'll cost you a fortune and they'll still guess what it is!

Just in, and already flying out of the door.

2011-11-18T17:20:00.000Z

The new Explorer One Piece Suit from Peak UK has hit the rails here in Valley, we had stock delivered on Wednesday and they're flying out the door already, so much so that we're just placing our second order.

A slight modification to the Peak UK Adventurer One Piece Suit, it has a neoprene AO* neck seal, making it better suited to prolonged periods of wet work than the original design.

The original is still a fantastic piece of kit offering a suit that will provide great protection during a period of time in the water, but maintaining the ability to vent the suit that can prove so necessary on long days of paddling where the weather is so changeable.

Of course both suits feature the Fleece lined collar with stowaway hood, one of my favourite features of the suit for this time of year, you can really hunker down into it when a squall blows through.

Expedition DVD

2011-11-12T16:48:00.000Z

We've just seen this video for the upcoming "Expedition Skills" DVD by Olly Sanders of Rock & Sea and Nige Robinson of Sea Kayak Guides.

It looks like an interesting DVD and based on the presentation that Olly gave here recently on his 25 years of expeditioning, will contain a wealth of information.We'll certainly be stocking it when it becomes available in January. Keep an eye on Olly's Blog for more updates.

Something for the weekend sir?

2011-11-11T15:36:00.001Z

We're selling the following the first two boats on behalf of two local coaches.

There's a Carbon Kevlar Valley Nordkapp LV, which has just undergone an overhaul at Valley and had a new keel strip fitted.

It's a red deck over a clear carbon/kevlar hull. £1850 ovno.

We've also got a Tiderace Xcite, 4 years old, but in excellent condition apart from two VERY small cracks on the keel line, easily concealed and remedied by the addition of a keel strip (we can arrange this for you £95). Again this boat has a carbon kevlar hull. £1450 ovno

Penultimately, one of our own bargains, a Cetus Classic, brand new with a keel strip, normally this should cost £2429, we'd normally be offering it at £1943 which is a saving of 20%, but until the end of November (or until it's sold, whichever is the sooner) we're slashing the price to over 25% off at £1,820.

Finally, we've also got a used Scorpio in excellent condition, less than a year old for £995, you'd barely now it's been on the water.

Catching up

2011-11-08T11:31:00.001Z

Well the last two months have been rather busy, we went to Germany & did PADDLEexpo (formerly Kanumesse), where we sat and drank beer with Eric Jackson , a genuinely nice guy who asked me if I'd seen the movie "The Hangover", repeatedly. Aaron & Rhona from Square Rock some of the most helpful distributors you could hope to meet. We nibbled gnocchi with the team from Nookie in the great hall at the Messezentrum. Where we also wet our whistles with weissbier with the guys & girls from Pyranha and then the following evening partook of Pizza with the lovely folk from Peak UK. However, it wasn't all eating and drinking and being merry, we spent a lot of time looking at what's going to be the new products we'll be bringing you over the winter of 2011 and into 2012, some are here, some we can tell you about and others we'll have to keep under wraps for now.

We've finally got our own web shop up & running, you can check that out here www.summittosea.co.uk

We're now stocking boats from North Shore Sea Kayaks , including the great value Aspect, just £800 for a Rotomoulded Sea Kayak and the Atlantic a composite sea kayak for just £1,850.

We've recently taken delivery of the Rockstar from Jackson Kayaks

This weekend, the Shiva from Pyranha landed in store, we have a demo boat available. £10 per day and every time it goes out on a demo, the price for the demo boat drops by £10. So if it's been out 30 times, it will cost you £649, if you can wait until it's been out 40 times it's down to £549, but you have to hold your nerve, 'cos once it goes, we start all over again with a new demo boat and it starts out at £949 all over again.

We've got some great deals on Peak One Piece suits, cags and more on our Sale Rail where we'll have our bargains all year round.

We've also got a new section for Used and Ex-Demo kayaks in the webshop.

It was over a week ago, but....

2011-11-07T13:39:00.000Z

.... I got out paddling on my Birthday, a very early start (up for 05:00) saw us on the water at 06:50 to make the most of the big tide and attempt the Menai Challenge.

It was very dark at the start.

A stong squall blew through with a lot of hail, I couldn't even see the mussel crates that had been on the slipway as I launched. The wind was cold and the hail stung as it hit your exposed skin.

Once the squall had passed and John was back from parking the car and on the water, I set off. After about 15 minutes, as we approached Y Felinheli, John suddenly appeared 20-30 metres to my right (he always gets a better line on this thing) singing "Happy Birthday to you!". Clearly he wasn't putting as much effort in as he usually would, or the man has phenomenal reserves of lung capacity. I'm not sure which it is? It was still pretty dark.

A little later, I passed Plas Newydd I was rewarded with a really breathtaking view of the low winter sun slowly rising over the Britannia Bridge. The picture below really doesn't do it justice, as it was taken on my phone through a waterproof case, but hopefully you'll get the idea.

Despite having got up so early and having had a busy week (so being completely knackered after a weekend of Storm Gathering) and busting a gut trying to paddle as quickly as I could to improve on my time, I realised as I was alone on the water. John was a good eight or nine hundred metres ahead by now. I had this little moment to contemplate what life's really all about as I sat in my boat watching the world go by and witnessing the dawn of another day. It put things into perspective for me a little. Work is just that, work, but life, well that's for living and you really should make the most of every moment. There are things that happen everyday, but amongst those things are the opportunities to experience little miracles and moments that you will treasure for ever. The last time I'd felt a sense of awe & wonder like this in the outdoors was 11 years earlier, on Mt. Meru, again knackered. However, watching the sunrise over Kilimanjaro and the African plain was breathtaking, but then I'd been able to share the experience with my wife (who was suffering with the altitude, bless her, as she shared in one of my ambitions). I took my phone out and snapped it, after all there was no-one else in the world experiencing exactly what I was at that time and from my perspective and I felt I wanted to share it. It was a special moment, but it also made me think about the fact that after 6 months hard graft getting the shop up & running, I've missed a lot of special moments with my wife, my kids (who are growing up so quickly and those special moments will NEVER be repeated) and time that should be spent with friends (you never now how long you have to spend with the people that really matter in your life). There's more to life than work!

That sunrise brought my tired and clapped out body a little splash of invigoration and I decided that I really needed to dig a little deeper if I was going to beat my previous personal best, I tucked the phone away and dug in.

I checked my time at Britannia Bridge, I was about the same as my previous effort, I kept paddling hard through the Swellies and reached Menai Bridge, a quick glance at the clock showed me that I had the edge on my previous best and could beat it if I could keep going at that pace.

As I passed Bangor Pier, I was blowing hard and working really hard, pressing hard on my footpegs with every paddle stroke, rotating to increase the power in the catch phase of each paddle stroke and noticing the restriction caused by my PFD* gripping my "rounded abdomen**". As the sea was so glassy, I made a conscious decision to lose a few seconds removing my PFD to improve my ability to breathe and rotate. I stowed it under the deck elastics so it was within easy reach should I capsize, but began padling as hard as I could, I was going to beat my time, the question was by how much?

Considering the late night I'd had the night before helping a diesel-less damsel in distress on the A55 (didn't get to bed until 01:00) and the foul weather immediately before starting (I was sitting in my boat as a strong squall of hail blew through, I couldn't see the front of my boat at one point) and the fact that I had now reached the ripe old age of 43, I was pretty pleased with my performance and shaved 2:40 off my previous personal best. I went for a light breakfast with John (I'd only had a StarBar and a muesli bar for fuel prior to paddling), just a bacon roll and a coffee. Then we headed back to complete the shuttle and went our seperate ways, I was returning home to spend the day with my family (my Mum was up visiting), the kids were on half-term and we were going to have a proper birthday tea with Jelly & Ice Cream.

SMASHING!!

*PFD - Personal Flotation Device (also known as a Bouyancy Aid or Lifejacket, although the latter is slightly different in construction & performance)

**Rounded Abdomen - a more polite way of saying "fat gut", but more Menai Challenge times should see this reduced.

A Great Success

2011-09-13T04:53:00.001+01:00

Marcus Demuth gave his first lecture in the UK on Saturday evening, here at our store in Valley, Anglesey.
It was a presentation about his attempt to Circumnavigate Tierra del Fuego in 2010. There was a reasonable turnout with folk coming from as far afield as Tregarth, Llanberis, Liverpool & Chicago, illustrating once again what a world class paddling location Anglesey is.

It was an interesting and informative lecture, I genuinely hadn't realised quite what a serious undertaking the expedition at the end of the earth had been and just how much commitment had been required by Marcus and his partner for the trip Biff Wruszek.

I'd like to thank Marcus for giving of his time so generously and inspiring both the audience and myself with his informative and amusing presentation and his quiz with prizes that he supplied himself, he made me feel a bit of a tightwad.

Olly Sanders has agreed to give the next presentation on his exploits in Greenland, a lecture entitled the "Bear Necessities" on Saturday 29th October, same format 18:30 for 19:00 start, which ties in very nicely if you've stayed on for the week following the Storm Gathering apparently there are just 5 places left for this wonderful "late season" gathering.

Some great looking new kit from Peak UK

2011-09-08T11:35:00.001+01:00

Ok, so it's designed for slalom, but if you're a "park & play" playboater, then I can see this working well for you as well.

It's definitely worth a second look when it hit's the shops.

Innovative gear from Peak UK as they hit their 21st Birthday. Good work fellas!

You can read more here

Aries Action

2011-09-07T13:06:00.000+01:00

Just a quick video of Ben out playing in the Aries from P&H at Penrhynmawr. Video courtesy of our friend Olly Sanders of Rock & Sea.

Carpe Paddlarum

2011-09-04T14:44:00.000+01:00

I got a text message asking if I wanted to go out and play with some of the usual suspects who have been putting up the fastest times on the Menai Challenge in recent weeks. It was an "après travail" paddle, so the last 30 minutes in the shop were spent loading a couple of boats on the roof as Ben was joining us.

This one wasn't an attempt on the aformentioned challenge, but simply a bimble up the straits around Ynys Seiriol (or Puffin Island for those who don't speak Cymraeg) and back down to Porth Penmon. Puffin Island is the 9th largest island off the coast of Wales.

It all started well, I texted to say that we'd arrived and we had, just not in the same lay-by as the other four. So we moved around the corner, got changed and carried our boats down to the waters edge. It was a big tide and a long carry.

We launched our boats and just paddled along at a leisurely pace, enjoying the scenery, inspecting the wreck of the 471 ton sand dredger Hoveringham, which is revealed at low water and on low springs easily accessed by kayak. It's teeming with marine life.

And on this occasion even had a few of the "redactum maculosus salsus mare canis" in residence.

As we passed between Penmon Point and Perch Rock, a small pod of porpoise passed us, but alas I was too slow in snatching my camera from the deck bag and so their passing went unrecorded. We paddled up the east side of Puffin Island, named after the now much reduced colony of Fratercula arctica (Puffins to you and I), rather than the Puffinus puffinus which is the latin name for the Manx Shearwater and a completely unrelated species. The puffins numbers were greatly reduced following the accidental introduction of the Rattus norvegicus (Brown rat and coincidentally the title of one my favourite albums in my teens, by the popular beat combo, The Stranglers). Strangely, the largest bird population found on the island now is Phalacrocorax carbo, the Great Cormorant.

We continued to the North Eastern corner and found an abundance of Halichoerus grypus, Atlantic Grey Seal. Although we approached quietly a number of them still took to the water, but they soon became their usual inquisitive selves.

We sat with the seals, watching them watching us, watching them watching us for a short while before we moved on.

We paddled back past the lighthouse as the sun was setting.

The plan was to be back in time for pysgod a sglodion, fish & chips for the non Cymraeg speakers, in Menai Bridge, but we dawdled and enjoyed the scenery as we passed the wreck of the Hoveringham again.

The title of todays post, well, I'd used Carpe Diem just over a year ago, and I don't want to be too repetitive, so I cobbled together some of the pidgin latin I could remember from my alma amater, Eastbrook Comprehensive I've used the feminine genitive plural, "Carpe paddlarum", "Sieze the paddles". I'm happy to be corrected & educated by any latin scholars out there.

Thanks to John, Pascale, Aled, Marcus & Ben for their company. If paddlings not your thing and carpe paddlarum doesn't apply for you, still Carpe diem, sieze the day and make every second count. You're a long time dead!!

Our Current Stock of Used & Ex-Demo boats & some clearance deals.

2011-08-28T15:44:00.003+01:00

We have the following boats available at present, both part-exchange boats & ex-demo boats:

River & Play Boats:
Pyranha Molan Medium - Lime/Yellow.
Excellent condition, very light use, taken as a P/X. £550

Jackson 2Fun - Purple
Ex-demo, has a few Stanley scratches from sitting in the eddy. It's a Cross-linked model with sweetcheeks & happy feet. £550

Wavesport 4-Play - Yellow/Orange
Another P/X boat, go old school with the extra length and cartwheel your heart out on Stanley £250

Wavesport Fuse 56 - Citrus 2010 Model WITHOUT the new white outfitting, it's just been sat around for too long, it needs a new home. Reduced from £799 to £639

Wavesport Diesel 60 - Citrus 2010 Model WITHOUT the new white outfitting, same again, it's been here gathering dust for too long, we've wiped it down so it's not dusty when we ship it out. Reduced from £849 to £679

Sea Kayaks:

P & H Capella 161, composite construction with green glitter deck, yellow trim, white hull. Ex-demo, well used some star cracks in places, but a bargain at £949. Drop us a line if you'd like to see more photos.

Wilderness Systems Zephyr 16.0, yellow. A part-exchange in stunning condition, includes a Yak Spray deck used a handful of times by the original owner who upgraded to a glass boat. £875

NDK/SKUK Explorer HV Red Deck, Black Trim, White Hull. Another part-exchange boat well used, but well maintained, it has a wire skeg and we've just replaced all the decklines. £1099

P & H Delphin 155, cosmetic seconds, just a couple left, one in Sunbeam & another in Electric Blue. RRP £1299, just £999 each.

Rockpool Alaw, Blue Deck with glitter & Kelp graphics, cosmetic second, some picking of the glass matting on the hull in the cockpit area. Just £1,995

Sit-on-Tops:

Feelfree Nomad (Mark One) these don't have the wheel in the keel, they're 2 years old taken in P/X for a double and are available at just £275 each.

We've a package deal on the Feelfree Mokken 10, one available in RED comes with a Stohlquist A-Sea PFD (£65) in Cactus, a Feelfree back rest (£35) and Feelfree paddle (£55) for just £649.

Clothing & accessories:
We're offering the Peak UK Tourlite Hoody in Lime or Orange reduced from £109 to £80 while stocks last.

We've also got Peak UK Tourlite Shortsleeve cags in Red or Blue reduced from £65 to £45 while stocks last.

We have Rab Womens Microfleece in Sizes 8-16 in colours Cayenne, Lilac & Sage reduced from £40 to £30 while stocks last.

Nookie C1 Paddlebags suitable for paddles up to 56" (142cm) in length, Ideal for open canoe paddles & split touring paddles, reduced from £39.99 to £25.

We may have a few more clearance bargains to add in later this week, add us as a like on facebook for instant updates on our latest offers.

For whom the 'Bells' toll

2011-08-25T17:51:00.004+01:00

Inspired by my efforts on the Menai Challenge the previous evening and despite my early start (I was on the road to Runcorn at 06:15 to collect more stock), I got a message from Baggy, did I fancy North Stack this evening. I did, so wheels were set in motion.

By 16:30 that afternoon, I was in two minds, feeling a bit tired, busy on the phone all afternoon and dealing with folk who were collecting boats. However, Baggy arrived just after 17:00 and it would have been rude to cry off.

So we loaded up, Ben was going to try out the NEW Delphin 150 from P & H , I was going to take out the Xtreme from Tiderace, Baggy was planning to try the Romany Surf from SKUK , but unfortunately I'd been to busy to get one in time, so he had to 'make do' with an Xcite. He wasn't disappointed.

After much faffing (phone kept ringing, people kept calling in it's the curse of being an owner/operator, you don't just clock off and lock the door) we eventually made our way to Soldiers Point and got on the water.

The Stena Seacat was just coming in, so as we left the bay we caught it's wake and things were a little lumpy. The wind was F4, south westerly and blowing steadily as we came out, so we headed across to the cliffs to get a little more shelter.

As we paddled out the combination of the amount of time I've spent in work recently, combined with my late night and early start began to take their toll and I really wasn't feeling it. I decided to become the official photographer for the evening and get some shots of Ben & Baggy, whooping it up (and Baggy was as he found the Xcite Xciting and fun to surf).

(I need to invest in a longer lens).

The guys came into the eddy I'd been sat in snapping away in, Baggy practised his rolls and his self-rescue techniques for a little while and we became aware of some noise, which I'd attributed to a seal on the other side of the eddy, but it was a little more human sounding than that. We looked around and spotted an unnatural colour and shaped object about 70 feet above us on the cliff. After a minute or two we decided it was a person and they weren't responding to our calls. Baggy climbed up the relatively easy ground to the left to check on the casualty. I spotted something bobbing in the water directly below the casualty, it was there along with some tufts of grass that had been dislodged, as I got closer I realised it was a bottle. A bottle of Bells, almost empty, despite being in the sea.

I shouted this to Baggy, who approached the casualty and got a response asking him to "Go away".

We decided that the best course of action was to call the Coastguard & get the cliff rescue team to secure him and escort him to somewhere safer.

The Inshore Lifeboat was the first on the scene, and shortly after it arrived as the saying goes, we made our excuses and left. We didn't need to be there, we couldn't offer any further assistance all we would achieve was getting in the way and paddling back to Soldiers Point in even less light. We don't know whether he had a headache this morning, but it's logged on the RNLI site report 27.

It was dark when we landed, a quick call into the Coastguard to let them know we were safe and then calls home to wives were made as they were aware of another more serious & tragic incident being reported about a search elsewhere on the island.

I hope that in some small way our actions prevented the incident we were involved in from having a similar tragic outcome and would like to offer my condolences to the friends and family of the two men missing in the Cable Bay incident.

Slower than my previous effort...

2011-08-24T17:49:00.000+01:00

Last night I made my second attempt on the Menai Challenge, the plan was to be on the water for 18:30 at Gallows Point, things didn't go quite as planned and we had a bigger turnout than expected. I paddled with John Willacy of Rockpool Kayaks, Pascale Eichenmuller, Aled Williams of Tiderace and Marcus Demuth of legendary expedition paddling exploits and current leader of the challenge. Barry Shaw & award winning film-maker Justine Curgenven had been paddling earlier in the day & met us at the start but decided that it wasn't the night for them to do it. Forgive me for name dropping all these folk, but I've seen a lesser schedule of speakers at some symposia in the past, I was impressed by the company I was keeping, it was like a chapter of the Who's Who of the North Wales Sea Kayak scene.

I'd done this in the Cetus MV on the previous attempt, this time I was determined to try one of the new boats we're stocking and took the Tiderace Xcape. Aled was using his Ski, the others all paddled the Rockpool Taran.

When I looked at the rest of the field, I decided rather than keeping everyone waiting for at least 45 minutes at the end, I'd simply undertake the shorter course again and if I was lucky, I might get to the end without keeping them waiting too long.

Using a handicap system, we set off at one minute intervals from Gallows Point, as the most handicapped paddler there, I went first. I set myself a goal, the biggest one of the evening, could I reach Bangor Pier just over 2km from the start before anyone else caught me. After 13 minutes, I reached the pier JUST ahead of Pascal & Marcus. It wasn't long after that that everyone had passed me. Another 3.5 Km saw me passing under Menai Bridge about five or six hundred metres behind Pascale. I dug in pressing hard on my footpegs the stopwatch was counting down and my next goal for the evening was to get there in under thirty three minutes, I blew it 33:06.

There was a lone figure stood in the middle of Menai Bridge, watching as I paddled under, years of living in London & Liverpool made me wary anticipating a dropped spit-bomb, brick or worse. All of a sudden I heard a cheery shout of "Hi Pete", it was Barry. Knowing that I wasn't about to be bricked (despite his accent) and with his words of encouragement ringing in my ears, I picked up my pace and set myself another goal, could I reach Ynys Gored Goch before everyone else turned & began paddling up from below Pont Britannia. I managed this, just. John was already on the return leg, Aled close behind, Marcus and Pascale were just under the bridge. Another goal achieved, I was going reasonably well, but not as well as I had last time. However my motivation was high, I hadn't been paddling since my attempt on the 15th July and I was enjoying myself. I tipped my hat (metaphorically) to Lord Nelson and continued on to Plas Newydd. Moel y Don appeared and the bright lights of Y Felinheli appeared on my left, the wind picked up and slowed me a little more. My previous effort had been on a big 9.2m tide with a 25-30mph tailwind.

I paddled past Y Felinheli, on towards Plas Menai and the bright lights of Caernarfon, the wind dropped, the sun was dipping and in the last few hundred metres became aware that John was hard on my tail.

I didn't get to sit for long basking in the glory of my slower time (down by 10 minutes) before John caught up with me, and I became aware that he'd paddled 9km further than me a couple of minutes quicker, but as I explained at the time, I wasn't that bothered by my slower time, it meant that I'd had an extra 10 minutes on the water and with the amount of time I've spent on the water since my last attempt (none) that was 10 precious minutes of pure paddling pleasure, just lost in my thoughts and paddlestrokes and work was a long way from them.

If I can do it, then it goes to show that's more than in the realms of us mere mortals and not just for these paddling legends, it's a time trial, so the reality is that you're competing against yourself, but as I found out last night, you can still have fun even when you lose. Give it a go, it's better than reading about what other people have done.

Tonight, it's sunny but breezy and North Stack is running, time to try out another of our wonderful products, the Tiderace Xtreme.

Menai Challenge

2011-08-22T18:19:00.001+01:00

Tomorrow night we'll be closing on time, sorry, but I'm going paddling.

I'm going to do the Menai Challenge it's a time trial dreamt up by local activist, record breaker & all round good egg John Willacy. Click through the link for more details.

It's worth a look and as it's a time trial event, you only have to compete with yourself.

Light & Warm - A solution that doesn't require a compromise

2011-08-21T10:38:00.000+01:00

New in, the Synmat UL 7 S is a warm (rated down to -4C) insulated air mattress. It weighs just 430g and packs down to 23 x 9cm.

At 7cm deep it provides real comfort for a good nights rest while on your expedition.

At just £75, they're phenomenal value.

More Tiderace boats in Stock

2011-08-18T14:55:00.000+01:00

We've just taken another delivery of Tiderace Sea Kayaks and have the following boats available from stock at present:

Xplore

Xcite

Xcape

Drop us a line if you're looking for one?

Demo Weekend -THIS weekend

2011-08-15T10:57:00.009+01:00

We've got three spaces left on the demo weekend we're holding this weekend.

There are opportunities to try boats from: P & H, SKUK , Tiderace & Venture Kayaks

Paddles from Mitchell Blades & Lendal

Cags, decks & PFD's from Peak UK

VHF Radios from Standard Horizon

and of course you get the opportunity to call in and see ALL of the other products we stock.

Lighting from Petzl, Stoves from Jetboil, Compasses from Silva, GPS from Memory Map complete with Marine Charts, Typhoon Drysuits, Kelly Kettles, tents from Vango, Sleeping bags & clothing from Rab , Greenland paddles from Anglesey Stickand so much more!!

Bargain Sea Kayaks & Accessories

2011-08-14T09:58:00.007+01:00

We've a few bargains to be had at the moment, some cosmetic seconds, a few ex-demo boats, some unusual imports and some boats that have just come into stock.

Have a look at the list below:

Boreal Epsilon 200 - RM sea kayak with rigid hatch rims & soft rubber covers, great seat and backrest, rudder fitted. RRP £1, 730 on offer at £1,250.

Length	17’	5.18m
Width	23.5”	59.7cm
Cockpit Dimensions	16 x 31”	41 x 79cm
Volume	110 Gallons (US)	415 Litres
Weight	64lb	29kg
Recommended Weight Range for paddler (min/max)	140/225lbs	64/102kg
Recommended load limit	295lbs	134kg

P&H Delphin 155 - Cosmetic seconds RRP £1,299 Just £999 each

Ex-Demo Capella 161, standard diolen construction with green glitter deck, white hull & Yellow trim. £1,250

NDK Explorer HV, P/X boat, Red deck, black trim, White hull £1,200

NEW Standard Horizon HX500E VHF radios, with 1400 mAh NiMh battery and car charger included RRP £139.99 just £110

NEW Standard Horizon HX750E VHF Radio, floating unit identical to the HX751E bar the luminescent strip RRP £149.95 Just £120

Peak UK Tourlite Hoody Cag RRP £109, just £85

Peak UK Tourlite Shortsleeve just £50

Nookie Paddle bag suitable for Splits (2010 model) £25

Celtic Paddles Archipelago 1 piece £79

Just call us or call in to see us, there's a lot more on offer than this.

You can also check out our facebook page

Happy Paddling!
Pete

Reed Chillcheater goodies on Sunshine Island

2011-08-13T18:04:00.006+01:00

They've finally arrived. We've got Reed cags, deckbags, spraydecks, replacement hatch covers and more all available in store on sunshine island (admittedly a little grey today, but dry in the main).

15 litres, waterproof and tough PU coated nylon deck bag. Six point deck attachment. Fully taped seams just £28. You couldn't do it yourself for that price.

25% off Rab Womens Fleece

2011-08-02T10:10:00.003+01:00

We have the Rab Womens Micro-fleece pull on, RRP £40, on offer at £30.

All sizes from 8-16 are currently available, in three colours: Cayenne, Lilac & Sage.

Drop us a line or give us a call on +44(0)1407 740963

Group Offers.

2011-07-26T16:37:00.004+01:00

We've been working in partnership with 2 new communities, where they have their own store and we are their in-house providers. They are:

Spice UK

and

Wide World Mag

we also wrote a short "How to Sea kayak " article for WideWorldMag

Look out for some of the great group offers we're making in these communities.

Thanks

We've been busy.

2011-07-26T10:53:00.004+01:00

Things have been "crazy-busy" over here on "Royal" Sunshine Island.

However, we've got some new toys to bring to you including boats from Boreal Designs, Greenland Paddles from Anglesey Stick, the new Peak UK Tourlite Double Cag (lovely) and more.

We'll be giving a brief run down on these new products over the next few weeks.

WRSI Trident Helmets have landed here

2011-06-27T08:40:00.005+01:00

After a short wait we've finally taken delivery of the WRSI Trident. They look great and everyone is coming through giving them the once over.

Some people have even bought them, that's how good they are.

£139.00

Alternative Ulster - Alternative Energy

2011-06-25T11:44:00.009+01:00

On Wednesday, I had the good fortune to be delivering a Scorpio to one of our customers in Lisburn. She'd arranged with a few other members of one of the kayaking clubs that she paddles with for me to bring some demo boats across. We had a mixed bag, including the Rockpool Taran, P&H Cetus MV & Tiderace Xplore. One of the guys paddled across from the other side of the lough at Portaferry in his Nordkapp Jubilee which he 'kindly' allowed me to paddle while he tried some of the demo boats. They also had a chance to try some wing paddles from Schwarzer the Zasteras and our best sellers from Mitchell Blades.

We paddled out from the ferry terminal at Strangford, past the Turbine. There were a number of whirlpools forming behind this, but it strikes me as a very reliable form of renewable energy, after all the tide has been running in and out twice a day for as long as I can remember...

A quick run down the lough to Angus Rocks where we stopped for a brew and then it was back up to Strangford so I could reload the boats and get back to Dublin to cross the Irish Sea the easy way.

I really enjoyed paddling this stretch of water, it was reminiscent of the southern end of the Menai Straits, but the abundance of wildlife didn't seem to have been disturbed by the new energy generation scheme in place here. Thanks to the members of Belfast Kayak club for their company and Navarat for making it possible for me to discover this gem for myself.

Preparing for the Season

2011-02-01T10:14:00.005Z

I've noticed an increase in the traffic across the Island in the last week by some hardy folk who are obviously keen to take to the water (despite the air temperature) and it made me reflect on a little incident that I was involved in a few years ago.

We went for a day paddle down in Pembrokeshire, everything seemed fine, but the boat was becoming increasingly hard to handle in the windy conditions (the pebble in the skeg box probably wasn't helping). Eventually when we reached the shore again, we discovered that the hatch covers on the boat had perished over the winter season, they looked perfectly fine until you pressed down on them at which point they opened up like swiss cheese.

Considering this and the issues we've had with small mammalians taking up residence within our extensive fleet over the winter period in recent years, my top tip for the day is give you're boat the once over ahead of the first trip of the season and leave yourself plenty of time to get the spares/replacement parts that you may need. Hatches, backbands & decklines that may have been nibbled. Check your flares are in date and haven't perished. check how long the battery in your VHF will hold a charge for. Give towlines the once over, check your PFD hasn't been nibbled (those blighters will eat ANYTHING). As they said when I was Scout "Be Prepared".

Plan ahead and enjoy that first paddle of the season.

Forward Planning

2011-01-31T18:09:00.004Z

It might not feel like it today, but Spring isn't that far away and we've got a killer deal on some spring/summer paddlewear for this season.

We're offering the Peak UK Short Sleeve Semi Double Waist Cag (RRP £95) with a free Short Sleeve Thermal Rash Vest (RRP £35), it's a winning combination perfect for summer playboating, surfing and even touring.

The cags we have available are in Red and the Rashys are in black.

Plan ahead and bag a bargain, because when they're gone.....

Pete

Peak UK Tourlite Zip PFD now in stock in all Sizes & Colours

2011-01-30T18:31:00.003Z

The outstanding value Tourlite PFD from Peak UK has now come back into stock in all sizes and colours. It was a huge hit last summer, despite not arriving in stock until August, we were sold out by November, as at £60 for a zip up PFD with a pocket it's just such a good deal, we really couldn't get them fast enough at one point last year.

Just drop us a line to place your order.

Pete

Tiderace kayaks on Anglesey

2011-01-29T20:49:00.002Z

We're pleased to announce that we are Tiderace Kayaks newest dealer.

We've just added an Xplore and an Xcite to our demo fleet and have all three sizes of the new Xcape due to arrive at the end of March.

It just adds to the wide variety of equipment from various manufacturers that you can come and try up here on 'Sunshine Island', Anglesey.

Drop us a line for more details or to book your demo.

Pete

Cetus Classic just £1899

2011-01-28T14:11:00.002Z

We've very limited stock of the original Cetus (now known as the 'classic'), this popular boat is now available (while stocks last) for just £1899 against the usual price of £2299.

It's a deal, it's a steal, it's the sale of the century.....

You get my drift?

Pete

When the wind stops a blowin' it's time to start Puffin!!

2010-08-25T23:11:00.004+01:00

The wind has finally dropped to something approaching a sensible level, so we had a few more options open to us today.

With slight Easterly to North-Easterlies forecast, it was time to take in some scenery and some wildlife. So we headed North-East to Penmon and paddled out to circumnavigate Ynys Seiriol (Puffin Island to the non-Welsh speakers reading this).

What a cracking day we had. Light winds and a little chop as we paddled through the race.

We explored caves.

The seals explored us.

Dan explored the performance of three different boats and his own performance (Thanks Rockpool).

We explored the Pilots House Cafe at the end of the day.

Cracking!!!!

What to do when the forecast is for high winds?

2010-08-24T22:35:00.000+01:00

With an inshore forecast of 5-6, occasionally Gale 8, we wondered where to go today for the 'Coaching & Demo' week.

With the wind direction, the Straits would have been an obvious choice, but we'd paddled there yesterday, so we headed North-East to Moelfre. Foul weather on arrival made a pre-paddle coffee and teacake in Ann's Pantry an essential delaying tactic.

Then we hit the water with a whole family of 'Ceti' (that's the correct term for a multiple of Cetus if my vague memories of Latin at Eastbrook Comp are correct). Daddy Cetus (Regular), Mummy Cetus (MV) and Baby Cetus (LV) were all put through their paces and like Goldilocks, you're now able to find one that's "just right"!!

Where shall we go tomorrow??

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

They're here!!!

2010-08-23T22:44:00.003+01:00

After months of anticipation, they've finally arrived. I have in my hands the new Standard Horizon HX851E.

I've been online to obtain a Licence for my unit and secure my MMSI number by visiting http://licensing.ofcom.org.uk/radiocommunication-licences/ships-radio/

A painless (and cost free task) which took me about 15 minutes, because I actually scanned through the bits that I was ticking the boxes for saying that I accepted the terms and conditions for (don't worry, it's nowhere near as long as i-tunes T&C's).

Just entered the MMSI number into my handset, took another minute or two and that's it done. I'm hot to trot!!

Carpe Diem

2010-08-22T19:32:00.006+01:00

Last night I got a call from my friend Adam "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"Working" I replied.

"Ah, we're going to paddle round the Stacks...."

"Mmm, might be a bit lumpy" I suggested. "It's been pretty windy for the last couple of days".

"It'll be alright" said Adam.

"I'm cooking breakfast for the whole family tomorrow morning, so I can't start before 10, keep me in the loop"

"I'll call you in the morning" he replied.

Fast forward to 08:00 this morning, phone rings "We're going are you coming?"

After 3 weeks of working my backside off, I decided I needed some me time.

"Yeah, the sun is shining, the wind has dropped" I have the luxury of living on the island.

"What time have we got to be on the water for?"

"Eleven".

"Call round and pick up the Cetus MV for Anne to try and I'll get my stuff together, I'm in."

I finished cooking breakfast (a Full Welsh) Bacon, Selsig (by Edwards of Conwy), Mushrooms, Beans, Black Pudding, Hash Browns, Toast, Coffee and OJ. Well if I'm going paddling I'll need fuelling.

At 10:10, I started running round like a loon, looking for my kit. I couldn't find my rash vest (it was shorty cag weather today), so ran into the shop and treated myself to a nice new one.

We hit the water, it was a little windier than when I'd got up this morning, and the tide was racing as we approached North Stack.

After a short play in the race we headed around the corner into the cave before Parliament Cave.

We passed climbers at Parliament Cave, who were clearly making the most of the blue skies and sundried cliffs.

We headed on to South Stack, Anne was clearly at ease in the Cetus MV.

Padling on soon saw us back at Porthdafarch, for the end of our paddle. A quick drive through Holyhead and we picked up Adams van, then back to base for a beer and a sandwich and I suddenly felt strangely motivated to get on with some work that had been dragging until now.

Thanks Anne & Adam.

Carpe diem - Sieze the day.
It should be a motto for us all, because life's too short to miss out on experiences like todays.

New Boats On Anglesey

2010-08-22T00:35:00.000+01:00

At the start of this month we took delivery of two New boats from P&H:
The Delphin - a radical new concept in sea kayak design, it's been described as the 'sea kayakers playboat'.
The Cetus MV - a refinement of the Cetus to suit smaller and mid-sized paddlers. A pleasure to paddle.

Both of these are now available for demo at our base on 'Sunshine Island' (aka Anglesey), along with the full range of Mitchell Touring Blades.

Happy Paddling!
Pete
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Silly Season Begins

2010-04-25T21:48:00.004+01:00

We've been flat out for the last month with demos and deliveries. People are paddling!

We've got limited stock of the Scorpio & Scorpio LV as cosmetic seconds, with a massive discount down to £999!!

These have been flying out of the door, don't miss them!!

Happy Paddling!!

Pete

Pyranha 2010 Burns Demo Boats & Cosmetic Seconds

2010-03-07T10:56:00.002Z

We've now got all three sizes available to demo (and almost everyone that's tried them has bought one).

We've also got all three size available as Cosmetic seconds, these have minor defects, a small blob of another coloured plastic, or missing/misaligned graphics. They're great value at £749.00

2010 Burns...we've got the blems!

2010-01-07T20:54:00.002Z

If you can cope with a missing made in GB graphic from behind the cockpit, then we can offer you a massive saving on either of the 2010 Burn mediums that we have in stock.

Just £749 instead of the usual £899.

Cetus LV & the Skerries

2009-06-29T11:46:00.001+01:00

Yesterday morning saw an early start and perfect tidal planning saw us paddle through the mist to the Skerries.

Combine that with the arrival of our new Cetus LV demo and we've had a cracking weekend. How was yours?

Another day at the office

2009-04-09T23:27:00.005+01:00

Yet another afternoon spent on the delight that is the A55 (at least there's some good scenery in parts).

The poor 'Pug' being worked hard as ever. Look closely for the other 2 inside! (Sorry for the picture quality, it's just a phone pic sent to me by an amused friend. Cheers Baz!)

Confused?!?!?!

2009-03-13T16:17:00.005Z

Sorry, had a couple of emails from folk about the Cetus LV in the previous post. The boat IS a prototype for testing so it wasn't constructed with full outfitting.

The production model will have the front deck hatch and all of the other usual outfitting that you've come to expect from a leading manufacturer like P&H.

Hope that helps?

Pete

Cetus - LV

2009-03-10T21:48:00.003Z

It's here, I've seen it with my own eyes and here's a picture to prove it.

The long awaited Cetus LV has finally been field tested to the satisfaction of P&H's top tester and they're ready to go into production.

If all goes according to schedule, we'll have them available to Demo on the 28th March at our P&H demo day.

Drop us a line if you'd like to give it a go, as they'll be booked out for half-day slots on a strictly first-come, first-served basis.

Cheers,

Pete

P&H & Venture Kayaks Demo Day 28th March

2009-02-10T12:37:00.006Z

We've arranged a demo day with those nice folk at P&H sea kayaks for Saturday 28th March over here on Anglesey.

We hope that the new CETUS LV will be available to demo on the day, (it's just undergoing it's final tweaks before going into production as I type this).

All we ask is that if you have a specific boat that you'd like to demo, then please drop us a line to book it so that we can ensure that you're not disappointed on the day.

We'll also have boats available from the Venture Kayaks range, so if you're a less experienced paddler and just dipping your toe into the water (metaphorically speaking), then there's something for you as well.

There will be a couple of coaches available, but spaces with these guys are strictly limited and do require pre-booking.

See you in March we hope?
Pete

Not a bad end to the year

2009-01-02T15:55:00.004Z

We spent New Years Eve Sea kayaking on Anglesey with the hardier folk from SPICE, it was a cold & frosty start with a good sea mist that burnt off by around 11:00.

The afternoon was sunny but still chilly as the wind had switched to a North Easterly again, but we persevered and were rewarded with a stunning sunset, a good end to a mixed year.

Happy New Year to you all!

Pete

The Medium Karnali lands on Anglesey

2008-11-27T23:17:00.003Z

It's here and we're ready to let you demo Pyranhas latest river runner. Fresh out of the mold, the medium has landed on Anglesey. It's got the same great outfitting as the Burn, but with a displacement hull it should be a great river runner, I know that the bigger guys have been loving the large one that's been available since September.

I'll let you know how I get on with this once I've had a chance to get it wet!

Scorpio LV Bargains

2008-11-25T11:57:00.000Z

Now we've secured stock of the Scorpio LV, perfect for the smaller paddler looking for a stable boat with great performance. Again these are cosmetic seconds with minor imperfections. Nine times out of ten, you won't even spot them. None of the imperfections affect the boats handling and with a massive £200 off RRP, you won't regret buying one.

Get in quick, because when they're gone, they're gone!

Scorpio Bargains

2008-10-12T02:05:00.000+01:00

Barely has this new boat hit the water and we've secured stock of some cosmetic seconds. RRP is £1,199 and we're able to offer these (while they last) at £999.

A full 12 month warranty with them and the opportunity to bag a bargain on one of the most comfortable, stable and yet still responsive boats you'll find.

They've got to be worth a look at that price and I don't expect to have them in stock for long.

What a difference a month makes!!

2008-09-26T22:41:00.001+01:00

August Bank Holiday was very nearly a washout, but at least some of the hardy Spice members who travelled over to the sunshine isle (Anglesey), got one good day.

Here are they are preparing to leave Porthdafarch to paddle round to Treardur Bay on their second day, it was a bit lumpy, but Nick (their coach for the day had them under control).

This weekend looks much nicer, I'll be spending it concreting again, only 25 cubic metres to go!

Seal of Approval

2008-09-25T23:26:00.000+01:00

Sunday morning saw me take advantage of a window in the weather to break away from working for a few hours and take the Scorpio & Cetus out for a couple of hours. The sunshine was glorious and Baggy and I looked over the Menai Straits at low water, they were like glass.

I was in the Scorpio again and allowed Baggy the opportunity for the Cetus' maiden voyage. He was very impressed with it's comfort, stability, speed and ease of turning.

We blasted up to Puffin Island, played with the currents there as the tide began to flood the straits again. Then we shot up to the Northern end of the Island, there were a lot of seals about, many young ones, which seemed the more inquisitive, at one point as I sat still watching them, one pup came closer and closer to my kayak until it eventually touched the side of my boat adjacent to the cockpit with it's nose. Amazing!!

We flew back down the straits in our speedy boats and finished up with a quick spot of rolling practice (use it or lose it). I was back just in time for Sunday Roast!

It's been a while

2008-09-23T22:40:00.000+01:00

...because I've been busy with construction projects, web development projects and of course trying out the new boats that we're now stocking, I'll add a few posts to the blog over the next few days showing all of the new boats and giving some feedback on how they've handled.

I'll start with the Scorpio, for a plastic boat, it's so fast!! It's incredibly stable, yet turns very quickly, has plenty of storage space and the deck hatch is a work of genius, no more deckbags cluttering up my deck!!

I found the outstretched leg position incredibly comfortable (I find sitting in my river kayak makes my hamstrings really tight). After paddling this I was hooked and couldn't wait to get my hands on it's slightly more refined older sister, the Cetus.

We paddled out from Moelfre, to Ynys Dulas (we only had a quick window to paddle, I had concrete to lay), stopped at the Island for a quick coffee and to provide the Seals with some entertainment, played on the overfalls briefly and then shot back to Moelfre. All in all a pleasant break from working and an opportunity to realise just how good the Scorpio really is!

Still it beats working for a living!!

Bargains Galore

2008-07-29T11:09:00.000+01:00

We've just taken delivery of a number of rudder ready P&H Capella Sea Kayaks.

They're slightly older stock which means that we're able to offer them with a good discount over newer boats. RRP on the Capella is £1,099, we're able to offer these beauties at £850, bearing in mind that second-hand ones sell on ebay for £500-800 each depending on condition, we think this is a pretty sweet deal.

Drop us a line if you need to know more?

A New Arrival

2008-07-28T21:50:00.000+01:00

Friday saw us take delivery of our newest addition to the family, a P&H Scorpio sea kayak.

This RM Corelite plastic version of the highly regarded Cetus looks stunning and I can't wait to get on the water with it. Here's hoping for a couple of free hours tomorrow afternoon.

It's available as a demo boat from our base here on Anglesey.

Drop me a line if you want to book it!

Starting Out

2008-06-02T12:03:00.000+01:00

Saturday saw us having a nice family day at the beach. It gave me the opportunity to give my daughter her first taste of kayaking.

She sat in the cockpit of my Quest with me and had a great time, apparently, she saw Nemo (from Finding Nemo) and some divers. It's great to have some imagination.

The sea was flat calm, after a 20 minute paddle around Borthwen with our daughters, Mark and I blasted off towards Treardur Bay for a quick run out and back again.

A great day off and a special one for me to be able to share with my oldest.

Summit to Sea

Yard Sale - This Weekend

This weekend in our Yard Sale, we have:

Used Boats:Pyranha Varun L £495Pyranha Varun M £495Pyranha Karnali M (Connect 30) £475 Pyranha G3 (whitewater spec) £395

It's the Twelfth day of Christmas

Less than 24 hours remaining....

The Twelve Deals of Christmas

Pipped at the post

On the Tenth Day...

The Penguin Paddle

Blwyddan Newydd Dda!

Pete

On the 7th Day of Christmas...

On the sixth day of Christmas...

On the third day of Christmas...

On the Second Day of Christmas...

Happy Christmas & Welcome to "The 12 Deals of Christmas"

Fairy Glen

Last Chance for Christmas...

Twelve Deals of Christmas

Next Accompanied Paddle -11/12/11

Less than a week until our next accompanied paddle, "The Mince Pie Paddle", so called because you can come back here for a cup of coffee (or tea) and a Mince Pie after you've paddled.

Sunday 11th 09:00 meet for an 09:30 start. don't miss it, it'll be clear, windless and sunny, I've booked the weather for the weekend!

As busy as July!!

One Day, One Boat....

Racking my brains.

Wild & Windy on Anglesey

New Feature in the Webshop - Deal Of The Day

Crazy Pete's Kayak Shack

Accompanied Paddle - 13/11/11

Wrapping Paper

Just in, and already flying out of the door.

Expedition DVD

Something for the weekend sir?

Catching up

It was over a week ago, but....

A Great Success

Some great looking new kit from Peak UK

Aries Action

Carpe Paddlarum

Our Current Stock of Used & Ex-Demo boats & some clearance deals.

For whom the 'Bells' toll

Slower than my previous effort...

Menai Challenge

Light & Warm - A solution that doesn't require a compromise

More Tiderace boats in Stock

Demo Weekend -THIS weekend

Bargain Sea Kayaks & Accessories

Reed Chillcheater goodies on Sunshine Island

15 litres, waterproof and tough PU coated nylon deck bag. Six point deck attachment. Fully taped seams just £28. You couldn't do it yourself for that price.

25% off Rab Womens Fleece

Group Offers.

We've been busy.

WRSI Trident Helmets have landed here

Alternative Ulster - Alternative Energy

Preparing for the Season

Forward Planning

Peak UK Tourlite Zip PFD now in stock in all Sizes & Colours

Tiderace kayaks on Anglesey

Cetus Classic just £1899

When the wind stops a blowin' it's time to start Puffin!!

What to do when the forecast is for high winds?

They're here!!!

Carpe Diem

New Boats On Anglesey

Silly Season Begins

Pyranha 2010 Burns Demo Boats & Cosmetic Seconds

2010 Burns...we've got the blems!

Cetus LV & the Skerries

Another day at the office

Confused?!?!?!

Cetus - LV

P&H & Venture Kayaks Demo Day 28th March

Not a bad end to the year

The Medium Karnali lands on Anglesey

Scorpio LV Bargains

Scorpio Bargains

What a difference a month makes!!

Seal of Approval

It's been a while

Used Boats:
Pyranha Varun L £495
Pyranha Varun M £495
Pyranha Karnali M (Connect 30) £475
Pyranha G3 (whitewater spec) £395