ISSN 2537-913 NEW ZEALAND SEA KAYAKER No. 193 February - March 2018 The Journal of the Kiwi Association of Sea Kayakers (NZ) Inc - KASK New Zealand Sea Kayaker EDITORIAL and no GPS navigation system, we INDEX KASK KAYAK FEST 2018 resorted to the old fashioned system A hearty well done to the fest organ- of pulling over and asking locals on EDITORIAL p. 3 izing team for a wonderful two days the street how to access the freeway and nights of socializing, instruction leading north. If only we had a cy- KASK sessions on the water, and some rath- ber-savvy young person with us! The KAYAK Fest 2018 2-4 March er good on shore presenters. Rowena Kayak Fest overview Hayes has written an excellent over- The directions from the organizing by Rowena Hayes p. 5 view of the whole weekend. Laraine committee worked a treat; we turned Hughes discusses Deb Volturno’s left into Pascoe Avenue at Mana then Annual KASK Awards instruction and feedback from over turned left again when we hit the wa- The Paddle Trophies p. 8 ‘The Ditch’ has been provided by ter. Even by 3:00 pm, a row of col- The ‘Bugger!’ Trophy p.12 both Ruby Arden and Lisa McCa- ourful tents claiming best sea views rthy. had sprung up, along with kayaks, Photo Competition Results p. 9 cars and caravans that looked like a The Wellington Sea Kayak Network, swag of scattered liquorice allsorts. Paddling Faster (more efficiently) who provided the key players of the Traffic marshal Robbie was inter- by Laraine Hughes p.12 organizing team, dedicated the 2018 cepting arrivals, providing directions Kask Fest to the memory of Peter for parking and tent sites. Kirsty An Aussie Overview p.13 Williamson who kicked off the Wel- and Diane logged paddlers arriving by Ruby Arden lington paddlers’ network back in - who signed their life away with a 1997 (see the obituary p.20 in NZSC waiver form - and provided a white An Aussie View No. 186). paper bag with sun cream and choco- by Lisa McCarthy p.16 late from weekend sponsors, and the The team was headed by Noel Pep- program! NEW ZEALAND REPORTS perell, with Diane Morgan, David Port Waikato & the Waikato Fisher, Conrad Edwards, David The fest kicked off with a brief wel- River Delta Cook, Susan Cade, Robby Benson- come and introduction from Diane by John Gumbley p17 Cooper, with John Kirk-Anderson as Morgan, David Fisher and Noel lead instructor and Shaun Maclaren Pepperell, which was followed by a Paddling with the Blind as KASK liaison; with Beverley mass-scrum like scramble to book a by Margot Syms p.19 Burnett as initial team lead and risk place on the great range of sessions management. offered. OVERSEAS REPORTS Salt On-line (NSW Club magazine) Apart from a 5:00 am start from Nel- Then we all adjourned to a grassy by Ruby Ardren p.20 son, the trip overseas from the main- verge above the narrow entrance to land to the Mana KASK 2018 Kayak Porirua Harbour for a Maori wel- The Lincoln Street Kayak & Canoe Fest went smoothly, with a calm come or mihi whakatau. A sumptu- Museum is Pure Magic ferry crossing to Wellington and im- ous offering of pre-dinner nibbles by Paul Hayward p.20 peccable timing at the airport when then set the scene for excellent ca- Bevan Walker and I waited barely tering over the whole weekend, from HUMOUR p.21 two minutes for Crocodile Winky to Friday night through to the brown emerge from customs. With no map paper bag lunch on Sunday. Seated for dining in the local Sea Scout’s hall, the subdued noise level ramped Editing and Layout: Paul Caffyn up as paddlers renewed old acquaint- email: [email protected] ances and met newbies to the KASK Deadline for next magazine: 25 May 2018 Kayak Fest. Almost deafening it Proofing: Sandy Ferguson, Lynda Ferguson, Paul Hayward was! COVER: More kayaks than you can shake a stick at the 2018 KASK Kayak Fest; so much choice with a wide variety of topics and workshops with some of the best instructors in the world. Photo: Paul Caffyn Page 2 Top Left: The first on-the-water session about to commence at the KASK Kayak Fest, held at Mana, north of ellington.W Photo:Paul Caffyn Page 2 Bottom Left: Photo: Mana (K1) Racing Club kayak coach, Brian Grace, providing valuable advice for paddlers to make their kayaks go faster. Photo: John Kirk-Anderson 3 No. 193 February - March 2018 Chris Henshaw from Rescue Coor- and a venue that was ideally suited me think the museum attendant dination NZ (RCCNZ) kicked off for both on-the-water and on-land was speaking a mix of Aleutian the Friday evening keynote speaker sessions. Particularly if the weather and Russian, and I was getting a session with what happens when you gods had not been smiling, there lesson on the historic treatment of trigger your PLB. were plenty of under cover venues if her people by the Russians. on-the-water sessions had to be can- Saturday started rather early with celled ‘cos of Wellington weather. I left wishing I had more time, and breakfast from 7:00 am, a briefing that I had recorded the delivery for followed at 8:00 am, and then into a John Kirk-Anderson provided the later analysis. selection from six on-land sessions, entertainment on the Saturday night ranging from ‘Paddling in East with his experiences as a sea kayak John’s photo (see below) was the ex- Greenland’ by Uta Machold, ‘Tai guide in the Sub-Antarctic Islands cuse I have waiting for to include the Chi’ by Andrew Harding, to ‘Hy- and off the shores of Siberia in the beautiful centrefold illustration from pothermia – What to Paddlers Need high Arctic. For me, a highlight from Björn Thomasson’s 1997 Swedish to Know’ by Dr Joanna Joseph; so John’s PPT show was a photo from book Kanotboken. It shows the wide many sessions on offer and all by his Arctic trip of a model baidarka range of kayak styles that developed very talented and experienced pre- and walrus intestine parka in a mu- according to local sea and weather senters. seum display: conditions in the Arctic, with an in- tial provenance in the Bering Strait After 10:00 am, five on-the-water An inquiry about a kayak display in region. It is reproduced with kind sessions were on offer as well as a the museum at Nikolskoye, Bering permission from Björn. kayak comms. discussion with Paul Island, on the Russian end of what Hayward; Deb Volturno and Paula we know as the Aleutian Islands John’s photo shows a model of a sin- Renouf took paddlers ‘Beyond the chain, caused some confusion for gle cockpit baidarka, with a paddler Forward Stroke’, Dave Winkworth our translator. wearing the typical Aleut headgear, worked on rolling, Brian Grace from and what appears to be an actual wal- the Mana (kayak) Racing Club pro- I asked her to discover what she rus or sea otter gut kamleika or parka. vided tips on how to paddle more ef- could about the kamleika and ficiently, while Sandy Winterton took miniature skin boat in a glass case, My thanks to all the contributors. a tiki-tour into Pauatahatanui Inlet. and the response from the attendant Paul Caffyn was very low key, along the lines [email protected] While paddling from group to group, of, “It’s a thing from the past”. I (03) 73 11 806 taking photos, I narrowly missed be- wanted to know more and said to ing hauled onto one of the two Mana the translator that as a kayaker I was Coastguard RIBs, during a rather interested in the baidarka. good collaboration between paddlers and CG, which was orchestrated by On hearing the word, the Aleut John Kirk-Anderson - excellent prac- attendant suddenly became very tice for both RIB crew and kayakers. animated, and a torrent of speech was directed at me, which the poor The narrow entrance to Porirua Har- translator struggled to follow. She bour proved a superb choice for the said that she couldn’t understand variety of paddling sessions offered some of the words, which makes Noel Pepperell and Paul Caffyn during the Saturday afternoon, the tidal streams flowing swiftly through the narrows, but plenty of sandy beaches and rocky bits on the west side, for pad- dlers to have plenty of space to practice rolling or rock gardening skills. Second year students from the Whitireia Polytech were such a great asset in the water for helping with the rolling sessions. Good practice for them as future guides or instructors and so much help for the few rolling instructors with big groups of paddlers. You will see from the positive feed- back on the kayak fest that it was a superb weekend, a full program 4 New Zealand Sea Kayaker KASK KAYAK FEST 2018 MANA - WELLINGTON by Rowena Hayes The first and last time I attended a We were greeted by an army of com- Kayak Fest was way back in 2010 mittee members who checked us in, when it was held at Anakiwa down directed us to tenting areas, provided in the Marlborough Sounds. None of security while we were all off having the proposed venues since then re- fun, and explained where the toilets ally grabbed me, until I learned that and showers were. So far so good. this one was to be held on the estuary near Plimmerton and – the clincher My cohorts pitched their tents down - a paddle out to Mana was on the on the flat (boring) and I was ex- programme.