JBK - Just a perfect day.

It dawned on me today whilst paddling my New Wilderness Tempest 170 Pro out past Bowen Island, that I had owned in the last twenty years of Sea Kayaking, ( 15yrs of which operating JBK ) personally, 11 Brand New Sea Kayaks , and literally hundreds of Sea Kayaks over the years in our hire and tour operation fleet.

New Composite Tempest 170 Pro

Such a realisation gets you wondering whether there is really many differences from model to model, or whether I had succumbed to the bright and colourful gel coat or the newest in comfort outfitting yet again. At JBK we are dealing with so many choices now on a daily basis with Specifications, layups, colour options , rudder fittings, varying price range, quality and usage options.

The fact is that, there are marked differences in each craft, some worth noting, some not so, but for just a few hours today,I found myself taking in the water movement around me, the clarity of the water, the temperature of the sea and air, and the sureal atmosphere of the bushfire smoke that moved in with the brisk southerly change cloaking JB and the 9 or so warships that cruised nearby.

Although I had done it thousands of times before, Janet and I simply went "Sea Kayaking". There was no talk of boat length, shape, or style, we just paddled and chatted about the Wallaby that joined us on the beach and took it all in. Coffee and Lunch on Murrays Beach and a couple of Eskimo Rolls on the way home.

Wallaby joined us on Murrays Beach for morning tea.

The day was perfect and I remembered today, after an extremely busy summer of facilitating kayaking at JBK for thousands kayakers, why I love this Sport. Kayaking is a lifestyle recreation and the gear just allows you to do it, not better, maybe a little more comfortably, maybe a little quicker than your last kayak, but don't get too tied up in the Specs of your kayak, enjoy it for what it is. There is far to much emphasis on boat specs and equally to many opinions as to what constitues a good sea kayak. Sure, good advice is always important but one should exercise caution as to where that advice is sought from.

On your next paddling adventure, take a good loook around you, soak it up, it is incredible where the kayak allows you access to. I am looking forward to the upcoming Autumn and Winter, as the seasons change, as the wildlife and sea conditions vary, and as the colour of the sky goes from bright blue to a more subtle aqua tone, remember how fortunate we are to be able to access and immerse ourselves in our waterways.

Regards
Ross Boardman / JBK