For the past six years William and I have spent our summers playing around in canoes in Sweden and at home here in Denmark, now William has been thrown in at the deep-end of kayaking….

This is only the second time he has been out in a kayak….. it looks like he is a natural…

Our few hours on a local lake turned out to be a bit of an attraction as William balanced on the back deck, kissed the boats nose, and did loads of self rescues, tourists in the many canoes clapped & took pictures

The ‘Play-boat” used was the Cetus LV, rather big for a boy of ten, but a good 15 liters of water secured in the day hatch helped to press the hull into the water.

Next week we will be heading to Sweden with some friends on a kayak trip with inbuilt games, popcorn & marshmellows roasted over a bonfire….. is there a better way to spend time together ?

That’s how they describe Lake Tahoe. Everytime I drive over the 7,377 ft Echo Summit on Hwy50 and catch the first glimpse of Lake Tahoe I imagine how the first non-indigenous explorer to see Lake Tahoe (Lt. John C. Frémont in 1844)  must have felt to find such a stunningly beautiful expanse of fresh water (the largest alpine lake in N. America and the second deepest at 1645ft) after having crossed the dry expanse of the Nevada desert.

Arguably the Nevada shoreline up around Sand Harbor is the best area for kayaking but I had to ‘make do’ with the South Shore.

The say Emerald Bay is one of the most photographed locations in the world and I did my best to keep up that reputation as I paddled over from Regan Beach into the horseshoe bay and around Fannette Island.

Even though I was on the water at 7am I had to fight a few gusts on the way into the bay and I was happy to use the skeg on the Capella 163 on the return leg as an increasing wind blew up from the south.

I had to feel sorry for a couple who were having to fight to make headway against the breeze on their fat sit-on-tops whilst my Capella cut almost effortlessly through the small chop. By playing with the skeg until I got it balanced just right, I found the Capella to track without any need for correction strokes or edging - quite remarkable for such a short and manouverable kayak.

The three hour paddle ended all too soon but at least I then got to see the lake from above as well as I took my daughter for a short hike.

One day I will make a full circuit by kayak of the 72mile shoreline of Lake Tahoe. Until then I will continue to explore this jewell bit by bit.

I’m delighted to have joined the P&H Custom Sea Kayaks paddlers team. I have been paddling a P&H Sirius for over 8 years now and it has seen me through some tough trips in that time. I feel the need for a change now so its time for a new boat!

I have chosen a P&H Quest LV which I collected from the P&H canalside base near Runcorn on Saturday morning. It was like christmas and birthdays all rolled into one as I cut through the wrapping to meet my new pride and joy.

What better way to get my new kayak home than to paddle the 32km along the Bridgewater Canal, though the beautiful rolling Cheshire countryside, to within a few hundred meters of my home in south Manchester.

I’ll have to wait at least a week to get it out on the sea…

Thanks to Sam, Pez and the rest of the P&H team, and also to Jim from Kayaks North West for helping me with the unveiling. Thanks to Chris Krawiecki for the photos.

Dave making Sunshine look easy.

OK, so it isn’t sea kayaking, but the Green River Narrows is an amazing run. The guys from the shop took me down for the first time today. Click HERE for more.