First day I took the boat out of Padanaram Harbor and paddled with fellow P&H enthusiast Brandon “Mango” Gunderson over to New Bedford Harbor. Conditions were pretty flat with about a 10 knt wind blowing. Coming from the LV the MV felt more maneuverable and faster. It was also very clear of an increase in height for my knees to sit in the braces. For my size ( 5′9” about 175 lbs) this boat fit PERFECT! Unbelievably comfortable and paddled like a dream. We took the boat just under 4 miles to New Bedford and was able to compare it to the Scorpio that Brandon was paddling and found it to be MUCH faster. We swapped boats for the way back and as great as the Scorpio is I couldn’t wait to paddle the MV again.

The second day I took it out I paddled alone around Sakonnet Point in Rhode Island and played in and around the rocks. There was a gentle 3′ swell but would pick up around some of the submerged rocks just enough to surf the boat. Surfing was the way it should be, a couple strokes to get going and a slight edge to correct. Fast down the wave and buoyant enough not to purl on the steeper ones.

Having the boat sit slightly higher in the water allowed me to spin it around on a dime with a good edge and really have a blast in the rocks. Had it been my boat and had a keel strip I would have been more aggressive with it but I had my fun! Planning on paddling from Sakonnet to Newport I changed my mind and stayed around the rocks for 4 hours having a blast. Never have I paddled a boat so much fun yet so refined. The MV will certainly be my next boat and I will be looking forward to tripping in it. Paddle one if you can!

Day 1: 9 hours – 26 miles
Launched from John PenneKamp State Park and was on the water by 10:00. Grey day with big storms brewing out over the Atlantic. I had a bout a 2.5 foot chop most of the ride and was staying cool due to the weather. Stopped in Tavernier Key to have lunch at a marina there and was welcomed by a huge manatee under my boat.

Fought the 6knt channel back out to the ocean and pressed on. I hadn’t paddled in at least a week and had not done a 20 miles paddle in over a month. I was feeling a little tired by the 20 miles point. Finding a camping spot in the upper keys is more difficult than the lower. Could not wait to find a non Mangrove island. Reached Indian Key around 7:00 and was thrilled to be there. I set up camp and spent the night.

Day 2 :11 hours – 31 miles
Woke up around 6:30 and explored the Island a little. Old cisterns, cottage remains and a watch tower were spread out across the island.

Path roadways connected the whole thing a made a very cool experience. Got on the water by 8:00 and headed for Marathon over 30 miles away. Headed off and stopped to take a lunch at Lower Matecumbe Harbor. Had my first of a series of medium crossings.

Took off for a 4.5 miles crossing from Lower Matecumbe Key to the outside tip of Long Key. The wind and chop were in my face and continued that way for the first 3/4 of the day. Crossed pass Duck Key, Curry Hammock State Park and finally did one more long crossing from Key Colony Beach to Vaca Key where I followed Sister Creek into Boot Key Harbor. I met up with Mike, Nancy and Randy from Burdine’s Marina for a wonderful meal and nights stay in preparation for the 7 mile bridge the next morning. I had seen over a dozen shark by the end of the day

Day 3: 10 hours – 40 miles
Got up around 6:30 and a had a quick breakfast and shower and said goodbye to my most hospitable hosts at Burdine’s.

Once about 20 minutes out in to the Seven Mile Bridge crossing the wind and swell picked up nicely. Foretasted 25knt winds from the E, SE were spot on and I had a rocketing 3.5-4′ swell following me almost right behind me. An ear to ear grin came upon me as I surfed the Cetus LV like a mad man for the rest of the day. Crossing took 1hr and 20min to complete and I was on my way headed towards the beautiful Bahia Honda State Park.

Took a 30 minute swim and consulted the charts thinking, did I really do that crossing that fast. The Cetus surfs like none other. Here the trip really started to get good. Took off again and stopped before my last big crossing of the trip. Ate a snack at Big Munis Island where there is a private resort reachable only by boat (kayaks anyone) and marveled at its beauty.

Got back out a mile and a half to catch the wind and swell again and surfed the 8.5 miles crossing from Munis to Sugerloaf Key where I planned to camp. Google maps had shown an almost empty large beach called Sugerloaf beach and looked very inviting. As I surfed with fury across I almost missed the beach due to it not looking anything like I thought it would! Houses all over the place and all private. The only houses that were not occupied were the hurricane ravaged ones on the west side.

Noticing 2′ plus iguanas all over the place I though better of camping there and decided to press on past the 34 miles I had already gone. A strong day of surf assisted paddling left me feeling still pretty energetic. Pressed on to Geiger Key where I took out unhappy of all the rest stops I carelessly took after noticing the great time I was making. Had I not I would have made Key West on the 3rd day!

Day 4: 1.5 hours – 6 miles
Got back on the water to complete my journey at 8:30 and paddled my last 6 miles to Smather’s Beach on Key West by 9:50.

At this point 6 miles felt like not even getting in the boat. As I pulled up on the beach and got out in wait of my ride home to Naples I marveled at my first solo trip and how luck I was to have the boat that I do.

P&H has been a dream to work with and I can not wait to get this boat into some real conditions. The craftsmanship is second to none and everyone who has looked at has been drooling away. If you get the opportunity to paddle one or better yet order one for yourself I urge you to go for it!

It keeps getting colder down here in, usually, sunny Florida. We left from the Isle of Capri today with dry suits on again. The air temperature reached a high of 43 degrees and the water was right around 55 degrees. I know you P&H Paddlers up North will laugh at us but it was actually fun getting suited up for “cold weather” for a change

Small craft advisory was posted today and will last the next two days. Seas were predicted to be 3-5 but were more in the 2-4 range. Long intervals lead to some good runs down the 4 footers but 20knt winds kept blowing us out of the sweet spot.

Did two rolls with my balaclava on and thank god for that because Chris was complaining about his head temperature most of the trip:) Spent 2 hours playing in the waves and decided to head in.

Stayed warm the entire trip until back at the beach where my hands started to freeze. Forecasted 25knt winds and 5-7 surf tomorrow. Hopefully it actually comes through for some more reports from the Gulf Coast of Florida.

Decided to test out our new drysuits from NRS since even Southwest Florida is feeling a little frosty lately. Air near 48 and water at 55 made for a brisk morning for us Southern paddlers.

Two weeks of lousy weather was limiting our paddling so we manned up for some much needed practice at our local Lake named Lake Avalon. Chris Boland (Owner of Saltwater Sports) and I practiced high braces emphasizing on our weaker sides along with multiple types of rolls.

I was pleased to see that even in a dry suit I was able to hand roll almost effortlessly in my Cetus LV. It is such a wonderful boat to roll, I am thrilled with it. After that we practiced some solo rescues and went for a brisk 1 mile sprint around the lake. Wonderful way to start a Florida morning. My Team Boat is being made as I type and I am stoked!

Amazing what a stable platform the Cetus line is….

Rough water paddling and surfing is my favorite part of kayaking. Expedition paddling and rolling would be the next favorite. The LV enabled me to progress so much further in my rolling it’s unbelievable.

I can’t wait to get my new Team Boat and really do some tripping. Hopefully we get some surf soon and I can get some good reports up. The Cetus LV is by far my dream boat and I look forward to posting some hardcore trip reports.