There’s no doubt about it. Scouting for new places to paddle can be exciting. Occasionally, though, the excitement gets out of hand. A lot of less-traveled ways to the water are old carriage roads or overgrown jeep trails. These aren’t always kind to cars, and breaking down in the middle of nowhere isn’t everybody’s idea of a good time. Sometimes it pays to scout by bike.

Bikes can go almost anywhere. Better yet, once you get your road legs, bikes eat up the miles at a surprisingly fast clip. There’s no better way to explore your neighborhood. How big is your neighborhood? Well, how strong are your legs? For most of us, fifty-mile round trips are within reach: twenty-five out and twenty-five back. This makes your “neighborhood” something like 1 million acres. Hardy folks may find they can go twice as far in a day. Their neighborhood is four times as large. Cycling is a great exercise, too, targeting the very muscles that don’t get much of a workout on the water.

In short, scouting by bike lets you check out nearby waterways without risking your family car or handing over all your paycheck to Big Oil. And it’s fun, into the bargain. You can even haul a boat to the water with a bike. But you have to have the right boat — and the right bike. Old carriage roads and muddy jeep trails aren’t for fine-boned thoroughbreds. A stocky, sturdy carthorse is what you want. You need a steed that can take a licking and keep on tick-tick-ticking along. And then hit the road in search of waters new! Read more…

Tags: & Sit-on-Topping, amphibious paddling, bikes, cycling, Kayaking, Let's Paddle! Canoeing

Sooner or later, most people trash a knee. Or two. And if you’re approaching the half-century mark, chances are that “sooner or later” is now. But you don’t have to give up the active life. No way! Join the club, instead. The Gimpy Knee Club, that is. With a dash of caution and a healthy portion of common sense, there’s no reason why you, too, can’t keep on keeping on. Paddle! Pedal! Hike! The birds are singing. The water’s lapping. The roads and trails beckon. Spring is underway. The La-Z-Boy® can wait. Read more…

Tags: & Sit-on-Topping, cycling, hiking, Kayaking, knees, Let's Paddle! Canoeing

I recently decided to buy knickers for cycling round town, but was astonished by their high prices. I compromised and found two pair of knickers which aren’t made specifically for cycling, and the combined cost was less than the price of one pair of the great-looking purpose-made knickers. One of my new pair of knickers is made of nylon and was designed for climbing, and the other is made of a cotton blend for general wear. I’ll give them each a try on my bike. When I need extra padding, I’ll wear them over bike shorts. I’ll be especially interested to find out how the cotton and synthetic fabrics compare.

If you’re old enough, you’ll probably remember when synthetic clothes were universally derided. No more. High-tech man-made fabrics have been popular for some time now. They come with a caveat, however. While I may be a convert to twenty-first century engineered fabrics (at least for some uses), I’m still hedging my bets. As I watch the cost of oil surge upward, I’m reminded that the price of synthetic fabrics will go over the top someday, too — sooner rather than later, I expect. Meanwhile, I’ll continue to outfit myself in synthetic cycling and paddling clothes as long as the price is right, but I’m not about to throw out my serviceable wool sweaters and pants. Getting fleeced is one thing, being fleeced is something else. I don’t warm to that idea at all.

Tags: cycling, gas, hiking, Hubbert's peak, oil, outfitting