Category Archives: Paddling

First paddle of my northeast season

Posted on April 21, 2016 by Ron Haines

With temps hovering just below 60 and bright sunny skies I bent my Northeast paddling standards (I generally stay inside until it gets way closer to 70) and spent a pleasant few hours with some friends from the Western Mass paddling group … Continue reading →

Posted in Hornbeck canoe, Paddling, Photos mostly, Yard art | Leave a comment

Pushing the season

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Ron Haines

Arrived in Connecticut this past weekend.  Mother Nature has a nasty way of letting me know if I get here too early.  The new canoe is tucked away safely in the garage.  The old Grumman is under the snow.

Posted in Grumman canoe, Hornbeck canoe, Snow | 7 Comments

A green spot in Broward County

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Ron Haines

A green spot in Broward County Broward County is the second most dense county in Florida, runner-up to Pinellas (home to the cities of Tampa and St. Petersburg), but there are still places there to paddle among the flora and … Continue reading →

Posted in Hornbeck canoe, Nature, Paddling, Sierra Club | 3 Comments

Frog legs and gator tails

Posted on January 25, 2016 by Ron Haines

Frog legs and gator tails One of the paddling MeetUp groups I belong to recently planned an outing to Lake Cara, a tiny little postage stamp of a lake in the Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area up east of Yehaw Junction … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature, Offbeat, Paddling, Photos mostly, Road trip | 6 Comments

Florida baptism

Posted on December 18, 2015 by Ron Haines

I took my new-fangled, ultralight canoe for its maiden Florida saltwater ride this past week. An earlier paddle since coming south, in freshwater, was a couple weeks ago at nearby John Prince Park. I have been wanting to take it … Continue reading →

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Where the birding is easy

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Ron Haines

One thing that struck me when I moved to Florida from Iowa back in the 1970’s was how easy it is down here to be a birder (at least the casual one that I am). The birds are big! No … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature, Paddling, Photos mostly | 2 Comments

New canoe on the water

Posted on August 27, 2015 by Ron Haines

I finally got around to having a couple friends do photos of me out on the water in my new Hornbeck ultra-light canoe, 15 feet long, two feet at widest and a mere 24 pounds, way more portable than the … Continue reading →

Posted in Hornbeck canoe, Paddling | 3 Comments

Here it is!

Posted on July 2, 2015 by Ron Haines

I’ve been using my new ultralite Hornbeck canoe a fair bit since picking it up last month in the Adirondacks on my way back to Connecticut from Texas. Read about the shopping trip here. It’s light, paddles fast and, as … Continue reading →

Posted in Hornbeck canoe, Paddling | 4 Comments

Six days on the road…and a new canoe to show for it

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Ron Haines

(UPDATES:  1. There is now a photo below of me in my new canoe.   2. Peter Hornbeck, who figured large in my new boat purchase, died in December of 2020.  His obituary.) Ok, I really don’t have it yet, so … Continue reading →

Posted in Grumman canoe, Hornbeck canoe, Paddling | 14 Comments

A useful sign

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Ron Haines

I took this photo back in 2013 on the Swift River near Belchertown, Massachusetts. Originally from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, the sign obviously took a prankster’s ride to the alligator-unfriendly climes of the Northeast, where it was planted as a … Continue reading →

Posted in Offbeat, Paddling, Signs | Leave a comment