Water temperatures on Rocky Gorge Reservoir are in the high 60s and the air temperature is regularly in the 70s and even 80s now - it is officially summer and the dry-suit can go back in the basement. I've been able to get in some after-work paddles from the Brown Bridge put-in, where the ramp is still blocked requiring an annoying 100 foot carry. Luckily, the new Marlin is under 40 pounds, not bad at all to schlep. The ramp being blocked tends to keep the fisher-people traffic down, in any event. This year there seems to have been a heron population explosion - last night I saw at least 5 different pairs of herons, though never more than 2 pair in view at one time - they could have been tricking me by circling overhead in a false show of force. The turtles and barn swallows were out in force, but I didn't see the usual bald eagle. The water level continues to go up to where it is finally back to really looking like a reservoir all the way up to Browns Bridge.
Two things Holm said at the race clinic stuck with me: (1) You have to get an effective, efficient paddling stroke burned into muscle memory before you worry much about speed; and (2) don't be a slave to your GPS speed readout - just focus on some set distance or waypoints and work on reducing your time, not trying to increase your instantaneous speed. So, in my usual 8 mile paddle to the Route 29 bridge and back, I only looked at the time readout. Well, I tried to only do that - until I changed the display to not show speed, I was peeking when I thought I was going really fast. I'm usually wrong when I think that and then I start trying to muscle the paddle and my stroke goes to hell.
When I first started doing this 8 miler with the 13 foot Ookpik it took about 2 hours. With the Capella and a wing paddle, I got that down to 1 hour 36 minutes. With the Marlin, I'm down to 1 hour 28 minutes. So, actually I'm getting less and less exercise - there is a downside to efficiency. But I am definitely now the limiting factor - if I could average 6 mph, it would be down to 1 hour 20 minutes. With the right engine, the Marlin can certainly do 6 mph.
I'll start worrying more about speed once I can get the right stroke mechanics to stay on autopilot, where when I zone out my hands don't drop, or my attempt at rotation doesn't disappear, etc. In the meantime, I'll enjoy the ever changing view along the twists and turns of this section of Rocky Gorge. Google-ified map below.
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