Undersea Explorer

The Undersea Explorer has the reputation of giving the diver the best Adventure dives on the Northern Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea, whilst supporting quality research projects, and offering high quality coral reef interpretation and education. Whilst onboard passengers are able to learn about the vast and complex marine environment, as well as informally associating with researchers from the scientific community. This gives passengers a unique and valuable understanding of the importance of sustainability of our precious coral reefs.

Departing weekly from Port Douglas, expeditions are 3 day/3 night Cod Hole expeditions (Mar-May) or 6 day/6 night Osprey Reef Shark Encounter with a maximum of 20 guests. Undersea Explorer visits remote Osprey Reef, a seamount in the Coral Sea, which offers 1000 metre drop-offs and exciting pelagic action. In addition, the itinerary includes the many varied dive sites encompassing the coral gardens of the Ribbon Reefs and the world famous Cod Hole.

Undersea Explorer offers many different expeditions throughout the year, which focus on a variety of research projects including: nautilus population research, water quality studies, coral reef monitoring, shark identification and behaviour, and the Dwarf Minke Whale. On each expedition the company offers an excellent interpretive Reef Discovery program which enhances diving and snorkelling - through interpretive presentations provided by our researchers, and interpreted by the onboard researcher/biologist. The Reef Discovery course takes the form of a series of visual and oral presentations each day during the expedition.

Affiliation:

PADI

Training Level:

Advanced Open Water certification, Enriched Air certification (Nitrox)

Boat Description:

Undersea Explorer - 25m steel - Max passengers 20 + 5 Crew. Ducted Air-conditioned Twin or Queen Berth Cabins. All meals prepared by qualified Chef onboard.

Sites Visited:

Ribbon Reefs, Cod Hole, Osprey Reef

Facilities:

• Own Liveaboard(s)
• Own Boat(s)
• Showers

• Nitrox fills
• Scuba hire

Becoming a Diver

Why would you want to learn to SCUBA dive?

SCUBA stands for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. SCUBA diving gives you the opportunity to explore a world that is vastly different to ours. The oceans are so rich with life and have a huge variety of living organisms, all adapted to their little habitats. Most of the creatures you will find, look more like aliens than something you might expect to encounter on this planet. Some historic wrecks and caves are hidden below the waters surface, ready to be explored. The fact that you carry your air supply strapped to your back enables you to enjoy every detail of the underwater environment without having to rush back up for more air.

Certified SCUBA divers can dive all over the world. Everywhere where there is water, there might be an underwater challenge. Whether you enjoy the biological or the technical aspect SCUBA diving has to offer.

Who can SCUBA dive?

Everybody who has a good general health can learn to dive from the age of 8 years old. Unless you have diabetes, epilepsy, or respiratory problems such as asthma, there should not be a reason why you could not become a diver. People of all ages can learn to SCUBA dive. Pregnant women should not dive, as the effects of SCUBA on a developing foetus are not known. In Australia a dive medical is performed to make sure aspiring divers are fit and healthy enough. Other than that, a SCUBA diver has to be able to swim and feel reasonably comfortable in the water. Some people worry about the fact their ears hurt when they dive to the bottom of a pool. During your Open Water Dive course you will learn how to feel relaxed and equalize your ears and sinuses. In general, young divers need to be accompanied by an adult certified diver on all dives until they are 15 years of age, when their Junior Open Water certificate or equivalent is upgraded to a regular one.

Isn't SCUBA diving really dangerous?

As with any sport, there are risks involved by going SCUBA diving. Proper training, carefully planning of dives and accurately estimating diving conditions and abilities of people in the group will eliminate most risks. The most common issues facing a diver are Arterial Gas Embolism and Decompression Sickness. Most of the time these can both be prevented by following the safety procedures taught in courses and by not pushing the time limits of the dive tables. The media is always keen to report freak accidents and sometimes make SCUBA diving look more dangerous than statistics prove it to be.

And what about all the vicious marine animals that are waiting to attack or eat you? Most of those "attacks" on divers happen because the divers themselves harassed or fed the animals involved in the first place. Responsible dive schools will teach you that as long as you leave the marine life alone, it will leave you alone. "Don't touch, just observe" is a golden rule.

Where to go to become a certified SCUBA diver?

All over Australia dive shops offer Open Water Diver courses and there are different certifying agencies. NAUI, SSI and PADI are the three largest ones and all three agencies are recognised internationally. Prices for courses might vary depending on season, location and competition. Although the agencies have minimal standards for their courses, some shops include a few extras and offer more value for money. It is important to ask questions such as: Where will we go diving? Are they boat dives or shore dives? How large are the classes? Can I keep the textbook or is that extra? Is gear hire included? Do I have to buy my own snorkel gear at the beginning or can I buy later? How is the dive medical arranged and is it included in the price? If you are not sure whether you want to do a full course, it is normally possible to do an introductory or resort dive. You will do a one off dive with an instructor right by your side. At the end you are not certified, but you have a bit of an idea what it is like to be underwater.

What happens during an Open Water Dive course?

Generally the course has four parts: theory, pool sessions, open water dives and a knowledge review. During the theoretical part you will learn the basics on diving physics, safety, diving gear and how to use dive tables to estimate the amount of nitrogen absorbed by your body. Generally, a textbook will be available to read through the theory, you will watch some videos and your instructor will elaborate on the theory discussed in the textbook and videos and hopefully clarify any remaining issues. The theoretical knowledge is tested in a knowledge review to make sure you understand what your instructor has been teaching you. In the pool you will become familiar with your dive gear, which buttons to push and which hoses to connect to what, how to control you buoyancy and how to act when your mask lets water in or when you regulator drops out of your mouth.

The open water dives give you the chance to practise the skills you have learned in the pool in a more realistic environment. Visibility might be less than in the pool (depends where you go or what pool you used!), there might be a bit more wave action, some currents and greater depth. Some people prefer to learn how to dive in a tropical location, but you will definitely be a more confident diver if there are some challenges during your course and the dives afterwards. However, an Open Water Dive course should always offer you a safe environment in which you become familiar with the new surroundings.

What is next?

After you have finished your Open Water Dive course you are ready to do some more diving. It is only the beginning. An experienced diver is a good diver. Especially in the beginning it is easy to forget the important things you have learned during your course. By the way, it is perfectly fine not to feel confident to do a certain dive until you have more experience. Always dive safe with people you trust.

If you decide you want to learn more skills it is always possible to do more courses. You can do a few more courses and become a dive instructor or you might be interested in more technical challenges and do deep, cave or wreck diving, learn to use different gas mixtures so you can go deeper for longer or do a course in dive gear maintenance. It is a great passion and once you are converted you will find that there are so many people that are already certified SCUBA divers, plenty of websites to visit (of course especially www.underwater.com.au) and lots more money to spend.

So what are you waiting for ... just dive it!

Photos by Tim Hochgrebe from PLANULA Video Productions in Byron Bay

So you want to be a SCUBA Diving Instructor?

I have worked as an instructor for about 6 years. I absolutely love it. So I thought I would be able to shed a bit of light on the subject for anyone who is interested in becoming one themselves.

To qualify as an open water instructor you need to be open water, advanced, and rescue diver. Then once completing a dive master course you can do your open water instructor course. It will all cost you about AU$4500 dollars (not including your own equipment, which can be another AU$2000) and on top of that you need 100 logged dives. You need to pass a medical and have a current first aid certificate. So almost anyone can do it. (requirements might vary between different certifying agencies - Ed.) However it is probably a good idea to do a few dives before you decide this is your life's calling as it can be quite different to what you imagine. It took me about 4 years of diving, and 400 dives to become an instructor. As an instructor we only show our students the good bits about diving.

There are many myths about the job of a diving instructor. Students often say to me on those beautiful, sunny days: ' Wow! You've got the best job in the world.' My reply usually is: 'The good days are great, the bad days can be very very hard work.' Fortunately for me the good days outshine the bad by far. I believe this is because I do it for what I consider to be the right reasons for me. I do it for the fish. If you want to become a diving instructor have a think about what your reasons for doing it would be.

Don't do it for the glamour and prestige because there really isn't any. Sure your students may adore and admire you endlessly, but the novelty wears off quick when you realize your fellow instructor (who closely resembles Jabba the Hut) also receives the same affections.

Definitely don't do it for the pay. Getting minimum wage isn't so bad, but having to pay for your insurance and membership costs can come to AU$800 a year, and that's not even including you equipment. So in other words it costs a lot to be an instructor and you wont make a lot of money back. On top of that it's pretty competitive to get the work, it's fairly casual and unpredictable hours when you do. The hours can be long usually staring at 6:30am and finishing at 5pm.The responsibilities are huge. Your student's lives are in your hands. This is not to be taken lightly.

Another responsibility often over looked by instructors is to be a good role model, in and out of the water. Set a good example of how to treat our oceans. Don't throw your cigarette butts on the ground, and speak up when someone else does. I myself don't eat any seafood, in my opinion fish are friends not food and I can't even open a can of tuna without crying. Educate yourself on the marine life and marine park operations in your area. It is not wise to harass marine life or feed them, especially if you have a group of 8 impressionable new divers with you. They may copy your every move for the rest of their diving career. You are their diving guru.

Diving a lot can be physically exhausting as well. You can't party as much as you think. Sure I used to party a lot when I first started instructing. It soon became quite difficult to tell my students not to party much the night before diving when I was turning up for work obviously after being out all night. If you are a smoker you may find it hypocritical to tell your students they shouldn't smoke before diving. If anything serious did go down, you'd be under scrutiny, drug tests, you name it. Keeping yourself in relatively good shape is a good idea too. You'll end up dragging students around a lot of the time.

It tends to be a male dominated industry so you'll have to be able to politely put up with a lot of ego and adrenaline, which can be a bit difficult sometimes being a woman. Far too many times I have worked with male instructors who think they are out on a shag fest, taking advantage of girls who are in a vulnerable environment, and obviously are placing a lot of trust in them. It is down right unprofessional and this should not be a reason for becoming an instructor.

I myself have always really loved fish, at 18 I went to uni studying fish, then realised to study them you have to kill them, this didn't go over very well with me. I left uni to travel, deciding I could get a job playing with the fish instead. I wanted to get people to appreciate fish and the beauty of the underwater world. The highlight of my job is introducing students to the fish. So without boasting too much about how much fun it can be I'll go through the aspects of my job I like best. Working outdoors is great, even if it's rainy, (you get wet anyway,) and it's great exercise. You'll have a fabulous tan even in the middle of winter. I love teaching and working with and meeting so many different people from so many different parts of the world. It's inspiring and hilarious. I will never forget the time my Japanese student asked me if it was time to put on his 'water pants'. One of my colleague travelled Europe staying with all of the students he had kept in touch with over the years. Its possible to travel and work, incorporating something you love while earning a living. The scuba diving where I work is fantastic, you get to know the fish quite personally . I've even managed to kiss one on the lips. In the winter you can hear whales singing under the water. I've taught movie and rock stars how to dive. I get to see dolphins on a regular basis. Most of the crew I work with are like-minded and lots of fun. Some days I would do my job for free. One of the highlights of my so far 6 year career would have to be taking 3 intro divers down to about 12m and seeing a 10 m humpback whale swim past us. One of those intros was so nervous at the surface before the dive I really had to convince her to go, holding hands the whole dive.

Here is a run down of what you will need to be a great instructor: You need to have enthusiasm, even on those cold, rainy, 5m vis days, you'll need patience and empathy, you'll have to be able to walk your talk, and have superb communication skills. Remember a lot of the time you will not be able to talk to your students, you may have to guess what they are feeling underwater and reassure them without saying a word. Get a lot of diving experience, in a lot of different types of diving environments. Before you sign up ask yourself: 'Am I completely comfortable with myself underwater in any circumstance?'. Once an instructor you will be taking people diving who are stressed out, squeezing your hand so tight it turns blue. They will throw up on you, they will be learning how to dive because they want to get over their fear of the ocean, they may be the complete opposite of a very nervous person and off from you the first chance they get, they may drop their weight belt and shoot to the surface while holding their breath, another may inflate their BC to ascend. They could all be in the same class. You need to be organized and confident. Another skill good to have is the ability to sell dive gear. Diveshops will love you if you are able to advice your students and other divers visiting the shop on what dive gear to purchase. Besides you can earn a commission

Do it for the right reasons. Do it because you love scuba diving more than anything else, do it because you love teaching and don't mind having a huge amount of responsibility. If you are properly trained and prepared it could be your dream job.

Australian Sea Lions

On board the 'Princess II', we were approx 2 hrs south of Port Lincoln in the Spencer Gulf, South Australia heading out to the Neptune Islands for a little shark spotting. This was our second attempt in 6 months to get to the Neptune Islands.

On an earlier trip in February 2008, with the team from Rodney Fox Great White Shark Expeditions, we had ventured only 2 hrs out to sea when the 'Princess II' experienced problems and unfortunately forced our immediate return back to Port Lincoln. The boat required some extensive work to repair a problem with oil lines and so our much-awaited trip had to be cancelled and our team of 4 were offered a return trip at a later date.

So here we were, back on the boat in July 2008 ... this time we were looking good, riding in smooth seas with light winds and a beautiful clear sunny day ahead of us ... and we were ready to catch our first glimpses of Great White Sharks.

It was around midday, when Andrew Fox suggested that conditions were perfect for a brief stop over at Hopkins Island and take a dive with Australian Sea Lions. Of course, all 12 guests on the boat met this suggestion with much enthusiasm and in no time we were geared up and ready - some were diving and some were snorkelling. Our brief was uncomplicated, but very specific ... "We will send somebody over to attract the attention of the sea lions. When they come over to you, they will try to draw you away from the bay and around the corner of the island. Hold your ground and don't let them lead you astray ... they will come back to you. Photographers note: the sea lions will position themselves between you and the sun. This is a defence strategy, which could make it difficult to photograph the sea lions".

Geared up, air on; I backward rolled over the side of the inflatable boat. I was still fiddling with my strobe arms on the seabed at 4 mtrs, extending them fully out when I was 'buzzed' by the first of many sea lions.

Wow ... they were everywhere - above, below and around us. 'Buzzing' me from top to bottom, I didn't know where to look next. These guys seemed to be just as excited to see us as we were to see them ... and in their state of excitement, they were looping, swimming in figure 8's and constantly on the move and I felt myself spinning around and around trying to catch a glimpse and lock focus on these beautiful animals.

Well sure enough, they tried to lead us out of the bay. The other divers followed.

Remembering Andrew's words during our brief, I held my ground ... but only to be left all alone - with no divers around me and certainly no sea lions. Where had they gone? Should I have followed them? But didn't Andrew say "Don't let them lead you away from the bay"?

I did stay all alone for what seemed an eternity (maybe 3 - 4 minutes) and thank god I did because just as was indicated in our dive brief, the sea lions came back and I had them all to myself.

However this time their excitement was more contained and they came back with an intriguing curiosity, wanting to check me out as much as I was wanting to observe them in their natural habitat.

The Australian Sea Lion is a species of sea lion that breeds only on the south and west coasts of Australia. These animals are fascinating. Their inquisitive nature almost gives them a human like quality.

One look into a sea lion's eyes and you gain a sense of emotional connection that is not experienced with other animals.

Once this heartfelt connection is made, it is impossible to have anything but complete admiration for them.

We were on a shark expedition to cage dive with Great White Sharks off the Neptune Islands ... and this opportunity came as a complete and unexpected surprise. This brief stop over at Hopkins Island turns out to be one of the most exciting dives I have had the pleasure to experience.The rest of the trip, i.e. the cage diving with Great White Sharks, well that's another story for some other time ... needless to say we have been invited back on another 'gratis' return trip to Neptune Islands ... perhaps it will be a case of '3rd time lucky'.

But as for the sea lions, I would do this trip all over again just for these absolutely fascinating animals. They are simply amazing ... not to mention adorable ...

And a little cheeky as well ...God love 'em!

Having a Jelly Good Time

Our recent Malaysia itinerary included a 2-day 2-night stunt to Redang Island in the North East of peninsular Malaysia; escaping the Australian cold for a few days and getting some dives in.

With me was young Matthew Weiss from DivePhotoGuide and we were both looking forward to a few days away after the long hard days of MIDE (Malaysia International Dive Expo) booth duties. Little did we know that the resort that had been arranged for us was massive. From arriving at Terrenganu airport we were numbered, slotted into rows, moved onto bus, then boat, then tractor ... then numbered again and then joining about 500 other resort guests for buffet lunch before we were allowed to check-in.

I did consider just ignoring this part or the trip in the write-up but from a divers point of view there were a few lessons to be learned and I believe these need to be shared. The resort offered snorkel trips twice a day and all you had to do was hire the gear from the resort and the boat trip was free. Which meant that 200 people went onto 5 or 6 boats all with life vests on and out to snorkel.

Fins are not allowed when snorkeling the marine reserves of Terenganu Marine Park as the past has showed massive amounts of coral damage by snorkellers standing and walking on the fragile coral reef. We decided to give this event a miss and go with the resort owned dive centre on a more intimate dive trip the next morning that had only 10 people on it. I had brought no dive gear at all apart from my trusted 'Nemo' and I was fitted in shorty and some reasonably decent gear. At that point the fact there might be some jellyfish was mentioned, but we shouldn't worry about that - so we didn't.

Out at the dive site we got ready and entered the water at what was going to be a 20-metre 40-minute dive and on entering the water I could see swarms of jellies with their long tentacles with red spots. The dive guides did not seem to be to perturbed about the fact and we started our descent through the jungle of jellies ... me trying to avoid getting touched by the nasty looking tentacles. At this point I should mention that the dive guides / instructors were wearing full wetsuits, hoods and gloves ... which I guess should have made me suspicious.

I survived for over 30 minutes without getting hit and Matt who had his own full wetsuit looked worried, but kept diving too. When the unavoidable finally happened I could not believe the pain ... one jelly had managed to hit my left leg and ankle (the booties I got were low-cut ankle free booties...).

We were still at 20 meters at that time and looking above me the dense jungle of jellyfish seemed impenetrable. How would we ever get back to the surface was what went through my head again and again. Then I heard Matt screaming underwater ... he got hit on his hand and looked in immense pain. I signaled the dive guide I was going up and tried to make my way through the jungle ... the well-protected guides tried to keep the jellies at bay with their steel pointers ... at some stage I grabbed the pointer from one of the guides and tried myself to keep my unprotected body parts tentacle free.

I somehow magically survived the ascent and safety stop without further damage, but the pain from my leg and ankle was quite strong. Then I heard Matt scream again ... he was hit again on his hand during the safety stop. We climbed onboard cursing and looking at our battle scars. We found the second group (which was a group of Open Water students) had their dive aborted by their instructor... which in hindsight seemed like the ONLY reasonable thing to do. After soaking my leg in a bottle of stinggoes (bless Australian technology ...) the pain temporarily subsided. Matt didn't stop cursing; his hand had swollen up more than my leg at that stage.

We cancelled our second dive for that day ....

Later that day I had a chat to the dive centre staff about the incident, but heard no excuses or apologies for the fact I was put into a shorty wetsuit through a see of very painful jelly tentacles ... very disappointing.

Why do I write all this? I don't want to mention the name of the resort of the dive centre but I believe it should suffice to say that wherever we go diving, we will encounter excellent, good and not so good dive centres ... and some are terrible.

We should be able to trust the local knowledge of any dive centre to make decisions of where to go and who to take, but we can't. In this situation despite 20 years of diving experience, I trusted the dive centre staff to make the right decision on continuing the dive or aborting it. Seeing the sea of jellies I thought to myself if we continue through this, the stings can't be that bad and I followed ... I should have known better.

Four days later my legs are still covered in red itchy spots ... but I will survive. Who knows, some other diver might have panicked at 20 metres after being stung, and the result might have been a more tragic one. Would that be negligent behavior of the dive center ... or would the waivers we signed save them from any consequences, who knows?

All that said, this shouldn't deter anyone from visiting Redang or any of the other islands of Terranganu. The island is beautiful and I was told the diving is actually excellent normally. The jellyfish we were told had been around for 2 weeks only and it was 'the first time we ever see them here in Redang ...'

Sports Massage - An Introduction

by: Richard Lane

Sports Massage - An Introduction Copyright 2005 Richard Lane Many therapists offer Sports Massage on their “Massage Menu” yet few understand what Sports Massage is about. When a client comes in requesting a Sports Massage, some therapists merely react by going in deep. Sports Massage is so much more. Whilst Sports Massage does have some aims in common with other forms of massage therapy, the usual experience in conventional massage is to aim to restore the normal function when someone is injured. But in sport there is no ‘normal’ and athletes are always looking to improve and gain a competitive edge. Most athletes aim to reach a level of performance they can never achieve. A Sports Massage therapist has great potential to assist the athlete to become better, rather than merely normal. In striving to be better, the athlete attempts to systematically increase the level of training and thereby subjecting the body to gradual and controlled overuse. This overuse can often create imbalances and problems in the soft tissues, which if ignored may become chronic. Clearly this may hinder the athlete’s performance and/or rate of improvement. Sports Massage can become a key ingredient in an athlete’s success and this is why top competitors incorporate it as an integral part of their training regime. So what is Sports Massage? McGillicuddy(1) defines Sports Massage as “the specific application of massage techniques, hydrotherapy protocols, range of motion/flexibility protocol and strength-training principles utilized to achieve a specific goal when treating athletes”. He considers that there are three principles that are vital to understanding what type of Sports Massage to apply to an athlete at any given time. These principles are:  Timing  Technique and  Intent The timing of Sports Massage is related to when the massage is applied, is it pre-event or post-event, during a maintenance period or possibly post-injury when rehabilitation is required. The technique refers to what massage/stretching/strengthening methods the therapists employs to attempt to achieve the intent, the desired outcome. The intent of pre-event massage is to warm up the muscles and to get blood flowing through the muscles. The massage techniques generally used are petrissage, vibration, percussion, compression, muscle broadening strokes, etc. With post-event massage, the intent is assist in the recovery process by increasing venous and lymphatic circulation to assist with removal of metabolic by-products and thereby decreasing muscle soreness so that the athlete can return to full training faster. The massage techniques would include effleurage, compression, petrissage, passive movements and light stretching. The intent of maintenance massage is to keep the athletes muscles and tissue in optimum condition and is generally scheduled at a regular frequency (be it weekly or fortnightly), closely married to the athlete’s training program. Thus Sports Massage is not about going deep nor it is learning one technique. The requirement for the therapist is to apply the appropriate treatment at the appropriate time, which takes education, skill and experience. (1) M. McGillicuddy. “Three Key Principles of Sports Massage”. MassageToday.com May 2003, Volume03 Issue 05. ---------------------------------------------------- Richard Lane is a qualified remedial and sports massage therapist, with a mobile massage practice in Sydney's Inner West (www.innerwestmassage.com.au or info@innerwestmassage.com.au). Health fund rebates. ATMS 13020

Richard Lane is a qualified remedial and sports massage therapist, with a mobile massage practice in Sydney's Inner West (www.innerwestmassage.com.au or info@innerwestmassage.com.au). Health fund rebates. ATMS 13020 Contact him at http://www.innerwestmassage.com.au

Kayaking Gifts for Christmas

by: Richard Chapo

Finding good Christmas gifts ideas is easy if you think about a persons hobbies. If you are buying for person who enjoys kayaking, here are a few ideas for kayaking gifts. Kayaking Gifts Kayaking is a sport that appears to require relatively small amounts of equipment. In truth, it is much more than a paddle and a kayak, which provides you with a lot of potential gift ideas. 1. Drip Rings – Drip rings are placed on each end of a paddle and keep water from running back up the paddle to your hands. While this may sound odd given that you’re sitting in water, it is incredibly annoying to have water running over your hands all of the times. Drip rings stop this, which makes them very useful. They are also incredibly cheap, costing no more than a few bucks. Aqua-Bound is as good a brand as any. 2. Alaska Sea Kayaking Adventures – If you’re looking for a big ticket item, why not give an Alaska Sea Kayaking trip as a gift? A number of companies in Alaska provide sea kayaking tours in Prince William Sound and other locations. There is nothing more impressive than paddling up to one of the glaciers overhanging the sea. The pure beauty will leave you astonished. The cost of trips varies, but most of the expense is getting to Alaska. Do an Internet search for “alaska kayaking” and you’ll find the providers. 3. Back Bands – Sitting in a kayak for a few hours is not easy on the lower back. Back bands are devices that fit into the seat area and provide lower back support similar to those you find for car seats. Back bands are a must for long crossings. A back band of good quality will set you back between $30 and $40. SealLine and Ocean Kayak are good brands. 4. Underdeck Bags – Underdeck bags act like a little glove compartment for kayaks. Watertight, they attach to the roof of the interior space on kayaks and act like a glove compartment in a car. Makes storing valuable such as car keys, maps and journals a breeze. North Water makes excellent underdeck bags and you can expect to pay roughly $40 for one. 5. Nomad Paddle Sports Journals – A bit of self-promotion here. Nomad Paddle Sports Journals are waterproof writing journals that let kayakers keep notes during and after their trips. Really great for writing down impressions, routes taken, things seen, people met, alternative routes to be tried in the future and so on. You can click the link at the bottom of this article to see the paddle sports journals which cost $8.99. Whether shooting the rapids of a river or cruising scenic bays, kayaking is a great sport. If you’re buying gifts for a kayaking enthusiast, the above list is a good place to start. Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com - makers of writing journals. Paddle sports journals are great kayaking gifts and Christmas gifts for him or her. Visit NomadJournalTrips.comto read outdoor adventure articles and stories. This article is free for republishing

Rick Chapo is with Nomad Travel Journals - makers of writing journals and BusinessTaxRecovery.com - recoverying overpaid business taxes for small businesses.