: I live in kelowna bc and water temp is about on par with your glass
: of iced tea at this time of year. Give it till August and it
: won't be that bad but I still am going to make a point of
: "swimming" more often.

: Dave g

Over here in Newfoundland our salt water only reaches the low teens at the height of summer. Our ocean temps are probably about 8 degrees at the moment. Right now our air temp is at 5 with a stiff NE wind blowing right in off the North Atlantic. The rain, drizzle and fog (RDF as it's know locally) is not helping - brrr!!

Still, with drysuits and proper thermals, we are IN the water all year 'round. The coldest for me was -15 air with the water near zero (the salt water was even getting slushy). http://mynewfoundlandkayakexperience.blogspot.ca/2010/01/watchin-wheels-go-round-and-round.html

But back on point, the best way to get to know your boat is to play in, on and with it!! Actually using it like a pool float is perfect. Crawling onto deck it and trying to balance teaches you all about the centre of gravity. Sitting high up on the cockpit rim while paddling teaches you all about balance as well. Trying different ways of getting back into the boat - whether practical or not - is vital for learning self rescue. One of my "signature" moves is flipping off the spray skirt, side sculling while I remove one leg at a time from the cockpit and draping them over the high side of the hull. Then holding the boat like this while I bring my legs back into the boat again. Is this practical? Nope. But's fun and it teaches you to become good at sculling. I like to call it kayak ballet!!

Also, playing in the actual water that you paddle is even more of a bonus - it gets you used the temperatures. In cooler climates, playing with your "full gear" on as opposed to you "pool gear" makes a big difference as well. The added buoyancy of your PFD and thermals can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. The extra buoyancy is great when you're trying to lift your bow out of the water when dumping your boat unassisted or when your balance bracing but it can slow down a roll. The extra flotation makes it harder to get yourself completely vertical under the boat as you set up.

But enough of my babbling.

Sean