It's important that the sprayskirt fit the cockpit perfectly. If it's too small, it won't go all the way around. If it's too big, the seal will be loose and allow water into the boat.

Meredith and Mom went to the lake at Centennial Park on Sunday, June 6, 2004 for a few hours of kayaking and birding. These are the first pictures ever taken of Meredith paddling in her new NuNu XL kayak!

We traded the camera back and forth periodically, so there are pictures here from both vantage points -- land and water.

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flyaway > Undoing the very long cam straps that keep the kayak firmly in place while the car is moving.

flyaway > Hoisting the boat -- which weighs 43 pounds! -- off the top of the car.

flyaway > "What do you mean I'm supposed to unwrap it before I eat it?!"

flyaway > Meredith finds the straps on her Wonderjacket PFD a bit tricky, but she always checks to make sure they're fastened correctly. (A PFD is a Personal Flotation Device -- what most people call a lifejacket.)

flyaway > After putting her paddle together, Meredith is almost ready!.

flyaway > Sprayskirts look funny when you're just walking around on land, but they keep the drips and spray out of the cockpit while you're on the water.

flyaway > Concrete isn't a great surface to launch from, but the boat is made of plastic so a few scratches won't hurt it ... much.

flyaway > It's important that the sprayskirt fit the cockpit perfectly. If it's too small, it won't go all the way around. If it's too big, the seal will be loose and allow water into the boat.

flyaway > The water is too shallow to paddle here, but pushing the paddle against the concrete floor will get the boat to deeper water.

It's important that the sprayskirt fit the cockpit perfectly. If it's too small, it won't go all the way around. If it's too big, the seal will be loose and allow water into the boat.