Hi, I'm Mark Sanders and I'm making this page
to show pictures and talk about the sport
of kayaking.
I live in Costa Mesa, CA and do most
of my paddling in the ocean off
the Newport Beach coast.
Check graph of Newport Beach tides
Heading back through the Golden Gate Bridge
Photo by Robert McMurray
To see my videos, go to the
'Kayaking with SandMarks'
show on YouTube
Steve Wilson sings Shark Bait
Kayak Angst
Santa Barbara photos
Wave-Ra Takes Me on a Journey
Get Your Daily Dose of Chocolate Brain!
Take a Ride on the Holiday Road
Past Day Paddle Reports
Read the Steve Sinclair Story
Doug Lloyd's Paean to "Fat Kayakers"
Pier Pressure
BARcuzzi
Surfin' Turf
A Community Service Message
View visitors log map
Ship's Log: The 100 Days of 2008
Photo by Duane Strosaker
This is my usual haunt, Big Arch rock between Corona del Mar beach and Cameo Shores. It's usually protected from large surf, but the swells that curve around the rock and pass through the arch to meet in the middle make for some fun action.
On calm days I'll paddle through, but I've got a few scratches and scrapes from an unplanned meeting with the rocks and waves on the other side.
I don't do much surfing, but I do like to hang out right around the break and punch through the outside waves as they come in. Something to get the adrenaline flowing a bit.
Whale Huntin'
On July 9th, I joined Duane Strosaker and 5 other hardy paddlers for a whale hunt out of Dana Point, CA. It turned out to be my most incredible day in a kayak. We shared the ocean with Sea Lions, a Sunfish, a flotilla of Dolphin and best of all Blue Whales! To read more go to:
A Most Incredible Day
To see the full versions of Duane's photos, visit his web site:
Roll or Drown
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Sometimes it's good to have the Blues!
Newport Beach, CA
Not a horrible place to be forced to paddle!
Here you can see my pump mounted behind the seat. I'm trying to figure out the best position for the Water Witch switch so that it turns off when the pump has removed as much water as it can. Right now I'm using a ten pack of rechargable NiMH batteries in a Pelican case. You can also see my high-tech back-flow preventer!
Here you can see one of my proudest moments as a kayaker, where I play the part of a capsized kayaker in a demonstration on how not to aid a fellow paddler!
Photo by Duane Strosaker
My Other Pages
Big Water at Big Arch
Traditional Arctic Kayak Symposium, 2007
More T.A.K.S. '07
Brass T.A.K.S.
Duane Strosaker at T.A.K.S.
Traditional Arctic Kayak Symposium 2006
More T.A.K.S. '06
The Rogue Otters
Big Island Piddle Paddle
Surf n Turf
Surf n Turf II
Surf n Turf III
Crescent Bay Paddle
Whoa Nellie
Kayaking 2006, Year in Review
Kayaking the Elk Coast with Force Ten
My First 20 Miler
My Kayaks
My main kayak is a QCC XL500 in Kevlar.
I've had it for about 6 years and think it's a great boat for us larger paddlers.
Anybody see the movie "Tommy Boy"?
"Fat guy in a little boat, fat guy in a little booat"!
I've got a Mayan Seas Delfin at about 10 1/2 feet that I use for surfing.
For Rock Gardening, I have a Dagger RPM Max.
I also have an Old Town Loon 160 tandem which is a fun, no worries paddling platform.
My Gear
I've got an Onno paddle, 220cm Signature model with Full Tour blades.
Light and stiff and a great price.
In Aught six, I made my own Greenland paddle and I also have
one of Duane Strosaker's handmade spruce and carbon paddles.
My Paddle Float
My Camera
On the water, I use a Pentax Optio W10. I also have a Canon Digital Rebel with a 17-85mm Ultrasonic lens with image stabilization.
Check out my camera/paddle cradle
To see my video set up check out:
The Captain's Mast
"Always be a Gootleman"
Good Links
California Kayaking Friends
View visitors log map
marksanders at sandmarks dot net