Day 83 - 'Tideline 15'

This morning I got a crazy half baked idea to take the Wednesday morning group up to the end of sail bay to do the San Rafael street portage I discovered a couple weeks ago. All twelve of us cruised north to the end of the bay and landed on the beach west of the Catamaran resort. A few of us immediately carried our boats over to the Pacific side while others came over to investigate the contitions before commiting to the surf launch. While these wise contemplative folks rubbed their chins looking at the 3-4 foot, somewhat dumpy, surf the rest of us went back and carried over their boats as well, thus making their minds up for them. Some in our group had never launched through the surf before so the more experienced among us gave them a quick primer on how it's done then sat back to watch the show. Most made it through without too much trouble but two unfortunate souls in our group didn't fair quite so well. My hat's off to those two however for drying themselves off and going right back at it for a successful second attempt.




Today I borrowed Paulette's Tideline 15 which was built by the gentleman that manufactures Onno paddles. Paulette informed me that the mold has been sold to SEDA but those guys haven't incorporated it into their line quite yet. The 15 has a generously sized cockpit and high seat back found in many relaxed day touring kayaks. Unlike so many of those types of boats however, this little boat cruises along quite efficiently and handles quite well. I had no problem keeping up with the group and handled the surf zone comfortably while I searched for a lost hat. It's a pretty nice boat that would work well for anybody looking for an easy entry day touring boat that doesn't sacrifice an inordinate amount of performance.


Tideline 15


Manufacturer = Tideline
Brand = Tideline
Model = Tideline 15
Type = Touring
Material = Fiberglass
Length = 14'-10"
Width = 23.5"
Weight = 50.5 lbs.


Location = San Rafael portage
Time = 7:00 AM
Distance = N/A
Duration = 1:45 hours
Avg. Speed = N/A
Conditions = Sunny and calm with interesting surf