Well, it’s the last few shopping days before Christmas 2009, so get ready for all the great things that come with the season: the end-of-year work crunch at your BDJ, daily trips to the airport, and of course, circling for hours looking for a parking spot at the mall when all you want is to buy some freaking batteries.

If there is a kayaker on your christmas/hannukah/festivus gift list, consider yourself lucky. There are a lot of gift ideas for kayakers, and they range in price from the cheap and lowly paddle leash to ridiculously pricey kayaks. But in order to hone in on the perfect gift, you’ll want to start by considering the basics.

1. Set your price range – There are gifts for kayakers in almost every price range. This shouldn’t be too hard.

2. What kind of kayaking does your kayaker prefer? Obviously, it helps to know a little about kayaking if you are buying something for a kayaker. A shiny new rudder, for example, would be appreciated more by a flatwater kayaker – not so much by a whitewater kayaker.

3. What kind of kayak does your kayaker have? You might be thinking about getting some kind of kayak fittings or accessories – for example, a compass, deck bag, or map case that can be strapped to the deck. But what your kayaker’s kayak is a sit-on-top kayak that doesn’t have a deck?

4. What does your kayaker do while out kayaking? Birdwatching? Photography? Fishing? Blogging? Maybe your kayaker is inclined to try out something new, like kayak fishing, and hasn’t yet. This may be your chance to gently suggest that your kayaker go catch a tiny fish whose size can be exaggerated to friends. Maybe it will be tiny, but it will taste like… satisfaction.

Maybe your kayaker is not a kayaker yet. You can also consider getting a coupon or voucher for a kayak tour or rental. A lot of people really want to try something new but need that extra push to actually make the leap. Do a search for local kayak tour and rental companies, then just call and ask if you can pre-purchase something like this.

OK, hopefully you’ve made some progress on that list of gift ideas. Good luck!

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