The paddles from Lendal are finally in NZ customs waiting to be processed, Kayak skirts from Rasdex are being made and will be here along with our food supplies form Back country cuisine.
Dave flies into the country today, however I have two great mates getting married today and I am a Groomsmen, so I am unable to be there to pick up dave and all the equipment he is bringing. hopefully he will be able to stay with some friends of mine till the wedding events are all over.
Another tropical cyclone has just come through, the third in 20 days, next week will finally be action stations, with our Kayaks getting kited out, gear being packed , food being rationed, charts plotted, electronics checked.
unfortunately the Folding Trak Kayak is out, while paddling in the surf on the Great Barrier island a week ago, i did some damage to the boat, and it has become apparent that in this challenging coast line of NZ, i can not afford to gamble with the boats abillity to carry a full load, Deal with heavy surf breaks day after day, and stay in an operational state. the boat is amazing, though i have to made the hard decision that this adventure may be just out of its range, and there is too much at stake.
more adventures to be had with the Trak later however, and it is still a great option for use on short legs for guest paddlers who may want to join us.
Showing posts with label The Lead Up. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Lead Up. Show all posts
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Pure Productions
things are looking good for the documentary, and we plan to have video updates posted to the blog, so everyone can get a good visual insight into the journey.
It will be challenging, fun, amazing, scary, tiring and invigorating.
Jamie Mackenzie and I used to work together leading and instructing school groups back in the day.
Jamie had a background in film, and i was privileged to be around when he decided to embrace his dream of running a production company and started Pure. I worked a little for him as a sound man and actor for some of his contracts, as he spent the nights editing in his living room. I now find him in a large production building, with multiple employees, awards and a business partner. Pure is the real deal now!
Thanks for all the Help with this project Jamie it is great to have you and Pure productions on board.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Kayak Down Under Documentary Donate and Create
Name in Credits, extended DVD and a Limited edition photo blow up from the trip. signed with thanks from Dave and Jaime
Named as Executive producer plus all the perks of the $400 dollar slot
THIS HAS BEEN TAKEN!!
Named as Executive producer plus all the perks of the $400 dollar slotTHIS HAS BEEN TAKEN!!
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Trip Postponed
Unfortunatley due to a number of issues arrising in the last few weeks we are having to postpone the trip till Feb 1st 2011. This will add new challenges to the trip as it greatly reduces our time frame to complete the journey.
This has occurred due to a number of reasons
1. our camera equipment has not turned up in full.
2. we are having trouble with our paddles getting into the country
3. I am having Family issues ( ah gotta love coming back to the homeland at Christmas).
4. Dave will be here then and we can both start the trip together.
5. we still need to find applicable safety gear, like Epirbs, Helmets, sat phone and money is running short.
We may unfortunatley have to cut certain parts of coast line out in order to complete the task of getting to Stewart Island. No set ideas as yet, we need to see how things go, once we finally get on the water.
Sorry for the disapointment, but better to start of right than fumble along half assed!!
This has occurred due to a number of reasons
1. our camera equipment has not turned up in full.
2. we are having trouble with our paddles getting into the country
3. I am having Family issues ( ah gotta love coming back to the homeland at Christmas).
4. Dave will be here then and we can both start the trip together.
5. we still need to find applicable safety gear, like Epirbs, Helmets, sat phone and money is running short.
We may unfortunatley have to cut certain parts of coast line out in order to complete the task of getting to Stewart Island. No set ideas as yet, we need to see how things go, once we finally get on the water.
Sorry for the disapointment, but better to start of right than fumble along half assed!!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Down to the wire take off too NZ
The transmission on my car in Canada jammed up on me, back in may, 2 days before I flew out to Norway. Now 3 months after, a new transmission being placed in the car, the transmission is playing up again. Due to the fact that I will be in NZ for the next 6 months and the warranty on the tranny will expire before then, I needed to get the car to the mechanic so they could fix the problem. However I had 24 hours till I flew out and needed to get the car back over to Vancouver from Vancouver Island. The good thing is, I needed to get over there for my flight. The bad thing is the car needs to get back to Vancouver Island for storage and I will be gone.
Thanks Karin, Kerry and Joslyn in Cumberland for offering to pick it up from the mechanics when the tranny is done and letting me store the car at their place, and of course they are free to use it!
Yesterday, Saturday, I went to the Nanaimo paddlers Christmas party (www.nanaimopaddlers.org), and meet a bunch of new people, and some old friends. We exchanged gifts, ate and sang some songs. I meet a great guy randy, who makes Greenland paddles). After talking to him for awhile about the NZ trip and his paddles, Randy ended up gifting me a paddle. I was gob smacked by the gift. I would love to be able to take to NZ with me to paddle, however it won’t be possible, so I look forward to getting back to BC and using it next June. Thanks Loads Randy! www.vipaddles.com
After storing my personal stuff, in the basement at my dear friend Lyn Hancock’s, I loaded up my car. Lyn is a friend and mother figure for me in Canada, she is an amazing woman who has travelled the world and lived with and raised many amazing wild creatures, and has written 22 books as well as thousands of travel articles. Thanks Lyn for storing my gear, kayaks and for the support and inspiration, over the years! www.lynhancock.com
With the Trak Kayak, my big bag, my paddle bag (loaded with laptop, Lendal Paddle, extra camera gear, clothes and snacks) and my wheelie Storm case with all my electronics in it all piled in the back of my station wagon I zoomed to the ferry terminal (tranny playing up a bit as I went). I got to the 7pm sailing and was to meet my mate Jason on the other side and stay with him in Vancouver. When I arrived at the other side I parked my car in the village and started reading the new wave length kayak magazine I got (www.wavelength.com), next minute there is a knock on the window.
A Police man stood at my window, my heart sank, my insurance had expired and I hadn’t had time to renew it and was planning on doing it the next day on the way to the mechanic, but no. I ended up with my car towed to North Vancouver and impounded until I got my insurance. Shit!
It could have been worse I could have had my car impounded for 7days and given a $600 fine. I got away with an $80 fine and a tow fee. Thanks Mr. nice police man. Jason picked me up and we went out and drank and talked to the early hours of the morning. The conversation consisted of life philosophy, woman, outdoor passions, relationships and how it all mixes. Very deep and endless!
Tired and groggy we awoke this morning after 3 and a half hours sleep, and casually (slowly) got to sorting out my car. First step was to find a broker that was open on a Sunday, then pay for new insurance for three months, then go back to the car yard, post bail on the car, drive back across Vancouver city, drop the car at the mechanics, put the key in an envelope through the mail slot. After a load of driving, Jason helping by driving me around and then picking me up at the mechanics, We went for a great Falafel Kebab, then he took me to the airport and said goodbye till next summer.
Thanks Jason for all your help. Jason is an Alternative Energy engineer who does house installments for better heating and cooling systems. www.stage3renewables.com
The next adventure today was my baggage. I had two check-in pieces with me, but needed to get more gear in LA when I stopped over there for 4 hours on the way back to Auckland. So I would have to pay $225 for the third bag, and it could be overweight and oversized, which worked great as on Air Canada and Air New Zealand (whom I was both flying with) the Trak kayak was both of those. So I hoped I could declare the bags now, pay for the Trak Kayak as the third check in and avoid the other $100 oversize fee, then put the new check bag with gear from sponsors, in at LA.
Ahhh, of course! The way my 24hours where going, that wasn’t to be. They couldn’t check and invisible bag and they couldn’t turn a blind eye to my oversized Trak bag, despite trying to discuss several alternatives and explaining what I was trying to do. UGH! So $100 bucks more down.
The flight to LA was painless and I walked out into rain in southern California, and the big grins of my friend Kelly Schaefer and her mum Laurie. I meet these two as clients of mine down in Belize at the start of the year, and they allowed me to post stuff to their place in LA, so I could pick it up on the last day on the way to NZ and avoid import and extra shipping costs to Canada (however these savings may have been countered by the extra $225 third bag fee?). So I jumped into the car with the girls and headed out for dinner. The back of the SUV was full of boxes!! Christmas early for me!
There was a big Box of Kokatat Gear (www.kokatat.com), Joby Gorrillapods (www.joby.com),Solar panels from Power Film www.powerfilmsolar.com Go Pro Head cams and attachments, all of whom had offered great support for the upcoming trip and sent out appropriate gear. There were also, extra hard drives for storing footage and photos, as well as a solar energy storage system. So after a great Mexican dinner, there was a great box unwrapping and gear unpackaging, inside the SUV while it rained all around us. It was fun to pull all the new gear out and see it briefly, before shoving it in the big folding pack I had brought with me carry on.
Suddenly I realized; as all the boxes emptied their contents, that unfortunately, what wasn’t there, was the HD video camera and underwater dive housing plus extra tripod mount systems I had ordered. Ahhh crap! I am now not sure what to do. It will arrive eventually, and either I will ask the girls to send it to NZ after taking all the packaging of it all, so it appears used, and hopefully avoid customs. Or get it posted to Arizona where Dave can pick it up and bring it with him to NZ in two months, and I find a replacement in NZ till then. HMMMM. Thanks Again Laurie and Kelly for the postal drop, Dinner and the friendship!
Back to the airport, I went and checked in my new bag, and to my amazement got billed $50 for the bag, yes finally a break! Oh what, not to be. A nosey head of department, noted I had already paid for another bag and so this bag, must be charged at $175!! Oh come on piss off. I tried to be polite and get out of it, but he was having none of it!! My boyish charm and accent doesn’t work on middle aged fat American men. Grrrr!
Ok so the bank book took a major hit today.
$60 ferry ticket for the car I didn’t need to bring over if not for the tranny.
$80 police fine
$180 tow and storage fee
$250 insurance I don’t get to use
$100 oversize luggage fee
$175 extra bag fee
$885 Canadian down and out!!
SHIIIEEETTT!!
Let’s hope I can get through NZ customs without paying any fees!
I boarded the plane from LA at 10pm and now sit, cozy in my exit row set with tones of leg room, and prepare to watch a couple of movies then sleep as much as I can before my 8am arrival in Auckland city on Tuesday the 7th Dec. Man, I even lose Monday on this trip!
I am very thankful for friends and Help. A project like this would get nowhere without all the great people I know that have helped me get it together, and have believed in my ambitions and have helped counter all the hardships that other people throw at me (though not maliciously).
THANKS EVERYONE!!
Thanks Karin, Kerry and Joslyn in Cumberland for offering to pick it up from the mechanics when the tranny is done and letting me store the car at their place, and of course they are free to use it!
Yesterday, Saturday, I went to the Nanaimo paddlers Christmas party (www.nanaimopaddlers.org), and meet a bunch of new people, and some old friends. We exchanged gifts, ate and sang some songs. I meet a great guy randy, who makes Greenland paddles). After talking to him for awhile about the NZ trip and his paddles, Randy ended up gifting me a paddle. I was gob smacked by the gift. I would love to be able to take to NZ with me to paddle, however it won’t be possible, so I look forward to getting back to BC and using it next June. Thanks Loads Randy! www.vipaddles.com
After storing my personal stuff, in the basement at my dear friend Lyn Hancock’s, I loaded up my car. Lyn is a friend and mother figure for me in Canada, she is an amazing woman who has travelled the world and lived with and raised many amazing wild creatures, and has written 22 books as well as thousands of travel articles. Thanks Lyn for storing my gear, kayaks and for the support and inspiration, over the years! www.lynhancock.com
With the Trak Kayak, my big bag, my paddle bag (loaded with laptop, Lendal Paddle, extra camera gear, clothes and snacks) and my wheelie Storm case with all my electronics in it all piled in the back of my station wagon I zoomed to the ferry terminal (tranny playing up a bit as I went). I got to the 7pm sailing and was to meet my mate Jason on the other side and stay with him in Vancouver. When I arrived at the other side I parked my car in the village and started reading the new wave length kayak magazine I got (www.wavelength.com), next minute there is a knock on the window.
A Police man stood at my window, my heart sank, my insurance had expired and I hadn’t had time to renew it and was planning on doing it the next day on the way to the mechanic, but no. I ended up with my car towed to North Vancouver and impounded until I got my insurance. Shit!
It could have been worse I could have had my car impounded for 7days and given a $600 fine. I got away with an $80 fine and a tow fee. Thanks Mr. nice police man. Jason picked me up and we went out and drank and talked to the early hours of the morning. The conversation consisted of life philosophy, woman, outdoor passions, relationships and how it all mixes. Very deep and endless!
Tired and groggy we awoke this morning after 3 and a half hours sleep, and casually (slowly) got to sorting out my car. First step was to find a broker that was open on a Sunday, then pay for new insurance for three months, then go back to the car yard, post bail on the car, drive back across Vancouver city, drop the car at the mechanics, put the key in an envelope through the mail slot. After a load of driving, Jason helping by driving me around and then picking me up at the mechanics, We went for a great Falafel Kebab, then he took me to the airport and said goodbye till next summer.
Thanks Jason for all your help. Jason is an Alternative Energy engineer who does house installments for better heating and cooling systems. www.stage3renewables.com
The next adventure today was my baggage. I had two check-in pieces with me, but needed to get more gear in LA when I stopped over there for 4 hours on the way back to Auckland. So I would have to pay $225 for the third bag, and it could be overweight and oversized, which worked great as on Air Canada and Air New Zealand (whom I was both flying with) the Trak kayak was both of those. So I hoped I could declare the bags now, pay for the Trak Kayak as the third check in and avoid the other $100 oversize fee, then put the new check bag with gear from sponsors, in at LA.
Ahhh, of course! The way my 24hours where going, that wasn’t to be. They couldn’t check and invisible bag and they couldn’t turn a blind eye to my oversized Trak bag, despite trying to discuss several alternatives and explaining what I was trying to do. UGH! So $100 bucks more down.
The flight to LA was painless and I walked out into rain in southern California, and the big grins of my friend Kelly Schaefer and her mum Laurie. I meet these two as clients of mine down in Belize at the start of the year, and they allowed me to post stuff to their place in LA, so I could pick it up on the last day on the way to NZ and avoid import and extra shipping costs to Canada (however these savings may have been countered by the extra $225 third bag fee?). So I jumped into the car with the girls and headed out for dinner. The back of the SUV was full of boxes!! Christmas early for me!
There was a big Box of Kokatat Gear (www.kokatat.com), Joby Gorrillapods (www.joby.com),Solar panels from Power Film www.powerfilmsolar.com Go Pro Head cams and attachments, all of whom had offered great support for the upcoming trip and sent out appropriate gear. There were also, extra hard drives for storing footage and photos, as well as a solar energy storage system. So after a great Mexican dinner, there was a great box unwrapping and gear unpackaging, inside the SUV while it rained all around us. It was fun to pull all the new gear out and see it briefly, before shoving it in the big folding pack I had brought with me carry on.
Suddenly I realized; as all the boxes emptied their contents, that unfortunately, what wasn’t there, was the HD video camera and underwater dive housing plus extra tripod mount systems I had ordered. Ahhh crap! I am now not sure what to do. It will arrive eventually, and either I will ask the girls to send it to NZ after taking all the packaging of it all, so it appears used, and hopefully avoid customs. Or get it posted to Arizona where Dave can pick it up and bring it with him to NZ in two months, and I find a replacement in NZ till then. HMMMM. Thanks Again Laurie and Kelly for the postal drop, Dinner and the friendship!
Back to the airport, I went and checked in my new bag, and to my amazement got billed $50 for the bag, yes finally a break! Oh what, not to be. A nosey head of department, noted I had already paid for another bag and so this bag, must be charged at $175!! Oh come on piss off. I tried to be polite and get out of it, but he was having none of it!! My boyish charm and accent doesn’t work on middle aged fat American men. Grrrr!
Ok so the bank book took a major hit today.
$60 ferry ticket for the car I didn’t need to bring over if not for the tranny.
$80 police fine
$180 tow and storage fee
$250 insurance I don’t get to use
$100 oversize luggage fee
$175 extra bag fee
$885 Canadian down and out!!
SHIIIEEETTT!!
Let’s hope I can get through NZ customs without paying any fees!
I boarded the plane from LA at 10pm and now sit, cozy in my exit row set with tones of leg room, and prepare to watch a couple of movies then sleep as much as I can before my 8am arrival in Auckland city on Tuesday the 7th Dec. Man, I even lose Monday on this trip!
I am very thankful for friends and Help. A project like this would get nowhere without all the great people I know that have helped me get it together, and have believed in my ambitions and have helped counter all the hardships that other people throw at me (though not maliciously).
THANKS EVERYONE!!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Pan North America trip
 | |
| The Trak atop the Taurus in Seattle |
The last couple of weeks have been spent journeying south along the length of the USA, to clear up and finalize some unfinished business with my best friend and ex fiancé, who now lives in Merced California. It was an emotional time, raising issues of me leaving her for my “crazy dreams of adventure”, I feel I can’t do while staying with her, and my desires to be with her and live our love.
My journey started with me shooting straight to Eugene Oregon, to catch up with Ian Westmoreland, his Toyota Tacoma and dog buddy, who I all last saw in Costa Rica, earlier in the year, after we drove from Belize to panama. It was a fun contrast to now catch up with them in Oregon and go camp up in the woods in winter, after last adventuring in the tropics. More of that story here
We put the Trak in an almost empty lake for a paddle, before heading into the trees to camp beneath a water fall, under an overhanging cliff. We had a fire, cooked pasta, drank beer and talked shit about Sasquatch. In the morning we awoke to find 6 inches on fresh snow had fallen, which answered the question of why we suddenly got so cold in the night.
I then moved on south to catch up with Nina and spend a week with her sorting out life. It ended with bitter sweet love knowing that we both need to follow very different paths at the moment to for full our ambitions. There is lots of love and respect between us and that is great.Doesn't mean the hearts aren't aching over this, we are great together.
 |
| Pic of Nina and I, a couple of years ago at Rainbow Bridge Utah. |
In the mean time I did a lot of sponsorship soliciting, and logistics for the NZ expedition. Man this stuff takes a lot of time. Some friends from Phoenix where coming out to the coast to paddle for thanks giving, so I headed to southern LA, to surf kayak with them and camp out. Turned out to be one of the few weekends where there was no surf. I got some great distance paddling along the coast in the Trak. Cresting waves that rolled at me, side on, as I pushed along the coast in the lovely warm sun (a nice change after the winter paddling in BC). I started getting an idea again of what the NZ trip will be like. I can’t wait.Got out paddling with my mate Hut Wade of Journeys west in his Cedar Strip kayak. very nice boat!! his Non Profit Org, does guiding and also works with homeless kids and gets them into the outdoors. awesome. http://www.journeyswest.org/
I then headed north again, loading my gear, saying good bye to Nina, and sleeping in a rest stop in Oregon , the first sleep amongst my stuff in the back. The next day I stopped in at Charlie and Marianne's in Seattle. I meet this wonderful couple in Belize earlier this year, and Charlie and I had some great talks and found that we where similar people, and he having a few years on me became a bit of a mentor. Thus I was dying for the chance to sit and catch up with him as soon as I could. These two also helped me a lot by letting me post gear I needed to them, and being full supporters of my ambitions they donated some finances to the cause.
Thanks heaps for everything guys.
That led to me driving on the next night from Seattle, all the way up to horseshoe bay to catch the 9pm ferry, to find that on this day, Wednesday, there is no 9pm ferry. I will sleep here tonight and get the 6.30 am one.
I fly out in three days now, so much to do and so little time. All this prep is driving me nuts but I also really enjoy it. Sponsors are coming through and lots of money being spent of gear.
 |
| My sleeping bag jammed down the right side, even more jammed when I am sleeping in it! |
Bring it on let’s make it work!
 |
| The View out of our cave in the morning!! |
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Response to my adventure tales
http://www.nanaimopaddlers.org/
www.kayakdownundernz.blogspot.com
Sunday, November 14, 2010
31 Nautical Miles to Home
They say those who make mistakes are those people who haven’t a clue or those who know better.
People with half a brain on a subject generally avoid possible conflict with it, however those who tend to deal with something a lot can become a bit blasé and over look a little thing that can lead to an interesting adventure, though could also lead to tragedy. Tragedy is often the outcome for those who don’t have a clue, though hopefully those who should know better know how to deal with the mistake and come out of it with a smile.
My recent mistake (though not a super critical one) lead to an interesting adventure, however I should point out it was a shared mistake and a shared adventure, and shared by two people who should know better and thankfully, by Luck and preparedness, where able to get through it.
After being on Vancouver Island awhile I wanted to explore a bit so I had loaded my folding Trak kayak onto its travel bag from the roof of my car, using the bag with wheels as a kayak cart and Boarded the ferry to Powell River as foot traffic. I was heading over to catch up with a Friend Hugh who ran an outdoor adventure operation there, he had turned down my request to join me for the paddle over the Georgia straight from Comox to Powell river, in hopes of a less character building paddle (this trip would have been 16 nautical miles and about 5 hours) but had invited me to come stay the night at his place for a great dinner and the next day head to Saltery Bay south of Powell River with the thought of exploring the area.
The next day after a lazy start, we headed of with the idea of circumnavigating Nelson Island. As we unloaded and set up the boats, Hugh asked if I was worried about looking at a chart, I replied “nah should be ok.” Hugh agreed saying “yeah I feel the same and that there should be Nelson Island!”. At this I shuddered “Ah, ok maybe we should have a quick look then.” as my inner voice spoke warnings. We perused the Chart to get exact bearings on where the island was, I did a quick distance calculation with my hand span, and stated that it would be about a 16-18 nautical mile paddle which should be about 5 hours. Hugh agreed. I ignored a little voice in my head as we stuck the chart back in the car and headed to the water.
It was a stunning day on the inside passage of BC, the mountains where swept by low clouds, the water glass flat and only a breath of air hinting at moving. As we pushed off across the liquid glass, paddling smoothly into the reflected horizon of the hilly shores of Nelson Island, we both stated how it was the perfect day for a casual paddle of a good length. We paddled along step cliff shoreline, with Cormorant perched in tiny nooks and crannies, and along the edges of large trees who’s leaves touched the water (as it was high tide) and merged with their almost perfect mirror image. This was one of those west coast winter days that was mild and calm, yet crisp and cool and left you grinning from ear to ear at the beauty of it all.
We paddled for a couple of hours and eventually stopped for lunch and a pee on a little beach. Here we found a huge sea urchin skeleton, it was almost as big as my head, and must have been bigger with it spines still attached when it was alive. After a short stop, we shoved off back on to the water, and picked up the pace we had been dawdling up to this point now we put in a good pace especially now with the ebb current going with us.
Paddling down the pass that we felt should have only taken a bit; Hugh decided to check his GPS. 4 hours into the paddle and we seemed to be only half way round. That doesn’t make sense, we must have been dawdling more than we thought. “Well we should be fine now we have picked up the pace” we commented “and we are now moving much faster, and it just as far back as it is forward.” We both agreed, still not checking any other info.
Two hours later and we were still beating along the coast of the island just rounding the western side and suddenly I realised the mistake that the little voice back at the dock was warning me of. We didn’t check the scale! It must have been a 1:90,000 scale map not a 1:50000 and my calculations where off by almost double, we had now committed to at least a 30 nautical mile (not a 16 NM) journey, and we were at this point 6 and a half hours into it. Only way to go was forward and now it was getting dark, this will be fun. We do have a GPS, but it was low on battery, Hugh had also brought headlamps, and we had a basic shelter if need be, and VHF radios, but no cell to call Hughes wife to tell her we would be late. It would be no disaster this trip, but I reflected on how it could be; We just need to injure ourselves (easily done if we didn’t have good paddling technique), get separated in the dark by a squall or strong winds, get hit by a boat, etc ,.
However for us it was a hard long paddle full of; hurt, effort and uncomfort, but also full of wonder, beauty, reward and achievement. The clouds cleared in the dark as we paddled into a ten knot head wind with a one foot swell, the moon shone down upon us and the stars danced among the clouds. Hugh and I paddled on, entering after 2 hours of darkness into the channel leading back to Saltery bay. The water became glass flat again and the wind disappeared, the stars shone from above and below us, as seals snorted at us from the rocks we paddled by. The shore became deceptively close due its reflection on the water, we paddled the shore of a large Island in the middle of the channel and at the end of it we turned to see the ferry terminal all lit up and we crossed, overly aware that we had no lights and a ferry could come anytime.
We punched across the channel tired and sore, and pulled up to the dock, dragging ourselves out of our boats, after sitting in them for 6 and half hours nonstop, since our last pee break, and had just finished a 10 hour 31 nautical mile paddle, without intending too, with 3 hours of it being in the dark. Oh and on top of that I had done it all in a folding boat the Trak T-1600 which had kept pace and performance with a Kevlar Current Designs Gulfstream almost a foot longer. What a wonderful trip it was, though we both knew we were exhausted and we both knew we would feel it in the morning. I was planning on paddling back across to Comox the next day, though I felt certain I wouldn’t, however I would see what I felt like in the morning. Though when I awoke the next day, I was so tired and the weather was so bad, I took the ferry back instead.
At the end of the trip I had stated “such a trip would be hard to sanely plan.”, and Hugh stated “and that’s why we didn’t plan that well! “
sometimes it is fun and interesting to throw yourself at something you haven’t quite given much thought to, only though if you are happy to have your limits pushed past what you know and directly face your own personal unknowns, as well as those in the environment around you.
Here’s to adventure, may we all find it!
J
People with half a brain on a subject generally avoid possible conflict with it, however those who tend to deal with something a lot can become a bit blasé and over look a little thing that can lead to an interesting adventure, though could also lead to tragedy. Tragedy is often the outcome for those who don’t have a clue, though hopefully those who should know better know how to deal with the mistake and come out of it with a smile.
My recent mistake (though not a super critical one) lead to an interesting adventure, however I should point out it was a shared mistake and a shared adventure, and shared by two people who should know better and thankfully, by Luck and preparedness, where able to get through it.
 | |
| Trak on the Ferry |
After being on Vancouver Island awhile I wanted to explore a bit so I had loaded my folding Trak kayak onto its travel bag from the roof of my car, using the bag with wheels as a kayak cart and Boarded the ferry to Powell River as foot traffic. I was heading over to catch up with a Friend Hugh who ran an outdoor adventure operation there, he had turned down my request to join me for the paddle over the Georgia straight from Comox to Powell river, in hopes of a less character building paddle (this trip would have been 16 nautical miles and about 5 hours) but had invited me to come stay the night at his place for a great dinner and the next day head to Saltery Bay south of Powell River with the thought of exploring the area.
 |
| Loading up Hughs truck |
The next day after a lazy start, we headed of with the idea of circumnavigating Nelson Island. As we unloaded and set up the boats, Hugh asked if I was worried about looking at a chart, I replied “nah should be ok.” Hugh agreed saying “yeah I feel the same and that there should be Nelson Island!”. At this I shuddered “Ah, ok maybe we should have a quick look then.” as my inner voice spoke warnings. We perused the Chart to get exact bearings on where the island was, I did a quick distance calculation with my hand span, and stated that it would be about a 16-18 nautical mile paddle which should be about 5 hours. Hugh agreed. I ignored a little voice in my head as we stuck the chart back in the car and headed to the water.
 |
| The boats ready to go |
It was a stunning day on the inside passage of BC, the mountains where swept by low clouds, the water glass flat and only a breath of air hinting at moving. As we pushed off across the liquid glass, paddling smoothly into the reflected horizon of the hilly shores of Nelson Island, we both stated how it was the perfect day for a casual paddle of a good length. We paddled along step cliff shoreline, with Cormorant perched in tiny nooks and crannies, and along the edges of large trees who’s leaves touched the water (as it was high tide) and merged with their almost perfect mirror image. This was one of those west coast winter days that was mild and calm, yet crisp and cool and left you grinning from ear to ear at the beauty of it all.
 |
| Beautiful day on the water |
Paddling down the pass that we felt should have only taken a bit; Hugh decided to check his GPS. 4 hours into the paddle and we seemed to be only half way round. That doesn’t make sense, we must have been dawdling more than we thought. “Well we should be fine now we have picked up the pace” we commented “and we are now moving much faster, and it just as far back as it is forward.” We both agreed, still not checking any other info.
 |
| A big sea urchin skeleton we found |
Two hours later and we were still beating along the coast of the island just rounding the western side and suddenly I realised the mistake that the little voice back at the dock was warning me of. We didn’t check the scale! It must have been a 1:90,000 scale map not a 1:50000 and my calculations where off by almost double, we had now committed to at least a 30 nautical mile (not a 16 NM) journey, and we were at this point 6 and a half hours into it. Only way to go was forward and now it was getting dark, this will be fun. We do have a GPS, but it was low on battery, Hugh had also brought headlamps, and we had a basic shelter if need be, and VHF radios, but no cell to call Hughes wife to tell her we would be late. It would be no disaster this trip, but I reflected on how it could be; We just need to injure ourselves (easily done if we didn’t have good paddling technique), get separated in the dark by a squall or strong winds, get hit by a boat, etc ,.
However for us it was a hard long paddle full of; hurt, effort and uncomfort, but also full of wonder, beauty, reward and achievement. The clouds cleared in the dark as we paddled into a ten knot head wind with a one foot swell, the moon shone down upon us and the stars danced among the clouds. Hugh and I paddled on, entering after 2 hours of darkness into the channel leading back to Saltery bay. The water became glass flat again and the wind disappeared, the stars shone from above and below us, as seals snorted at us from the rocks we paddled by. The shore became deceptively close due its reflection on the water, we paddled the shore of a large Island in the middle of the channel and at the end of it we turned to see the ferry terminal all lit up and we crossed, overly aware that we had no lights and a ferry could come anytime.
We punched across the channel tired and sore, and pulled up to the dock, dragging ourselves out of our boats, after sitting in them for 6 and half hours nonstop, since our last pee break, and had just finished a 10 hour 31 nautical mile paddle, without intending too, with 3 hours of it being in the dark. Oh and on top of that I had done it all in a folding boat the Trak T-1600 which had kept pace and performance with a Kevlar Current Designs Gulfstream almost a foot longer. What a wonderful trip it was, though we both knew we were exhausted and we both knew we would feel it in the morning. I was planning on paddling back across to Comox the next day, though I felt certain I wouldn’t, however I would see what I felt like in the morning. Though when I awoke the next day, I was so tired and the weather was so bad, I took the ferry back instead.
 |
| Hugh trying to get his legs to work after 6 and a half hours on sitting. |
 |
| Still dont work! |
At the end of the trip I had stated “such a trip would be hard to sanely plan.”, and Hugh stated “and that’s why we didn’t plan that well! “
sometimes it is fun and interesting to throw yourself at something you haven’t quite given much thought to, only though if you are happy to have your limits pushed past what you know and directly face your own personal unknowns, as well as those in the environment around you.
Here’s to adventure, may we all find it!
J
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)