Canadian Ckayaker

Ilinniarnaqsivuq!

2012-01-14T13:18:00.004-05:00

I've been waiting for an 'app' in Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit of northern Canada. It's taken a while, but this spring children, and grown-ups as well, will be able to quickly learn to use the syllablic symbols used in Canada's eastern Arctic to write in Inuktitut.

For those wishing to learn a bit more about how this 'app' came into being, there's a news item online to read. For people dying to try the 'app' for themselves, there's a demo as well. I couldn't get the demo to work completely, but the image above comes from it and gives an idea of what it will be like. Perhaps you'll have better luck with the demo! Soon everyone paddling in the arctic will be able to read and write in the local language when dropping into the local hunting or fishing camp!

My Christmas Story - 2011

2011-12-21T13:18:00.004-05:00

It had been the best fall ever for Siasi Putayuq. He had found a job working on the communities water delivery system. Best of all he was driving the truck and not working the hoses at the back. It doesn't get better than that, especially when winter temperatures dropped to -30°C and lower.

With some money coming in at last he put in an order for a brand new skidoo, one of the top models. No longer would he have to drive a fixer-upper and spend most of his weekends working in his tiny shed repairing one thing or another.

By late November the river finally froze over, late again this year… Siasi was anxious to cross the river and head off to Tassuiyuq and do some fishing. Most of the nearby lakes and streams on the town side of the river were pretty well fished out. There were just too many people to feed with the town growing the way it had been for the last few years. Anyway, the big weekend came and all week long people were testing the ice to see if it was safe to cross. The word was that by the weekend, the first party of fishermen would head off and Siasi was going to be with them.

About ten snow machines were ahead of him, but he didn't care as they left the shore and ventured out on the ice. Snow covered for the most part, but a few ice patches were scary. Still no one slowed down, they just kept on the throttle all the way across and only the tidal ice gave them any difficulties. The jumbled blocks of snow and ice caused where the tide rose and fell was always a problem until the worn track was created. This year was no different, but finally all the machines were up on the land and heading for the lake.

The fishing was everything they expected. With no one there fishing for several months, the fish were hungry to be caught. By Sunday evening most people had filled a bag or two full of fresh, frozen trout tied on their kamotiks made the long trek home. Siasi and a couple of friends couldn't tear themselves away. It had been so long since they'd been out on the land, they wanted to squeeze every last second out of it. Finally, the brief sunlight already gone, they loaded up and followed in the tracks of those already departed. They made a stop for tea about half way to the river and then another to tighten the sealskin lines holding the sacks of fish on the kamotiks. As they swept over the last hills before the river banks itself, they suddenly halted. The ice had broken up leaving large stretches of open water between them and the village on the opposite shore…

The ice must have broken up with the last tide as the snow-machine tracks headed right down the tide ice and out onto the last remaining ice. No tracks led either up or down the river. Just as they were about to head up river to see if they could cross further up, lights could be seen coming down to the river on the opposite shore. As they watch, it seemed that someone was launching a boat to come across for them. Siasi breathed a sign of relief! His job would be there in the morning. He didn't want to lose it so soon after he started and his precious skidoo was only partly paid for!

When the boat approached the edge of the ice, Siasi was shocked to see it was a member of the village Qajaq Club in his qajaq! After learning that it was the only craft available, the larger boats having been hauled away from the water weeks ago, Siasi managed to lay down on the rear deck and hang on as the qajaq carefully made its way to the far shore. Other than getting his mitts wet, he managed the trip remarkably well. Within a short period, all the stranded men were safely back on the village side of the river.

I wasn't long before the boat was across the river and Siasi and his friends had grabbed the bow line as it was thrown to them. What became clear as well, as that while they had been rescued, they would have to leave their snow-machines behind. The boat couldn't take them. Still, Siasi reasoned, in a few days the river would freeze over again and probably by next weekend he'd be riding once again!

However, the river ice and the tides had other plans. As it dragged into December and came closer and closer to Christmas, the river would freeze and then break-up, freeze again and break-up again. One weekend, Siasi and his brother went far upriver looking for a crossing place, but found nothing they considered safe. Things were getting more and more depressing. It was especially frustrating when he made his monthly payment on a machine he could even see, let alone use!

The week before Christmas a poster was put up in the Coop store advertising that the new helicopter company in town was going to raffle off a Free Christmas Helicopter Ride. A $2.00 ticket would raise money to win the ride and the money raised would go to building a new Fire Door on the community hall where weekly movies for the children were held. Siasi bought a ticket. He couldn't afford to pay for a helicopter to fly over and pick up his skidoo, but if he won, he'd use his Christmas ride to pick it up and his friends' machines as well.

At the end of the week, on the day before Christmas, everyone crowded into the Community Hall to see the winning ticket being drawn. The mayor reached into the pot and handed the ticket to the manager of the helicopter company. He read out the name. He didn't hear the name very clearly, but it wasn't Siasi, that much he did know. Oh well, he thought, the river will have to freeze sooner or later. He'd just have to be patient. He looked over that one of his friends who also had his machine stuck across the river. He looked back and shrugged then walked out of the Hall.

Christmas day arrived and still the river ice wasn't safe to travel. Around one o'clock in the afternoon, Siasi heard the helicopter taking off. That must be the free ride people getting their free ride, he thought. He turned up the TV to block out the noise. It didn't really matter, helicopters, especially ones that you really wanted to be on, have a way of intruding into your head whether you want them there or not. He could hear it on one side of the house, then it would disappear for a minute or two, only to return again on the other side of the house and again disappear this time for a bit longer.

Just as he was about to get up and turn down the TV, the noise returned and this time it seemed to be right over the house! Was it going to crash on top of him? That's all he needed! The noise was deafening and forced him out of the house to see what was going on. As soon as he stepped out he was caught in the downwash from the rotors, Siasi scrambled away from the house, practical on his knees and then turn and looked up at the crazy helicopter hovering over his house. There, in a sling under the skids hung his skidoo! The chopper moved slightly sideways and lowered the machine gently to the ground, placing it a few feet from his shed.

Siasi rushed over and untied the sling allowing the helicopter to lift up and head back to the river on its way to pick up the next snow-machine. As Siasi turned around one of his friends came around the corner of the house, a big smile on his face. "Merry Christmas, Siasi" That was my uncle who won the helicopter ride. Pretty neat, eh? But…

I know, said the friend, he said he was too old to fly around in a helicopter, but not too old to help young people go fishing!

Note: The images were made by drawing directly on blank 35 mm slides with coloured ink by various people in Kangirsuk in 1972

Eastern Sharbot Lake Paddle

2011-12-12T11:31:00.003-05:00

Sharbot Lake is another smallish lake in central Ontario which I visited recently. While it's mostly cottage country, with some built on islands as well, it is nonetheless an interesting paddling venue. While I prefer cottages to be old fashioned and tucked away from the water, it is of some interest to see how building tastes have changes over the years. Some reflect our growing affluance and are virtually palaces. Elaborate docks and floating rafts are all part of the cottage experience...

Of course, no sane cottager would not have an Adirondack chair or two out somewhere on the property for the comfort of out-of-season paddlers...

Warm weather for late November made the paddle pleasant, as did the calm waters. This island cottage appears to have been an old home which has been 'upgraded' with turrets and a fancy boathouse. The 1% builds, the 99% (or a part of them) paddles!

Speaking In Qajaq!

2011-10-07T11:58:00.005-04:00

Obviously it's no secret, kayaks or qajait were invented and refined long ago by Inuit people in Canada and Greenland. Today we benefit from their skills and knowledge and use that information to produce the boats that most of us paddle in places around the world. Some of us have tried our hand at reproducing the original kayak designs by building 'skin-on-frame' (SOF) boats of various sorts. This endeavour has enabled the builders to get a bit closer to the Inuit and their way of thinking.

Now there is another way to get closer still. Learn to speak the language of the Inuit themselves: Inuktitut! The one hour audio book called Inuktitut will get you started hearing the sounds of the language and provide you with some useful phrases and vocabulary. As most SOF builders chose to build Greenland style kayaks, this audio book is particularly helpful as the dialect taught in the book is 'Greenlandic'. This dialect varies somewhat from the Inuktitut dialects spoken in arctic Canada, however there are many similarities between the various dialects (and some often amusing differences as well!). Clicking on the link above will bring you to the site at Audible.com, however it's also available from the iTunes store by searching for 'Inuktitut'.

Paddling Smaller Lakes

2011-09-06T21:31:00.003-04:00

We all dream of paddling bigger and bigger waters, challenging ourselves with rougher seas, larger crossings, exotic locales and so forth. It's part of the thrill of seakayaking to discover that you have what it takes to take on more difficult paddles than you've done before. Yet, there are small lakes that, taken in detail, can offer up great satisfaction as well!

This past long weekend a few friends and I set up our camp on Lake Clear, Ontario and settled in for some paddling, some socializing and story-telling. The troubles of the world disappeared with each stroke of our paddles as we left the launch site. The warm, clear water and the quiet and rustic camp-site became our world for the next several days.

We explored the lake with its islands of crown land, We drifted past the quaint log cabins and the newer, monster homes. We slipped up narrow, rocky inlets and watched the turtles slide silently off their sun logs and into the water. We smiled to see the baby ducks still swimming together now their parents have left them to fend for themselves. Blue herons drifted over the water in front of our kayaks. We paddled to the far end of the lake to replenish our ice supply and then arrived back of the camp with bags of cold water and peels of laughter. We screamed at the sudden wind-storms that turned quiet ripples into white-capped waves, sending our kayaks surfing down their fronts. We felt the hairs on our necks rise when something came crashing down in the night. Was it a bear? Only in the morning did we discover it had been a tree.

At home today, I washed the camp-fire smoke off everything, my clothes, my tent, my dishes, even my water filter smelled of wood smoke. What a wonderful, sensuous memory of a long weekend hidden away from the world on Lake Clear with good friends.

Saguenay Scenery

2011-08-10T14:06:00.005-04:00

Once again, I'm out of the water and examining the shoreline to see what there is to learn. This time I'm at the mouth of the Saquenay Fjord in Quebec on the St Lawrence river. Just a short distance down-river from the town of Tadoussac are enormous sand banks lining the shore. Locally referred to as 'dunes' they are actually the remains of a giant river delta that formed during the last glacial period. There are several levels to the 'dunes' suggesting that there were various stages of development.

Once down on the shoreline one gets a clear picture of how big these dunes are and how steep the face is. What is also clear is how much of the dune is now missing, having been washed away by both tide and river actions over the past several thousand years.

Climbing up the dune also contributes to the wearing away of the sand although I don't imagine most people would notice much change in a single lifetime. There is lots of sand to last us for some time yet! In this last photo one can see the last high tide line right against the bottom of the dune. Not a good place to find oneself on a windy day at high tide...!

I've posted a walking tour guide on EveryTrail about this area at:

Tadoussac Dunes
A walking tour of the dunes located near Tadoussac, Quebec

Knowing the Scenery

2011-07-11T20:35:00.003-04:00

As we paddle along the seashore, we often watch the scenery and look for interesting items which make the paddling experience more rewarding. The possibilities are nearly endless, but recently I had occasion to be in a particularly interesting spot: The Joggins Fossil Cliffs on the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia. This place is listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO because of the fossils found in the area. I took the beach walking tour, but when the water is higher, it's possible to paddle along the cliffs and see more or less the same things I saw. In the photo above you can discern the recent high water mark right at the base of the cliff, but being the Bay of Fundy, one needs to be very vigilant of the tides as they are among the highest in the world. As well the cliffs are very active with frequent rock falls exposing new fossils all the time.

There are two ways to see the 300 million year old fossil trees embedded in the cliffs. The first can be seen above as an impression of the bark of the tree remaining in the surrounding rocks where the tree once was. Often the results are astonishing clear and vivid, as seen in the above photo.

The second is the fossilized remains of the tree itself as seen above. These particular specimens once grew up to the height of ten story buildings. Today, their nearest relatives are club mosses, only a few centimeters high at most. Fossils collected at this site were used in the famous Darwin evolution trials in England, which partly accounts for the site's status with UNESCO.

At the time these fossil trees and animals were being buried, so where the swamp beds which created the oil and coal we find today. The Joggins area is laced with coal seams. In the above photo, a tiny one can be seen heading out into the Bay. Other larger ones can be seen in the cliffs, and the beaches are streaked with coal dust eroded from the cliffs.

So next time you watch the shore as you paddle by, wonder about how old it is and what its history might be. Oftentimes you'll be amazed!

The Compleat Kayaker

2011-05-30T20:26:00.004-04:00

Over the years I have slowly been evolving to meet any and all conditions while I attempted to paddle my kayak in places far from home. Here one can see what's happened during this voyage of discovery. First the kayak, mounted on it's long distance delivery system. Next comes the home away from home where the paddler, that's me, rests between bouts on the water, and last, the local delivery component which also doubles as the put-in scout vehicle, the foldable micro-transporter which allows me to venture here and there peddling between various bits of kit and caboodle which most paddlers carry about with them for reasons known mostly to themselves. It's been known to bring food and drink in as well!

It all seems to work rather well, amazingly enough!

Apple Blossom Paddling

2011-05-24T16:51:00.004-04:00

I went paddling on a couple of Ontario lakes this past holiday weekend and discovered not only some paddling spots, but another whole new experience. It rained apple blossoms. A nice change from the other, more common sort of rain. Here one gets big white petals for drops and an enchanting scent which fills the air with delight. Fun!

Getting To The Beach On Time

2011-03-25T21:53:00.005-04:00

I just added a new piece of equipment to my hoard of junk. With it, I'll be able to get to the beach quickly, paddle sooner, run errands, lower my carbon intake, attract girls and generally get more out of life. Well, mostly, perhaps, if I'm lucky.

One of the things about kayak camping is being able to explore the coastline. However, I like to see the coastline from both sides and with my new folding bike I'm hoping to do more of that during my travels this coming summer. The MEC folding bike is actually made in Taiwan by Dahon and comes well fitted out for day cruising both in town and out in the country. I can just picture me now, returning after a long day's paddle, peddling down to the store for some cold ones, a bit of firewood and then curling up to a camp fire meal with all my gear close by. You guessed it, idyllic isn't it?

While the bike folds into a relatively small package, it's too large for my kayak hatches. It might work as a deck ornament for short outings in calm waters, but that's not my objective. This bike is one which will pack easily in my small car, yet rides much like a full-sized bike on shore for trips here and there. While I've yet to test it out, I'm pretty sure I can set it up to tow my kayak to the beach if I don't feel like carrying it that far. I already have a cart which will carry the boat and only need a rig to fix the bow to the bike. I can't wait to see how it works out!

Not Today, Mate!

2011-03-08T21:15:00.003-05:00

Looking up the driveway this morning after yesterday's snow storm was a mixed bag. While the snow had been cleared finally and the cars were now visible under their new white blankets, the kayaks are still a long way from the water...

But it's March and the sun was warm while I shovel around the cars. The melting has begun already. I'll be back on the water soon. Sure I will!

Why Not Drive?

2011-02-17T17:17:00.003-05:00

Many kayakers dream of paddling in the far north around ice bergs and seals and all that arctic stuff. Most of us are held back by the frightening cost of air transporting our kayaks and other gear from wherever we live to a decent put-in beach in the high latitudes. Well, that's about to change!

In the above photo, you can see the answer! Get yourself one of these buggies and you're good to go wherever you want. Made to tackle the polar ice, the bears, the darkness and cold, you'll be assured of being first at the launch site.

Personally, I'm taking a wait and see approach and thinking of doing some warm water practice session in the meantime. Still, they are kinda cool-looking...

EveryTrail

2011-01-09T11:56:00.005-05:00

Pinnacle, Baldwin's Mills

EveryTrail - Find trail maps for here and beyond

I've recently been playing with putting up trips on the Every Trail web site. The idea being, it might give me another way to enrich the blogging experience if more information is provided on where exactly I paddled, hiked, skied or whatever. The Every Trail people provide a convenient way to do this on their site and also provide a simple way to embed the trip onto a blog. I'm not sure this is exactly what I'm looking for as it doesn't look quite the same as on their site. For example, the photos block the route map and the speed of the video is too fast to really get a view of anything, however, it's a start. Actually I find that playing it over again seems to slow it down on my computer, making it easier to see where the photos were taken and what the route was. You can compare this with the Every Trail version on their site by clicking on the link above.

Below is the non-photo version...

Pinnacle, Baldwin's Mills at EveryTrail

My Yoga App

2011-01-06T19:11:00.004-05:00

I recall several years ago it being announced at the Delmarva Paddler's Retreat that there would be yoga session for anyone interested at 6 in the morning. Needless to say, I slept through that nonsense! With age however, has come a bit of wisdom and I am now into doing yoga. Last fall when the dawn call went out for yoga at the Ontario Greenland Camp, I was there with the others doing whatever the leader requested of us. And I truly believe I was the better for it!

Back home however doing yoga without a leader to guide you has been problematic, but not any more. There's an 'app' for that on iTunes. Actually there are lots, but the one that I like and use on my little iTouch is called 'All In Yoga' which has 200 poses one can assemble in any order to make programs or one can follow pre-set programs. I do both. As I'm a beginner at this, each of the 200 poses has a photo and description which helps one decide whether it might be useful to a paddler like me who wants to benefit from flexibility poses more than strength. Using this information, I have made up a program I've called 'Paddler' which I do a few times each week and I follow one of the app's pre-set programs called 'Sun Salutation' which I do most mornings.

When you actually run the program it automatically marks your effort on a built in calendar, Nice! Even better, I can bring my iTouch along with me camping and paddling so there's no excuse not to stay flexible doing daily yoga exercises!

The Future...

2011-01-04T20:17:00.003-05:00

Looking back over the past several years I've been writing this blog, it's clear there have been changes. Not only has the visual aspect of the blog changed, but also and perhaps more importantly, it's clear it doesn't command my attention as it once did. Now that the staff have been dragged kicking and screaming from their Holiday revelries, it's time to wonder what's been going on over the last few years. Certainly many of the early kayaking bloggers I started with have practically disappeared from view, their space now taken up by newer bloggers. At some point, it might be instructive to see where my blog might profitably go in this changing environment as the new year plods merrily along.

For me, perhaps the biggest change over the last few years has been the arrival of René Seindel's 'Paddling Planet' site. Not only did this site collate most, perhaps all, of the world's kayak blogs in one place for easy viewing, it also meant that fewer people needed to visit those blogs directly. Comments have tended to be fewer in number as a result, although controversy still managed to pull people in now and then. Personally, I've enjoyed being able to read many new blogs at the 'Planet' site and even tried my dismal linguistic skills when necessary. I am particularly intrigued with many of the Scandinavian and Italian bloggers out there, from whom I've learned much.

The other big change to the blogging world has been FaceBook. Just look at the picture above to see how the 500 million users and more have straddled the globe! This has been yet another way to form a community of kayakers and one which I have found myself visiting more and more often. Unlike a blog, there is much more immediacy in these FaceBook contacts and one quickly gets to know the writers and where they paddle most often. It has however meant that what I might have once posted on my blog, instead went to FaceBook with less detail perhaps, but more interaction.

Twitter has taken over many bloggers output as well, although I have yet to figure out how to say anything in so few words...

Photo credit: The Thought Catalog

Tumasi's New Boots

2010-12-18T11:17:00.008-05:00

You're right, the picture is missing. As soon as I get permission to post it, I will. If you really, really need to see it before you begin reading - or during - then click 'here'. It won't take you exactly to the picture, but scroll down a bit and I think you'll see which one I want to use...

Ever since I started writing this blog, I've shut the office down at Christmas, doubled the staff's pay and told a Christmas story. This year, even in these tough economic times, I've been able to extend this gift again. I hope you'll enjoy this year's offering! Thanks for reading and Happy Holidays!

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Tumasi close the door to the trailer classroom building where he taught and start to head over to where I was in the main school building. I turned and watch him as he made his way to the school door. I was thinking about how our lives had slowly come together. He'd been born in a sod house out on the tundra and I'd been born in a hospital in a southern Canadian city. So far apart and now here we were together. We were the same age, teaching the same grade and spending our weekends hunting and fishing out on the same landscape.

The door slammed shut and I could here him speaking to one of the teaching assistants in Inuktitut. He was excited. He'd got a call from the post office. A long awaited parcel from Sears had finally arrived after several delays. His footsteps were silent as he made his way down the hall to my class, but his excitement told me he was at the door.

"Johnni-ai!" He spoke the common greeting style in the Inuit culture of northern Quebec. I smiled.

"So we're headed to the the post office…! I'll be ready in a sec."

"Ya, finally my boots are in. Can't believe it's taken so long. I thought I'd be going hunting barefoot this Christmas!"

I looked down at his feet. He was wearing beautiful homemade kamiik, sealskin boots his aunt had made. Everyone in the community wanted a pair of those boots and Tumasi wanted Baffin skidoo boots from Sears. What a crazy world!

"Ya, right. You look barefoot in those kamiik. Real shame to have to cut your frozen feet off, especially at Christmas. It might keep you working regular hours though, without those fast moving feet…!"

He smiled. He knew I was always bugging him about his 'just-in-time' style of working, never wasting a moment in school that he could spend on his skidoo out on the land.

We headed to the post office and picked up the boots. I was a bit surprised by how heavy the box seemed to be, but decided not to say anything.

"Come over for some tea." Tumasi said as we exited the building. "We'll see how these beauties fit!" We strolled down the snow covered main road through town. I noticed they'd raised the price of gas again at the Coop. It was $0.75 a gallon! Incredible! It just keeps getting more and more expensive these days. I was glad we didn't have cars in the North. Can you image running a car with gas at that price!

I couldn't believe how long it took Tumasi to finally get around to opening the box and trying on his new boots. He made tea, we ate some dried caribou his cousin had dropped off last weekend and then Tumasi decided he wanted to change all the lights on his Christmas tree for ones that blinked on and off. Better his place than mine, I thought. Blinking lights? Oh gawd…

The wrapping on the boot box seemed to be tougher than steel, but Tumasi finally took his pocket knife to it and off it came. In shreds. Next the box itself, which proved to be a bit easier. He raised the flaps and looked inside.

"Waaaa…?" I looked in the box. It was full of light blue foam peanut-like things. Tumasi shoved his hand into the peanuts and felt around.

"Aaaaaaiiii…? What the…?" He pulled out a Hohner button accordion! Shiny, red, and so not boot-like!

"Did you order an accordion boots?" I said, pretending to be shocked. Now Tomasi can't play an accordion. In fact, he can't even hold a tune as far as I knew.

"Are you kidding?" He fished around in the box as if the boots were still down there hidden somewhere in the peanut pile, but of course they weren't. "I don't believe this! An accordion? Where are my stupid boots…? Sears! What idiots Kabloonat are!"

"I tell you what. Let's trade boots. You can have my boots and I'll take your kamiik." I lived in hope although his feet were smaller than mine by a couple of sizes. Maybe I could get them stretched...

"No can do, friend. My aunt would have me stretched, dried and sewn into a parka if I did that."

Tumasi was clearly confused about the marvels of southern Canadian culture when people down there didn't know the difference between skidoo boots and accordions, but what could he do.

I left him with his problems and headed home to work on my own for a while. It certainly was a costly error on Sears' part. I checked the mail-order catalogue and discovered the accordion cost over $300 while the boots were less than $50.

At school the next day, I noticed that Tumasi wasn't wearing his new accordion 'boots', but he was smiling. "So what happened?" I asked. Here's what he told me.

"Well it turns out my aunt's husband used to play the accordion. I never knew that, but he says he used to borrow one and play one when he was young. His mother had learned to play accordion when the old traders used to come up here long ago. When he herd about the mixed-up package I'd got, his eyes lit up like Christmas lights. There's no way he could afford to buy an accordion, so thanks to Sears, he's now the owner of his first accordion. He's offered to order me some new boots from his cousin the skidoo dealer the Coop uses. They'll be in on the next plane!"

"So can he still play?" I asked.

"A little bit, but he's rusty. He said with a few days of practice, he'll be ready to play again. He already told everyone there'll be an old time Christmas party in the school gym with step-dancing, just like in the old days. Pretty cool, ai?"

"Ya, pretty cool!" And it was!

iKayak

2010-12-14T22:01:00.004-05:00

Wondering what to get for the kayaker you know who never actually gets out on the water, but loves to tell stories of the wild times he/she had? Well, if they have a iphone or ipad, then here's just the thing. iKayak! Silly, but it did help pass the time for a while on that 15 hour to and from flight to Asia I took recently. All the fun of the real thing without getting out of your seat, changing into a drysuit or wondering where the take-out is. Just start edging your craft and the rest is taken care of!

The Search For Franklin

2010-12-01T09:04:00.004-05:00

You cannot be a fan of all things arctic without wondering what happened to Sir John Franklin and his two ships, the Erebus and the Terror. Despite years of searching, very little in the way of remains have ever been found which is odd considering both ships contained locomotive steam engines which surely would show up on some kind of sensor and the location where they were last known to be is recorded in the only document found.

This past summer, yet another group, Parks Canada, went looking for the ships, but again, to no avail. They did find a ship however! This one was a bit easier to locate as detailed records were kept locating where it had been abandoned in 1854 by Captain Robert McClure and his 66-man crew. The ship was the HMS Investigator. The ship had been locked in ice after wintering twice in a dead end bay finally forcing McClure and his crew to abandon the ship and leave behind a cache of equipment and provisions on the shore. They made it to safety eventually and returned to England bearing the sad news that Franklin remained lost.

This summer's search has produced some remarkable photos of the Investigator as she lies upright on the bottom of the shallow bay where she was abandoned years ago. As the area is now part of Aulavik National Park, one might assume that kayaking trips will soon be organized to visit the wreck and go diving on her... Well, one can dream, at least!

Image sourse: http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/culture/expeditions/introduction.aspx

Fire Dancing on Ko Samet

2010-11-27T07:57:00.003-05:00

Kayakers by nature become well acquainted with beaches and beach life, but every now and then a beach turns up with something a little out of the ordinary on it. Here is an example.

Fire Dancers from Michael Bradley on Vimeo.

These very young children would appear each night on the beaches of Ko Samet, Thailand and perform these swirling fire dances for anyone who'd watch. After the performance there'd be a passing of the hat and the children would head down the beach to perform again.

Do these children go to school during the day? Is this to be their life work? I have no idea, but it was a bit shocking to see how skilled they already were and to wonder what their futures would be like...

Seasonal Variations in Taiwan

2010-11-26T13:56:00.003-05:00

Back in Taiwan, I once again set about looking for a kayak to paddle. I had very kindly been given a list of Taiwanese kayak venders by Nigel Foster before leaving so I presumed this hunt would be an easy one. Looking over his list, it soon became obvious that the southern end of the island would be my best bet. I took the hi-speed train to Tainan in the southwest.

Once there I encountered my first problem. I don't speak Chinese! Fortunately, my son does. However as all my contact information was written in English, we discovered it wasn't easy to convert addresses and so on into the local version of Chinese spoken by most people in Tainan. Calling around also proven disappointing as venders seemed reluctant to rent out boats given they felt it was "winter" and their stock had already been put away! Finally an adventure-touring company in the city also declined to rent out boats as their season was over... I guess that's why so many folks we saw as we walked around in the chilly (?) 25°C weather were wearing their down-filled parkas and fur-rimmed hoods!

Driving back to the hotel from a bird-watching outing - rare black-faced spoonbills - the guide casually mentioned we really should be out in kayaks to see the birds. What, we asked? Yes, he had two boats at home we could borrow. Sadly we'd already booked our train for the journey back north and the flight home...

Not to be thwarted quite so easily, on our last day, we headed to Fulong on the east coast. As the train pulled into the station we could see a kayak sign! Finally, with one day to go, I'd paddle, but it wasn't to be. This place too had closed for the season.

So from a paddling point of view, the trip was disappointing, but I would go again, in season next time. I think I'd also make it a point to travel to places where kayaking outfitters are well set up and expecting people like me, anxious to rent. Certainly these places exist. I just chose not to visit those areas as this particular trip was more family oriented. The SE Asian coastline is definitely made for paddlers with every variety of skill level you could ever wish for. I wouldn't discourage anyone from going. Just do a little homework first if paddling is your primary goal.

Snorkeling The Reefs

2010-11-25T12:37:00.004-05:00

When Ko Samet turned out not to be a paddler's paradise, at least in terms of interesting kayaks to paddle, I looked around for alternate water activities. Large motorboats would arrive off the beach each morning, people would climb aboard over the stern and off they would go, returning each evening, all happy and tanned. We soon found out they had spent the day snorkeling the reefs surrounding some small offshore islands. That sounded interesting, so we booked…

The trip out to the islands took less than an hour and we anchored in picturesque bays, moving every now and then to sample different sites. The equipment this time was in excellent condition and seemed brand new!

While the scene above water was totally engaging, what we saw under the the surface was shocking. Most of the coral was dead and the marine life usually associated with reefs had mostly disappeared. The cause? The guides put the blame squarely on recent increases in water temperature. It appears that coral can only live within a relatively narrow temperature range and that had been exceeded in this area. In spite of this disappointment, it was good to be swimming in the clear water and seeing what once was. Will it return? Will the commercial fishing be able to sustain itself in these changing times? Only time will tell, but it did make me think about how our impact on the planet is slowly but surely putting the squeeze on us. It led me to post a carbon dioxide watch widgit here on the blog to remind me to curtail the size of my personal footprint...

We finished the day by visiting a small island park where we were served refreshments of juice and fresh fruit. Here as well, we got to know some of our fellow snorkelers more personally. In particularly, this lady, a Thai befriended us and we ended up traveling back to Bangkok with her the following day. Throughout the trip we were treated to incredible hospitality and kindness by local people. It was very heartwarming!

Paddling in Thailand

2010-11-24T09:50:00.004-05:00

While it wasn't the primary aim of my recent trip to Taiwan and Thailand, I certainly had going for a paddle as one of my goals. The first real opportunity came when visiting the island of Ko Samet on the Gulf of Thailand. Surely there would be kayaks of some sort to paddle on this tourist oriented island! Why they even had a Buddha statue on the beach to summon up the paddling spirits for me…

At first, I began to despair as none of the gorgeous beaches appeared to have kayaks for rent, although I was sure I'd seen people paddling some distance offshore. I'd have to extend my search further along the beach...

Well, here we are. A kayak of sorts. A bit on the heavy side, but definitely a kayak. Now to see if it's for rent and at what price. Being with my son, we decided to opt for a double and had it towed across the beach to the water. It was much too heavy to carry easily! Checking out the hatch - partly full of nasty black bilge-water - I decided to leave my shoes and towel ashore. The life jackets were not that form-fitting and the paddles probably doubled as agricultural tools at some point during the year, but we were going kayaking nonetheless!

Given the nature of the equipment, we only went out for an hour or so, but it was so good to be on the water in such beautiful surroundings. We paddled south, trying out the boat's abilities in a few rock gardens and so on. Not that manoeuvrable as it turned out, but it took any groundings with barely a scratch. I wanted to try it's surfing ability, but sadly the seas were much too calm with hardly any swell. I didn't go paddling again during the stay. I've been spoiled by more modern, light-weight boats and my light Greenland sticks. I kept reminding myself that kayaking wasn't the goal of this trip...

The End Or The Beginning...

2010-10-25T17:32:00.004-04:00

Neither! If you're one of those nostalgic about the long ago days when Inuit paddled skin boats and lived in snowhouses, you might be concerned to see what's just happened in Iqaluit. The coffee chain 'Tim Horton's' has moved into town. I understand from fellow blogger from Igaluit, Townie Bastard that there may be more than one outlet for the chain. How times do change!

Mind you, you can still build a snowhouse and paddle a skin covered kayak if you want to, but now you can have a hot coffee at the same time!

(Image from Townie Bastard's blog)

Blog Action Day: Water

2010-10-14T11:04:00.005-04:00

It's Blog Action Day!

Water. Who needs it? What's it good for anyway? These sound like silly questions, but when one looks around, it's clear that many of us don't seem to know the answers to these questions. The owner of the pedalo in the photo above didn't seem to get it. He or she discovered that it was fun to be out on the water in the pedalo, but when it disappeared from wherever it was stored, it seemed like it was out of sight, out of mind. Just one more toss away item, it would seem. It ended up at this spot and remained there for a week or more. Finally, helped by my cousin, we towed it to a small nearby beach, drained most of the water out of it and pulled it onto dry land. Last time I paddled in the area, it had gone. Was it the original owner, or someone else who took it? I suppose that's another way water serves us: passing things along!

Another interesting thing about water is it's double edge. What can nourish us can also kill us. What might look like a crystal pure drink may contain deadly organisms. Sea ice, another form of water, allows seals to be seen by an Inuk hunter, but when it forms a thin skim layer on the surface, it can tear the hull of a boat to pieces. Steam, the vapour form, will make a delicious espresso coffee, or burn you. The double edge of water is never far away.

Keeping this ying/yang concept in mind, we need to treat our water with care and vigilance. It will keep us well or kill us. Never turn one's back on water! Like the pedalo, one can be pulled in and set adrift. Unlike the pedalo, landing on a distant beach can be a life or death experience...

Geocache Vandalism

2010-10-09T10:53:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I participated in a geocaching event in Maine. I chose to look for caches which were hidden around the shores of Flagstaff Lake. This meant that I could spend a day paddling the lake, going from cache site to cache site, combining two fun activities at the same time. I managed to find 9 out of the 10 geocaches I looked for, a pretty good record for me. One of the caches was a brand new one created for the event on an island in the lake. All of them were not easy to find. They were well hidden!

I recently received news that some kill-joy out there has been going around stealing caches and throwing the contents in the garbage. He manged to find and distroy the new cache and perhaps some other ones around the lake. His rationale is that he is "defending the forests" by removing what he sees as trash, littering up the landscape. He fails to mention that most of the geocaches he has removed up to this point actually were hidden in roadside guard-rails, a commonly used hiding site...

Sadly this is a case of a mis-guided person whose actions do nothing to defend the forests, but serve only to alienate him from hundreds of geocachers. In fact the motto of the geocaching world is "Cache in, trash out". Caches are not litter. They are carefully hidden, safe for animals and help promote an appreciation for the wilderness by getting people out there in the natural world. While paddling Flagstaff Lake, I brought along a trash bag to defend the forests and beaches. I collected all the trash I came across - there was a lot of it! - and was able to recycle nearly all of it when I returned home.

Photo Dump

2010-10-06T11:44:00.004-04:00

I got dumped on by a fellow kayak blogger the other day for using one of his photos in my piece applauding the work of an Australian kayak maker who's using solar power in his factory. The photo looked like a cute family snapshot so I didn't think anyone would mind it being used. I was wrong. Mea culpa!

The subsequent discussion on his blog makes it clear that the issue of copyright is not as well defined in people's minds as it might be. It's also clear that the concept of copyright has failed to keep up with the internet and the way people have chosen to use it. It's become a bit like the 'wild west of yore' where one needs to be savvy if you don't wish to be victimized by people doing what I did. It's the reason why most professional photographers wishing to protect their work and receive due credit for it use dedicated, protected sites where they retain all their rights and ownership. The average person, like you and me don't bother. Instead, we use photo-sharing sites like Flickr and Picassa to store our photos online. These sites often claim ownership of our photos and many users do not realize this. We sometimes feel flattered or annoyed when our photos appear elsewhere on the net. Who owns what on the internet and how it can be used is far from clear to the average user. The wide-spread copying and using of other people's photos puts one in an up-hill battle against users living all over the world living in a variety of conflicting jurisdictions.

Does that make me less guilty? No, of course not. I used another person's photo without giving them proper credit. When contacted about it, I offered to give him due credit. I didn't get a reply to that statement. Instead I got dumped on publicly on his blog. I don't mind being corrected when I make an error and I don't mind correcting my errors if I can. It was a useful wake-up call, but unfortunately it won't really help my fellow blogger retain ownership of his photos.

Hiking the Trail

2010-10-02T08:45:00.004-04:00

While at Flagstaff lake the other day, I met a couple of people who had spent the summer thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. I enjoy day hiking and can see myself getting into doing some over-night hikes, but taking on the challenge of a long trail like the Appalachian is truly mind-blowing. We're talking walking around 2000 miles over some of the hilliest terrain on the planet. Beautiful, but tough.

So my admiration goes out to these people as they reach their goal of being a 'thru-hiker', someone who walks the total length of the trail in a single season, more or less non-stop. Many people keep an on-line journal of their experiences which can be accessed here.

Changing Feet

2010-09-27T13:34:00.003-04:00

In the photo on the left, a birch tree has grown on the decaying trunk of a predecessor. As the old trunk slowly disappears, the young birch appears to have a set of legs well above the forest floor. It reminded me of the legacy we all share with each of our pasts. We are what our pasts has made us, aren't we?

I'm trying to change a bit of that past these days as I recently discovered I can no longer paddle in the old comfortable way I've done for the past five years or so. In 2005 I bought a kayak with a Smart Track rudder system. Over the years I have developed the habit of pushing on the foot peg on the same side as I was placing my paddle: left foot, left hand; right foot, right hand. Doing this would enable me to give the rudder control lever on top of the peg a little tweek to keep the kayak going in a straight line.

Why change now, you might think? Well, my new boat has no rudder. Direction control is based on what I do with the boat. Placing both foot and hand effort on the same side of the boat with each stroke causes the boat to wander off course. Until recently, I would correct this with a bit of edge or by adjusting the skeg. This would work, more or less, but I was starting to wonder why it was happening. It turns out much of the problem is to be found by the way I was paddling, all one side, then all the other.

I began paddling using a left hand side stroke combined with a right foot push on the peg, followed by the opposite diagonal pattern. I immediately noticed less wander and more boat control! Now I have to unlearn an old habit as I must consciously avoid falling into the old pattern. As many of you know, breaking old habits isn't easy. That old trunk is still there affecting everything I do!

Eustis Geocaching Event

2010-09-26T16:38:00.006-04:00

Geocaching has becoming a regular part of my life when I'm out paddling or hiking. I'm not much into looking for caches when driving around, but I've discovered that geocaches are often hidden in interesting and scenic areas well worth kayaking and hiking into. Flagstaff Lake in western Maine is one such area. I camped there briefly last summer, but only now have found the time to return to explore and look for caches. I found there were some serious challenges! In some cases, the fall draw-down of water has created a shoreline which is both shallow, strewn with snags, with a bottom composed of boot-sucking mud!

Once onshore, the challenge continues! I found it was seldom possible to land directly in line with the geocache's GPS coordinates, so it meant heading along the shore before entering the area of the cache. Some bays, like this one, are packed with wood debris. The gorgeous mountains in the distance, full of their fall glory made it all worthwhile, however!

On the other hand, much of the lake has shores of fine sandy beaches. Easy on the kayak's hull and it sure makes looking for a cache a whole lot easier.

The lake itself being dam controlled varies in depth over the year. Fall is the time when the water level tends to be lowest and many spots were shallow. Happily, the sandy bottom in most places means that a sudden grounding of hull or paddle isn't that damaging. The whole day varied from cloudy, then sunny and just as suddenly windy and rainy. Still, the whole lake has beautiful mountain vistas, covered at this time of the year in glorious fall colours. Highly recommended!

Ontario Greenland Camp

2010-09-17T14:24:00.004-04:00

Most folks into Greenland style paddling and rolling know about QajaqUSA's fall retreat called Delmarva and many have made the annual trek to meet up with friends and share their knowledge and skills. Well, now we have the makings of a similar event in Canada. Learn To Kayak, two people from the Toronto area with the help of friends and businesses put on the first annual Ontario Greenland Camp last weekend. Space was reserved for 50 kayakers and mentors at Camp Tamarak in the Muskokas and we got down to business.

Skill sessions were held in a number of areas including rolling, of course, forward strokes and harpoon throwing. In the photo above, a rolling demo was put on for us to enjoy. I missed the games event which was re-scheduled, but it included a race taken right out of Knud Rasmussen's movie, 'The Wedding of Palo'. I understand it was lots of fun although the weather conditions were somewhat better than that seen in the film!

All in all, a fun event! I hope to return next year... If you're a FaceBook member, lots of photos from the event can be had on the Learn to Kayak page.

Silent Lake, Ontario

2010-09-16T10:07:00.003-04:00

Here's my routine these past few weeks: Pack the camper, drive to the chosen destination and set-up camp. Usually, if the area has enough interesting paddling spots and some hiking trails, I'll stay in a campground where I can have easy access to showers, toilets and so on. If not, then it's either, quicker and rougher stealth camping - or sometimes kayak camping in a tent. Here, at Silent Lake Provincial Park, it was the former. There are no paddle-in camp sites here, but it's a nice little lake with lots of hiking trails. I ended up spending four nights on this spot.

Access to the water was quick and easy, although it required a drive from the campsite. Once at the beach, it was an easy launch on a lake which at this time of year was almost mine alone to enjoy.

I managed to grab one lakeside geocache, but spent the rest of the time exploring all the little channels and bays on the pretty lake. There's a hiking trail which works its way around the lake as well as several loop trails to various ponds and bogs nearby. The Kawartha Highlands area is just a short drive away and it too offers lots of lakes to explore. I didn't get into that area this time, but with better weather and more time, it looks like an interesting area to explore.

Geocache at Crotch Lake

2010-09-15T10:04:00.004-04:00

Almost a year ago Mairi Watson and I left a geocache at site #42 on Crotch Lake in Ontario. It was placed in a couple of ziplock bags and hidden under the ground juniper cover. We knew it wasn't the best arrangement, but it had been a spontaneous thing so we went with what we had. In the spring of 2010, we visited the cache and finally registered it on the official Geocaching site. Within a couple of weeks it was discovered. Naturally comments began coming in about the container... Finding myself in the area once again last week, I launched early in the morning to see what I could do to put things right.

Site #42 was all in order, much as we had left it, although someone had added a green plastic chair, and some firewood, all carefully stacked. The rain and high winds of the previous weekend had required people to add a multitude of rocks to hold down their tents as well as some overhead scaffolding for tarps. I headed off to look for the geocache. I was shocked to find it lying in full view! The juniper bushes were much thinner this year than last exposing the ziplock cache for all to see. In fact, it looked more like trash than a geocache...

So here is a photo of the new container with its original 'hot' contents together with some of the additional items which discoverers have added over the summer. The new container has been covered in 'camo' duct tape and hidden in the original spot, buried in the ground cover making it less visible, less 'trashy'. Who will be the first to find it now?

Grenadier Island Paddle

2010-09-14T19:52:00.002-04:00

On Labour Day Weekend some friends and I paddled out to Grenadier Island, one of the 1000 Islands downstream from Kingston, Ontario in the St Lawrence river. It was a new area for me and I was looking forward to doing some exploring. I'd been upstream in the Ivy Lea area years ago, so I knew the paddling would be interesting both because of the currents and the incredible houses that have been built on some of the islands. Leaving from Mallorytown Landing, we paddled over to Grenadier and set up camp, our base for the weekend.

I woke up during the night as rain began dropping on my tent. Oh no, not a rainy weekend after weeks of glorious hot weather! It got worse. By morning, the rain turned to showers but two of us decided to make a re-supply run back to the cars to ferry over things which didn't make the cut on the trip out the day before. On the return crossing, the wind picked up. A lot! The crossing quickly turned into a sideways surf ride! By the afternoon the wind was clearly trying to blow the water out of the river, or so it seemed! Paddling was put on hold while we scratched around for other things to do.

With paddling on the river temporarily put on hold, we followed the island trails visiting some geocaches, some old houses, a golf course (!), a couple of ancient cars and an ice vender! Cold beer! Just the thing when you're stranded on the shore for a weekend without paddling!

Parc Frontenac, Québec

2010-08-16T20:48:00.004-04:00

It's probably a truism that one tends to seek adventure farther from home than closer. Such has been the case with most of my travels which have taken me wide and far. That changed this past weekend when I loaded up all my kayaks, yes the four of them, and together with two other couples, headed to Parc Frontenac only about two hours from home. I'd never been there before, so I was primed for adventure!

We spent the first day paddling on Lac Sauvage. There were loons and mergansers swimming around and some bald eagles keeping on eye on our technique from lofty tree perches. I paddled my skin-on-frame for the first time this year. It was a tighter fit than I remembered. What can that mean...?

Lac Barbeu was next on our list. It's seen in the two photos above. It's a eutrophic lake meaning it's silting up and nearing the end of it's life. In time, it will become a marsh, then slowly dry out as forest cover begins to invade. The most obvious feature for me was how hot the water was! I didn't have a thermometer, but it was very bath-water like in the shallower bays.

The last day of our visit, we tried out Lac Des Isles. True to it's name, it was dotted with islands as well as rocky gelcoat scrappers hidden just below the surface. I cringed each time one of my friends added another scratch to the bottom of one of my boats. Mind you, I scraped quite a lot of paint off the bottom of the SOF, so I guess I shouldn't complain to vigorously! The most interesting find was this thread of algae encased in gelatin-like material. When held up, the tiny green algae formed a spiral through the gelatin. It was a beautiful work of nature!

Like many of the SEPAQ parks in Quebec, we found it both expensive and clumbersome to camp in Frontenac. For example the base fee is reasonable (~$25), but then you get charged to make a reservation, another daily fee to enter the park, more for the showers and so on. By the time you've paid for everything, the price is over $34 per day. A similar facility elsewhere would cost almost $10 per day less... . Wilderness sites feature several camping spots connected to one common facility which can be great if your group takes all the sites. Otherwise you will find yourself sharing with strangers who may or may not be like-minded. When they're not, it isn't much fun...

Changing Labrador

2010-07-25T13:04:00.002-04:00

Traveling through Labrador constantly brought surprises, some more unexpected than others. I knew all about arctic flowers, how colourful and vibrant they can be, but still it was almost shocking to see them again. We used to suck the sweetness out of these ones and cook them in bannock.

Now and then we drove through areas which had burned over during forest fires. These too I had seen before and recalled that fire renews life in these boreal forests, allowing new seeds to grow and establish themselves as though they were the phoenix trees.

Labrador is not just forest, but much of the land is covered in peat bogs. Now and then one comes across patterns in the bogs such as you can see here. These areas of patterned ground, as they're called, is the result of alternating freezing and thawing of the soils over long periods of time. This one in the photo was particularly interesting and large.

Nature hasn't been the only one at work in Labrador and along it's border with Quebec. Here mountains are being taken apart, the iron ore extracted and then shipped south the smelters so we can build buildings and make cars. This has been going on for nearly 50 years in Labrador and there seems to be lots of mountains left to mine!

Finally, now in Quebec, is the Manicouagan 5 power dam, sending electricity into the North American Power grid, so we can all enjoy a coffee every morning and heat our homes at night. This dam has created a giant circular lake as its reservoir which begs to be paddled some day...

Building Boats in Cartwright

2010-07-24T15:50:00.003-04:00

Looking for a hiking trail in Cartwright, Labrador led to an unexpected find. The trailhead was supposed to be on a particular street, but driving up and down in search of it, nothing like a trail entrance or beginning looked obvious. Finally we broke down and drove into a driveway, parked the van and headed towards the garage behind the house where we could hear voices. This is what we found...

It seems the trail began right beside the garage and headed up the hill. The rocks we'd seen painted white, blue and green, Labrador's official colours, had actually not been some child's prank, but were the beginning of the trail! Meanwhile we focused on the folks in the garage. They were building a boat, a 'speed-boat', they called it. It normally would take about two weeks to put together a boat like the one in the photos. The design was a local one, adapted to the waters in the area. As we spoke they had just finished nailing the last of the ribs into her. A little finishing here and there, some paint and she'd be in the water ready to swell-up and head out fishing.

The Roads Of Labrador

2010-07-23T09:10:00.006-04:00

One of the reason for going to Labrador this year was the news that the Trans-Labrador Highway (TLH) would be open for private vehicles for the first time. Until this summer, it wasn't possible to drive from Newfoundland all the way to Goose Bay and south into Quebec. One had to drive to Cartwright and take the ferry instead. You can still take the ferry, but once the road is finished at the end of the summer, the car ride ferry will end.

In Red Bay where the Basques used to render the whales they caught in the 1500's, the TLH switches from pavement to gravel. There is also a gate which opens only when the road is passable. We gassed up the car and headed out wondering what it would be like. We'd heard a few tales of woe..

It wasn't long before we were passed by another vehicle and got to see the dust. By the time we got back on pavement we'd collected enough dust to make our own road! We began to pray for rain...

The good news was finding that the road was maintained in excellent shape by a series of graders working full time. I live on a gravel road and know what regular grading can do to keep a gravel road passable. In Labrador it was common to see the graders pulling a truck so that at the end of his shift, the operator can park his machine and drive back home.

The new section heading to Goose Bay was passable, but a 30 kms section was pretty rough. Parts were still being blasted out of the rock, lightly covered with rubble and gravel and called a 'detour'. We'd met folks pulling large trailers who'd told scary stories of their transit of this section, but our van managed to get through with only a few scrapes. Had it really rained and there been mud, I'd probably be writing this from the bush somewhere...

Was the trip worth the effort? You bet it was! Instead of a long boring drive through muskeg and black spruce, we were continually amazed and intrigued by what we saw.

Cartwright, Labrador

2010-07-22T13:49:00.007-04:00

If you're up on your Norse Sagas, you'll recall mention of a golden strand of sand discovered in the world to the west. It turns out that endless stretch of sand is located on the coast just north of Cartwright and I had the idea it would make a good paddling destination on my Labrador trip. We suited up and launched using Experience Labrador's hospitality and water access.

Out we headed in almost calm seas, ready for a day's adventure. To be on the safe side, we decided we'd use some islands along the way as a wind shadow for the east winds expected to build up during the afternoon. That would also allow for two short open water crossings rather than one longer one which was reputed to have adverse tidal issues we could avoid.

All went as planned, but when we reached the first crossing from the mainland to the first island, a good sea was running and it was still morning, long before the arrival of the expected winds. What to do?

While we wondered what to do, we decided to do some fishing and have lunch. The waves continued to build and as time went by, I knew we weren't going to risk crossing the now white capped channel. We continued to fish and I went out to surf in the waves to get an idea how serious they might be in the planned crossing.

The warm weather began to work on our heads. Why paddle into the fray when we could have fun where we were, surfing, fishing and playing? The Viking strand could wait for another day, couldn't it?

We headed out in the waves to play instead. It was weird seeing the snow still on the hills ahead of the boat as we sweltered in our drysuits, but that's part of paddling in Labrador. Things are not always what you might expect.

Battle Harbour, Labrador

2010-07-21T19:50:00.003-04:00

Had you been born 100 years ago or so in Newfoundland, you would have certainly heard of Battle Harbour. Today, few people know the community and it's place in history, but it was well known for a variety of reasons. Perhaps most widely known is the news which Admiral Peary burst upon the world when he announced to the press gathered in the upper floor of the Battle Harbour salt store that he and not Cook had been the first to the North Pole. Why did he make the announcement from there? It was the first telegraph post he came to on his voyage south from Greenland.

The community sits in a strategic location just to the north of the Straits of Belle Isle and at the point where the Labrador coast turns towards the northwest and the fishing grounds found up the coast. It became a center for all sorts of things including commerce and fishing. Almost no one passed by without stopping in, buying supplies and getting the news from the coast of far away England.

However, times changed and over the course of the 20th century, Battle Harbour lost its place as mainland communities like Mary's Harbour and St Lewis took over and linked to the road system. Today you still need to go to Battle Harbour by boat.

In the early 1990's however the spirit of renewal brought Battle Harbour back to life. Many of the original buildings have been restored and it's now possible to visit and gain a real appreciation for what the place once was and the lives people lived back when salt cod was king. I could easily have spent longer there soaking up the history. It would make a great base from which to kayak the many bays and inlets, islands and shoals in the area...

Whales and Bergs In Labrador

2010-07-20T17:15:00.004-04:00

Leaving Newfoundland and heading to Labrador on the ferry to Blanc Sablon, our only regret was not seeing much in the way of icebergs and whales. Perhaps we were too early. Perhaps we weren't in the right places, it was difficult to say. All that changed once we arrived on the Labrador coast however! These icebergs were soaking in the sun, grounded in Fox Harbour and off nearby Battle Harbour.

Walking on historic Caribou Island after rowing across the tickle from Battle Harbour, we spotted this interesting iceberg literally sailing past like the schooners of old.

The whales weren't far behind. In fact we caught up with them off St Modeste where this humpback was leaping after schools of caplin making their way northward. It was an exciting drive along the coast where whale after whale came out of the fog and sported after food. At times we could see half a dozen or more herding the fish.

A bit far offshore for that really dramatic shot of a tail flashing as it's owner sounds into the depths, but it's a whale's tail nonetheless. It was one of those days when you could park the car, sit on the beach and watch the show. Wonderful!

Burnt Island Ecological Reserve

2010-07-19T10:27:00.003-04:00

To paddle or to hike - the travelers dilemma, and so it was when visiting the Burnt Island Reserve off the community of Raleigh in northern Newfoundland. When we looked out from our shoreside cabins, the day looked foggy and the breeze was offshore. Perhaps it was a day to hike on Burnt Island we thought. This turned out to be both a good idea and a not so good one.

We drove over to the island and the rather rough road and parked at the 'trailhead'. As the photos show, the place seems barren and desolate, yet there are gems to be found when one looks around. For one, it is interesting and colourful cave at the sea's edge. Where does that marvelous blue come from in such a drab environment?

We walked out to the northern tip of the island to watch the swell action at the base of the cliffs. Back-tracking, we came across these 'cannon holes' blasted out by wave action when the island sat lower in the sea years ago. Some were large enough to stand in and walk about Others inter-connected via interior tunnels. To bad the swell wasn't bashing into them the day we were there. What a sight that would have been!

At the north tip the swell was up and watching the waves come in made me want to run and get our kayaks. While the wave action was too much for my rock-hopping skills, I love to see the spray from the outside looking shoreward rather than the reverse. The fog had also lifted somewhat and we could see whales feeding offshore just a few tens of meters away. What a great opportunity that would have been! Alas, we'd opted to hike. The boats were at least an hour or more away.

Digging Up Newfoundland

2010-07-18T13:41:00.005-04:00

As if there wasn't enough on the surface of Newfoundland to keep one busy, some folks have been busy digging up Newfoundland's past to see who else had some fun times on the island. I stopped in at Point au Choix on the west coast to have a look at this latest dig. It turns out people have been visiting this area for several thousand years mostly for the offshore seal hunting.

Lots of old house sites and some burial caves have been found nearby and this dig is to look at the Point Rich area where other houses have been found. The site is quite exposed to the winds from all directions making me wonder why the archeologists didn't erect some sort of shelter over the site to make their work more pleasant.

The photo above is perhaps more familiar to many. It's the reconstructed Viking compound discovered at L'Anse aux Meadows in northern Newfoundland. It's an attempt to show what the Viking settlement might have looked like 1000 years ago when it was settled by people coming from Greenland.

I was interested to see this small boat in the compound at an early stage of construction. The method of fastening the hull planks to the stem was curious, so different from the dory I saw being built in Gloucester a few weeks ago!

Climbing Gros Morne

2010-07-17T11:00:00.004-04:00

There are two main features in Gros Morne National Park which seem to follow one everywhere. First is the Tablelands with its brown colour, so different from the lush green seen everywhere else. Then there is Gros Morne mountain, a huge grey dome overlooking Bonne Bay opposite the Tablelands. Both were begging to be climbed. As the Tablelands required a long drive , we opted to head up the latter.Driving a few miles down the road towards Deer Lake, we pulled off at the trailhead, parked the car and headed up the trail...

Then we climbed and climbed...

And we went up stairs and more stairs...

Until, finally we arrived at the last stage of the climb, the grey dome itself. We could see the path leading up the skree delta at the base into the gully heading to the summit. Once we arrived at the gully there was a sign written in small print: Do Not Pass This Point. Breeding Ptarmigan and Arctic Hare Need Privacy or words to that effect! Although a few other climbers ignored the sign's request and continued up, we stopped, ate our lunch and then headed back down the trail.

We'll finish to the summit another time. As it turned out, the climb did not take us the predicted the "6 to 8 hours" mentioned in the guidebooks, so we're ready to do it again.

Back in Bonne Bay

2010-07-16T20:37:00.005-04:00

Although I have now been lucky enough to visit Gros Morne National Park on several occasions, it is always a pleasure to paddle on the waters of Bonne Bay. Every time I have, the weather has been superb and the water has not disappointed. Once again it was interesting to see the brown, barren Tablelands looking down on the bay and wonder how on earth that odd chunk of mantle made it's way onto the surface when it ought to be miles below our feet

Jeff Dawson, of Ottawa, tried out my Vaäg on the morning run down the bay. We headed off to look for an osprey's nest, but winds and waves decided we ought to head elsewhere. Turning around we passed a cliff and surprised a moose with her calf doing some height training. Moose can be a problem on the roads on Newfoundland, but having one fall into your boat would not be much fun either! Thankfully momma moose had her baby well in tow and there were no accidents!

There are several places to pull out for lunch. This was our choice, colourful pebbles and dried out moose droppings added to the ambiance...

With only two kayaks between four people, we rented a double from the outfitter in Norris Point. It got the job done getting Mairi Watson and Scott Pashley up and down the bay. We're heading back to the put-in after a great day on the water in the photo above.

Dory Racing in Gloucester

2010-06-23T11:42:00.003-04:00

While these dories were designed for fishing on the Grand Banks off Newfoundland, for the past 50 years and more they have also been used in international rowing competitions between the towns of Gloucester, Mass and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. This is a proud tradition which lives almost in obscurity except to those who love the sport and regularly take part. There are two sets of races each year. Teams will re-assemble in Lunenburg in September to have another go at each other.

The photo above is a shot of the winning ladies team, sisters from Nova Scotia. Most of the races are over a half mile course with a 180° turn in the middle. Below is the winning men's team from the USA. This particular race is open to all and stretches to a mile in length, again with a 180° turn at the half mile mark.

Grand Banks Dories

2010-06-21T20:46:00.003-04:00

This past weekend a little piece of history was brought up to date once again when the two towns of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia and Gloucester, Massachusetts went out racing in Grand Banks dories.

The dories rowed in the races use a traditional design originating from Lunenburg. These boats were designed primarily for fishing on the Grand Banks off off Newfoundland back in the days when schooners were used to transport the catch back to port. Weighing around 400 pounds, dry, they are still built in the old way with flat bottoms and copper nails and painted in traditional colours.

Today an international committee oversees the races which are held twice a year, once in Gloucester in June and then in Lunenburg in September. It was a pleasure to see people still rowing these remarkable boats today, following in a tradition of racing which goes back over 50 years. Sadly, the remaining schooners no longer race, but they still can be seen in the two ports and visitors can get to sail on them during the summer months.

Arches and Caves!

2010-06-09T21:33:00.003-04:00

We all dream of paddling wild shores where the seas rage and roar and create all sorts of wonderful places for us to hone our skills and create our stories. One of the most impressive sights is to come across a sea cave or an arch, blasted out of the shear rock by eons of wave action. Alas, these treasures are few, especially in inland waters. In fact, until today, I'd never seen such a feature on my local lake. But that has all changed!

Look at the top photo! An arch! Massive looking and just the sort of thing to photograph and run home with to tell all your friends. So there it is. Look upon my works and weep, my fellow paddlers!

Okay, you're right. There is something a bit odd with the photo, isn't there? The lower photo tells the truth. It's a tiny opening, barely large enough for one's foot, let alone a kayak and paddler. On closer inspection, it isn't even an arch, but only appears like one due to the recent high water levels. The piece of rock on the right doesn't actually reach the bottom, but only dips into the water a few inches.

So no arches, no caves. I'll have to travel to find one of these. But that's alright. I love to travel!

Before Tomorrow

2010-06-06T15:05:00.006-04:00

If you saw Isuma's film Atanarjuat several years ago you may remember there is a kayak scene in it. It was interesting to see that kayak as it's design was quite different from the more commonly seen kayaks of Greenland on which modern glass and plastic kayak designs are often based.

In the more recent film Before Tomorrow, a Greenlandic story is told, produced by Inuit from Igloolik and filmed in Nunavik, in the Puvurnituq area. Of interests to kayakers is the presence of several traditionally built boats as well as a larger umiaq. The kayaks seem to be a mix of traditions, flat bottomed and long as seen in northern Quebec, yet using a bent rib construction method more common in Igloolik and Greenland. It would be interesting to learn more about these craft and who made them. They remind me of a kayak I saw years ago in Igloolik and certainly the dialect of the actors was north Baffin Inuktitut. Interesting...!

Springtime In The Arctic

2010-06-05T10:23:00.004-04:00

The other night I finally had a look at Isuma's feature film The Journals of Knud Rasmussen. From what I could tell, most of the filming was done in the springtime, which is probably the best time to be in the arctic. The light is wonderful, the snow conditions perfect for travel and generally people are happy to be out on the land after a long, cold winter.

That was the upside to watching the film. The downside was knowing I wasn't in Igloolik where the film was made. It's been over ten years now since I've visited this special place. Some old friends have passed on, particularly Nathan Qumaniq whose name appeared in the credits of the film. He was listed as an elder. I knew him long before he reached that status, but to me he was always a wise elder and a wonderful teacher with the patience to teach me and others his way of life.

I wish we could all return to those days...

Crotch Lake Guest Post

2010-06-02T10:58:00.003-04:00

The last time I was "here" I wrote about a truly Canadian thing to do: make bannock. With that in mind I think it is fitting for me to, again, write about something else that is truly Canadian and what else is more Canadian then to go camping on the "MAY 24" weekend?

This past Victoria Day long weekend, Michael joined us for a weekend of paddling and camping on Crotch Lake. Crotch Lake is located West of Ottawa, it is a pretty big lake surrounded almost completely by Crown Land, most of is undeveloped, making it, in my opinion, a wonderful place to camp and paddle. The area is managed by the North Frontenac Parklands, there is a small fee charged to access the crown roads and camp on one of the 77 plus designated campsites. The benefit to the area being maintained is that the campsites are resolvable and there are privy's and fire pits on most sites.

Anyhow, back to the trip. This was our 3rd kayak camping trip together and as in the past a good time was had by all. It seems to me that each trip is better then the last. Our goal is always to find a nice place to paddle and a comfortable spot to camp. The idea is to paddle out to a back country site, with nothing in the way of facilities (I.e a simple box is the privy) and really rough it. But, to be honest, if you joined us, you would soon realize that we don't really rough it at all. First we set up a base camp, which is more like a little village (several colourful tents for sleeping and bug protection and a kitchen area). Meals are particularly important to us (well me anyhow)! Our menu this weekend consisted of things like French toast with fresh fruit and real maple syrup for breakfast, a lunch buffet of pita, hummus, cheeses, pate, olives accompanied by salad and fresh fruit. Dinner was marinated grilled flank steak with foil baked veggies and potatoes on Friday and a peanut chicken curry over basmati rice with a side salad on Saturday. Aside from all that eating we also occupied ourselves by napping in a hammock, reading a novel or writing in journals, searching for forgotten shoes (that is another story in itself) swimming or chatting around the camp fire while sipping on a glass (or two) of wine. On this trip we even found time to create and hide a Geocache of our very own. Of course we also paddled, I think we logged over 10 hours between Sat and Sun just exploring the water around us. The weather this weekend was particularly amazing! Sunny days and warm nights and for some inexplicable reason our little island campsite was almost bug free. What more can you ask for? I really think we are lucky group of people to have met each other and formed such a nice friendship where we all share an interest in getting away from it all to relax, paddle and laugh.

- Mairi Watson

A Wilderness Home

2010-06-01T19:56:00.003-04:00

There's wilderness camping and then there's wilderness camping. On Crotch Lake, wilderness camping means staying at numbered sites around the lake. There's none of the 'pitch your tent anywhere you like' stuff. For that kind of wilderness, you have to get a bit more wild, so to speak.

So what's it like to camp at Crotch? Let's have a look at site 25, probably the most favoured location on the lake, but somewhat typical of the rest. This place has it all, or at least past visitors have seen that it comes equipped with lots of amenities.

Uniquely, it has a small sandy beach to land and launch for your boat. It isn't large, but compared to the usual rocky shore line, it's easier and less rough on the gelcoat than most other sites.

Walk up the short path to the site itself and you arrive at the vast 'kitchen and dining' area. This year some kind soul cut and stored lots of driftwood for the woodstove/campfire facility just adjacent. See the photo below…

There are a couple of nice bedrooms… err, tenting areas.

I pitched my tent in the upper one to take advantage of the lake breezes, but the lower one also has a good view, albeit, with slightly less breeze and probably more flying six-leggers.

The 'nature' facilities are situated a short walk away and conveniently private. While not as comfortably screened in as some sites, I found the ambiance pleasant enough, although lingering over a newspaper and coffee didn't seem like a good idea given the other residents busy flying about.

So there you have it. Wilderness and the comforts of home, all wrapped into a tidy campsite for the weekend paddler.

Paddling Out Of Crotch Lake

2010-05-30T13:11:00.004-04:00

For those wishing to paddle out of Crotch Lake to new destinations, there are three options which I had a look at while there last week. The first I had a look at was the creek leading to Big Gull Lake. The photo above shows the nice portage trail from the Gull Lake end. Below is the little pond at the end of the portage.

I was tempted to continue from here, but the low water level in the pond gave me the distinct feeling it would have been a long, slow slog up-stream to Big Gull Lake. A bit more water and it's possible it might have been an interesting paddle.

The next option takes one up the Mississippi River which flows into the northern end of Crotch Lake. Not quite as big as the other better known Mississippi River, it nonetheless presents some challenges to the paddler, the first one seen in the photo, is a series of three rapids.

I was able to line up the lowest one, but the cascades of the middle set required a portage.

Fortunately a road parallels the river at this point and could be used easily to get above the drop. I could see another small set of rapids further upstream which looked easy to line past, but I didn't proceed that far up-stream for a better look. The river had lots of water and looked inviting to paddle.

The last option is the outlet into King Lake on the northwest side of the lake. Here is a dam composed of caged stone. At high water water will flow over this and I suspect some care must be required not to get caught. There is a road on the left bank which can be used to portage to the river below.

The chute to control the Crotch Lake water level is on the right bank against the rock cliffs as seen in the photo above.

Return To Crotch Lake

2010-05-29T14:07:00.005-04:00

Finally getting back out on the water after a winter of non-paddling felt good. I went to Crotch Lake with some Ontario friends and we continued to explore the lake we had first visited last year. After arriving on a Friday afternoon, we set up camp on a small island site.

The following morning, we paddled into Fawn Lake. This area had been too shallow to paddle last fall as the water level had been drawn down for the winter, but was easily accessible this spring when the water levels were several meters higher. We discovered an area of rocky cliffs and narrow channels.

Very warm temperatures in the mid 30°C's put us back at the campsite later in the day. Some went swimming in the warm water, others, like me, dozed the time away. There were hordes of dragonflies hatching out of their nymph stage, flying away to eat many of the bugs we feared would eat us during the night. You gotta love dragons!

Sunday, we headed into another branch lake called Twin Island Lake, once again gaining access thanks to the high water levels. A couple of oddities we discovered were a flock of turkey vultures pretending to be cormorants, spreading their winds to dry and

an old tree stump bravely lifting two rocks in its arms suggesting that weight lifters may never die!

Let The Dogs Out!

2010-03-27T10:55:00.002-04:00

I should have been on this one a bit earlier as the race is already underway, however for those into racing traditional eastern arctic style dog teams, here it is! This year's race is around the shores of western Ungava Bay, from Quoartaq to Kuujjuaq. The last I heard, the leading teams had already passed through Kangirsuk, my old home town and are headed south. You can catch the updates by clicking here.

Ford's Kayak Van

2010-03-26T10:36:00.005-04:00

Despite the fact that my little Go-Camp trailer has proven to be a welcome and handy way of traveling to the kayak put-ins around the country, I seem to be continually on the lookout for an even better idea. The other day I discovered Ford's Transit van which is relatively new here in North America, although Europe has seen it for several years now.

As you can see in the top photo, kayakers have already discovered it and have begun adapting them to whatever fits their needs. My idea is a variant on this idea. My boats would go on the roof, but I'd convert the interior into a micro-motorhome. The photo below gives an idea of what the interior looks like when tricked out for your particular dream. I haven't seen a camper version done by anyone yet, but I'd like to. In fact, I think Ford (Are you reading this Mr Ford?) really ought to give me one of these vans so I could build a dream home on wheels, ready to kayak anywhere, anytime! I'm sure Mr Ford could sell a bunch of these to the kayaking crowd once they see what I've done with mine...

I've Been Baking Kayaks!

2010-03-21T15:38:00.003-04:00

It's been an indoor day today with snow in the air - not easy to take when it's the first full day of Spring and the temperature is well above the freezing mark! Obviously it's 'Baking Day' and what better things to cook than some kayaks. FIMO clay kayaks actually. I'm in the process of cooking up some little goodies to put in the Geocaches I find when I head out shortly on my annual trip south.

People like to leave things in these caches so that others can either collect them or pass them along to other caches. I'll be attaching tags to some of these which are registered. This will enable me to track their movement from cache to cache. They'll all be placed near water with instructions to place them in other caches near good kayaking sites. Who knows, perhaps I'll find some new places to paddle via them!

Paddle Time!

2010-03-17T12:39:00.004-04:00

Having given a paddle away to a friend in Newfoundland last summer (only to have it suddenly switch ownership again once his wife spotted it!) I hit the workshop this week to replenish my dwindling supply. I had decided to take photos of the process, but things got out of hand. First I forget to bring the camera to the saw mill where I got the cedar blanks. They had a yummy supply of the stuff and let me run through the pile to select out what I wanted. I like that!

Next, I managed to measure out all the critical points on the wood and begin cutting before I remembered the camera. By the time the blank was roughed out, the camera seemed to have disappeared and it stayed that way during the planing and sanding stages. Finally just after the tung oil got applied, the camera resurfaced with the result you can see on the left.

I've got a couple more 2x4 cedar blanks in the workshop so hopefully I'll take the photo series next time. Meanwhile, it's rapidly switching from 'Paddle Time' to 'Paddling Time'! I like that even better!

Goodbye Winter, Goodbye!

2010-03-08T19:30:00.003-05:00

Winter appears to be on the way out for another year in my area. Normally I wouldn't be saying that for another six weeks or so, but this year abnormally warm temperatures have been with us since the end of January. Looking at the lake ice today, I'd say it's melting fast. I could be paddling on the lake by the end of the month if current conditions persist. That would be two to three weeks earlier than usual.

In the meantime, there have been things to do! I repeated my snowshoe climb of Mt Megantic again. Conditions were similar to last year, although the melt was underway from bottom to top of the mountain. This mountain has one of Canada's biggest observatories at the summit. Sadly peasants like me don't get to observe the cosmic wonders available to viewers inside the building, but just the naked eye will provide quite the view at this altitude.

This last photo is my way of saying 'Goodbye winter, goodbye'!

How To Race Dog Sleds

2010-03-01T12:00:00.004-05:00

Dog sled racing has come a long way since the Inuit raced out of Siberia and crossed the Bering Strait. Today's dogs are breed as sprinters. They're lighter and fasters than the dogs used by traditional Inuit. Their dogs were breed for strength, stamina and usefulness on the hunt.

Here is what you need to race today...

Harness your dogs and attach them to the sled-line...

Get the dogs to the Start line and have someone hold each dog so it doesn't run off prematurely...

Try to avoid fouling your dogs with over-eager spectators...

Once clear, try to hang on until the finish line appears...

In wooded sections, attempt to steer dogs all on same side of trees...

Cross finish line and check to see if you've won anything...

There you have it. These photos were taken last weekend in Burke, Vermont and show a variety of different races with from four to eight dogs per team. Obviously I jest, when I imply the sport is simple. I was impressed with how well trained everyone was, dogs, children, adults all included. A great event to see if you ever get the chance. These folks just love being outside in the snow having fun!

For All You Ice Lovers...

2010-02-27T15:07:00.004-05:00

Berg on the right drifts to the left...
The chance to go kayaking in ice-filled waters intrigues many people, me included. After all, it harkens back to the very roots of our sport and so it's only natural we'd be fascinated with the icy prospects.

... and collides with the glacial snout...
This past week events on the western coast of Antarctica have provided an Olympian challenge for super-kayakers with ice on their minds. A giant berg the size of some small countries has been smashed off the glacier that produced it and is now adrift. 100 kms long and 30 kms wide, its massive cliff faces would present an amazing sight for paddlers, not to mention the vast fields of brash ice and growlers in the area of the break...

... breaking it off and setting it adrift.
Apparently this break is due more to natural events than directly to climate change effects, but predictions are that chunks of ice this large can produce altered weather in parts of the world as they drift around and melt. In some cases this large, the effects can be miles away from the Antarctic itself including the northern hemisphere. As I stew away in the heat of another Canadian winter -it's presently +8°C outdoors - I can only hope it will cool things down by next winter!

FIMO Kayaks

2010-02-24T19:37:00.004-05:00

I've been playing with the art clay called FIMO recently for a geocaching idea I have and came across this interesting boat seen in the photo above. It seems that FIMO, a polymer clay material, comes in transparent colours including clear. Given the seductiveness of having a see-through kayak, a company has jumped into the business of producing just such an item. While not technically a kayak, I suspect if the demand is there, it won't be long in coming to the market.

As for me, I prefer to paddle well covered up. Perhap's it's an age thing...

Cape Breton In Winter

2010-02-18T12:29:00.005-05:00

With the 'winter that never was' following the 'summer that never was' I decided to go in search of colder, snowier venues. What better place to look that Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island? Alas, it was milder, and even less snowy than my own home. However, the trip was well worth the effort for a whole host of reasons! If you've never gone there, don't be turned off by the winter. The place is beautiful - just look at that photo and tell me differently - and the people are warm and friendly.

This photo is looking south towards Cape Smokey and St Ann's Bay on the eastern side of the Cabot Trail. Gorgeous in winter and I'm already looking ahead to paddling along its shores come summer!

Oh, and I found my first Nova Scotian geocache thanks to a friend's sharp eyes!

Bird of Kayaking?

2010-02-09T11:54:00.003-05:00

Have you ever noticed that lots of important things have a bird to call their own? Sure you have. There's your 'National Bird' and your 'Provincial Bird' and so on. Birds are always attached to really important stuff.

So where's the Kayaking Bird?

Oh oh... Do we have one? Aren't we important?

Of course we don't and we are. So, I'm herewith proposing a Corvidae as our bird. Everywhere I've paddled from the arctic to the tropics, there have been crows and/or ravens. They're all black - which is big in the kayaking world (just ask a certain female paddler of world fame) and they make really cool sounds like a lot of paddlers I know. In short, they're the perfect Bird of Kayaking!

Getting The Dog Out

2010-02-04T09:57:00.003-05:00

Of course living in a northern clime isn't all long nights, hot drinks and hockey. There is lots more to do and here is an example. If you own a dog or two and they're large enough, then hitching them up to something or someone is a natural. I haven't actually tried this myself for fear of wrecking my back and ruining my kayaking career, but ski-joring with your dog is lots of fun.

I highly recommend you begin on a wide open area, say a forty acre pasture or something. That way the dog or dogs can be trained to go straight, and turn in the proper direction without you managing to hit something hard and immobile. The next step to try is shown in the above photo. Follow a deer path in the woods. The dog will usually stay on the path, nose to the ground. Finally, when all is in a controlled state, one can try heading off the path and into the trees. On this particular day, a few centimeters of snow over a hard crust allowed for some pretty exhilarating high speed slalom runs through the trees! Gee! Haw!

Not One Thing, It's Another...

2010-01-28T15:38:00.004-05:00

Given the hard state of the water in local lakes, I've had to pass the torch over to the few still remaining on the water - what little there is. These ducks, mostly mallards from what I can see, are clustering close to the lake's outlet where a small patch of open water still exists.

Meanwhile a few kilometers downstream, I'm busy 'geocaching'. At this point, I'm following the river along an old rail bed that's been converted to a walking/skiing trail. A series of geocaches have been hidden along the trail every 500 meters or so. I walk along - the skiing being temporarily ruined by some rain - following my GPS from cache to cache. Six of them found today, which equals about three kilometers each way. If it's not one thing - kayaking - then it's another - geocaching!

The geocache in the photo above was hidden right at the river's edge. Perhaps I ought to look into getting a river kayak and take advantage of the running water. I have very little experience in fast water however and wonder if winter is the time to learn... Perhaps not.

Leg Paddling

2010-01-21T12:15:00.003-05:00

Living where I do in a northern clime, there are basically two seasons for the paddler. When the water comes in liquid form, there's 'arm-paddling' which for me means kayaking. The other season occurs when water freezes into snow and ice. That's when 'leg-paddling' begins.

So with most of the water around now frozen, I'm back to leg-paddling. Some people erroneously think of it as skiing and/or snowshoeing, but we all have our issues, don't we?

Ctories Revisited!

2010-01-18T10:16:00.004-05:00

Several years ago I started a second 'C' blog apart from 'C'kayaker, which I called 'Ctories' my contraction for 'Canadian Stories'. The first piece I began writing was called Ilatsiak, after a mysterious shaman encountered by the Canadian Arctic Expedition in 1914. Diamond Jenness, an ethnologist on the expedition, wrote about meeting this man and some of his comments about him prompted me to forge the link between Ilatsiak and the ill-fated Franklin voyage which was lost about 60 years prior.

My attempt to write the story began well, but over the past couple of years it faltered and then stopped entirely. I have begun 2010 with a new determination to see Ilatsiak's story through to completion. If you're at all interested, click over to my Ctories blog and pick up the story. It's now at episode 73...

Watching It

2010-01-16T10:09:00.004-05:00

My brother has an 10 year old European car which came with an interesting computer which enables him to monitor various aspects of his driving style. In particular, it provides him feedback about his mileage. Armed with this information he can adjust his driving style to save gas on a trip. Naturally I lusted after one of these devices, but none of the cars I've ever owned has such a computer.

That has now changed. I discovered a company called 'Scan-Gauge' which makes exactly the computer I've always wanted. It provides all the info of my brother's car and more, 14 different variables in all! I recently purchased one of their gauges and am beginning to learn from it. Plugging it into the OBDII outlet under the dash took about a minute or less, so even I could handle the hi-tech part of installing the Scan-Gauge.

To begin with, as the gauge provides data in real-time, I can now track my fuel consumption more closely and adjust accordingly as I drive. It can tell me whether keeping the roof-rack on the car is costing me money. I now know how much it's costing me to transport my kayak on the rack. I can tell what pulling my tiny trailer costs. In short, this little gauge is providing me with lots of information which, if I pay attention, will allow me to continue to travel to distant kayak venues and still keep my carbon footprint low enough to live with.

Trapped!

2010-01-15T15:05:00.003-05:00

I was thinking of going for a paddle this morning, but things got in the way. Bird things! These wild turkeys have been coming around the house for the past few days driving our dogs nuts. I don't mind feeding the birds, but these seems to much. Besides, how can I leave nutty dogs to go paddling? What would I come home to at day's end?

I wonder if these birds are any good to eat? I am feeding them after all, maybe they could return the favour...

Feeling Blue

2010-01-13T15:26:00.002-05:00

Canada's flag, as you probably know, isn't normally blue, but today it ought to be. Why? We're surrounded on three sides by the oceans. Sadly, the Atlantic is no longer the place it once was having been so depleted of fish stock. The Pacific is suffering a similar fate, not to mention there's a growing swirl of garbage in its midst. The Arctic sea ice is getting thinner each year and hints that unstoppable changes are upon us.

It's a day to feel blue. It's a day to think about the oceans and what we are doing to change them into places which may harm us all. Think. Then do something about it!

It Just Gets Better and Better...

2010-01-09T20:42:00.002-05:00

What can I say...? Yesterday we snowshoed some trails, today we skied them.

Snowtime!

2010-01-08T17:09:00.003-05:00

While the local lake has yet to freeze over completely, the fact that there so much beautiful snow lying about totally un-used has me off the water, perhaps for the winter. The photo above gives an idea of what I'm writing about. There is so much snow, cross-country skiing has been set aside for the moment and snow-shoeing has taken over. My tracks lead up the hill above the barn and the horses. I'm heading for the hills...

Feeling Good

2010-01-06T15:49:00.005-05:00

One of my vivid memories from the Delmarva Paddlers Retreat is the early morning yoga sessions offered by a number of people who attended the event. My memories are not of being at those classes, but of being warmly snuggled down in my sleeping bag knowing I was getting a few minutes of extra rest while those poor suckers took orders on how to perform various muscle-tearing contortions while half asleep. Such bliss...

Well, I've grown up, a bit. I bought a 'Yoga For Paddlers' DVD and stored it on the bookshelf for a while, waiting, I suppose, for both of us to age sufficiently. Last week it all came together. I put the DVD in the player, sat on my new mat and did my best to follow the instructions for Session I. I wish I'd got up at Delmarva. I already feel better. I'm a bit fresher, a bit livelier, sprier, and that's after just a week!

Will I paddle better? Of course I will. And even if I don't, I'll be thinking I do and that's the joy of it, isn't it?

Launching Woes

2010-01-05T09:46:00.004-05:00

January in my neck of the woods always presents new challenges to the kayaker. In the photo above, the slowly growing ice means getting out beyond it to the more or less open water will be frought with problems. The ice near the shore is composed of small pieces of ice about the size of pies. They impede the progress of your boat, yet are not large enough to support your weight. Getting through them is nearly impossible.

Worse yet, returning to shore through the 'pies' is even worse, especially in the case in the picture. At the time it was taken, the wind was blowing the ice from left to right forcing one to chose an entry point upwind. If you were lucky, you'd manage to reach the shore near your car as you swept by, but more commonly, you sat there in your kayak, struggling as the landing beach slowly disappeared around the corner.

Far, far better, not to launch in this spot! Find a beach where there is no ice shelf to cross. Safer, easier and your chances of being home for dinner increases dramatically!

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-24T09:12:00.006-05:00

Here, once again, is a Christmas story to enjoy during the Holidays. I will be closing the Ckayaker office for the next week or so, but look forward to returning in the New Year. Stay well!

The three Inuit stood beside their snow-machines and stared at the snow shelf. It clung precariously to the dark cliff and jutted out towards the black curling water. The last time they'd passed this point, the shelf had stretched out into the middle of the river making for an easy passage. At that time only a small smokey hole indicated the presence of a river beneath the ice. Now the unusual warm weather of the past few days had changed things dramatically.

"Looks dangerous, doesn't it?" Alaku nodded ahead at the narrow snow shelf barely wide enough for a snow-machine. "What should we do?"

"Still wide enough to get by, but it won't be there when we return. We'll have to find another route home..." Kudlikuluk was obviously ready to try running it in spite of the clear danger of sliding sideways into the cold, rushing water.

It was decided to undo the snow-machines from the kamotiks, the wooden sleds each man pulled behind his snow-machine. Instead, the sleds were attached by ropes. They would follow several meters behind the snow-machines, but more importantly, should anything go wrong, the driver could quickly reach behind and cut the rope, freeing the snow-machine, thus allowing it to escape if need be.

Kudlikuluk was first to go. He circled his machine below the shelf and then gaining speed, headed right for the cliff. At the last moment he turned onto the shelf, carving a wide arc in the snow as he passed up-stream to the safer ice beyond. At that moment his kamotik was jerked into following his track as the trailing rope went tight. The first sled was over safely. Following the same maneuver, each of the other men guided their snow-machines and sleds across the tricky bridge. There was a heart stopping moment when Anguti's snow-machine suddenly started sputtering and briefly lost power just as he accelerated towards the shelf, but then it caught and ran the shelf without incident. From there, they followed the river-side cliffs further up the river without incident.

The short few hours of day-light had long since turned into night when the three reached their destination, a small windowless cabin built years previously from discarded panels of plywood filled with rigid insolation. For the next several days, the men checked the gill nets which they'd strung under the ice earlier in the fall. Gradually a pile of lake trout and arctic char piled up on their kamotiks. Another day and they'd begin the trip home for Christmas. Each one was looking forward to their arrival in their small community. They already had enough fish to see that everyone would enjoy a good meal on Christmas Day and beyond.

To pass the time during the brief day, each of the four had dug a hole in the flat ice of the bay under the cliff. Lying on their tummies and peering into a hole dug through the ice, they fished in the old way using a bright dog's canine tooth as a lure and a three pronged fishing harpoon. Slowly bobbing the lure up and down would attract the fish and a quick jab with the spear could catch them - if you were skilled. Alaku wasn't happy however. It had been getting more humid than he liked. The weather was about to change and he was uneasy. The others still wanted to catch more fish. After all Christmas was still more than a week away. Having lots to eat would be welcomed by the community. When the wind picked up during the night and the cabin began shaking, Alaku's words were on everyone's mind, but they said nothing.

With two days to go before Christmas, the weather finally cleared enough to try heading home. With luck, there was still time to make it before Christmas. The three of them were tired of being cooped up in the tiny cabin with little but fish to eat. The days of waiting had dragged slowly by and with little to do, the three men spent most of the time in their sleeping bags trying to stay warm. Now that the storm had broken, they quickly began the task of digging out the sleds and snow-machines from the new-formed snow drifts and began securing the load of fish onto the kamitiks. Wrapping the loads of fish up inside large canvas tarps, the cargo was then laced to the cross-stringers of the wooden sleds using seal-skin ropes which didn't freeze like modern rope. With a last look around,the three snow-machines roared into life and one behind the other, the men headed a few miles upstream to where a small tributary entered the main river. At this point, the cliffs were lower and in one spot a gully had formed where the snow-machines had a chance of climbing out of the river valley to the plateau above.

Alaku was the first to try the gully. Half way up his snow-machine began bogging down. The two men watching at the bottom ran up to help. First the sled was unattached and slowly lowered back to river level. Alaku pulled the front skis around and gunned the engine, spinning it around and then headed down. Another version of the rope trick was decided upon, this time Kudlikuluk attached his machine to the front of Alaku's. Both men circled to gain speed and then charged the gully. Just as Alaku began to bog down in about the same spot, Kudlikuluk's rope went taught and he was able to pull with enough force to bring the heavy load to the top of the gully. This tactic was used to bring all four of the kamotiks up to the plateau above the river and glad to be out of the river gorge at last, the men headed home happy to know there were no more obstacles between them and home to slow them down.

The sun lit the southern sky briefly at mid-day, then darkness set in again. They stopped a few times to make tea and have something to eat. Once again the weather was turning against them by late afternoon. They all noticed the snow starting to drift across their tracks. Two machines roared to life. Anguti's wouldn't start. Try as he might, the machine would sputter and die as soon as he touched the accelerator. It sounded like there was ice in the carburetor. Anguti quickly dug into his toolbox and came up with some tools. The other two cut out some blocks of snow with an old saw and made a snow-screen. This would make working in the wind a bit more pleasant. Within a few moments Anguti had the carburetor removed and dismantled, Sure enough, he could see ice blocking one of the tiny jets. By holding the still warm tea-kettle against the carburetor inside his parka, he had it melted. Checking to see no more ice was there to cause problems he had the machine re-assembled quickly and it started! The men headed out into the dark landscape, one behind the other homeward bound.

The land was mostly small rolling hills and somewhat monotonous. Suddenly sensing something unusual, Kudlikuluk looked behind him to make sure everyone was together. He was alone! Swinging around in a wide circle, he retraced his route. "Now what...?" he said almost aloud. Coming around an outcrop a few minutes later, he found the others once again huddled around Anguti's stalled snow-machine. By now the snow was drifting higher into the air and making visibility more and more difficulty. He must have water in his gas as the same problem was recurring. They decided to leave the machine and it's load of fish and continue on. To stay and repair it would leave them out in the coming storm. To leave immediately, they could probably make the community in time for Christmas. Making others happy was their primary goal.

Anguti sat on top of Alaku's kamotik and the two remaining sleds once again headed towards town. About an hour later, it was Alaku who looked back to make sure Anguti was alright. His sled was gone! What the...!! He turned back and this time drove for over a kilometer before finding his sled with Anguti sitting beside it, out of the wind, enjoying the last of his hot tea from his thermos. "About time you got here!" laughed Anguti. "Don't you ever look back?" Embarrassed, Alaku looked down at the broken link which had held the sled bars to the hitch bar on his snow-machine.

Kudlikuluk roared up the trail as they finished attaching the sled this time with a rope instead of the preferred solid pipe arrangement used in this hilly country. Hoping this would be the last problem they'd have to face, they headed home once again, but they all knew these delays were making their hopes for Christmas less likely to happen.

Even in the dark, the men had a good idea of where they were. Their spirits, which had been getting lower as the visibility got worse and their difficulties increased, now began to rise again in the more familiar surroundings. Coming around a low hill, a glowing light suddenly appeared where no light should have been. It would appear for a moment, then disappear in the blowing snow. Slowing down, they cautiously approached the light. It was a snow-house! Someone was out here in the middle of nowhere in a snow house! What were they thinking? Who could it be? Why weren't they celebrating Christmas in the community?

As they drove up to it, they watched someone struggling out of the low doorway and stood up. It was Maggie, probably the happiest and fattest lady in the world! She stood up and greeted them wearing her usual dress, a bulky store-bought parka, baggy leggings, and beautiful, hand-sewn sealskin boots on her feet. She beamed out a big welcoming smile and invited them in for tea.

"Where you guys been? You missed Christmas!" Maggie laughed at them.

"What do you mean, missed Christmas? Christmas is tomorrow..." Alaku grinned back.

"Boy, you guys are really lost! Lost in time too. You've lost a day, somewhere up the river!" Maggie laughed and turned to go into the snow house. "And it looks like you've lost a sled full of fish as well. Some fishermen you guys are...!" Maggie seemed to find this part the funniest of all. She laughed so hard, she started to cough.

The three men looked at each other trying to puzzle this revelation out. Following Maggie into the snow house, they were greeted by her two little children, whose faces peeped out from under thick caribou skin covers. The snow-house was brilliantly aglow. All around the snow house Maggie had stuck candles into the snow walls, lighting the interior up like a giant lantern.

"My husband and a few others have been out looking for you people. Since yesterday. Today is Christmas, or it was." Maggie had become a bit more serious as she looked around for some tea mugs to hand out. "We were beginning to wonder where you three had got to with all that fish you promised us!" The twinkle in her eye seemed to sparkle in the multi-candled snow house.

None of the three could quite believe they'd lost track of the time, but the dark days of being storm-bound in the little cabin must have been the reason. About an hour after arriving and several mugs of tea, frozen fish and dried caribou later, Maggie's husband and two other men arrived. Anguti's snow-machine was on one of their sleds and his fish laden kamotik was being pulled behind the other. Maggie and her husband decided to stay over in the snow-house and treat their children to a few days of living in the old way. The rest all headed to town and to the feast which had been delayed too long already!

Here Comes Da Sun!

2009-12-21T16:36:00.004-05:00

In a small community called Arctic Bay, in the northwestern tip of Baffin Island, it's dark today. All day. I subscribe to a fellow blogger who lives in the community and the photo you see above was 'stolen' right off his post for today. I hope he doesn't mind, but given he was once an RCMP officer, I ought to be more careful, I suppose.

In any event, I highly recommend visiting his blog and getting to know more about life in Arctic Bay. It's an interesting place in many ways. Those of you living or visiting near Peterborough, Ontario can get another glimpse of Arctic Bay. At the Canadian Canoe Museum, in the kayak section, there's a video of some 'Arctic Bay-miut' building a traditional 'qajaq'. The craft is an interesting blend of traditions, some from much further west and some from Greenland to the east. I found it fascinating to see how the qajaq brought both places together.

For all of us in the northern hemisphere, the good news is we're getting the sun back, starting today, the winter solstice. Not many of us will get to enjoy the 24 hour sunlight they'll be seeing in Arctic Bay in a few months, but there'll be enough sun to keep most of us happy. For a while...

GPS As A Verb

2009-12-18T19:28:00.004-05:00

It was the dis-connect between my charts and what I could see around me while paddling on Georgian Bay a couple of years ago that finally pushed me to buy a GPS unit. A year later, I bravely headed out once again on Georgian Bay, this time from Honey Harbour. Within a half hour I was lost once again! How could this happen, especially now I was equipped with both charts AND a GPS unit?

The fact of the matter was that I wasn't using the GPS enough to really learn - and remember - how the thing worked. Once out on the water, I found myself scrambling to recall which button did what and how to apply it to my situation. I realised that I needed to find an interesting way to practice using the device so that these situations didn't recur, but what?

Accidentally discovering a 'geocache' this past summer in Newfoundland has proven to be my key. Eager to learn more about what I had found, I joined the geocache internet site and, as I've reported on other posts, am now a geocache addict. In the process, most of the mysteries of using a GPS device have now disappeared. I feel much more comfortable and confident using it while paddling. In fact, I can't wait to head somewhere warm this winter to begin geocaching and exploring while kayaking in ernest.

2010 - The Year of the Inuit

2009-12-13T12:54:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I've pasted anything about my favourite place, the arctic, but here's something interesting. The Inuit are having a year long festival of sorts to let folks get to know them and their world a little better. I think that's a great idea, especially because so many people here in Canada and around the world still think of people living in 'snow-houses' and eating raw seal blubber for diner every night. There is still a bit of that life-style when Inuit are 'out on the land' as they say, but there is so much more! This new web-site is a great way to see what's really happening in the arctic these days and a chance to bring yourself up to date. Check it out at Inuit2010.

Changing Opportunities In A Warmer World

2009-12-07T09:53:00.004-05:00

The photo shows a vigil held on a beach in Ottawa last fall. People had gathered to bring attention to the problems posed by global warming. What were they thinking! Obviously not many kayakers were present at the event. With the undeniable increase in the average temperature of the planet, we will have more liquid water and less ice. In turn, this will raise ocean water tide lines several meters above present levels when all is done. For kayakers, the result will be even more water available to paddle on! That's the good news. On the down side (a minor point, really), there will be fewer places to paddle. For example, many island countries will be disappearing especially in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. If you want to explore the Maldives you'd better start making plans soon. The Florida Everglades? Do them now, because they'll be gone as well along with much of the southern state itself. The off-shore high-rise Miami hotel island tours will probably be a replacement venue. Fewer gators, but lots of sharks! Texas and the gulf regions? Look for big changes ahead. Homeland Security folks might want to look into getting some floating stations...

Are you into city paddling? Seaside places like New York will open up to new paddling adventures. For example, it is predicted you'll be able to paddle through Times Square on New Year's Eve - surely a unique experience! The truly adventurous can look forward to crossings of the Arctic Ocean from Canada to Russia. In short, whole new opportunities will be opening up as others close down. We're re-writing the coastal kayaking maps of the world, so don't bother buying any more coastal paddling guides. They're almost out of date! Sadly, Canada's coastline will not be changing very much at all thanks to all the high cliffs we have everywhere. As usual, it will be same old, same old, for us, I'm afraid. We'll probably even be keeping the same old Prime Minister (yawn)!

With all this to look forward to, it makes one wonder why so many people have gathered in Copenhagen for the next two weeks to try and prevent us paddlers from having a little fun... I highly recommend getting together with some kayaking friends this week and next and holding a beach vigil - while you still have a beach - to protest! Personally, I'm going skiing. This may be one of the last winters to go unless I follow the retreating snow line as it moves farther north...

December Paddling Surprises

2009-12-02T22:09:00.003-05:00

Last year at this time, I was no longer paddling. Two years ago, I was on my 100 day paddling challenge to myself, but missed paddling for a few days on account of a snow storm. I was back on the water by December 4th, however, paddling day #90. It was -6°C and snowing still. Today I went for a nice paddle in windy, lumpy conditions. It was #57 of the year, so I'm way off my mark of '07, but ahead of where I was last year. In '08, I only managed to get out 51 times in total, I don't recall why I didn't continue paddling into December last year. It was great to out there today. Plus 6°C, sunny with a nice breeze, cresting waves driving down the lake. Perfect!

In fact, two odd things happened. First a large fish, perhaps a bass, nearly slammed into my bow as I was surfing down some waves. That's never happened before. I've seen fish jump out of the water now and then, but never so close as to nearly smack themselves into the hull. The other oddity was a large brown bird, most likely a young snow goose, flew right up to the kayak and only veered off when about a paddle length from me. I was sure it was out to get me!

All in all, an interesting day on the water! I decided to have a quiet lunch under some overhanging trees. It was much too wild to eat out on the lake itself.

Look What I Missed!

2009-11-27T12:18:00.004-05:00

It's no secret that I've become a geocaching fanatic recently. I've discovered it's a fun way to motivate myself to get out, to hike and see places in my neighbourhood which I've passed by, thinking there was little to interest me. How wrong I was! With one kayaking/geocaching adventure weekend now completed, I'm eager to do more.

I began wondering what I missed in the way of caches during my summer's travels. The map above gives you some idea. I either paddled or hiked past hundreds of caches! They are hidden almost everywhere. Had I been more aware of this activity, I could have added a whole new layer to my travels making them even more interesting.

Most of the caches are on land, but some are within reach of a paddler. The fact that those water-side locations are few in number has only increased my eagerness to begin placing some caches some of which would only be available to those paddling. I have a few places already chosen and I'm sure there will be more to come...

Dreamtime With Paul and Freya

2009-11-21T10:25:00.005-05:00

Freya continues to hurtle along Australia's south coast on her 'Race Around Australia'. In a few short weeks she will complete the circle only done once before.

I was looking around for some biographical information on the first person to paddle around Australia: Paul Caffyn when I discovered a short piece on his Amazon.com page. Here is a brief excerpt:

"In December 1981, Paul set out from Queenscliff near Melbourne and spent the next 360 days achieving the first kayak circumnavigation of Australia. This 9,420 mile paddle is acknowledged as one of the most remarkable journeys ever undertaken by kayak. Paul had to contend with a tropical cyclone which nearly swept him off a small offshore islet in the Coral Sea, raging surf, tiger sharks which frequently bumped into the kayak in the Gulf of Carpentaria, crocodiles, sea snakes and three sections of sheer limestone cliffs. To overcome the three 100+mile plus long sections of cliffs, Paul used Nodoz tablets to stay awake and lomotil to keep his bowels dormant during these overnight paddles. The longest stint along the awesome Zuytdorp Cliffs in Western Australia, took 34 hours of continuous paddling. After 10 years of trying to interest a publisher in a book about the Australian trip, in April 1994 Paul finally self-published his story as The Dreamtime Voyage.

Sadly, most of Paul's books are not readily available, but perhaps Freya's journey will prompt a publisher into returning them to the market. In the meantime, go, Freya, go!

Map from vskc.org, Australia.

Oprah's Secret Paddling Life

2009-11-20T10:14:00.004-05:00

For those who follow such things - I don't - the news is out that Oprah Winfrey will be ending her career as a TV host and general commentator on all things entertaining as of September 2011. You might be wondering what she will be doing with her life after that point...

Wonder no more. It appears Oprah has a secret life! Never one to wonder who she was meant to be, she's been seen out trying on her new career, kayaking. In the picture above a bunch of paddlers hit the beach. Is one of them Oprah? I'm sure of it, because a few minutes later, the camp all set up, she was changed out of her paddling gear and caught on film imbibing the post-paddle drink of the day: Fireball.

I can hardly wait for her new TV series: Paddles With Oprah! This may just be the shot in the arm our sport needs to pull out of the post-recession blues, not to mention all of us getting into more classy camp clothing...

Paddling Out To Lunch

2009-11-19T19:42:00.004-05:00

It was a beautiful day, so I took myself out to lunch. The spot I had in mind doesn't take reservations, but I went anyway, hoping there'd be room. I launched and headed up the river to the beach I'd reserved, in my head at least...

Under the bridges and out on the lake.

A perfectly calm lake awaited me...

Almost there. It should be just around the corner...

Yes! Not a soul about. I'll enjoy a quiet, leisurely lunch lanqushing by the lake...

It turned out Wilson was there. I don't know why. He never spoke the whole time I was there. Typical. Anyway, it was a perfect lunch, cheese, nuts, hard cider, quiet.

Train Wreck Paddle

2009-11-15T12:41:00.004-05:00

When I was in my teens, my brother and I took up scuba diving. It wasn't long before we'd explored our local lake and began looking for other lakes to explore. One place we never managed to get to was a small lake where it was rumored a train had been wrecked and fallen into the water. It would have been a perfect dive site, but the chance to visit never arose and soon life took over. Until this morning...

I was looking for some new geocache sites to visit when one appeared on the screen, called 'Train Wreck'. I checked the Google map. It was THE wreck from my youth! Here's the cache description:

"This cache is located near a very active train line. Do not use the train track to get to the cache. This cache is meant to be found by boat.
"This is a traditional cache, which is located underwater next to an old box car in Orford lake. The depth of the cache is less then 3m. You will need a dive mask once you get to the site. The cache is a Nalgene water bottle.
"It is recommended that you use a canoe or kayak. There are two place to put into the water.
"The government picnic area located at  N 45º17.419’ W 72º16.136’  or  fire truck water intake location at  N 45º17.605’ W 72º15.653’ parking is available across the street.
The lake offers a nice afternoon for kayaking. A good secluded place for lunch is at  N 45º17.765’ W 72º15.767’"

Well, well, just what I like. Two of my interests coming together to complete something left undone from the past. I'll be checking this geocache out next summer. I'll have to free dive as I no longer have scuba gear, but I'll definitely be paddling my kayak to the site.

The photo? Not a train wreck, I know, but a few more million years and this lovely scene will be a sandy beach. Those waves are slowly wrecking that huge rock...

Changeable Weather

2009-11-09T17:47:00.004-05:00

Any time one goes out for a paddle, it's wise to go prepared for changing weather. This rule is especially true in the Fall and today proved no exception. Have a look above at conditions while I was getting ready to launch. 15°C, calm. T-shirt weather?

I hadn't been on the water fifteen minutes when everything changed. A stiff breeze came up and within minutes, breaking waves had built up making things quite lively.

Even trying to take pictures started to get tricky! I was glad to be warm and dry in my drysuit as I played in the waves.

KayakWays' Qajaq Barn

2009-11-06T09:25:00.004-05:00

If you know anything about the two people in the photo above, you'll know they're a dynamic pair. Never ones to wait for things to happen, they've made an enormous impact in the development of traditional kayaking skills during their travels around the world.

Well, once again, they haven't been sitting around. They've made an exciting new thing happen, this time along the Maine, New Hampshire border. They've built a barn!

Not just any kind of barn. It will be a place to build qajait, traditional craft, based on those in Greenland. I suspect it will become much more than that. It will become a gathering place, a center of excellence, a destination for those seeking more than just another roll, or a new boat. I can't wait to get down to Brownfield, Maine and have a look around!

Living Life Upwind

2009-11-05T14:34:00.004-05:00

Kayaking is gradually become a cold weather - cold water activity as the season crawls slowly into winter. What we wear becomes important and for me what I wear can mean how I smell! Living life upwind can affect the lives of those down-stream, which in turn can affect you!

Paddling in Newfoundland, where one wears cold water gear all year around, presented a problem for me a few years ago. Not having easy access to places to wash out my fleecy top and pants resulted in the development of that 'paddler's aroma' we all know so well. Once, using my car to head back to the put-in, I was horrified at the odor it gave off having sat in the warm sun all day. The lady who drove with me never said anything, but I had no doubts about what she was thinking. 'Nice day of paddling, but...!'

After that trip, I began to re-evaluate my cold weather clothing choices. Now, I look at fleece differently. It's warm, easy to wash and dry when facilities are available, but rapidly takes on odors. Wool, on the other hand, is warm, easily washed, although is slow to dry. However, and this is the crux, it is much slower to pick up odors. For this reason, I have been buying wool garments rather than synthetics. I especially like the merino wool clothing put out by people like Icebreaker, Helly-Hansen and Mountain Equipment Coop. They tend to cost a bit more initially than similar fleece clothing, but at the end of the day, I'm a lot more pleasant when standing to windward!

That's A Lot Of Geese

2009-11-02T19:35:00.005-05:00

Instead of going for a paddle the other day, I went bird-watching and geocaching on a local pond in Danville, Quebec. This pond, situated virtually in the town itself, has been a lay-over spot for migrating snow geese for several years. At first only a few hundred had been showing up, but more recently they number well over 100,000 birds!

In the photo above, I was standing in reeds and bull-rushes well over my head trying to get some video footage on the swirling birds. This still was among the mix I took. It gives the feeling of drowning in reeds and birds which was exactly how I felt at the time!

We have a few hundred on a pond closer to the house, but the shear number on Burbank Pond in Danville is staggering. A sight to see!

Oh, and lots of fun geocaches in the area as well!

Kayak Kandy

2009-10-29T22:20:00.007-04:00

An interesting observation I have stumbled across recently is that kayakers like their candy. Not only that, but licorice is widely regarded as the kayaker's choice. I'm not sure why that should be, but given I happen to love licorice, I'm not going to fight the facts!

My present favourite is Walker's Licorice Toffee, seen in the photo above. Until recently, I only knew of one source where it was available: in Nova Scotia, home to many very competent paddlers and licorice lovers. They even like salted licorice which is a variant all to its own.

American kayakers enjoy the stuff as well. The above photo is one favoured brand. Notice the red and white colours. I suspect it might also come in blue...

Over in Europe, Holland is king of the candy makers and lots of different types of licorice is made and eaten there, no doubt by good paddlers. I like the little tin that Potter's use. It isn't waterproof, but handy nonetheless.

The French produce this roll-up licorice for their paddlers...

... while the Finish go for bars of Panda brand licorice.

Naturally, the Italians like to dress up their licorice a bit more than others and wrap each piece individually.

Down under paddlers have several excellent licorice choices both in Australia and New Zealand. The licorice log in the picture above is from New Zealand. The yummy stuff below is Australian.

See you at the candy store, errr.... beach!

Last Days of Fall

2009-10-27T09:34:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, a warm, sunny calm day, came out of a cold, rainy weekend. I wasn't the only person to take advantage of it to squeeze one more day out of a season of generally poor weather. Three other kayakers were on the lake as well as this boat with the surrey top. Everyone was bundled up to keep warm, but there was no need. Even the 9°C temperature seemed warm in the sun.

350 And No More

2009-10-25T09:39:00.004-04:00

If you happen to live either in the far north or the far south, then the news that the climate is gradually changing isn't really news any more. The bear in the photo certainly has been experiencing change for some time. Change that isn't good for his well-being! Change that may well be the end of him and his kind.

World leaders have made a number of attempts to address the issue of high carbon dioxide levels beginning in Rio, thence to Kyoto and in December, in Copenhagen. Nothing has changed. We continue to produce more carbon than the planet can absorb and the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere now exceeds 350 parts per million, the level above which we ought not to go for fear of causing uncontrolled change to our way of life on the planet. It's in the vicinity of 387 at the moment.

Sadly, Canada's leaders are still in denial over this issue and do nothing to help either here at home or around the world. Fortunately many individual Canadians do understand the issue and are making changes, but so much more needs to be done, especially now that we must not just slow down carbon production, but reverse the trend we have started. Today is a good day to begin...

Inuksuit

2009-10-23T20:24:00.004-04:00

It's not news to remark that cultures tend to borrow from one another around the world. Just think what our food would be like without all the 'borrowed' spices we add in to make things interesting! Most people reading this blog have 'borrowed' the idea of a qajaq to make their lives more interesting and fun. When paddling Crotch Lake recently, I was reminded of another borrowed item that seems to be popping up with more and more frequency: The inkshuk!

I won't pretend to be an expert on the subject, but I do recall being on a small island in northern Foxe Basin years ago with a couple of Inuit hunters. We had stopped, partly because the ice was blocking our progress and partly because we were thirsty and needed to make a tea break. While we had our tea and waited for the tide to release the ice, we wandered around the island. It was covered with inuksuit, built over the years for no apparent purpose. Or so I thought...

With little to do while we waited, we began fooling about, piling one rock on top of another, building inuksuit! We went on to add to some of the others, making them more elaborate and higher. It turns out that people had been stopping on this little island for years and they did exactly what we were doing. They passed the time using the resources at hand: flat rocks.

Today, paddlers and others continue this fine traditional activity all over the place. Crotch Lake had dozens of inuksuit built from the abundant supply of stones by visitors over the years. So here is yet another cultural attribute that's been passed on by the Inuit to to rest of us!

Putting On The Gloves

2009-10-22T10:50:00.003-04:00

I tried to take advantage of the rare sunshine yesterday, but as you can see from the photo my paddle was over-taken by a cold front moving in from the south. Rain began over night and continues on and off this morning. Not far to the north, I understand snow is falling. Winter is slowly coming our way.

The air and lake water are colder now, and I've begun wearing neoprene gloves to stay comfortable. I don't care for the loss of feel on my paddle that brings, but I care even less for freezing cold hands. In another month, I'll switch again this time into mitts and by December I'll have gloves on inside the mitts. It's all part of the routine for this ever changing time of year.

On the bright side, the lake is empty. Even the fishermen have given up and put their gear away for another year. They'll return when the ice thickens enough to allow them out with their snow-mobiles and ATVs. Meanwhile, I paddle in peace and quiet with the loons, the ducks and the geese. It's one of the best times of the year to be out paddling!

Bannock In The Wild

2009-10-21T13:35:00.003-04:00

For the very first time in the history of this blog, I'm hosting a 'Guest Writer'! Mairi Watson, who lives just outside of Ottawa, was a fellow paddler on the geocaching and kayaking trip to Crotch Lake last weekend. She kindly sent me this piece about the bannock I made for the group on Saturday night. Here is her post:

Bannock is a truly Canadian food. It is traditionally cooked over an open fire either in a pan or twisted it on a stick. If you haven’t experienced making bannock you should give it a try or do what I did and get someone else make it for you.

During a recent kayak camping trip on Crotch Lake in Ontario where night time temperatures dipped to chilling lows of -8, a member of the group, our very own “ckayaker”, treated us to bannock which he expertly prepared on site. The cooking method he chose was to twist it on a stick and bake it over the campfire, so after the dough was prepared it required kneading and shaping. As they say a picture is worth a thousand words so I am very disappointed that I missed the photo opportunity that presented itself when our pastry chef was shaping the bannock into a long “rope” in preparation to twist it on the stick (try and visualize this and you will understand my regret at not getting a picture).

Cooking the bannock was the next step. This is done by holding the stick over an open fire, turning it occasionally, to evenly bake the bannock. I imagine in warmer temperatures this does not take very long, however, be warned that when temperatures are below zero this process proved to take a long time especially when continuously being asked, “Is it ready yet”?

In the end I must say it was worth the wait. There is something special about eating bannock that has been traditionally prepared fresh before your eyes.

Thanks for the experience!!

And thank-you Mairi for submitting this post!

Geocache Kayaking

2009-10-20T10:22:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I read a trip report by a canoe paddler about his trip to Crotch Lake, Ontario. He mentioned there were 'geocaches' on the lake. This perked my interest and last weekend a group of us went kayak-camping on the lake to see if we could locate the caches. Here is a photo essay of our adventure.

First we did some team bonding to prepare ourselves for the grueling tasks ahead. Notice the clever way we took advantage of each other's boat wake to reduce our paddling fatigue in the chilly Fall weather...

Once we were warmed up and had established a base camp, we headed out for the first geocache. Shocked to discover the site was not located where the canoe paddler had said it was, we then followed the GPS track which eventually led us to this lonely beach where the land search began in ernest...

Our eyes were glued to the GPS screen as we made our way through the camp site's heavy brush, up cliff faces and through fire pits, as the ever elusive geocache slowly came within our grasp. Suddenly one of our party was yelling and screaming and jumping around in glee. The geocache prize was ours! We painstakingly open it to reveal it's mysterious contents. An incredible find, but wait! There was no writing implement to record our visit... Then, like a bolt from the blue, a pen was discovered some distance from the cache site itself! How wild can this adventure get?

Staggered by the thrill of it all, we took a moment to sit down and listen to our leader's calming words, "It's just a silly geocache, people. Get a grip on yourselves. We're here to paddle, after all..." We returned to our senses, grateful for these wise comments from our leader.

We placed the geocache back in it's hiding place and then quietly returned to our kayaks. He was right. This was a paddling trip. It was late Fall. We had to remain stable and cautious out here in the wilds of rural Ontario.

But, wait a second... Isn't there another geocache around here somewhere...? In the end, we found all three lakeside caches and set about hiding one of our own. It will be spring before anyone returns to Crotch Lake to dig them up again. meanwhile we're hooked on mixing kayaking and geocaching as a way to enjoy being out on the water.

Blog Action Day - Climate Change

2009-10-15T09:43:00.000-04:00

Just when you think you have a clear view of things, something gets in the way and you seem stuck. What to do? For a lot of people, it seems the answer is to just ignore the view and focus instead on the ground beneath their feet.

Sadly for us on this planet, we can pretend all we like, but the view at our feet isn't going to help us move ahead. That tree and it's kind are going to change us and block our view of the future forever unless we change our focus and look to the scene beyond...

In the late 1960's I collected seal blubber samples in the Canadian arctic. The samples were sent south to be examined for various substances including mercury. In most cases, mercury was present along with a variety of other harmful chemicals. Suddenly it was clear that a seal hunting culture was being threatened by activities far, far away. Suddenly the future for a whole culture of people was in doubt and clouded by the unknown.

Today the threat is even bigger, extending not just to an isolated group of arctic hunters, but to everyone's well-being and that of our children. We have contributed to the changes our planet is undergoing, perhaps to the point of no return. We must change our ways. We must ignore whatever it is that's blocking our view of the future. We must move beyond our self-interests and together act.

Don't be that tree in the photo. Be the view beyond!

Early Snow

2009-10-14T10:19:00.004-04:00

I know it happens every year, but to wake up to snow in the air and the beginnings of accumulation on the ground always comes with a bit of a shock. October snow happens around here and it doesn't usually stay past mid-morning, still... It is one of the those little reminders that there are things that need doing and soon. Paddling is nearly done for another year.

I'll be heading over to the boathouse later today and packing up all the gear I want to have at home for winter paddling. I'll have to decide whether to bring the kayak home or not. What if I go south to paddle during the winter months? What boat will I want to take with me? What paddle?

It's fun to think ahead to where I might end up paddling, but at the same time, it's sad to think another year of paddling is coming to a close locally. I'm often the only boat on the lake these days. In another month ice will be forming in the bays forcing us all of the lake until spring.

In the meantime, I'm going kayak/camping this weekend so I'm going through all my cold weather gear looking for warm stuff. Over the years I've accumulated a host of ideas and equipment for staying warm when it isn't. It will be fun getting into that world again!

And Then There Were Five

2009-10-13T10:50:00.004-04:00

Long time readers of this blog will recall my fascination for the Corvidae family: crows and ravens especially. These clever birds are said to be smarter than dogs which strikes me as odd, but there you are.

For years we have had a pair of crows which often sit in trees near the house and keep an eye on our behaviour. They are usually accompanied by a third crow which we believe to be an offspring. This year there are two addition birds in the group suggesting they've raised two young this year.

The whole family was out enjoying the beautiful October day we had yesterday, but I only managed to catch the two adults with the camera. Like the young everywhere, the 'kids' were busy fooling around and wouldn't pose for their annual family photo.

In The Boat Again...

2009-10-12T16:24:00.006-04:00

It's a bit like the song, 'On the Road Again' by Willie Nelson. After a paddling dry spell with too much rain and too many days of being forced indoors, I had to get out and, as they say, 'get the smell of the house out of my clothes'. I finally got back in the cockpit and pushed off from shore. I was paddling again.

It was a glorious day, crisp air, sunny skies and just enough wind to put some back into the strokes. I began by heading towards town...

Then I headed upwind for a bit...

And finally I went around the point...

All in wonderful colour. Heaven better be this good or I'm not interested!