Time to blog again...this is the video from Scott, Meaghan, and I's trip to Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands). Enjoy!
Gwaii Haanas from IGB on Vimeo.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
The Room of Doom
I took a day of leave on Friday to paddle the room of doom at Deception Pass with Rand. We met up at SRK and loaded boats and gear to start the trip up to Coronet Bay. We met up with John during a quick stop for breakfast at the Country Corner (I recommend the breakfast burrito...complements the Room of Doom quite nicely!) and caravaned on to the bay. I threw in a couple offside rolls...missing each one the first time. I'm going to blame that on the new hip braces...and I have no doubt John and Rand were comforted by the fact that I did roll up. Eventually.
As we paddled away from the finger piers and into flooding tide, I realized I had fallen into an intense, focused silence as I paddled, eyes locked on the pass ahead (sweating the missed rolls, I'll admit). Releasing my death grip on paddle and pass, I turned to see what Rand and John were discussing. Nothing...they wore matching determined gazes; focusing on the moving water around us.
We reached the Room of Doom by working the eddies on the south side. Once in the room, whirlpools were well-formed at the point and a strong back-eddy was pushing us against the rocks and west against the flood. Rand gave a great brief on what to expect and things were uneventful as we played in the whirlpools and eddies until a large yacht powered through the pass, pushing up a large wake (overhead). As John and I watched the waves, we saw Rand push up to the top of the room and swing out into the waves, earning the day's brass-balls award and shaming the rest of us to paddle out and surf the standing waves ourselves. Although the water is confused in the Room, my observation as the current built was that a strong back eddy runs along the wall and boils regularly erupt, pushing anyone into the room against the walls. Simply paddling into the room resulted in lateral motion towards the wall and forward motion across the room and out into a large whirlpool. I found this out personally as we crossed Deception Pass to check out the Canoe Pass side.
The Canoe Pass side was also interesting, although much less intense than the Room of Doom. There is a nice calm area to break into, and we worked on 360's, rolls, and eddying out. John left from here to return home.
Although there was calmer water at Canoe Pass, I was less comfortable with the overall situation. As the water flows through the pass, it runs right into a sheer wall on the north side. When I would eddy out at a good speed and as far up the back-eddy as possible I found myself driven too close to the rocks for my comfort. The hydro's are such that I found it very difficult to paddle away from the wall. I suspect that a missed roll or other miscalculation in the current might result in a 200 yard ride along the wall with barnacles working on gore-tex, fleece, and flesh. I didn't try the experiment, nor do I want to scare people away (any more experienced DP paddler's want to weigh-in about this area?) but I like to have an exit strategy and I didn't feel good about this one.
Rand and I paddled to the East end of Canoe Island and played in the whirlpools there for a while...we weren't going to make it back to the Room of Doom, and in our pleasantly tired state, the boils and whirlpools off Canoe Island were a mostly a pleasure. However, while playing in one whirlpool, I was either too close, or was driven back into, the rocks in the midst of a nice, fast spin. The sound of barnacle/fiberglass interaction was loud (sadly you can't hear it on video...but you can hear me singing) and will probably force me to get a keel-strip as I currently have a few exposed fibers poking out of the gelcoat. We played on for a while, then headed back to Coronet Bay to start the drive home.
In summary, the Room of Doom was a great experience, for some reason I had "Peaches" stuck in my head all day and felt the need to sing on camera, and I tore a chunk out of my boat (she's not speaking to me right now).
As we paddled away from the finger piers and into flooding tide, I realized I had fallen into an intense, focused silence as I paddled, eyes locked on the pass ahead (sweating the missed rolls, I'll admit). Releasing my death grip on paddle and pass, I turned to see what Rand and John were discussing. Nothing...they wore matching determined gazes; focusing on the moving water around us.
We reached the Room of Doom by working the eddies on the south side. Once in the room, whirlpools were well-formed at the point and a strong back-eddy was pushing us against the rocks and west against the flood. Rand gave a great brief on what to expect and things were uneventful as we played in the whirlpools and eddies until a large yacht powered through the pass, pushing up a large wake (overhead). As John and I watched the waves, we saw Rand push up to the top of the room and swing out into the waves, earning the day's brass-balls award and shaming the rest of us to paddle out and surf the standing waves ourselves. Although the water is confused in the Room, my observation as the current built was that a strong back eddy runs along the wall and boils regularly erupt, pushing anyone into the room against the walls. Simply paddling into the room resulted in lateral motion towards the wall and forward motion across the room and out into a large whirlpool. I found this out personally as we crossed Deception Pass to check out the Canoe Pass side.
The Canoe Pass side was also interesting, although much less intense than the Room of Doom. There is a nice calm area to break into, and we worked on 360's, rolls, and eddying out. John left from here to return home.
Although there was calmer water at Canoe Pass, I was less comfortable with the overall situation. As the water flows through the pass, it runs right into a sheer wall on the north side. When I would eddy out at a good speed and as far up the back-eddy as possible I found myself driven too close to the rocks for my comfort. The hydro's are such that I found it very difficult to paddle away from the wall. I suspect that a missed roll or other miscalculation in the current might result in a 200 yard ride along the wall with barnacles working on gore-tex, fleece, and flesh. I didn't try the experiment, nor do I want to scare people away (any more experienced DP paddler's want to weigh-in about this area?) but I like to have an exit strategy and I didn't feel good about this one.
Rand and I paddled to the East end of Canoe Island and played in the whirlpools there for a while...we weren't going to make it back to the Room of Doom, and in our pleasantly tired state, the boils and whirlpools off Canoe Island were a mostly a pleasure. However, while playing in one whirlpool, I was either too close, or was driven back into, the rocks in the midst of a nice, fast spin. The sound of barnacle/fiberglass interaction was loud (sadly you can't hear it on video...but you can hear me singing) and will probably force me to get a keel-strip as I currently have a few exposed fibers poking out of the gelcoat. We played on for a while, then headed back to Coronet Bay to start the drive home.
In summary, the Room of Doom was a great experience, for some reason I had "Peaches" stuck in my head all day and felt the need to sing on camera, and I tore a chunk out of my boat (she's not speaking to me right now).
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Surfing Grayland
On Friday we headed to Grayland to meet up with the crew at "The Whale Blow Inn" for a weekend surf trip. Chester, Setsuko, and Dave made it up early to check out the surf at Graylands and reported clean breaks at a gentle 3ft or so. Saturday morning, Meg and I fired up a warming breakfast of pancakes, bacon, and eggs for the crew and we headed for the beach.
Naturally, after a few pleasant, sunny days at the office, we made it to the beach in cold, drizzly conditions...a fresh wind blowing from the southwest with a westerly 4-5ft swell. But, we came to surf, so out we went. It was a relatively uneventful time...the receding tide gave us a small zone near the beach to play in and a couple larger zones further out to practice in. Sean found a wave to snap his paddle in, leaving him with a long swim in from the surf zone.
Once we had Sean safely in, we decided it was time to break for lunch. Alex arrived fresh from the Tacoma news-scene and joined us in the water after lunch. The wind picked up over lunch and I spent much of the afternoon paddling into the wind to avoid being blown to Canada. A few paddles back up the beach into 20+ knot winds wore me out and realizing that I was getting to tired to handle the bigger waves, I moved into the smaller surf near the beach to work on skills in more manageable waves and work on maneuvering in the wind...good times were had by all in the afternoon and as we loaded our boats onto the cars and cinched down the last straps the wind petered out, cleaning up the surf zone considerably. It didn't seem worth dressing and pulling 50lb boats off the car and into the water though and most of us retired to the beach house for a pasta feed and hours of kayaking and wilderness talk.
A great weekend...thanks to those who came up, especially Dave, Bob, and John in particular for giving up their time on the water to watch out for the rest of us as we messed around in snotty weather!
Click here for Pictures (Thanks to John for loan of the camera for pics and video)
Naturally, after a few pleasant, sunny days at the office, we made it to the beach in cold, drizzly conditions...a fresh wind blowing from the southwest with a westerly 4-5ft swell. But, we came to surf, so out we went. It was a relatively uneventful time...the receding tide gave us a small zone near the beach to play in and a couple larger zones further out to practice in. Sean found a wave to snap his paddle in, leaving him with a long swim in from the surf zone.
Once we had Sean safely in, we decided it was time to break for lunch. Alex arrived fresh from the Tacoma news-scene and joined us in the water after lunch. The wind picked up over lunch and I spent much of the afternoon paddling into the wind to avoid being blown to Canada. A few paddles back up the beach into 20+ knot winds wore me out and realizing that I was getting to tired to handle the bigger waves, I moved into the smaller surf near the beach to work on skills in more manageable waves and work on maneuvering in the wind...good times were had by all in the afternoon and as we loaded our boats onto the cars and cinched down the last straps the wind petered out, cleaning up the surf zone considerably. It didn't seem worth dressing and pulling 50lb boats off the car and into the water though and most of us retired to the beach house for a pasta feed and hours of kayaking and wilderness talk.
A great weekend...thanks to those who came up, especially Dave, Bob, and John in particular for giving up their time on the water to watch out for the rest of us as we messed around in snotty weather!
Click here for Pictures (Thanks to John for loan of the camera for pics and video)
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Kayaking Deception Pass
And finally, my day came...kayaking Deception Pass, a comfortable 6-odd knots on the ebb, a beautiful sunny day. Meg and I arrived at Deception Pass State Park a little early. As we pulled up, we found a dozen other kayakers gathered around...including one who looked vaguely familiar. "Kinda looks like Nigel Foster..." I remarked. After talking to some of the paddlers at the beach, it turns out that it was Nigel Foster; getting ready to teach a directional control class to the local kayaking club. As we walked down to the beach with our kayaks, I realized that one of the boats on the beach looked like the latest Nigel Foster-designed boat from Point 65N Kayaks. Seeing the opportunity...I walked up, introduced myself, and asked about the boat. Sure enough, Nigel Foster is as pleasant a paddler as you will meet, and the boat was the new Whiskey 16. Mr. Foster kindly offered to let us try the boat out during their lunch break, or in the afternoon after the class. We said we'd love to take him up on the offer and then parted ways so he could teach his class.
John, Dan, and Andrew showed up several minutes later, and after a quick duct-tape repair of John's drysuit, we paddled out from the park towards the pass. We made it to Canoe Pass to find a 4 -knot (-ish) ebb flowing out. Perfect for my first peel-out in the Pacific Northwest. I boldly paddled up the eddy, pushed my bow out into the current, waiting for the right moment to lean downstream on my trusty paddle and spin out towards the sea.
The right moment passes by without remark...I'm still upright, water is piling up on my left side, pulling me down...high brace! Ineffective!! Again!!! Failure!!!! I'm over! IN DECEPTION PASS! Quickly, I position for a sweep roll, and I'm up. Laughter from the crowd.
After that, things settled downed and we peeled out, ferried across, and eddied out for several hours. Taking advantage of the relatively calm conditions, I hauled out on the rocks to take pictures and videos. John executed a nice peel-out and roll...Dan exhibited some hot-dog surfing... Meg and Andrew peeled out calmly into the current. Then, in the distance, I see Meg swimming. I see the others heading for her. Realizing that they have the situation under control, I continue filming...for educational purposes...really. You can see the video on the associated Picasa album.
Once Meg has safely recovered, we paddled to the other side of Deception Pass to play in the larger pass. There were several other paddlers out, including a greenland-style paddler pulling off some spectacularly graceful rolls in the whirpools. Truly impressive to watch. After lunch, we paddled aroundCanoe Island and the island outside the pass before returning to Deception Pass State Park.
After loading the boats back onto the car, we stuck around to paddle the new Whisky 16. Evidently, there was Whiskey in the "whisky hatch," but we only got to try the boat...in the calm conditions of the park, I can say that the boat was extremely comfortable and handled very nicely. Once edged into a turn, it cranked around nicely and was easily rolled.
At the time of paddling, this was the only Whisky 16 in the United States...added a little to the experience, we're a part of kayaking history now, I suppose. Nigel Foster shared his thoughts on the design elements of the boat with us, and we parted ways after a great day on the water.
click here for Pictures and Video from Deception Pass and Whisky 16 test-paddle
John, Dan, and Andrew showed up several minutes later, and after a quick duct-tape repair of John's drysuit, we paddled out from the park towards the pass. We made it to Canoe Pass to find a 4 -knot (-ish) ebb flowing out. Perfect for my first peel-out in the Pacific Northwest. I boldly paddled up the eddy, pushed my bow out into the current, waiting for the right moment to lean downstream on my trusty paddle and spin out towards the sea.
The right moment passes by without remark...I'm still upright, water is piling up on my left side, pulling me down...high brace! Ineffective!! Again!!! Failure!!!! I'm over! IN DECEPTION PASS! Quickly, I position for a sweep roll, and I'm up. Laughter from the crowd.
After that, things settled downed and we peeled out, ferried across, and eddied out for several hours. Taking advantage of the relatively calm conditions, I hauled out on the rocks to take pictures and videos. John executed a nice peel-out and roll...Dan exhibited some hot-dog surfing... Meg and Andrew peeled out calmly into the current. Then, in the distance, I see Meg swimming. I see the others heading for her. Realizing that they have the situation under control, I continue filming...for educational purposes...really. You can see the video on the associated Picasa album.
Once Meg has safely recovered, we paddled to the other side of Deception Pass to play in the larger pass. There were several other paddlers out, including a greenland-style paddler pulling off some spectacularly graceful rolls in the whirpools. Truly impressive to watch. After lunch, we paddled aroundCanoe Island and the island outside the pass before returning to Deception Pass State Park.
After loading the boats back onto the car, we stuck around to paddle the new Whisky 16. Evidently, there was Whiskey in the "whisky hatch," but we only got to try the boat...in the calm conditions of the park, I can say that the boat was extremely comfortable and handled very nicely. Once edged into a turn, it cranked around nicely and was easily rolled.
At the time of paddling, this was the only Whisky 16 in the United States...added a little to the experience, we're a part of kayaking history now, I suppose. Nigel Foster shared his thoughts on the design elements of the boat with us, and we parted ways after a great day on the water.
click here for Pictures and Video from Deception Pass and Whisky 16 test-paddle
The Drive Across...
Well, our weeklong trip across the country was pleasant and uneventful...and yes, we survived a week cooped up in the Z without any problems. The highlights of the trip started after we made it through Texas. We spent a great night in Chandler, AZ with Laura...not long enough, but a good chance to catch up and drink some local brews. We left Chandler and made it to Joshua Tree National Park in time to hike out to the Lost Palms Oasis, about 8 miles round-trip from the campsite. We made it back in time to watch the sun set around the hills and cook up a nice dinner.
The following morning we drove into San Francisco's Mission District to meet with Kyle and Sara...then downtown the following morning to see Steve and Andrea for breakfast. That night, we made it to Ashland just in time to catch Coriolanus at the Ashland Shakespeare Festival.
The next day, we pushed north to Seattle, with a brief stop for lunch in Portland with Heather.
Pictures here.
The following morning we drove into San Francisco's Mission District to meet with Kyle and Sara...then downtown the following morning to see Steve and Andrea for breakfast. That night, we made it to Ashland just in time to catch Coriolanus at the Ashland Shakespeare Festival.
The next day, we pushed north to Seattle, with a brief stop for lunch in Portland with Heather.
Pictures here.
Boiling Creek
My last southern paddle! Meg and I met Fritz and Harriet, David and Tracy, and Jerry for a final paddle of Boiling Creek for me...a first for Jerry and Meg. The weather was beautiful, boats were swapped around...we alternately passed around, over, or under the bridge, and pulled out at the usual charming, fuel-soaked, garbage-littered boat ramp.
Pictures (of the beautiful, kayak/canoe accesible portion of the trip) can be found here.
Pictures (of the beautiful, kayak/canoe accesible portion of the trip) can be found here.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Trip Reports
Trip Reports: This post will link you to past trip reports (those since I've been writing the blog) without having to search through the archives...divided by region and sport, multiple trips are numbered consecutively.
Kayaking
West Coast
Johnstone Strait and Broughton Archipelago
Lake Union (1)
South Puget Sound
The South
Dead Lake (1) (2)
Indian Mounds (1) (2) (3)
Boiling Creek
Weeks Bay
Fish River
Magnolia River
Canal Island (1) (2)
Bartram Canoe Trail
Key West and the Dry Tortugas
Bay Minette Creek
Gravine Island (1)
The Blackwater River
Hiking
Cordova
Zion National Park
Diving
The Oriskany
Kayaking
West Coast
Johnstone Strait and Broughton Archipelago
Lake Union (1)
South Puget Sound
The South
Dead Lake (1) (2)
Indian Mounds (1) (2) (3)
Boiling Creek
Weeks Bay
Fish River
Magnolia River
Canal Island (1) (2)
Bartram Canoe Trail
Key West and the Dry Tortugas
Bay Minette Creek
Gravine Island (1)
The Blackwater River
Hiking
Cordova
Zion National Park
Diving
The Oriskany
Monday, March 10, 2008
Kayaking South Puget Sound
For those following the posts, the last half-dozen were mobile posts from a trip in South Puget Sound. We launched from Boston Harbor Marina, just north of Olympia, and paddled out to Hope Island on Friday night...a beautiful night paddle. The next morning, we paddled about half the Shelton Shuttle before continuing north along Harstine Island to Jarrell Cove State Park to camp and do some rolling practice. Sunday we paddled around the rest of Harstine Island and bucked a nice current back to Boston Harbor. All in all, a nice weekend trip! The rest of the pictures can be found here... http://picasaweb.google.com/out2sea03
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Saturday
Launch
Friday, February 15, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Rolling...
Well, had some good rolling practice lately, but otherwise not much to report on the ol' kayaking scene. Hopefully, I will be heading to Seattle later this month with a little side trip for paddling in the south-sound area. Some pictures courtesy of Fritz on the pictures link.
Stand-by for rope-swing kayaking pictures!
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