Back to the Lake

A beautiful Sunday morning on Thetis Lake.


We have returned after only a couple of weeks for another practice session on the lake. Today, it's Louise, Paula, Khaled and myself. After a little paddle around the lake, it's self rescue practise time. Paula is going to figure out how to get back into the Advanced Elements Expedition she's been testing, while Khaled will try to figure if it's even possible for him to get back into his Pelican play boat.


First, we do a little exploring in around the shore.


We found one eagle, but he was a little shy and pretended to ignore us.


There was something living under the lily pads. As we paddled through, tiny splashes would erupt ahead of us. We never determined what was causing the splashes. Frogs were our best guess, but it was just a guess.
A couple of times, I also some small black shapes running along the shoreline. My impression as I briefly caught sight of them was that they were cat-sized, but they clearly didn't move like cats. Minks? River otters? Who knows. Whatever they were, "stealth" was their middle name.


We found another eagle, and after giving us the once over...

...he was very willing to pose.


Then came play time. Paula hit the water first trying to get into her Expedition.

With roughly the same amount of exertion and swearing as when she gave birth to twins, she finally got in. But she quickly discovered that the normal route of a cowboy/scramble entry doesn't really work on the Expedition because there's hardly anything to grab onto on the back deck. So she had to scramble onto the front deck, which means that she is facing the stern, and now has an extra turn she has to deal with before she can get back inside the cockpit. Not impossible, but not exactly ideal.


Then it was Khaled's turn to try a self-rescue in his Pelican play boat...

...and it promptly sank. We very quickly discovered that almost any amount of water in the Pelican would make it totally unstable. Khaled could get on top of it, but he could never get in it before it tipped over or sank. Paula tried an assisted rescue from her kayak and that actually worked really well.


Not to feel left out, I gave my paddle float entry a work out...

...which of course led to the inevitable bilge pump fight.


But perhaps the most important lesson I learned was this: if you're going to mount a camera on your kayak's back deck that's set to take a picture once a minute, make sure you know when it's about to take its next picture before you climb out of your kayak.

The End!


Trip length: 5.13 km
YTD: 251.02 km
My pictures are here.
The Google Earth kmz is here.

Eclectic Boogaloo

We were an eclectic group yesterday for our evening paddle on the Gorge, that's for sure. Louise and I were in our Deltas, Paula in her Advanced Elements Expedition and Khaled was in his Pelican.


And Brian? Brian was in this:

It's a Sea Eagle inflatable kayak. And on the back end, he's lashed down his recumbent trike, his kayak bags, and the trailer for his kayak. Although bulky, his trike is fairly light and his kayak is rated for nearly 400 kg of cargo. But what if it rolls over? Brian has attached some PFDs to the trike and he says when it rolls over, it practically rights itself.
It made for an interesting sight on the water.


There was hardly any wildlife to speak of yesterday. No eagles, no seagulls, hardly any geese. We wondered if they were hunkering down in anticipation of bad weather. Thunderstorms, a rarity in these parts, were expected later.



We meandered up Craigflower Creek. The tide was high enough that we hoped to get to the tunnel under Highway 1. But we had to get around the fallen log. I tried to get around it, but my boat is just too big. The last time we were here, I was in a 14' boat and was able to squeeze around, but at 18' my new ride is just too long. Louise in her 17' didn't even try.
I backed out of the way and Paula said, "Khaled, this is your moment to shine." They were able to move around the tree and the rest of us waited for them while they paddled through the tunnel. I (and you) will just have to be content with the photos I took of the tunnel from our previous visit.


We were quickly losing the sun as we headed back towards home....

...and we weren't the only ones heading home in a hurry!




Trip length: 9.59 km
YTD: 235.89 km
More pictures are here.
The Google Earth kmz is here.

Commando Brian

I bumped into a former co-worker last weekend, and we discovered that since we last worked together we've both taken up kayaking.
While I've gone into sea kayaking, he bought an inflatable and started exploring commando kayaking. But he's developed his own unique twist; he rides his recumbent trike to the launch point, then loads up his trike on his kayak. This way, he's taken his ride home with him and can peddle back from wherever he puts in.

I have to say I'm somewhat dubious about this set-up, especially if it goes over. But it is an ingenious set-up, and I'll get a look at it live and in person later today when Brian joins us for a paddle on the Gorge.

"They Look A Lot Bigger From Down Here."

Last week, a pair of kayakers from West Coast Outdoor Adventure Rentals in Sooke (about 45 minutes up the coast from Victoria) headed out in Hobie inflatable sit-on-tops pedal kayaks into Sooke Harbour. They soon found themselves surrounded by a pod of orcas.
Check out the video. (The good stuff starts around 3:45.)

Lazing On A Sunday Morning....

What a difference a week makes. Last Sunday, we were just shaking off the last remnants of a torrid heat wave which blasted baking sun down on us for a couple of weeks. Today, we can't even see the sun.
Louise, Paula and I put in for a paddle around Albert Head to Witty's Lagoon and back. The conditions were perfect, nary a breeze or a current, and the fog and low clouds kept the bright sunshine at bay.


Armed with our compasses and GPS, we headed out into the murky morning. As we paddled around the point, we headed to what we call "the shortcut," a channel near the end of the point that can cut a few minutes of paddling off your trip if the tide is high enough.

But we saw something silver lying on the rocks on the right side of the channel -- a baby seal. And then mom poked her head up in the middle of the channel. We decided that discretion was called for, and we abandoned the shortcut and took the long route around.


Around the point at the exit of the shortcut, a number of seals were gathered, maybe a dozen or so, and it was easy to see why. The ocean was teeming of thousands of little tiny fish. Clearly the seals had found a good spot for feeding along this side of the point.
We continued on and soon the fog slowly started to lift.


We quietly paddled around some small islets and rocks as we approached Witty's Lagoon. The entrance to the lagoon has run dry, so there was no hope of getting in, but the real show were all the seals camped over the rocks outside it.


We saw another baby on the rocks. And here's a note for all you landlubbers out there: if you find a baby seal out on the rocks by itself, please don't try to help it. While you make think that its mother has abandoned it, chances are mom has just gone to do a little fishing and the baby is perfectly fine. Yes, the impulse to help what looks like an abandoned animal is strong, but the best help you can give is to walk away and leave it alone. If you try to help it, the seal may end up with the scent of humans upon it and then mom will likely abandon it. Early this year one tourist in the area took what they thought was an abandoned seal off a beach, put it in their car, then called the police. That seal is now being cared for in a shelter and may never return to the wild.
To that tourist I say that it's good that your heart was in the right place, but please use your head instead next time.


There was no getting over the fact that the seals were everywhere today.




Even the eagles were just sitting back and watching the seals.


We try to give the seals a wide clearance, but sometimes it is impossible. As we paddled around the little islands off the mouth of Witty's Lagoon, we could see seals everywhere. There were probably three dozen just in this little area.


I think the eagles were starting to get jealous.


We headed back under some rain clouds which thankfully held on to their moisture and dropped it somewhere else.


As we headed back, we saw a large number of turkey vultures. They aren't unknown in these parts and we have seen them before, but this was the first time we've had a really good look at them. They are enormous, and look even bigger than the bald eagles we often see. They're only in our part of the world during the summer -- just what we need, more tourists!


Finally, we passed one last bob of seals, and our paddle was done. (No, really. A bob of seals. I looked it up. The Internet wouldn't lie.)



Trip length: 9.62 km
YTD: 226.30 km
More pictures are here.
The Google Earth kmz is here.

A Congratulatory Note

And who received an honourable mention in the Ocean River Sports July/August photo contest? Why John Herbert, of course. Personally, I'm surprised that he didn't win--John's photography just over the life of this blog has improved by leaps and bounds--but, you know, YMMV.
Sheryl Townsend won the popular vote and the contest, with Eric Rowe and Ann Checkaklis also receiving honourable mentions. The contest entries are here.

Dream Result Trailer

Earlier this year, Tyler Bradt went 186 feet over Palouse Falls and filmed it for an upcoming film. The film is called Dream Result, and here's the amazing trailer:

The film is planned for release in early 2010.

Personal record

Sunday was a great paddle out of Brentwood Bay. I was dropped off by Bernie in my mom's car (no roof racks) and since I thought I was going to return via bus, I took the Expedition inflatable. Hard to get on a city bus with a 15.5 foot Eliza in rotomolded plastic, but those Advanced Elements folding inflatable kayaks? Piece of cake, even if the bus is one of the few left in our area with stairs instead of a level ramp.
What followed was the longest trip I've taken so far in an inflatable kayak: just under fifteen kilometres
Speed? Don't make me laugh. These aren't speed boats, they're portable boats for rec paddling. But instead of dwelling on the fact that I was slowing the other three paddlers down to my speed (Louise in her Delta 17, John in a Delta 18 and Alison in her Kestrel 120 from Current Designs), I tried to focus on the fact that as part of a paddle group, I could go places I'd never take the Expedition by myself. Across Saanich Inlet, that is. Two crossings of over a kilometer
Awesome trip today. Bright weather, many seals and jellyfish to admire, and the neatest little crab in a crack who kept ducking down to hide when anyone else looked at him. Check out Louise and John's photos!

Saanich Inlet

The extreme temperatures of the last week or so have fallen to closer to normal, although it is still unseasonably warm in these parts. We decided to start a little earlier than usual today to avoid the mid-day sun. But none of this mattered at all to Alison; her visit here is nearing an end and she just wanted to put in at Brentwood Bay and go! And go she did -- she set a blistering early pace moving out of Brentwood Bay and into Saanich Inlet.


Louise, Paula and I eventually caught up to her and we continued at a more civilized pace. The water was flat and clear, making it easy to spot sea stars on the rocks during this low tide...

...as well as this jelly fish.


We paused for a quick stop at McKenzie Bight. Alison has been thinking of moving up from her Current Design Kestrel so Louise let her take her Delta Seventeen out for a spin.


We decided to press on. A slight breeze was making its presence felt but otherwise conditions were picture perfect.


Small little seal heads were popping up here and there. One popped up a short distance in front of me and we were so distracted by it that we all just about paddled right over another seal.

How could we not notice this guy? It's not like he's well camouflaged!


This eagle paid little attention as we all fussed over him with our various cameras.


This seagull looks like it was making a meal out of a small sea star, but it didn't seem to be enjoying it. The look on the seagull's face reminds me of the old joke about cooking seagulls and their apparent lack of taste:
How do you cook a seagull?
You put it in a pot of boiling water with a rock. When the rock gets soft, you throw away the seagull and eat the rock.
It looks to me as if the seagull was looking for his own rock right about then.


We paddled by more seals, a mother and her baby.


We crossed the Inlet and passed by more seals. At one point a small seal head popped up in front of me. He carefully watched me for a moment, then ducked under the water. As I passed the shallows where he was swimming, the sun turned the water almost totally clear and I could see this small baby seal playfully swimming just below the surface. He was rolled over a few times, then swam in circles chasing its tail. I was too mesmerized to even think of trying to get a camera out. I regret not getting a shot of that amazing moment, but then again there are so many amazing moments when you are kayaking.


Soon the paddle ended and it was time to say au revoir to Alison, although I think she'll return to visit her kayak soon.




Trip length: 14.95 km
YTD: 216.68
More pictures are here.
The Google Earth kmz is here.