Beacon Hill?

Somehow I always understood that the park called Beacon Hill in Victoria was named for a beacon at the top of its hill, not for somebody whose name was Beacon. Stand at the top of that hill, and you can see to the west along the Metchosin shore to East Sooke Park, or across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the Olympic Penninsula in Washington State. It's easy to see that any ship entering Victoria Harbour or Esquimalt Harbour could have a good view of this hill.

There's a terrific map from 1860 in the BC Archives showing a chart of Victoria Harbour with numerous soundings right up to the Gorge Narrows. Check it out at this website written by some students from the University of Victoria. One particular difference from the present harbour in 2014 is that the Causeway was not yet built in 1860 -- the present site of the Empress Hotel is shown as a muddy tidal flat. Another difference from the present harbour is the working shoreline in the Upper Harbour and Selkirk Water has changed, what with docks and fill; but the 1860 survey stayed out of shallow water where kayakers like to noodle around the shorelines. Frankly, it looks like the surveyors stayed out of James Bay, Rock Bay, West Bay, and Lime Bay entirely!

What I didn't know before looking at this chart is that there were TWO beacons on the hill: not so much lights as visible markers. The one on the crest of the hill was a green square, and the other to the west near the shore was a blue triangle. As the website authors note: "If the sailor could see the square through the triangle he was on Brotchie Ledge- which meant trouble!"

Charts and maps are terrific aids to navigation. I'm still learning how to use the beacons and charts in my own home waters.

2014 Pacific Paddling Symposium Was Open for Registration

Well, that was fast. If you wanted a membership for this year's Pacific Paddling Symposium and you didn't get one...too late! This year, it has sold out in 26 hours! Better plan ahead now for the 2015 version. Somehow, I think there will be another one next year.

2014 Pacific Paddling Symposium Is Open For Registration

The 2014 Pacific Paddling Symposium will take place May 30 - June 1, and is open for registration. Registration opened only 24 hours ago, but already the symposium is almost half sold out.
Coaches attending include Nigel Foster, Dan Henderson, Wayne Horodowich, David Johnston, Gary Allen, Gary Doran, Kate Hives, Alex Matthews and many more.
Alas, Louise and I will not be able to attend this year, but we will keep an eye out and post links to any Symposium coverage we can find. Last year's symposium sold out in 12 days, so don't dawdle!

A Not So Gentle Reminder

Yesterday, a man fell into The Gorge not far from our usual launching point. He was pulled from the water, but did not survive. How the man fell into the water is a bit of a mystery at this point, but it is suggested that a group of people were drinking on a dock when the incident occured.
We've paddled that very spot dozens of times, and during one paddle Bernie twice went over into the water at the exact same spot as this incident and at the same time of year. Bernie, of course, was dressed to get wet: wet suit, gloves, boots and paddling jacket. So let this be a not-so-gentle reminder to be aware of conditions, remember to consider the water temperature in your planning, and dress for immersion.

Humpback Ahoy!

Last fall, tourists in a whale-watching boat out in local waters got more than they paid for when a humpback whale spent an hour swimming alongside the boat. We've paddled this area dozens of times, and never seen anything like this. Wow.
Check out the video below:

Expand and Understand Your Nautical Vocabulary

There's an interesting little list of nautical words to be found at brianberlin.net where he not only lists nautical turns of phrase that have entered everyday vocabulary, but defines them in colourful terms. Charming! Boat users will find there's food for thought here, and even a definition of "Crossing The Line" which agrees with my father's memory of his Navy experience on crossing the Equator.

Gold!

A few days ago, someone on the Internet said words to the effect that most people spend their lives looking for something to love as much as Canadians love hockey. That's so true, eh?
Congrats to our Men's and Women's hockey teams, who are golden again, and congrats to our Canadian Olympians, and the Olympians of all flags, who put on a heck of a show.
We now to return to our regularly scheduled kayak blogging.

Now THIS Is A TRIP!

Just reading in the New York Times about a man who paddled 2,500 miles around Florida. Left his job, planned for a year building strength and social media skills, and got on his paddleboard. By the end of 2013 he paddled the entire Florida coastline! Along the way he hosted 60 shore cleanups and won a boatload of environmental awards. Click here to read the article about his epic journey.
He says "I'm just a regular guy who changed his life to do something big." Rock on, Justin Riney!

What We Pass By Every Day

There are everyday miracles and wonders all around us much of the time. There are wonders to be found even in cities where the marks of feet trampling the ground tend to obscure the unique elements of a place until it seems that everything is the colour and shape of footprints. One of the ways we see these wonders is to get into our kayaks and visit urban waterways. Some of these places have made us crow with delight. I'm thinking in particular of days spent paddling on the Humber River in Toronto (read about my trip here) and the New Credit River in Mississauga (read here) and Toronto Islands (here are links to Bernie's and my blog posts on paddling here) where one is never really out of sight of the city.

Bernie took this photo of a swan in June 2006 while paddling Toronto Harbour!

Then there are also days we paddle on the Gorge, along the suburban shores and up the little streams where in some places the parkland is so lush that it's hard to remember we're right in the middle of a city, not on its edges. Or days we paddle at Discovery and Chatham Islands, where in places it's impossible to believe we're not in a wondrously isolated wilderness, but really only a mile from Oak Bay's tearooms.
Now I'm reminded that there are everyday miracles and wonders to be found in most places. Take Drumheller, Alberta, for example. It was the end point for my kayaking trip on the Red Deer River. I've walked through much of Drumheller on a few visits, and can report that there's a layer of amber-coloured dust over almost everything in town. The marks of footprints are everywhere that isn't paved. And in one well-trampled part of town, what looked like a bumpy rock turned out to be a dinosaur skull.
To be fair, after fossilization it was also a bumpy rock. How many dinosaur fossil fans have trodden on this big ol' fossil in recent years? No one knows. I figure this is a lesson to us all, to be aware of wonders and miracles underfoot and all around us. Instead of dividing the world into "Exciting Places" and "Oh Well -- Dull Old Home" let's be ready to keep urban paddling part of our expeditions, and practise our rockhound skills at home as well as in the field in distant places.

Where's the Sheep?

Continuing on with the latest entry in what is turning into a whole new sub-genre of kayak animal rescue videos, here's the story of a father and son team who rescue a sheep with their kayaks on the Shetland Islands. Check out the video below:

Mars' Lost Oceans

Oh man. NASA still rocks. And the way they make so many photos from space exploration available for free is wonderful. I love to check out Astronomy Picture of the Day because every day has different photos: some pictures taken of space, some from space ships, and many from our own Earth.
Now Chris Hadfield has posted a link to NASA's page on photos from Mars orbiters that strongly suggest the presence of water, not only long ago but now.

It's not the spring runoff in seasonal streams for creekboating, but it looks beautiful.

Bored With All the Rain? Try Kayaking on the Roads

The current flooding in England is no laughing matter, but on the other hand sometimes you just have to roll with whatever nature throws at you. And some buddies in Essex decided to do that by having a little fun in their kayaks on some flooded roads. Check out the embedded video below:

Kayaking on flooded Essex Roads from UncleAlbert on Vimeo.

The Correct Way to Transport Your Kayak. Not.

Every time we've bought a kayak, before we've closed the deal the clerks have always discussed with us how we're going to get the kayak(s) home. It turns out that some people do purchase kayaks at kayaking shops without giving a second thought as to how to get their new boats home. All of which makes me wonder if this is not exactly what we're seeing here. According to the media report, someone in southern Florida thought this was an acceptable method of transporting a kayak down a highway.
Kids, don't try this at home.
Or anywhere.

Secret Beaches review

There's another series of books that make for great armchair kayaking! These ones also are good for planning your trips to the beach. All kinds of weather -- doesn't matter. These books outline what the beaches are like in various kinds of weather or levels of the tide, when appropriate. You're golden.

Well, you are if you're on Vancouver Island. Canada's Big Island has so many pocket beaches along its east shore, or road access points to the shoreline, that there's not one but three guides in the Secret Beaches series by Theo Dombrowski, from Heritage House Books. There's Secret Beaches of Central Vancouver Island: Campbell River to Qualicum, which I have been poring over for the last week. I have the public library's copy, and you can't get it till I'm done with it in a couple more days! There's Secret Beaches of Southern Vancouver Island: Qualicum to the Malahat. Residents of Victoria will make more use of Secret Beaches of Greater Victoria: View Royal to Sidney, for many of these profiled beaches can be reached by transit bus... no driving required, unless you're bringing kayaks!

I won't rave too much here -- I'll leave that to another reviewer's gushing. For every beach, there's not only a sketch map of access roads, but a photograph taken at the site and usually one of the author's evocative paintings as well. These books are impressive.
Look here for tips on where to set up your easel for a little painting en plein air, where to take toddlers or children who'll want to wade and run, and where to impress visiting relatives, or a dozen other suggested activities. And best of all: Dombrowski understands the needs of kayakers for a good launch! He notes the best beaches for kayaks and canoes.

Pool Noodles Rule!

We've written here on the blog before about pool noodles, and the many ways that paddlers can use them. My most recent use of a pool noodle was to cut it into four pieces and slit 'em from the outside into the hollow centre: this made pads for the bars in my outdoor kayak rack, that I assembled out of scrap wood from a construction site. Alas, this rack did not make the move away from the Beach House... but I have been assured by Bernie that he will construct another rack in the future.
Another use for pool noodles has surfaced in Winnipeg. Turns out that an artist is using them to make big poofy warming huts... check out the photos here. Nice to see that the streams of summer get so much use in winter that warming huts are being built!

The End

The last issue of Sea Kayaker magazine arrived in the mailbox today.
So long, old friend. You shall be missed.

Deer Rescue

A man in the BC interior put a kayak to a novel use a few days ago by using it to help rescue a small deer trapped out on a frozen lake. Check out the embedded video below:

A local conservation officer, assisted from shore by members of the Vernon Fire Department, went out on the ice on North Okanagon Lake with the kayak and was able to tie-up the deer and placed him in the kayak, which was then pulled onto shore. The deer was released safe and uninjured in the mountains far away from the lake.

Okay, so rescuing a deer from a frozen lake with a kayak is cool...but not as cool as rescuing deer with a hovercraft! This father and son hovercraft team saved three deer stuck on a frozen lake in Minnesota. Check out this video:

What's in the hatches?

An interesting piece of news popped up in the newscrawl... complete with a photo of a simple blue sit-on-top kayak. It appears that a shipment of kayaks was sent from China to Australia, and arrived with a boatload of dope stuffed in many of the hatches. I guess the smugglers knew the customs officials wouldn't have any idea about how heavy a kayak ought to be.
This story is making the idea of a transparent or translucent boat seem even more smart. I can picture myself in the San Juan Islands just south of here, shining a flashlight through my kayak to show a customs official that the hatches are indeed empty...

The Dump

From the folks at Boat Body Blade comes this interesting way to empty your kayak of water once you've scrambled in or re-entered and rolled after you've gone swimming. Mind you, you do need a willing partner, but it is a quick way to empty your boat. And I wonder if it might be a good way to help teach rolling...?
Check out the video below: