My path to sea kayaking has been a long one, as I was not a
‘water baby’ from youth. I grew up in
the South, (Texas), nowhere near the ocean. From an early age, my passion was horses, and
over decades, I participated in many equestrian activities. At the beginning, it was 4-H programs, horse
show competitions, etc. After graduating
from high school I fled Texas (I never fit in there) and moved myself and my
horse to the mountains of Colorado in order to go to college. There, I discovered the joy and freedom of
trail riding exploring new vistas in the beauty of the Rocky Mountain Range. On a pivotal road trip to Banff and Jasper
Parks with my boyfriend, we passed thru the Flathead Valley of NW Montana and I
found the place of my young dreams. So,
I moved again, with my horse, of course to Kalispell MT. where I lived for the
next 30 years. I continued to ride
extensively, competing in Competitive Trail Riding and Endurance Riding, and
many horse packing trips into the extensive wilderness areas of Montana.
“One door closes and another one opens” — One autumn day,
while on a trail ride, an unfortunate incident caused my horse to fall,
breaking my leg. I was freshly divorced,
and had no health insurance, so when all the hospital, surgery, and doctor
bills rolled in, I sold both of my horses, horse trailer, and all related
riding equipment to pay the bills. The
“horsey” chapter of my life was now over. But something every bit as wonderful took its
place. While driving along Flathead Lake
one day, I saw a group of sea kayaks out on the water and thought “That looks
like fun”. So, I tracked down one of two
kayak companies that operated in the Flathead Valley, and signed up for a day
tour. As soon as I experienced the magic
of kayaking, I was hooked, and a new passion ignited in me like a forest fire.
Montana actually offers lots of opportunities for kayaking with
world class whitewater and many very large lakes for paddling. Flathead Lake is the largest natural lake west
of the Mississippi and can produce some very dynamic conditions. The premier kayak business in town was Silver
Moon Kayak Company run by Susan Conrad and her partner, Bob Danford. Bob handled the whitewater stuff, and Susan
led the sea kayaking classes and tours. She
had a stellar program of skills progression, from basic Kayak 101 to a 5-day
‘boot camp’, and everything in between including Navigation, Rescues, Towing,
Safety, Leadership, and more. I jumped
in with both feet, and participated in everything she had to offer. Over the next few years, we developed a close
friendship, and when my skills had progressed to a higher level, I was hired to
help teach some of the basic skills classes, and assist her with some of the
tours the company offered. Teaching
kayaking really helped me cement the skills I had learned, and gave me the
confidence and abilities to start dreaming bigger dreams in regards to my
kayaking future.
“And another door opens". I continued to immerse myself in all things
kayak related, but the pull of an ocean environment was getting stronger. I thought “It’s not sea kayaking without the
sea”, so when a friend invited me to accompany her on a trip to the Southern
Gulf Islands in B.C., I jumped on it. We
went to Mayne Island, and my introduction to salt water was life changing. The ocean was so ALIVE, and the constantly
changing waters offered the challenges I craved. I knew then that, as soon as the opportunity
arose, I would move again to somewhere close to the ocean. The door swung open in 2005 when my job of 23
years ended, so I made another trip to Mayne Island to get a “salt-water fix”
and try to figure out what was next in my life. I camped at the only campground on Mayne, a
private place called Seal Beach, owned by Errol Fischer, who was a kayaker
himself, and a friend of Brian Henry, the original owner and developer of
Current Designs Kayaks. Errol offered
his beautiful waterfront property as a place for kayakers to experience the
dynamic waters of Active Pass and to access the other Gulf Islands. In one of the most serendipitous moments of my
life, Errol asked me if I would be interested in property-sitting while he
spent the winters doing the “snowbird” thing down south. Wow! That changed everything for me. For the next six years, I spent the months of
October to April living at Seal Beach, kayaking the waters of the Gulf Islands.
I gained valuable experience learning to
read the dynamic waters and how to negotiate strong currents. My confidence grew along with my skills. I began to do some kayak trips in the area. I already had my camping knowledge fine-tuned
from my hiking and horse packing trips in Montana and the joy and freedom of
exploring new territory on the water was a perfect fit for me. I knew then that expedition-type kayaking was
my passion and what filled my soul with happiness, perspective, humility.
Image by Susan Conrad
Although I’ve done many very enjoyable five to ten day trips
in the San Juans and Southern Gulf Islands I yearn for true wilderness, where
boats, people, homes, are not a constant presence.
2009 - Beginning in September 2009, I began exploring areas
further north. My first extended trip in
BC was thirteen wonderful days in the Discovery Island area and the first of
many visits to this very ‘kayak-friendly’ place.
2010 - This was a pivotal year for me. My good friend Susan Conrad was embarking on
her 1st journey up the Inside Passage, and she graciously invited me to join
her for a section of it paddling from Port Hardy to Bella Bella. What an amazing and challenging introduction
to coastal conditions. The first day,
crossing Queen Charlotte Sound, was a real ‘eye-opener’, with significant swell
and just-breaking waves. The biggest
water I had ever experienced and I was thrilled. The ten days we spent traveling this section
of the coast taught me so much about what expedition kayaking was all about; savoring
the good times, dealing with the difficult times, and rejoicing in the
immensity and beauty of the BC coast. I
was hooked. Later that fall, I had
another coastal experience paddling Barkley Sound's Broken Group Islands.
2011 - Three summer trips, two in the Gulf Islands and one
in the San Juans kept me happy but I had my sights on another, more remote area
in BC - The Broughton Archipelago. In
September I spent twelve days exploring this beautiful place on my first longer,
solo BC trip.
2012 - Another solo ten day trip in the Discovery Islands
area, but the highlight of the year was a trip with friends to Nuchatlitz / Nootka
Island. Sea otters and ocean swell!
2013 - The best trip of that year was a return to the
Broughtons with two friends, for two weeks of cruising around this magical area.
We witnessed a huge pod of 50 - 75 Pacific
White-sided dolphins, It was a memory
I’ll never forget.
2014 - My ‘big’ trip that year was my first solo trip in
Hakai Conservancy Area west and south of Bella Bella. Twelve glorious days discovering the magic and
beauty of the place. Hakai holds a
special place in my heart, and I would return several more times over the
years.
2016 - Hakai again, with friends. Twelve days of adventure and fun
2017 - In my desire to explore more of the BC coast, this
year’s main trip was a significant one for me paddling Klemtu to Bella Bella, a
fifteen day solo journey. ‘Plan A’ was a
circumnavigation of Aristazabal Island, west of Klemtu, but on arrival at the
top of Aristazabal, the extended weather forecast for the exposed outer coast
was just too dire for my taste. So, I
shifted to ‘Plan B’ and traveled back down Laredo Channel, then through Higgins
Pass and Milbanke Sound to Dallas Island and through Seaforth Channel to Bella Bella.
It ended up being a fabulous trip despite
the change, with both challenging conditions and idyllic bluebird days, First
Nations cultural sites, and vistas that took my breath away.
2019 - Often after my trips ended I'm fulfilled, but I also
have the strong desire to just keep going. So, after leading a nine day trip thru the
Discovery Islands for Hole in the Wall Paddling club in June, I was excited to
take on my most ambitious trip yet - A full month spent circumnavigating
Princess Royal Island, with a few side-trips thrown in. It was epic and life-changing, and an
experience I will never forget. I saw
humpback whales bubble-net feeding, wolves (but no spirit bears), amazing and rich
intertidal marine life, and a deep satisfaction and joy for being immersed in
this wilderness setting. Memories to
last a lifetime.
2020 - Pandemic year.
Sadly, no access to Canadian waters.
2021 - The Canadian border was still closed but Alaska was
open and available. Susan Conrad and I
took the Alaska Marine Ferry to Wrangell, and spent two weeks circumnavigating
Wrangell and Etolin Islands. What a
great trip we had, and we got to enjoy three of the wilderness cabins scattered
around the Tongass forest lands.
2022 - Back to Hakai for another sweet twelve-day solo trip.
2023 - Three of my paddling girlfriends said, “Let’s go up
north”, so we planned a trip similar to my 2017 ‘Plan B’, and paddled from
Klemtu to Bella Bella. We took fifteen
days, and called ourselves ‘The Slackers’ because we factored in lots of
layover / weather days. This made for a
relaxed pace and lots of fun, exploring each place in depth on the layover
days, and no stress about staying in camp when the weather was bad. ‘Poker Dice’ in the evenings got a bit wild
and competitive. We kept score with
shells and pine cones.
2024 - At this point, the furthest north on the coast I had
paddled was Hartley Bay. So this year, I
set my sights on new territory. Launching
out of Port Edward (near Prince Rupert), I crossed Chatham Sound to the top of
Stephens Island, then veered north to the Tree Knob Group - a lovely scattering
of islands to explore. But a strong
weather system pinned me down in camp, so I didn’t get to do the exploring I
had hoped. When the weather gave me the chance,
I traveled down the west side of Stephens Island, eventually ending up at the
NW corner of Porcher Island. When I was
researching the area, I saw the immense Oval Bay on the chart and was
determined to see it firsthand. An
amazing 3.5 nm long beach that stretched into the distance with complete
exposure to notorious Hecate Strait. I
knew I would need a good weather window to traverse it and the Porcher
Peninsula, which I was blessed with. Kitkatla
Inlet plus a cruise through the Shakes and Praeger Islands, landed me in the First
Nations town of Kitkatla. I had planned
to continue down to Banks Island, but after communicating with home,
circumstances there demanded a quicker return, so I turned North to work my way
back to Prince Rupert, completing my loop around Porcher. But not before I experienced a delightful stay
in historic Oona River. I finished this
trip very happy with my planning and execution, a wonderful experience of
remote wilderness, stunning beauty, and, of course, challenge. To finish the summer, I accompanied three
friends for their first taste of BC coastal paddling. We spent eleven days cruising around Hakai. It was my fourth visit there, and it was fun
to witness their excitement experiencing such a new, different, and dynamic
region.
What I’ve Learned from adventure kayaking and Associated Thoughts
Paddling the “Blue Highways” of the Coast requires much more
than proficiency in your ‘hard skills’. Remote
locations and more extreme conditions mean that seamanship is vitally
important. I find that learning to ‘read
the water and read the weather’ is both fascinating and never-ending. So many factors influence both and can make a
big difference in the success of your trip. Experience is the best teacher. Taking many shorter trips will help dial in
the equipment and the techniques needed for wilderness travel. Understand and accept your personal style of
traveling. Some people (like me) tend to
travel solo a lot. That requires a
higher level of risk management, and a deep comfort with solitude. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK.
What is important is for one to truly
understand the “why” of going to these less-traveled places. and having ‘inner
strength’ can be just as critical as being able to negotiate the waves, the
weather, and the times when things get difficult. My final advice is always paddle with constant
awareness. If you are not present, you
can miss the magic.
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