Jen Kleck

UK spring, 2009

2009-05-20T19:18:00.000-07:00

I made my usual spring trip to the UK, primarily to hang out at Nigel Dennis' sea kayak symposium on Anglesey. It was a great event as always and I got to do some fun paddling, coach a lot, and catch up with friends from all over! I rarely take photos at these events - it's usually blowing too hard to take your hand off the paddle - and I alway regret it!

Nigel Dennis about to head out with a bunch of 5* hopefuls. Saddly, the Force 8 wind that had been blowing for days and was forecast to continue throughout this day, unexpectedly and suddenly vanished, making it impossible to complete the assessment.

I did take photos during a memorable day canoeing with Phil Hadley....

We paddled a section of the Dee in northern Wales. The shuttle is excellent - you simply park at the bottom and paddle up the canal that runs along side the river! Old steam engines run along the river and dappled sunlight streamed through the trees. We passed a barge being towed by a big draft horse and waved at the tourists onboard. At the put-in, you climb over the bank and off you go downstream. It was a fun little stretch of river - nothing too tough for my second ever whitewater run in an open canoe....except for the Serpent's Tail! It was a proper class III+ rapid with undercuts and holes. I wouldn't have thought twice about it in my kayak, but a canoe was a different matter. We had a good water level and it was a pretty straight shot, super fun, and I didn't flip! Phil went first and made it look easy.

My run was a bit less graceful....

After finishing the whitewater run, Phil had a surprise.....

We drove a few miles and stopped at another access point to the same canal. Here, there were lots of canal boats - 7 feet wide and up to 70 feet long - that are used as "holiday cottages". People drive them around the canals by day, and tie up along the banks at night. That was pretty cool, but then the canal narrowed down to a single boat width and headed out into thin air - 173 feet above the river valley! It was extremely cool to paddle across a Victorian era aqueduct!

Southwest Kayak Symposium 2009

2009-05-20T17:41:00.000-07:00

Everyone kept telling me this was the best year ever. At first I took it personally, then I decided that Jake can run it every year from now on! A few months earlier, I'd decided that I was going to run a BCU Level 1 coaching course at the symposium - 4 whole days worth. It kept me busy Thursday -Sunday which meant that I was unavailable to help with the set-up, actual event itself, or the tear-down. I worried about this a lot, but it turns out that for all these years I've just been getting in everyone's way! Jake, Matt, and a slew of fabulous helpers including Amy, Dan, Onalea, and Gary (the "Grunts") from SUNY Plattsburgh did a fabulous job with the whole event while Phil Hadley and I molded 11 new BCU paddlesports coaches.

You can see lots of photos at www.stormick.smugmug.com

Golden Gate Sea Kayak Symposium

2009-05-20T11:54:00.000-07:00

Ok, this is going back a while, but it's worth mentioning the fantastic weekend we spent in San Francisco in January. Sean Morley, Matt Palmariello and I organized a 3 day sea kayak symposium geared for the advanced conditions one usually finds during spring tides, in the middle of winter, in San Francisco Bay. It could have been epic: gnarly winds, huge surf, fast tide races, and pouring rain.....and we would have loved it. Instead, it was paradise and it we loved it twice as much! We had beautiful sunny skies, moderate swell, and enough tidal current to make things interesting, but none of the wind and horrible weather that SF can dish out. You can see for yourself in the photos what a spectacular weekend we had in one of the most beautiful cities in the world! If you missed it this year, we're doing it again Jan 29-31, 2010. You can learn more at www.ggsks.com

The organizers at morning briefing.

The event proudly boasted an array of talented coaches from the US and abroad including Nigel Dennis, Nigel Robinson, Jim Kennedy, Sean Morley, Steve Maynard, Tom Bergh, Tom Pogson, Ben Lawry, Matt Nelson, Djuna Mascall, Marce Wise, Roger Schumann, Dave White, Rob Avery and a host of local talent.

While some locals slept in their own beds and a few opted for nice hotels, the rest of us bunked at the Marin Headlands Hostel - a set of huge old officers' houses just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. A 5 minute drive could get us to either Horseshoe Cove on the Bay, or Rodeo Beach on the Pacific. The digs were comfortable and inexpensive and ideally located for this event. We could be in either Sausalito or Fisherman's Wharf for sight seeing or a nice meal in less than 20 minutes. I absolutely LOVE this city! I took a couple of the visiting coaches into town for a little sightseeing: the wharf, street cars, the crookedest road in the world, etc. Letting Nigel Dennis drive my truck in San Francisco was about as exciting as following him around in a sea kayak!

Our view of the city from Yellow Bluff. What an amazing backdrop for kayaking!

Dave White shredding it up.

Glassy waves as the ebb begins with San Francisco as a backdrop!

That's Alcatraz in the background! The 5 Star night navigation group attempted to paddle to the island and bust onto The Rock.

The paddling conditions were excellent and the scenery was just awesome! Urban paddling at it's finest!

Two groups getting ready for a day on the water.

After a long day of paddling in the roughest water we could find, we returned to the calm of Horseshoe Cove and one of San Francisco's little-known gems - The Presidio Yacht Club. After changing and loading kayaks onto cars, happy paddlers retired to the cozy comfort of the yacht club's bar. Reclined in comfy chairs, cold beers in hand, we told stories and made up lies and enjoyed this view through the picture windows.

A group paddling in under the Golden Gate Bridge.

Djuna in the Yellow Bluff tide race on a spring ebb.

Proctor Academy

2008-11-29T18:18:00.000-08:00

I've been working with a private high school from New Hampshire for the past few years and they want to go kayaking in Baja again this February. I pulled out some photos from 2006 while thinking about the itinerary and thought I'd post them. Proctor Academy has a 10 wwek program they call the "Mountain Classroom". A group of about 10 students and 2 teachers travel the US and Baja in a small bus and learn by being out there in the world. It's very cool and the kids and teachers are pretty awesome. It's an amazing trip and I have loved working with them. Here's the 2006 trip.....

We drove to Bahia de los Angeles (about 12 hours south) in Baja and paddled for 5 days. Most of the kids had paddled a bit before, but not much. We loaded all our camping gear and set off into the desert paradise that coastal Baja is. We paddled among volcanoes, sea lions, and dolphin. On shore, we hiked, cooked, studied, relaxed, and played. I've been to LA Bay a dozen times, but every experience is magnified by the enthusiasm of youth and this was the best trip there I've ever had. Axel Shoevers, a good friend from the Netherlands went with us and contributed so much to making it a magic trip. In addition, Proctor instructors Tom and Molly invited their frinds and experienced wilderness/NOLS guides (Ely and Erin) to join us. It was amazing to work with such a diversely experienced group.

This is our bus - the kids and instructors live out of this and a gear trailer for 10 weeks! It's got a library of books in the back and is comfortable enough. It brought back lots of fond memories from my college days as a geology student on field trips around the desert southwest.

What an amazing classroom! It was windy this day so they were hiding from the wind. I think this was English class....maybe Social Studies. Whatever it was, I would have liked school a lot more if this was MY classroom!

"It was this big...." I begged to teach an "Intertidal Biology" session and the kids loved flipping over rocks and checking out all the oogie creatures. Biology was my first love - I had "worm farms" as a kid and an amazing high school biology teacher invited me to splice genes (I'm not kidding) on a grant he got when I was 15. We played God with E.coli bacteria and created things that didn't exist. We separated the DNA using powerful centrifuges, chopped it up using enzymes, and put it back together in a new way. We proved it by running the DNA molecules through gel using electrophlorisis (sp?). I'm sure this is all standard practice in Biology 101 these days, but it was pretty cutting edge when I was a kid. Anyway, the shoreline in many parts of Baja looks like plain old rocks.....until you start flipping them over. The intertidal world is truely a miraculous array of adaptations to incredibly difficult conditions. The next time you're on a rocky beach, flip 'em!
A resident of the intertidal zone...a brittle star.

Other residents of the intertidal zone turned out to be tasty! We camped at the end of a little bay (I'm sorry, but the name has to remain known only to the trip participants), and scooped clams by the handful. We let most of these return to the sea - our eyes were bigger than our stomaches.

For the rest, we made a fire below high tide line with drift wood and cooked our clams on the embers. Yummy. A real Clam Bake!

One of our camps.

Camp life.

Food was a big part of the trip. The kids were divided into cook groups and with a bit of advise, were more or less left to their own devises when it came to shopping and cooking. This led to some interesting choices and meals. Ely was an extraoridary fisherman and we ate a lot of fish, including some of the prettiest and tastiest sushi I've ever had (and I love sushi!),

Ely the fisherman, always provided! Some of the kids learned how to filet like pros!

Susji in the middle of nowhere!

The Sea of Cortez is a magic place to paddle! Check out the volcanic cone in the background - what a view from up there!

We learned a lot of kayaking skills on this trip - mostly by playing!
There were some roll classes too in the tourquoise water!

Relaxing in camp.
Biology "in-your-face"! These beautiful squid committed suicide in front of us! They squirted ink and jet-propelled themselves onto shore. When we tried to return them to deep water like beached whales, they simply aimed again and rammed themselves into the rocky shore. They cut their flesh open against the jagged volcanic rock and refused to be steered into open water. I read about this phenomenom later back home - it's common, like salmon dying after they breed.
These kids had so much confidence and style of their own by this point in the trip - I loved their attitudes! Every night, they had a "debrief" session and said some pretty frank things to each other. Yet they took the good and the bad onboard with an amazing amount of grace, self-confidence, and humility. I've seen many adults do worse and I'm impressed with the skills that this program gives the students - much more than "book" learning!

There's no better place to learn about natural history than in the middle of nature! baja is almost like an island and has numerous endemic species that are so different from New Hampshire! What an experience!

Below is Baja at it's most classic. A "loncheria" on HWY 1. We had tacos here. Cultural and gastronomic education at it's most pure.

A beautiful sunset to end the story.

Home

2008-11-23T18:06:00.000-08:00

My trip to the UK ended almost exactly as it began – hiding from crazy winds in the Menai Straits in the rain and cold! I spent the last 2 days attending a” 4 Star Assessor training” weekend so I can train and assess the new 4 Star award. It was very productive course. I had a warm bed and cold beer each night with good friends Phil and Joan Eccles, and it was a great way to end the trip. Every time I go back, there are a few new friends made and old relationships made stronger. There really is a world-wide tribe of kayakers and Anglesey is a common meeting ground. I highly recommend attending the symposium there in May sponsored by Nigel Dennis and Sea Kayaking UK.
I returned home to spectacular hot weather. Everyone says this has been one of the best falls here in San Diego – warm,sunny, and very clear water with active marine life.
Justine Curgenven and Barry Shaw were here as part of their premier tour for “This Is The Sea 4”. We had a good turn-out with almost 100 people who appreciated the film and cheered heartily for my segment - thanks, guys! Justine and Barry stayed long enough to enjoy some southern CA surf, but had to hurry on to their other stops.
My employee Suzy has moved on with the goal of going back to MIT next year. Jake is spending over a month back in the mid-west with his family and left last week. If you check out the SPOT location, that's him freezing his ass off in WI. It’ll just be me, Mike, and Eddy for a while!

Coaching course in Devon, England

2008-11-23T18:05:00.000-08:00

I spent one more day in Anglesey tagging along on a BCU 4 Star assessment. We had spectacular weather for a change and proper conditions were a bit hard to find. It was a good day on the water in any case.
I met up wit Phil again when he picked me up at the outdoor center and we headed down to Bicton College in Devon where he was running a BCU Level 1 Course with Matt Blue for 10 young coach candidates. 7 of them were enrolled on a 9 month outdoor instructor course and were traveling all over Europe together learning about and doing outdoor activities. They were very cool kids and it was a fun few days.
I wanted to observe the course so I can deliver them in the US myself. I’m offering one in the spring at my symposium and Phil will come over to run it with me. It’s a really great course that is much better than the “old” BCU Level 2 course was. The 4 days go by quickly and include a lot of hands on coaching for the candidates. At the end of the course, candidates either get an “action plan” which they need to complete before getting their certification, or they simply get their certification. For people who work in the industry or are actively involved with clubs, the Level 1 certification combined with the new 4 Star Award are really useful qualifications.

Tar Barrels of Ottery

2008-11-23T18:03:00.000-08:00

Phil and I had an exciting night out in Devon when we went to the “Tar Barrels of Ottery” festival in a nearby tiny village. According to Phil, this event is on some list of "100 Things to do Before You Die". It’s not an easy thing to describe, but I'll try. All afternoon and into the night, the locals light big barrels on fire, hoist them on their shoulders with big asbestos mitts to protect their hands (but nothing visible to protect anything else), and run around the village with them. The barrels are well coated with tar to ensure that they burn vigorously. They get passed around to the lucky “barrel rollers” until they are completely burned. From time to time, they’ll set them down and pour wax in them to get them flaming better. Only one barrel is burned at a time. So picture this: the old village square is packed with people shoulder to shoulder. There’s a guy with a barrel on his back with flames shooting out the ends. He’s running (not walking, but running) around the square and the crowd parts around him. There’s no predicting which way he’ll go. He has a few “blockers” running with him trying to keep people from tapping the barrel (I guess they do this for luck????) or otherwise hurting either themselves or the barrel roller. We watched people literally get run over by the barrel dude and got way closer to the action than I needed to!

The barrel burning starts with the kids (that's right) in the afternoon. I guess they get the little barrels. The women start later and the men get the biggest barrels. Nobody is exactly sure how this tradition began or why (or if they are, they're not saying), but I have to think that there wasn't a single sober participant nor spectator on that first night of barrel burning or surely someone would have put the drunken fools to bed. It's not surprising that drinking remains a big part of the event (as if the hazards aren't significant enough!). There is also a giant bonfire, some amusement rides, and lots of food stands - a proper festival for the whole family!

On our way out through the crowd, I noticed that we were following a path of glowing embers where the barrel had just been. And then I noticed a glowing ember on the back of the rugby shirt of the guy I was squeezing past. I brushed him out as we went by. I’m sure he had no idea he was smoldering. Crazy. You can check it out at http://www.otterytarbarrels.co.uk/

Open Boating on the Severn River

2008-11-23T18:02:00.000-08:00

I drove through snow covered hills early one morning to meet Phil and Dave for a little canoe trip. It was my first time in whitewater with an open boat, so I was a little nervous. We put in just above a class II rapid and the river got easier from there. It was all the wrong way around, but an exciting start! I has done a bit of research online the night before just so I knew what I was getting into (you can never trust whitewater boaters!) and I’d read about the “horrendous weir” on this stretch of river. Weirs are really common in the UK and can be deadly. In the states, they’re called low head dams and they are much less common (but just as deadly). Phil and Dave promised me it was impossible to miss the portage, but I kept reminding them it was coming up!
We played in some small riffles while I tried to figure out how to ferry, peel out, etc with just one blade. It was a fun new challenge. I was happy that our canoes were pretty standard touring canoes rather than the narrow, highly rockered type outfitted with thigh straps and things for running difficult rapids.

Finally Dave and Phil headed to the shore in a big calm pool and I could see the BIG horizon line made by the weir. We got out and had lunch in a bird watching blind. It was still pretty cold and damp so it was nice to have shelter! After lunch we dragged the canoes around the weir and it was indeed pretty horrendous! After 2 big man-made drops, the river gradually settled down again through some small rapids. Phil found a superb surf wave to play on.

It took me a few of tries and I had to watch Phil’s moves more than once, but I finally got on it. Phil’s analysis of my first attempt was that I wasn’t committing enough. “You’re just one stroke away from Nirvana. But when you get on it, it’s going to try to flip you!” Yeah, no shit. Maybe that’s why I’m not really sure I want to take that last stroke!! The picture below says it perfectly - my posture, the blade angle.....I'm definitely weighing the odds that I swim instead of surf! I finally did get on the wave though and it was excellent fun. I’m sorry we don’t have a little river close to home!

Phil scored me a cabin at his buddy’s outdoor center for a few nights and I got some work done on my laptop at the local coffee shop in the morning and the pub in the evening. It’s a shame to be wasting precious days in the UK working on my laptop, but I’ve got a very competitive proposal due when I get home. The proposal is for a permit to operate kayak tours in La Jolla – something Aqua Adventures has been doing for 20 years and we might not be able to do anymore. The request for proposals was announced the day before I left for the UK and the proposals are due a few days after I get home, hence all the work. I should know our fate in December or January so keep your fingers crossed for me!

Recent travels - update from the UK

2008-10-28T08:05:00.001-07:00

Sea Kayak Georgia was great fun. We had a few days with wind and some good conditions. These faded, but the fun continued and there were still some nice clean waves on the last day. Russell gave a presentation on the “Vacation To Hell” Arctic trip this summer that was excellent. He’ll be in San Diego in March sharing the adventure again. Bryan Smith gave a preview of his upcoming DVD “Eastern Horizons” which was beautiful! He covers the entire coast from Canada to Florida and the videography is superb. The DVD will release this spring. Everyone was jealous that I already had copies of “This Is The Sea 4”, but we got to see the premier cut there too!

The coaches all stayed in an enormous house right on the water with a pool, beautiful sunsets and dolphins swimming past the dock. It was such a treat to launch our kayaks from the house and meet our students just a few minutes away. We’d paddle back home to a hot shower and cold beer.
Things were really uneventful until the last day when one gentleman opted to go the hospital suffering from shortness of breath. They were worried about a blood clot or other arterial blockage. Not long after, we holed a boat in my surf session (but I’m happy to say I wasn’t driving either boat!) There was a big pop as the bow of one Explorer went through the stern of another. It’s not a proper symposium until a boat gets broken (sorry Ronnie and Marsha)!

I had a long flight to the UK and despite taking different routes from Georgia, arrived at the same time as Fiona. This was great because she drove me into Manchester to collect my rental van. The airline had lost a couple of my bags which included my road atlas of the UK, so Fi loaned me her navigation system and I’ve been very thankful. It’s enough of a challenge to drive a stick shift on the wrong side of the road without having to navigate as well!!

I’ve spent the last 3 days coaching at the 3rd annual Storm Gathering. An aptly named event hosted in a different location every year.

This year Mark Tozer, an L5 coach from Wales, hosted the event in familiar territory at the center Nigel Dennis used to own on Anglesey. I’m currently sitting in the on-site pub called the “Paddler’s Return”.

The bunk houses are just a hundred yards away and the sea is a 5 minute walk. From there, the famous tide race Penrhyn Mawr is about a 20 minute paddle. It’s heaven. Over the weekend, the small pub was packed with paddlers telling tales from the day. Old kayaks, retired from amazing expeditions to cold and brutal places, used to hang upside down from the ceiling of the pub and in the good old days, these were used by drunken paddlers to demonstrate re-entry techniques. These days, it’s a little tamer, but still good fun. Above the taps is a row of caps from paddling shops around the globe – Body Boat Blade and Sweetwater and about 2 dozen others. The back wall is similarly adorned with paddling-themed stickers and one battered kayak remains above the pool table. The owner, Jim, always welcomes me warmly like a regular customer, despite the fact that I only appear every six or nine months. He asked me to pass on his regards to Shawna and Leon and others back in the States that have enjoyed his pub.

I’ve had 3 good days out on the water. Very appropriately, the Storm Gathering began with a tremendous storm. It was forecast to blow a force 9 (45+ mph) from the SW and it rained heavily. To use a british phrase, it was barking mad to go paddling, but we did anyway. We hid from the wind and swell in the Menai Straits, a narrow, river-like body of water that separates Anglesey from the mainland. The tide cranks through here and makes some good rapids over a rocky stretch. We paddled into the wind about as long as we could, but when we came around a corner and took a full 40 knots in the face, we decided to turn around and play on some eddy lines for a bit. It’s all a bit shocking to the system of a southern California girl, but so much fun! When the gusts came through, they tugged hard on my paddle blades and blew the rain horizontally. I could only put my head down and grin! The photo below does poor justice!

Things calmed down on the second day and the wind switched direction. I went out along the north coast with Aled Williams – a well known kayak designer and local paddler of amazing talent. Taino, a kayak coach from New York, was working with us. We had a somewhat mixed ability group who wanted to get a bit of rough water experience. We had that, and then some! It turned into the kind of day that reminds you why we train and practice and makes you vow to practice twice as much from now on!

Aled was more than happy to show our group some rough water and at the first cave, we quickly had a swimmer. It was still blowing over 20 knots and the water was confused and lumpy, making many in our group a bit wobbly. The group quickly began to drift apart as I towed Aled away from the cave while he got Phil back in his kayak. Once they were upright and safely away from the rocks, I left a capable paddler named Mike with them and gathered the group with Taino to move them upwind to a bit of shelter. I had no doubt that Aled and the others would quickly catch up and we’d carry on.
Many long minutes ticked by and we could see Aled, Phil, and Mike but no sign of progress. We eventually saw one of the kayaks separated from the other two and upside down. It was time to go back and see what the problem was. I dreaded turning the group around because the wobbly ones would be much more unstable heading downwind and their steering difficulties would only get worse, but it was clear Aled had his hands full. When we caught up with them, Aled was right-side-up but the other two were swimming and one of the empty kayaks was just drifting away beyond Aled’s reach and picking up speed fast. Nevertheless, Aled was smiling and said “I’m just going to fetch that boat back and we’ll be fine.” I hung around for a moment and decided he really did have the situation under control, so I carried on to a safe and comfortable place to park the group. We had a nerve wracking bit of water to paddle through to get there and I knew one more capsize was going to be one problem too many. Luckily, everyone did a fabulous job and we got to a sheltered cove where everyone could relax. I bolted back to Aled but he had the other 2 in a rafted tow and was making good progress. I chatted to the 2 towees while we paddled towards the cove and learned the details. It had taken a while to sort Phil out from his first capsize and Mike had clipped in to tow them off the rocky shore again. As he tried to re-stow his tow line, he capsized in the rough water and, wrapped in line, failed to roll. Phil was too unstable to leave unattended, so Aled had to do a contact tow to get to Mike but then promptly got him back in the boat. He then attempted a rafted tow with Mike stabilizing Phil, but the wind and waves split the boats apart and they both capsized. This time Phil became entrapped, having come part way out of his kayak on a roll attempt and then finding he couldn’t release his skirt. Luckily, Mike was now swimming beside him and freed him, letting go of his boat in the process! That’s the moment I arrived to find the 2 swimmers and the boat floating away!
Reunited, we headed back to the car park as a group, had a lunch, and decided to try again! We skipped the tour of the caves this time and had an easier time of it, although the tide had turned and at a rocky outcropping, the force of the headwind, combined with the tidal current, brought a few in the group to a virtual standstill. I clipped in a tow line and we started making slow but steady progress into a pretty bay with old brickworks on the hillside. We had one more capsize on the way home, but it was quickly sorted.

All in all, it was a pretty exciting day that kept me on my toes every second! It wasn’t exactly the day we had planned, but hopefully everyone learned a bit and enjoyed the sense of accomplishment after a difficult challenge.

The last day I found myself leading a group with Warren, another New Yorker. We had charge of a group of 10 who were pretty sure, but not entirely sure, that they wanted to experienced some rough water. Again, it was a pretty mixed bag of confidence levels but the conditions permitted a few more options than the previous day. We traveled along the west coast to Penrhyn Mawr and played among the rocky outcroppings along the way.

When the tide began flooding, the tide race began to develop and some members of the group were loving playing in it while others were a bit nervous. The waves were quite big in places, but very manageable in others. The huge challenge when playing in a tide race is simply keeping track of 10 people! With the current running fast, a capsized paddler can vanish out of sight among the waves very quickly! We had one swimmer, but I was close by and sorted it out quickly. Roz had a dramatic ride on a big wave that ended with her boat vertical and half out of the water. She rolled up though and went back for more!

We ended the day tuning up Eskimo rolls and Rebecca was chuffed to get 6 or 7 rolls in a row. She told me she’d been working on it all summer and had stumped every coach in her club. I’m pleased to say it took me 5 minutes to sort her out! I had the easy part though - the other coaches did all the hard work, but it earned me a pint in the pub!

Today I’m catching up on some work that’s been piling up. It’s rainy again and very cold – snow and a downpour of hail this morning. It’s nice to be warm and dry today!

20th Anniversary of Aqua Adventures!

2008-10-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't been working for Aqua Adventures for 20 years! That would have made me about 12 when I started (close enough!). But Aqua Adventures turns 20 this fall and it's worth pausing to take note and recall all the fun! I've put together a timeline and it's fun to see the evolution - some things have changed a lot, others have stayed remarkably the same! The founder, Eric Hanscom and I share some surprising similarities - Eric and I both have undergraduate degrees in science. We both started graduate school programs in science, but left only to spend our lives kayaking. We both hold BCU 5 Star awards (me for sea kayaking, Eric for surf kayaking). Eric met his first wife when she attended a Kern River class he was teaching. A few months later she moved from Orange County to San Diego and started working for Aqua Adventures. Many of you know that Jake and I first met 2 years ago when he was a student on a Kern River class. 4 months later I'd conned him into moving from Ventura to San Diego to work for me. He hasn't had a day off since, but it's been the best 2 years Aqua Adventures has ever had (and not bad for me too!).

We threw a party to celebrate the event and my Dad surprised me by showing up completely unannounced from clear across the country! I wouldn't own Aqua Adventures if not for the generous support of my parents and it was really fun to have him here! Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate with us!

Here's a quick history of the milestones in the evolution of Aqua Adventures
1987
Eric Hanscom quits grad school to compete internationally at kayak surfing
(Jen graduates high school)

1988
Eric wins his first World Championship title and decides to try to make a living at his passion.

Eric opens Aqua Adventures with $3,000 and "six very, very old kayaks"
(Jen attends Colorado College, studying geology)

1989-1995
Eric's philosophy is to guide where he wants to paddle. An enormous variety of trips appear in newsletters as experiments. The core lessons and trips appear early, prove their value and last for decades. More ambitious trips appear and dissappear just as fast. destinations include Big Sur, Kauai, Nepal, Tetons, Merced River, Kern River, Costa Rica, Baja, Lake Powell, Vancouver Island.

The Perception Dancer XS is considered "the hottest surfing kayak around"

A 2 hour private roll class in a pool cost $70 and a 3 hour tour of Mission Bay cost $45

Kevin Montgomery headed up the San Diego kayak club and for $7.50/year you could subscribe to the bi-monthly newsletter.

Guides included Marla Hettinger, Joe Hettinger (haven't heard from them in ages), Steve and Karen Jewel (still hear from them from time to time), Jim Kuhns and Christo Matthews/Kuzmich (still see them regularly!)

The offices/headquarters is an industrial warehouse and Aqua Adventures fills a growing nitch by using primarily sit-on-top kayaks

1996
Eric Hansom decides to "get a real job" and sells Aqua Adventures to Greg Knight who promptly moves the company to a new industrial warehouse.

Greg, desperate for new guides who work for beer, hires Jen Kleck

The Perception Pirouette has replaced the Dancer as the "hot boat" and that's what Greg paddles (he doesn't own a sea kayak). Jen paddles a Perception Matrix (which she got really cheap) and a Necky Narpa.

1998
WaveSport begins a whitewater revolution with planing hull kayaks. The Kinetic and X are the hot boats of the day.

Jen and Greg being the process of becoming certified sea kayak instructors with the ACA and our fleet has a growing number of sea kayaks.

2000
Aqua Adventures incorporates and makes Jen a shareholder.

There is talk of merging with Southwest Sea Kayaks owned by Ed Gillet & Katie Kampe, but the hurdles are too significant.

We find 800 square feet of waterfront retail location on Mission Bay late in the year and just as Southwest is shutting down, we're opening up. We still close when the surf is good or there's a good winter storm blowing the sea up.

Scott Fairty shows up seeking dealers for Valley and NDK. He assesses Greg and Jen for their first BCU award.

2001-2003
Our tiny shop is home to a growing community of paddlers. And a great group of guides and staff come and go with the seasons.

A 2 hour private roll class costs $100. A 2 hour guided tour of Mission Bay costs $35 (except on Thursdays when it costs $15).

2004
A big retail space opens up across the parking lot and we jump on it. We spend long winter nights moving walls, laying carpet, painting, hanging fixtures, building counters and buying product to fill the new space. We bribe friends with beer and pizza and while the work goes slowly, it's cheap labor!

The average whitewater kayak is a "playboat" about 7' long.

2005
Jen buys Greg's share of the business and takes it on solo.

2006
Jake Stachovak attends a whitewater class in September. Jen invites him paddling the following week and cons him into working for her a few months later. Aqua Adventures has never had a more competent and hard working manager and thrives under his influence. Jen does too.

2008
Jen passes her BCU Level 5 Sea Coach award, becoming the first person in North America to achieve this level of certification.

Aqua Adventures adds canoes and standup paddleboards to it's fleet as we look forward to an ever evolving future!

We're looking forward to what the next decade brings - stay tuned!

Paddling the Clack

2008-08-27T23:04:00.000-07:00

Kate's behind the camera. Phil Hadley, John Walpole, Jen Kleck, and Paul Kuthe at the put-in

I should have been responsible. I should have started my long trip home on Sunday night, or Monday morning at the latest. Instead, I went paddling on the Clackamas River with John Walpole, Paul, Kate, and Phil.

Phil's world is a happy place.

John and his wife Kirti put me and Phil up in their beautiful house near Portland, OR Sunday and Monday nights. They claim it has a great view of Mount Hood and a wall full of big windows makes me think this is possible, but the clouds never lifted enough to know for sure. At least it wasn't raining when we got our leisurely start to the day and headed to the river. Paul and Kate met us there with a truck full of kayaks and off we went.

Phil showing us a nice line down this one.

We paddled several miles of scenic river with lots of little class I-II riffles and regularly spaced class III drops. It's late season, the snow pack is mostly gone, and the river was low so it was pretty friendly and one really only had to keep a sharp eye out for rocks. This was a good thing for me since I've only had a couple of river days in the last year! It was a treat to paddle a new river in the excellent company of some very fine boaters - thanks guys!

John "whirlpool" Walpole shredding up a wave

LoCo Roundup and BCU re-education

2008-08-27T20:42:00.000-07:00

The Kayak Farm....known as Slow Boat Farm on Puget Island, WA in the middle of the Columbia River

I've just returned home from a fantastic week in WA state on the Columbia River with a great gang of kayak coaches and students. The week was hosted by Ginni Callahan and her crew at her "Slow Boat Farm" on Puget Island and life on the farm was sweet! The daily rhythm involved eating amazing, fresh foods from the garden, expertly prepared by Head Chef Dave, paddling whatever paddle craft your heart desired, eating more great food, evening presentations, games, discussions, music, campfires, and (of course) beer. Life was good. The "unseasonable" pouring rain only made everything cozy and added to the ambiance.

Head chef, Dave

For me it was a primarily a week of re-orientation to the new BCU scheme. About 20 BCU coaches were subjected to a 2 day update led by the fabulous Phil Hadley, poster child of the "New" BCU and shipped over straight from England. Enthusiastic, entertaining, and a bit of a salesman, Phil soon had us all eating out of his hand and utterly convinced of the genius of the new awards......or maybe there was just something in the water. I spent 3 more days working on and observing the new 4 Star award and got to paddle some fun spots at the mouth of the river. I managed to weasel out of most of my coaching responsibilities and sponge off of everyone else which was a real treat (sorry Ginni and thanks Axel!) and spent every possible moment in a canoe (thanks Phil) - even passing my 3 Star open canoe assessment. It was great to be able to work with so many coaches: Shawna, Leon, and Matt of Body Boat Blade, the Alder Creek crew including Karl Anderson, John Walpole, John Wallum, and Paul Kuthe, Bill Lozano, head of BCU NA, Rob Avery, and Phil Hadley just to name a few!
BCU endorsed by Phil Hadley

On Saturday I ran a long boat surf session on the coast. All week the storm had been kicking up some big waves, but on Saturday the locals read the swell forecast with glee -"6 feet at 9 seconds - it doesn't get much smaller than that up here!" This southern California girl was wondering what the heck we were going to do with that mess! We had fun though, and nobody got hurt. Someone might have even learned something!
Camp life - big tents kept us dry and provided a great gathering space

Sunday I drove to Seattle to pick up a few new kayaks. I have Nigel Foster's new Whiskey and an NDK Romany Surf available for demo now! But here's the "funny" twist to the story....I was sure I picked up 2 Whiskeys at the warehouse. They were bubble wrapped, but the same length, the right colors, the right shape - I really didn't stop to ask. So this morning, after being on the road for 26 hours, I stagger to bed at 5am. Jake is up at 6:30 to go out with the Wed. morning crowd and asks which Whiskey can he put on the water. I tell him "the white one" and I'm comatose again. At 8:30 when Jake returns, he gives me the bad news....."it's a nice boat, but it's not a Whiskey." %$&@.

I'm off to the Rough Water Sea Kayak Symposium on the east coast tomorrow morning sponsored by Tom Bergh of Maine Island Kayaks (http://www.maineislandkayak.com/).

Stand Up Paddleboards

2008-08-13T12:58:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, just a quick note regarding a new challenge....Aqua Adventures is now home to a bunch of stand-up paddleboards. It's a whole new perspective on the world and very fun. We're working on a lesson program and our demo fleet is already being well used. Jake, who does everything easily, started doing headstands on the boards by day 2. I'll try to post a photo of his technique soon - he doesn't have quite the finesse the Freya has, but I'm impressed! And yeah, he can do a headstand in a kayak too.

Columbia River Kayaking event Aug. 16-25

2008-08-13T12:49:00.000-07:00

I'm driving up to Washington ths week for a kayak skills symposium and BCU week. You get to Level 5 and you think you can just take it easy for a while, but I'm back to being assessed! I'm going for my open canoe 3 *. I've really been enjoying canoeing - it's a fun new challenge and it's also made some things about kayaking (and paddlesports in general) very clear to me. I recommend it (but don't give up kayaking!). I also need to go through an update process so I can train and assess at the new 4 * level. There's a really great line up of coaches at the event and I'm looking forward to working with some new people as well as catching up with some old friends. Ginni Callahan runs an amazing operation and it will be fun to hang out at her farm on the Columbia River! www.columbiariverkayaking.com

I decided to drive so I can haul some kayaks back down with me. We'll have a few new NDK kayaks and a new design by Nigel Foster (Point 65 "Whiskey") by the end of August. Visit www.seakayakinguk.com and www.point65.com and come by the shop to try them out!

Busy summer

2008-08-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

What a summer it's been! With all the talk of economic doom, I kept my staff very small this year - just half of what I had last year. Luckily, they are all great, hardworking, dedicated people and business has been strong. There's no real news to report regarding the summer, but lots of interesting things are coming up including Aqua Adventures' 20th anniversary on October 4! Leading up to that, it's going to get busy...Here's my confirmed schedule for the fall. I have a couple of tentative plans as well.
August 15-24
Columbia River Kayaking LoCo Roundup and BCU Week
www.columbiariverkayaking.com
August 29-31
Rough Water Kayak Symposium in Point Judith, RI
www.maineislandkayak.com/symposium.html
Sept. 25 -30
Photo shoot in San Diego and Baja
Oct. 4 Anniversary party!
Oct. 17-22
Sea Kayak Georgia BCU week
www.seakayakgeorgia.com
Oct. 24 - Nov. 2
Storm Gathering, Anglesey, Wales
www.edgeofadventure.co.uk/symposium.asp

I'll try to post a bit more often since there's fun stuff happening again!

Venice!

2008-05-15T23:27:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, May 11, Nigel, Kristine, Giorgio, and I paddled the Vogalonga – definitely a “life-time” experience that I will never forget! We kayaked almost 20 miles among an incredible assortment of human-powered craft through one on the most beautiful cities in the world and I would highly recommend it!

The Vogalonga is an annual event in Venice that began spontaneously in 1974 when a group of Venitians decided to protest the every increasing dominance of power boats in the canals and the surrounding lagoon, and to remind Venice of it’s rowing traditions. Power boats on the canals are not only dangerous, loud, and smelly, they create significant wakes which are slowly undermining sediment and foundations and are destroying the city. Once a year, for the last 34 years, the canals have been closed to power boat traffic and thousands of rowers in all forms take to the lagoon. This year there were about 1600 boats, and almost 6000 rowers. The event is non-competetive, although some take it seriously. There are no awards other than the “diploma” and medal that everyone gets at the end and the memories and images of a life time!

We got up early to get to Venice ahead of the crowds and find a parking place close to the water. This left us with a leisurely paddle to the starting line in front of Saint Marks Square. The number of kayaks, canoes, row boats, dragon boats, and traditional Venitian boats putting on the water was staggering. We followed a beautiful canal towards the heart of the city and stopped for an espresso along the way. We kept running into people we knew – mostly Giorgio, but all of us. All the things I remember about Venice when we visited as a teenager still fascinated me: the windows and shutters, the carvings on the facades, the rotting bottoms of huge carved doors that opened onto the canals, the light and shadows in canals, and people going about normal, everyday life in this most unusual city!

At Saint Marks, the sheer number of boats on the water was impressive, although they were very spread out and photographs can’t portray the feelings and sights. We paddled under the “Bridge of Sighs” which prisoners crossed after being declared guilty in the courts.

A huge canyon fired and we were off! Well, not really. Like I said, it’s non-competetive and in typical Italian fashion, we took our time. The participants must have spread out for many miles, but the boats within our area became familiar. There was an enormous red rowing vessel rowed by about 20 people that Giorgio called the “wine” boat because it was sponsored by a winery. My favorite boat was one of the traditional vessels rowed by standing. I’ve included a photo because the couple rowing and the boat were just so elegant! In Burano, our group had grown a bit with friends of Giorgio’s and we paddled up a tiny canal for a cup of cappuccino. Every family on Burano paints their house a different color so it is a colorful place! The course took us through Murano, known for it’s glassworks, and then across the lagoon back to Venice and down the Grand Canal. At the entrance to the canal, a huge bottle-neck was created by the narrow low bridge. Only one rowing shell at a time could pass, but with 1600 boats to get through, things were a bit crazy. Luckily, it was easier to sneak through in a kayak. My camera battery died just then and so I was camera-less for the whole of the Grand Canal which was disappointing as the sights were fantastic! All the cafes along the canal were full of people and many cheered us on. I was dying to explore the little canals, some only meters wide that intersected the Grand Canal. Separated from the others at the bottleneck, I was paddling with Rene and he took me on a detour through some of the smaller canals and past two Gondola boatyards, one of which has been in the same family since the 1600s.

By the time we returned to the Grand Canal, it was past 2:30 and the power boats had returned. Every block or two is a “bus” stop and the water buses were working their routes in full force. It was chaotic and a bit frightening and I quickly realized why kayaking in Venice is not a popular pastime on most days! How lucky we were to get to experience it as it was years ago, before giant “water buses” and fast taxi boats took over. The water was quite lumpy from wakes and it was easy to see how damaging to fragile foundations and delicate sediment the relentless waves could be. We made it to the finish line and officials dropped “diplomas” and medals into our hands from their stand at the waters edge and it was over. We had to make our way back a short distance along the Grand Canal dodging giant buses and trying to guess which way gondoliers were going to go. Even the secondary canal that we followed to the car park, which had been so idyllic in the morning, was now a tight squeeze between power boats, gondolas, and kayaks – very exciting and fun. I didn’t even mind getting yelled at by a power boat driver (or two). Having no idea what they were yelling about, I just grinned and moved closer to the walls!

I’ve got to run to class, but I’ll post again tonight – we’re currently in a lovely resort on the Adriatic not far from Venice….

Anglesey

2008-05-15T11:18:00.000-07:00

Lots to update and not much time....

Anglesey was awesome as usual. The tide races were fun and the weather was excellent. The last place you want to take out your camera is in the middle of a big tide race, so the photos don't do it justice! There were some big waves, and I was rusty! Need to come back more often!!!

All the old friends were there including Rowland Woollven who stopped on his circumnavigation of Britain.

I went to Nigel Dennis' factory a couple of times and got to see a customer's kayak ready for shipment. Also saw the kayaks being built for "The Vacation to Hell" this summer as well as the NEW Plastic Romany which I hope to have in stock in the next month or so!

Rock Gardens and Desert Islands, Mexico

2008-04-20T18:11:00.000-07:00

Team "J" (John, Jim, Jay, and Jen), spent 6 fantastic days off the Pacific coast of Baja in early April, 2008. John, Jim, and Jay, all from Colorado are skilled sea kayakers who were looking for a little rough water training in a beautiful location. Northern Baja was the perfect answer!

Just 3 hours south of San Diego is a world class rock garden paradise where we explored and practiced our skills for 2 days before heading to Todos Santos Islands. We made the 8 mile trip (only 3 miles of open water) against big Pacific swell and a 15+ kt headwind and the Colorado crew agreed that not all 8 mile paddles are equal! But the hard work was worth every stroke. We shared the island with seals, sea lions, elephant seals, and a couple of local fisherman, but our picture perfect cove was all ours the first night.

We circumnavigated the islands twice, exploring every nook and crannie on the way. There were some fantastic rock garden features that challenged our skills and provided some pretty exciting water. We practiced rescues and towing in a fabulous slot that provided dynamic conditions and some real-life "pressure" to get the job done, but flushed through into calm water. Team J's skills rose to the challenge even when things started to go pear-shaped and we all learned a lot!

Our second morning on the island, we were just heading out of our cove when two kayaks glided around the corner. I recognised the paddlers instantly - it was Ed Gillet (he kayaked from CA to Hawaii solo in the 80's) and his wife Katie Kampe (an accomplished rower and sea kayaker). They owned a kayak shop in San Diego for many years called Southwest Kayaks and Ed introduced many paddlers to the wonders of Baja. We must have looked a sight to them. There we were, Team J, all decked out in helmets, PFDs, and dry suits, with our tow belts and knives strapped on for combat, and Ed an Katie glide up with PFDs on deck, wearing only t-shirts. What a contrast!

We ended our trip at a Mexican tourist attraction - La Bufadora. It's a huge blowhole with a market and restaurants built up around it. The cervesas tasted particularly good on the veranda overlooking the coast we had just paddled.

Thanks for a great time guys!

Southwest Kayak Symposium, 2008

2008-04-20T14:02:00.000-07:00

Aqua Adventures hosts a kayak symposium on Mission Bay in San Diego each year. We had another great event March 28-30 with a handful of talented coaches from across the country and a couple hundred enthusiastic kayakers! Our group took up 42 campsites at Campland so the folk from LA, NV, AZ, Mexico, and other places far and wide never even had to leave the event location! Even some locals chose to camp for the social atmosphere and convenience. We had a couple of great parties including a Friday evening event with music by Steve Wilson of California Kayak Friends, a slide show by Russell Farrow, and yummy food provided by the Hakala's of Valley Wide Kayak Club and many other generous contributers! The Saturday night beach bonfire ended a bit early when a light drizzle started, but the music by Nigel Foster, Steve Wilson, Russell Farrow and others was excellent.

We'll be doing it again next year March 27-29, so stay tuned!

Aqua Adventures is lucky to count 2 professional photographers among our friends. They have both taken beautiful photos for us for many years. Check out the symposium fun as shot by Mike Franklin at www.mpfranklin.com/symposium08/
There are lots of photos from the Saturday night bonfire....you might think kayakers like to party!

The photos on this post were shot by Dominique Lemarie. Visit his website at http://www.dlphotopets.com/ to see more of his work including some spectacular kayaking surfing phots!

We had some "firsts" at the symposium this year icluding kayak surfing classes by current World Champion Sean Morley, plus the US premier of Nigel Foster's newest kayak design - the Whiskey, made by Point65.

2008 vital statistics:

Coaches:
Nigel Foster, Seattle, WA
Steve Maynard, Plattsburgh, NY
Brent Reitz, Monterey, CA
Russell Farrow, Sweetwater Kayaks, FL
Jean Totz, Sweetwater Kayaks, FL
Marsha Hensen, Sea Kayak Georgia
Ronnie Kemp, Sea Kayak Georgia

Attendees:
208 attendees took an average of 1.36 on-water classes each.
With 36 on-water classes plus "tent talks" to choose from there was something for everyone.

See you there next year!

It's over!

2007-11-19T10:49:00.000-08:00

I'm tremendously relieved the assessment is over and very pleased, of course, to have passed. Having failed to reach any Americans by phone to tell them the good news (it being 6am or so), I next phoned Rowland Woollven who is a good friend and who we visited at his house near the Falls of Lora on Tuesday. He was thrilled for me and made the hour long drive north to have dinner and celebrate. About 30 seconds after getting off the phone with Rowland, Fiona called to congratulate. Fiona has been my 'tutor' and mentor for the past couple of years and her support and friendship has been awesome. Rowland arrived bearing gifts from both of them - champagne, whiskey, and an exquisite model of an inuit kayak that he made last spring for my first assessment (it's been waiting on his shelf for me to get it right)!

It's really amazing to have friends who are willing to trek so far around the globe to a cold, dark, wet place to help me do this. I can't thank Thom and Lynn enough for supporting this endeavour not once, but twice!!! Brian was a perfect long term student and I owe him big time. Jake made the first trip so much fun and such an adventure. Thanks, guys.

We're all disappointed for Steve, but it's certainly not the end of the road. He's been so generous to us and has made this trip very easy. We spent the whole week chauffeured about (we offered to drive - don't know why he wouldn't let us) in a very large van with a very fine fleet of kayaks in tow. Even in his disappointment, he's funny and entertaining and happy for me. A class act, for sure.

Off to pack. See you all soon!

America’s FIRST BCU LEVEL 5 SEA KAYAK COACH

2007-11-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

Let me Introduce America’s FIRST BCU LEVEL 5 SEA KAYAK COACH.

Above is the exact moment (well OK just 10 seconds later) that Jen was informed by Gordon that she had passed.

Jen then calls mom with the news. Jake might have gotten the first call, however, we all knew he was sitting up and a tree hunting deer and wouldn't answer his phone anyway!

I just couldn’t save that news to the end of the day’s diary. You want to know it and Jen wants to celebrate her success with each of you. Throughout the first BCU attempt in Thurso and this one Jen has repeatedly mentioned how much the support of her extensive kayak community (both local and nationwide) has meant to her and brought her to this achievement.

So back to our day with Jen. Once again we were out early to meet up and pickup Andy (the same assessor Bryan and I were with yesterday but new to Jen). Unlike Steve, Jen didn’t waste any time getting on the water. We moved gear and kayaks to our transport for the day and were off to the Falls of Lora. But this time we were going to play in the flood tide (still at neaps).

It is about an hour’s drive down the coast towards Oban and we were on the water by 10AM. Naturally we had researched tide and current times and expected good currents and eddy lines to work with but no significant standing waves… and that’s what we got. The perfect environment for Jen to show her stuff! She did a fantastic job keeping Bryan and I busy, often pursuing different tasks on the same venue. Ferry forward and reverse, at different speeds, edging, surfing small waves in current, rolling (Brian) and sculling braces (Thom) in moving water. We got wet, we had fun, Jen did great!

Brian doing a great job sitting in a small tidal race at the Falls of Lora

Note: I don’t want to come home to discussions about the usefulness of a sculling brace. It was challenging and built up my confidence. That alone makes it useful in this instance.

Shortly after we returned to the Assessment center Gordon gave Jen the good word.
Unfortunately Steve did not pass. I have hesitated to ask him directly regarding the Assessors feedback but hope to hear more over the next few days.

That’s it from Scotland. Monday morning we head back to Oxenholm, Tuesday were headed back home to San Diego.

Regards – Thom

p.s. A special thanks to my wife, Lynn, for supporting Jen’s quest and allowing me to spend the time (and money) supporting Jen.

Whew - At Last Saturday is Here!

2007-11-19T09:39:00.000-08:00

Thom here…

This morning we were all business and out the door at 8AM, hooked up the trailer, and off to Orich to meet up with all the Assessors, Assessees, and Long Term Students (that’s Brian and myself among many others). The parking lot was chock full of cars covered with canoes, white water kayaks and then just a few sea kayaks. We were in a minority.

After the usual disorientation, trying to establishing where we were meeting, sitting down, then being told we needed to split up - students were on the other end of the complex, being grilled whether we knew, had paddled or been coached by the Assessee whom we were being paired with (that would be Steve whatever his name is!), then back to the original meeting place, and paired up with our Assessor and Assessee (finally).

I cannot speak for Jen’s day (at least not directly) as she went off with Steve2 and Sue not to be seen again till the end of the day.

Brian in the bivy shelter

Steve, however, did a great job. In his usual thorough manner he oriented us, explored our experience and strengths as well as our goals for the day and then offered a plan. Since we had an interest in his personal and group kits (that’s British for gear), leadership, coaching and paddling skills as well as navigation, he suggested we return to our chateau and spend a few hours there.

Steve discussing forward paddling with a demonstration video on the computer.

Time flew by as we discussed the contents of pfd pockets, different flare types, emergency shelters, vhf radios, deck mounted tow lines, contact tow lines, watched video of the British Olympic champion paddler and so much more. Indeed, as we broke for tea (I slipped in a sandwich) we realized that we had not yet covered navigation and needed to get down the road to Ballachulish to fit in a few hours paddling before dark. So we threw on our dry suits and gear and off we went into the rain and wind.

Our launch spot at Ballachulish (the launch ramp is behind me). Brian jumped in the picture and looked like a road worker in his dry suit.

We launched off a boat ramp in front of the Ballachulish Hotel and played in the narrows underneath the bridge. The natural topography protected from the full blast of the wind and the narrows had an ebb current that was surprisingly lively for a neap tide. If we let ourselves be swept down into the open parts of the loch there were significant wind waves built up by the fetch from over miles of open water in which to play.

The underlying theme of my work was leadership skills while Brian’s interest was in developing his coaching skills. While on the water we worked on paddling technique and boat handling, but it was good to have each exercise in context. Steve has an engaging teaching methodology that I find challenging, effective and beneficial. Generally he supports your process of coming up with answers with his guidance.

Once off the water we dropped Andy, our Assessor, of at Assessor Headquarters (he had to get back for a dinner) and returned to our chateau to pick up on navigation. Though exhausted, Steve had us plan a theoretical trip around the south end of Islay taking into account the tides, high water, and currents to navigate the tidal races. I found the exercise intellectually challenging; for Bryan it was a ‘piece of cake’ and he was soon bored and thinking of dinner.

Looking south towards Port Appin Left coast behind the castle. The islands on the right are where Jen and crew paddled to (and back).

Jen, with Steve2 and Sue returned to our chateau during our navigation exercise and informed us that they had gone south towards Oban and launched at Port Appin. There the winds were blowing at force 5 gusting to 6 so they worked for the first few hours with paddling exercises tucked in behind the ferry launch ramp, popping out in the wind and waves for skill building then returning to the protected area for instruction. They then set out across the channel to the island of Lismore, rounding the north end to play in the rocks on the west side. From their description I wished I had been along.

Talking about our day with each other in the kitchen

As you might imagine we had a raucous dinner this evening with endless stories about the day and, of course, the usual British / US English language barrier humor. Soon though, we were back at planning tomorrow, where to go, what are the expected tide times, current flows, what about the weather (gale force winds at 6AM are predicted on BBC radio), what we students wanted to experience and learn and what would be the best venue that would integrate all that and show off the Assessees skills best? Soon we were all slipping off to bed, hopefully sleeping better than last night, and ready for another exciting day.

Steve2 and Sue returning from their day with Jen

Sorry – no photos on the water today as it seemed as though it might be inappropriate during an assessment. I might ask tomorrow to see if it would be OK.

Regards - Thom

Let Me Introduce to you...

2007-11-18T10:23:00.000-08:00

America's First BCU Level 5 Sea Kayak Coach

Jen Kleck

Unfortunately that's all I can give you for now (but I was sure you would want to know).

The only Internet connection for ~20 miles is here in the Clachaig Inn and has a phone modem connection. Worse it has prevented me from inserting a USB thumb drive to transfer three days of journal writings and a plethora of photos. I promise to do that once we get back to Steve's house Monday evening.

Unfortunately Steve did not pass and that has been the focus of much discussion at our chateau. Additionally none of the canoe Assessees passed, white water Assessees had not yet returned to the center before we left so we didn't get their results.

So look for lots of text and pictures in 24 hours. See you back in San Diego late Tuesday.

Regards - Thom

Pictures from throught the week

2007-11-16T08:07:00.001-08:00

Thom here...

This being the first Internet access time for a few days I thought I would catch you up with pictures...

Jen the Falls of Lora

Steve at the Falls of Lora

Steve's Birthday party

Jen working with Brian at the Falls of Lora

Have you seen our home base yet?

Well tomorrow the Assessment starts. Wish them luck.

Regards - Thom

Thursday

2007-11-16T07:56:00.000-08:00

Thom here on Thursday…

Another glorious day paddling on mirror smooth Scottish waters. Each day now moves us closer to full neap tide so strong currents and tidal races become harder to find. The temperature dropped a bit from yesterday and the sky was covered with low clouds. We rarely saw the sun. Nonetheless, paddling conditions were great for exploring the coastline as wind was nearly nonexistent and aside from a mild ebb tide, the day and the loch were ours.

We rose early once again and headed off to paddle Loch Sunart which is essentially an hour and a half southwest of Ft. William. To save driving 50 miles each way we jumped a ferry across Loch Linne at Corran then drove west to our launch point at Glennborrodale. As always the scenery on the drive was spectacular taking us along several lochs and over a low pass as we proceeded out the Ardnamurchan peninsula (the most western point on the British mainland).

Just a bit of a portage from our parking spot and we had our kayaks sitting on seaweed ready to launch. After dallying just a bit in Glennborrodale harbor we set out east along the coast, practicing strokes and setting up a ferry angle to cross Loch Sunart to Carna, an island on the opposite side. Our plan was to circumnavigate Carna, then hopefully continue west and on around the west end of the island of Oronsay, which is exposed to the sea and likely to have a rugged west coast along with some swell to play in. Because of neaps the current was running a mere 2+ knots and crossing was easy. We quickly rounded the east end of Carna and stopped for lunch.

After lunch we passed along the narrow eastern channel looking for sea otters and other sea life and practicing strokes whenever we found interesting currents and eddy lines. Once we turned west the ebb tide in the channel carried us towards Oronsay. But alas, we had tarried too long and the entrance to the backside of Oronsay was blocked by the receding tide. A ~200 yard portage across the seaweed and mud was an option, however, time was running short and the better decision was to turn north and head back across Loch Sunart to our original launch location.

Another lesson learned (over and over)… pay attention to the tides. Had we launched earlier, or possibly inverted the direction of the trip we may have squeezed through. Nevertheless, we had another great day on the water and are once again ensconced in our lodging looking forward to a rest day and preparing for the Assessment beginning this coming Saturday. Thanks for following along and think good thoughts for Jen.

Regards - Thom

Wednesday

2007-11-16T07:43:00.000-08:00

Thom here on Wednesday….First let me apologize from all of us for the sporadic postings. There is no Internet access here in our lodging (as glorious as it is) and finding Internet access in small towns around rural Scotland can be daunting. As a consequence postings may be days apart and ‘lumped’ together. Additionally Steve is the only insured driver so we can’t simply stop at the end of a tiring day to find the ‘magical connection’ to the world. Nonetheless, we hope to get pictures up with this posting… but we will see.

Today we drove west of Fort William to the Sound of Airsaig to paddle Loch Nan Uamh. As always we were scouting out venues for Jen and Steve. Often finding a great location is not only about great paddling but includes nailing down a good launch point and getting there at the right time to take advantage of the tides and currents. Thanks to Steve and Jen we made that happen once again.

While we had to carry our kayaks a few hundred yards this morning we had an easy launch onto mirror smooth waters. There was no appreciable wind and only low clouds that were hugging the mountain tops as we paddled down the loch. While the ambient temperature was cool, the sun and our paddling kept us plenty warm. We hopped from island to island, playing in the rocks, taking advantage of the noticeable but manageable swell coming in from the sea. We found one particular spot that provided exciting rides for each of us and lingered there before moving on to yet another island.

I think all of us were tired this evening as we headed home. A quick pizza and the evening opened up to further theoretical preparation for the upcoming (geez it’s only two days away now) assessment and how to take best advantage of these two remaining days. Should we go to Cuan to check out the tidal race in neaps or spend our time at more locally? All agreed that Friday needs to be local (researching launching spots, locations sheltered from the expected storm, etc.) and get back to the house with plenty of time for Jen and Steve to get their ‘kit’ together for an early start on Saturday while Brian and Thom rest up.

Well I’m pooped and off to bed. As I mentioned earlier we hope to get this posted with pictures for you ASAP.

Regards - Thom

Hot and Cold

2007-11-16T07:27:00.000-08:00

Brian here, welcome to virtual Scotland. Have your mittens handy, ‘tis a wee bit nippy’. We’ve been blessed with nice weather for the last couple of days, with the sun poking through and the wind and rain taking a rest. I didn’t expect to see glassy water but I’ll take it.

Without the wind the water is quite clear and you can see just how much kelp and seaweed grows here. There isn’t an overwhelming abundance of sea life, but we have seen a variety of seabirds (cormorants, shags, oyster-catchers and a few more whose name I don’t know) and a few seals and otters.

Paddling here is reminiscent of the Northwest, with steep slopes and rocky shores and lots of pines. Take that image and then imagine those hills being shorn of their trees with just a few patches here and there. The hills and mountains out here in the Western Highlands have a massiveness to them that is quite different than I’ve seen before. They are tremendously steep and yet rounded at the top, as if someone had thrown a wool blanket over an elephant and fastened it tight back to the ground. They almost look like they’re about to awake and move on.

One new experience paddling here is being both overheated and bloody cold at the same time. Wearing a dry suit with layers of fleece and thermals gets you quite toasty, and those suckers don’t breathe too well, so the heat stays in. Then feel the wind and water on your face and neck, and your hands are wet from the drip. It gets a little chaotic.

So I got my arse handed to me on our first day on the water. Mind you we decided to head straight for the Falls of Lora and get into some tidal races. The water wasn’t flowing at full bore, but still about 5 knots. Makes for some fun eddies and moving water. Rather new to me, but I definitely gained some new knowledge. Like don’t try a stern pry on the upstream side. Felt like a mermaid grabbed the paddle blade and just pulled me right over. Steve said I had a couple of seconds before I went over, but it felt instantaneous. I’d like to say I rolled right back up, but…

That’s all for now. Enjoy the pictures.

What a Start to our Paddling in Scotland

2007-11-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

Thom here...

We headed south towards Oban today to start our scouting and hopefully our kayaking. The weather was cold (though not below freezing) with intermittent rain and occasional strong gusts of wind.

As we proceeded south scouting here and there, evaluating water access, training possibilities and general desirability of the paddling experience we crossed over the bridge under which run the Falls of Lora (sp). Jen couldn't contain herself and even though we are headed towards neap tide we happened (I think in retrospect she had this all planned) to be at full ebb tide. The falls were running strong (at least strong enough to intimidate Brian and myself).

Jen, on the other hand, was already half in her dry suit before we had parked to get a look at the scene. While we were getting dressed, she was already unstrapping the kayaks on the trailer and getting gear down to the water. She was well on her way up the coastline as we were still getting our foot pegs adjusted. Suffice to say she has a 'gung ho' style of coaching!

At the Falls one launches on the opposite side of the narrows, paddle up the eddy, then ferry across to the mongo tide race you have all seen in This is the Sea. I don't want to you think the Falls were going off as you saw in the flick, however, they certainly had me warmed up quickly and immediately confronting all my kayak fears. But once we had all crossed over (Jen had been on the opposite side playing for some time by then), Jen started her coaching, encouraging and coaxing us deeper and deeper into various waves and races. After an hour or so of playing, both Bryan and I became more adventurous and were rewarded with exciting rides and confidence.

Soon we grew physically tired and ferried back across the race, loaded the kayaks and went in to Oban, where we visited... what do you think??? A Chandlery (chart/map shop), a kayak shop, and, of course, the Oban Distillery (Brian's one demand for the trip).

I'll work on some picture processing tonight and hopefully get them posted tomorrow.

Regards - Thom

It's Snowing in the Highlands!

2007-11-13T08:31:00.000-08:00

Thom here...

Today we drove from Oxenholm to Glencoe which is 17 miles up the road from Ft. William. Those technogeeks among you can actually follow along on our journey as Jen attached the EPERB unit to the top bar of the trailer. More important to those of us along on the trip Jen did a masterful job at locating lodging… but first the journey.

Steve drove the van as he is the only one insured to get behind the wheel. Brian kept him awake while Jen and I sat in the next seat back napping and fending off the cold. And I do mean cold! As we crossed the Highlands it started to snow. Not just fluffy little flakes – but big globby ones, each one falling with determination, seizing the opportunity to make a difference as they hurtled towards the earth. Fortunately as we descended into Glencoe and back towards sea level the ambient temperature warmed just above freezing and snow turned back to rain. The mountains should be pretty in the morning.

What about the house, you ask? River view, lots of parking for the van and trailer, three bedrooms, three baths, sleeping for six, three eating areas including a sunroom, a huge well equipped kitchen, and a living room with a fireplace (well OK it is fake but the chairs are all over stuffed) and heat! At this point we aren’t sure we will go back outside!

After arriving around 5PM (well after dark) we unloaded the van recovered from our shock regarding our new living situation and headed on in to Ft. William to buy groceries at Morrisons. And buy groceries we did. All four of us went separate directions (now we did prepare a list before our shopping trip), occasionally meeting up on one isle, then , and filled our grocery cart to the brim. At the checkout counter we looked at each other dumbfounded and in disbelief that we were buying so much food (and drink). I was sure our bill would exceed 200 pounds, but low and behold it totaled to just a bit less than 130 pounds. On our journey home we congratulated ourselves at how shrewd we had been, saving all that money we would have spent eating out the balance of the week (except Steve who seemed appalled at our consumptive American habits).

So we whiled away the evening as Jen cooked dinner and the rest of us helped in our own way. The evening floated away with us and soon it was leaning on 11 PM and we drifted off to bed, our thoughts of Scotland, and blessed sleep - or is that sheep (which Steve calls Meadow Maggots). Tomorrow, we promise, we will get outside as we head down to Oban and begin scouting the area for Jen’s upcoming assessment (brrrrr…).

Regards - Thom

Jen and Brian arrive

2007-11-11T15:31:00.000-08:00

Jen reporting from the UK - midnight GMT:

Brian and I had different philosophies about conquering jetlag. He swore that all you have to do is set your clocks and watches to your new time zone and you can literally trick your brain into believing the new time. Yeah, right. My method has been painstakingly developed and well tested: to induce in-flight coma, stay up all night before leaving, then drink 2 bloody mary's at airport (repeat as necessary on layovers). I awoke on the tarmac in Manchester refreshed and rarin' to go. Brian's been in bed for hours. Looks like I'll be collecting on that bet!

The team has finally assembled at Steve's house in England's Lake District. We've loaded our kayaks and kit, had a great meal in the local pub, and will head off tomorrow for Scotland. There is frost on the kayaks out on the trailer and kayaking in Scotland in November is seeming like an odd idea at best. To make it seem like a better idea, I booked us into a lovely house (appropriately with a 5 star rating) on the water north of Oban for the week. I'll spare no expense for my loyal team! It's going to be important to have a comfortable place to hang out since the days are so short.

I've brought my new SPOT satellite messenger and am having fun playing with it. You can see our progress (sometimes in real time) at http://www.findmespot.com/. Click 'my account' and Log on: user name: jenkleck password: kayak. If you click on 'messages', then 'select all' and 'show on map', you can see where we are. Use the satellite view - it's cool. I'll use the tracking mode when it's interesting and you'll be able to watch our travels. There's a lot of info about this amazing little device on the findmespot website. If you want one, Aqua Adventures Kayak Center is well stocked - they cost just $150!!

Brian (who is in the UK for the first time), had heard all the usual warnings about terrible British food. He was very impressed by his first pub meal and took this photo to prove the nay-sayers wrong. There was hardly a crumb left. Just wait 'til he tries haggis!

This is Steve, our gracious host, wondering how he's going to survive a week with 3 Americans! Steve nearly killed himself river kayaking a couple of weeks ago - hit his head very hard on a rock - and is still suffering from neck pain and numbness in his arms. He's taking some serious pain medication and acts a little strange from time-to-time...like drinking Guinness out of a wine glass!? We suggested that beer might not interact well with the meds, so he poured himself a scotch.

Internet access uncertain this next week, but we'll find our way to internet cafes whenever possible!

Meeting up in Oxenholm

2007-11-11T03:34:00.000-08:00

Thom here... literally here in Oxenholm at Steve Bank's home waiting for Jen and Brian to arrive early this Sunday afternoon. My training regimen has gone well; arriving a day early, sleeping, hydrating at the local pub, ending the evening with a wee dram of scotch, then more sleep (much more sleep). I feel great.

Once Jen and Brian arrive the plan for the afternoon is to head down to Dallum Outdoor Center, pack up the transport van and load up kayaks on the trailer. After that we'll head back to Steve's place and decide if we want to jump directly into a 6 hour drive to Oban or have dinner, sleep at Steve's and head up in the morning.

The current weather is cold and calm. A high pressure area is moving into the Oban/Mull area and as we progress towards this weekend we will be having neep tides. Generally that would mean we should expect minimal tidal currents and mild winds (less fetch), on and off rain is likely according to the current weather models. While that should make for easy paddling it may make the assessment harder as there will be less 'nature' (extreme water conditions) for Jen and Brian to work with.

That's it for now... Jen is landed and on the train headed north towards us.

Regards - Thom

Travels and travails

2007-05-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

We've been busy paddling on Anglesey, hanging out with good friends, and far from wireless internet connections, so we apologise for falling off the map a bit!

Jake and I drove late into the night after parting ways with Thom. We finally slept at a gas station for a few hours and I started driving again at about 4am or so, right on target to be pulling into Holy Head at 9am to reunite Justine with her van, and Nigel with his Romany which was desperately needed for his symposium. All was going so well, and then an ominous *clunk*. I immediately pulled over on the motorway and stopped. My heart racing, I tried to start the engine again - no go. We poked under the hood - oil, check, belts, check, wait, what's that? Timing belt busted through it's housing. So, we walked to a payphone and called the British version of AAA who came to collect us. Nope, can't fix it today - could be pretty easy, or could be a big problem - could be expensive. UGH! Our only viable option seemed to be to tow the sucker 120 miles to Holy Head. When we finally met up with Justine again, we found out the van wasn't worth much more than the towing, but at least everything was back where it was meant to be. I still don't know if Justine has deceided to fix it or not - we feel awful! We're just so glad that it happened on our way home and as close as we were! It could have been far worse!

Anglesey has been great fun and Jake is currently on a 5 Star training course. I've gotten to do some coaching and have some fun. We'll be leaving for home soon and will see you guys all soon!

Jen

Off To the Races

2007-05-04T03:20:00.002-07:00

Thursday

We awoke to Skye being renamed Eilean a’ Cheo and dense fog. At 5:30 AM I couldn’t even see the Hebridian seashore just below our bluff. Confident it would clear we went about our morning routine of coffee (something to wake Jen up), oatmeal (Jakes morning specialty) and preparing to get on the water. While we ate the fog lifted a bit turning into low cloud cover for the balance of the paddle with cooler conditions than we have had all week (but still not cold by Scottish standards). There was a mild wind from the northwest chopping up the waters surface and causing fetch that built in size as we proceeded through the day and became more exposed to the open sea.

Today’s paddle required a shuttle. Fortunately we had the time to check out our launch harbor at Staffin Island the evening before to orient ourselves. The finish would be just below our campsite on a boulder beach. We left the car, jumped in the van and headed to Staffin hitting the water at 8:30 AM. Timing was important today. If planned and executed properly we would ride a gentle 1+ knot ebb current north along the east side of the Trotternish peninsula turning west to catch the tidal race at Rubha na h-Aiseig (at full spring tidal flow) followed by a second race as we rounded Rubha Hunish and turned south towards our landing. The full paddle was projected to take about 4-5 hours.

We started by swinging east of Staffin Island to warm up and catch a glimpse of the many bird colonies then back to the northwest getting a light push from the current up to Eilean Flodigarry Island. Eilean Flodigarry is split by a narrow channel, the western island having a vertical face of huge, often crumbling basalt columns. This was a birds world as they soared far above us. The channel provided a short respite from the choppy seas.

Upon exiting the inter-island channel we turned west towards the coast and began exploring caves and arches. Our first cave had four access points joining at the center in a ‘T’. But having been inured to only the best caves over the past few days we moved on quickly. Soon we discovered there were far too many to explore so we only entered those that were promising and indeed there were many. Inside caves the swell mellowed, the sound of the wind and the sea turned to a whisper and the cave would occasionally growl. Some opened to the sky as you passed inside, some narrowed requiring one to creep along with your hands, some required a flashlight. We proceeded along the coast stopping for lunch at Kilmaluag Bay, our last opportunity to land prior to rounding Rubha na h-Aiseig, the first race.

The low clouds covered the sun, the wind was cool and still blowing from the north. We were anxious to round Rubha na h-Aiseig to see what awaited us and so were back on the water more quickly than usual (no nap for Jen). After paddling not more than 5 minutes we rounded the edge of the bay into large sea swells. At least I thought they were large swells until I looked further than the front of my kayak and realized we had dropped directly into the Rubha na h-Aiseig tidal race! I immediately swung into an eddy to get settled, Jen and Jake were already playing. The race is squeezed into a channel between the headlands and an island, making it big. The waves at the top of the race were surfable and we all were soon at it. For me the unique attribute of this race was that it kept pushing me out the top. I kept dropping down along the side, would ferry in, and moments later my position was back at the beginning of the race. It was a if I wasn’t being drawn along with the flow of the water at all! My usual experience of a race involves efforting to catch a wave and also prevent oneself from being swept down through the race. After playing for a bit Jen suggested we turn into the race and run down through bow first.

Now this race was ~1 mile long, big, and exposed to incoming westerly swells. Playtime for Jen and Jake but stretching my limits! Nonetheless, this was an opportunity to see if I had learned anything from my wet exit day earlier in the week when I was paddling forward through the Duncansby Head race (trying to assist with Ian’s rescue). I reasoned I hadn’t been hurt, I had survived, and who better to rescue me today if needed than Jen and Jake? From my first experience I had observed that I needed to keep powering forward through the race, keep my paddle deep in the water with each stroke (in these steep high frequency waves a shallow stroke may find nothing but air throwing one off balance), and be ready to low brace instantly when hit by side swell. The ride through the race was an adrenalin pumping riot moving us along at a combined speed of ~10 miles/hour, smashing through waves and slamming down their backs, bracing into peaks arising from any side at any moment. After what at the same time seemed endless and yet only momentary we pulled into calmer water at Lub a Sgiathain bay and explored yet more caves while we rested from the chaos of the race.

Soon we were approaching the race at Rubha Hunish. As we approached it initially didn’t appear to me to be as big or as powerful as the previous race at Rubha na h-Aiseig. It was different too inasmuch as the waves were not surfable and more chaotic than I had seen before. Indeed, by this time we had the wind to our backs, a 3-4 foot swell coming in of the Hebridean sea from the NW, we had a 6-8 mile an hour current and the race is set up as the ebb tide runs directly along the Rubha Hunish cliffs (~200 feet to our left) causing reflection waves from the crossing swell. Wow! Jen again suggested we drop down through the center and off we went. It was like dropping into a monstrous washing machine. Waves and reflection waves slammed together at your bow while the race is forcing you straight up the wave peak, then off down the other side as a side swell slams over your deck. This race didn’t’ give up but curved right around Rubha Hunnish and pointed us south towards our destination finally letting us loose in Loch Hunish

It was only another mile to our destination and I for one was happy to ride a gentle current combined with mild back swells to our landing beach where we slipped, slid and pulled our kayaks up a boulder beach (the tide was nearly at full ebb by now), then up a grass slope to our camp below Duntulm. Jen and I shuttled back to get the van while Jake scampered off to get a closer look at the dilapidated Duntulm castle overlooking the bay.

As we packed up the van I reflected on the last week. My personal successes, lessons learned, bonds saturated with challenges and intimate common experiences (but not that intimate!). Friends supporting each other in big and little ways, the laughter, the tears, the triumph over fears. All contributed to a unique and unforgettable experience and fostered personal growth. Jen and Jake were off to Wales for the Kayak Symposium; I off to Perth for a Gemmological conference. It was difficult to say goodbye. Indeed we followed one another on the main road across Skye before eventually being separated.

I extend a big thank you to Jen for inviting me to participate in preparing for and taking her BCU 5 Star Instructor exams. Her focus and devotion to reaching that lofty goal lifted the quality of my paddling far beyond my usual confidence and extended my paddling experiences to places I previously had only dreamed of. I remain committed to her success. Jake, is a paddler I have come to trust implicitly, always cheerful, always helpful, both on and off the water. I can’t recall laughing so hard for so long! They shared their space with me seamlessly; paddling, sightseeing, cooking, cleaning, driving, sleeping, just sitting and contemplating.

As I am sure Jen suspects I’m now back to my old ways, lodged for the night halfway to Perth at the Invergarry Hotel (Jake – it’s a fishing and hunting lodge as it turns out – www.invergarryhotel.co.uk), shaved and cleaned up, kayak gear rinsed, dried and packed away, sated by a bacon wrapped scallop dinner, a gemmologist once again. I look forward to seeing all of you back on the water in San Diego (but only after spending days and precious hours with my supremely supportive wife Lynn).

p.s. It turns out there has been such an uproar with the name of Skye being changed to Eilean a’ Cheo that the politicians have backed down and Skye is now Eilean a’ Cheo only on election day (which was today). So don’t panic… you can still get over here and paddle Skye (just not on election day!).

A Day for Tides and Currents

2007-05-04T03:20:00.001-07:00

Wednesday

Today we got an early start for a launch at the ferry landing of An t-Ob on the Sound of Harris. The Sound separates Harris from the Hebridean islands to the south (starting with North Uist). Our plan was to paddle around the islands called Easaigh and Ceileagraigh which are situated approximately in the center of the Harris Sound, then return to our launch spot at the ferry landing.

Tides and currents were critical to our success as the channels we had to cross have currents up to 5 knots during the spring tides which are now occurring. So we were up early, fed and on the road at 7AM. We launched to catch the ebb tide (in this case the Hebridean sea emptying into the Atlantic), setting a ferry angle over to the east side of Easaigh, zipping down the coast with the current and wind at our backs and swinging around the Atlantic exposed north side then using the eddies to sneak up the west side setting up a ferry angle across Caolas Sdairidh channel to Ceileagraigh.

Even though Caolas Sdairidh channel had more current than I expected we had left a big margin of safety and made the crossing with no problems swinging then around the west side of Ceileagraigh, stopping on a broad sandy beach for lunch, and again sneaking up along the eddies on the south side to clear the east end and set up for a crossing back to our starting point. We had timed it well and rode the last of the ebb tide down the channel crossing (~2 miles) with the wind to our backs on a mirror smooth water surface under a bright cloudless sky.

The whole trip took ~4 hours and got us off the water in time to get back up to An Tairbeart to catch the 4 PM ferry over to Uig on Skye. It was luxury to have a few extra hours to write and relax but once again maddening not to have internet access. Now on the ferry we have reviewed our plans for Thursday’s paddle around the exposed north end of Skye from Staffin Island to Duntulm, one of the classic paddles in Scotland.

But will we be paddling Skye or Eilean a’ Cheo?

Regards - Thom

A Five Star Paddling Experience

2007-05-04T03:18:00.001-07:00

Tuesday

Tides and current were not dominant with our planned paddle of Great Bearnaraigh today so we relaxed a bit in the morning sun (can you believe that!) and once underway visited the remains of a large Broch (essentially a very old, round, cone shaped structure having double walls with stairs in-between. Then we stopped at the Calanais Standing Stones similar to Stone Henge but with more stones and in the form of a cross) and finally on to paddle.

We chose today’s paddle by happenstance, no books, no referrals, no current info… just looked good on our map. Great Bearnaraigh faces the Atlantic and we launched at a small harbor near Balasaigh. The fishermen there were most kind, confirming our suspicions that current wasn’t a big issue but suggesting that crossing the channel to the island of Pabaigh Mor would be more interesting than our original planned path.

Wow! There’s nothing like local knowledge.

At the end of the Great Bearnaraigh, rather than explore further we set up the crossing to Pabaigh Mor (~1-1/2 miles) and we found the suggested narrow entrance to a horseshoe shaped cove with entrances on either side of the point but protected from direct exposure to the Atlantic. The cove had broad sweeping sandy beaches, turquoise water and a large tidal pool with drainage cascading down a seaweed lined slide. This could have been the Caribbean except for the very cold water. We entered at low tide and luxuriated with the sun, out of the wind, ate our lunch and… well napped. As we rested the tide started rising rapidly and eliminating the beaches around us. That gave us the opportunity to slip up the tidal pool slide in our kayaks (Jen was creative and started pulling herself up with the seaweed), explore and then slide back down (the seaweed protecting the kayaks from the rocks).

As we returned to the open sea we rounded the exposed point of the island to find a huge heart shaped arch (which required higher tide level to paddle through) and others that allowed safe passage. Continuing down the west side of Pabaigh Mor along a channel we encountered cave after cave after… Not just any cave but caves going back several hundred feet; some wide, some too narrow to use your paddle, some requiring a flashlight. Coves, arches, and caves any one of which would make for a 5 star paddling day all on one island that it appears only the local fishermen know about. We also happened upon a large sea otter.

Done exploring we island hopped down the west side of Bacsaigh and ferried (lots of that here in the Hebredis) across An Caolas channel with side swell (occasional deck wash) and force 4+ winds. Once again Jake did a masterful job of navigating and I followed.

After landing we headed south to Harris island (though it’s connected to Lewis it still seems to be considered separate) about 1+ hours drive. Hoping to continue camping we stopped at the Tourist Bureau and were advised that we have the right to camp pretty much wherever we want (it’s polite to ask if a house is near) and further that ~20 minutes south of town was a fantastic beach. Before leaving town we loading up on food at the local grocer (closed at 6PM but open again from 8 to 9PM – go figure).

We were very excited to see a sign that the grocer had free wireless internet… but alas even with the help of the proprietor (a retired Cisco geek) we could not get online. Internet connection has been a real problem since we left Thurso and our secret O’Neil ‘surfer’ connection at the Royal Hotel bar. The one time we did find a connected computer in Ullapool Jen consumed the time (prior to catching the ferry) researching St. Kilda possibilities and we never got to post anything before jumping on the ferry.

To finish up the day we found the beach and set up camp on a grassy bluff overlooking a huge sandy bay opening into the Atlantic. As we watched the full moon rise the tide began to empty the entire bay setting up tidal/surf race at least 1 mile out. Essentially the beach front moves 1+ miles with each tide shift!

We Made The Ferry But…

2007-05-04T03:16:00.000-07:00

At last! I have a connection. You will find the last four days posted individually below.

Regards - Thom

Monday

…we are headed for the Hebrides. The ferry days and times we originally found online for the Shetlands turned out to be incorrect. The accurate days (the ferry essentially runs one direction each day) simply wouldn’t work for us as I have to be in Perth by 2PM on Friday to lead a workshop and Jake and Jen have to get back to Wales for the Kayak Symposium by Friday night.

We were disappointed and vacillated about our possibilities. Should we go over to the Orkney Islands for the day… maybe for several days, then head south (geez that would add an extra travel day); should we make a beeline to the Isle of Skye (to be officially renamed in traditional Gaelic this coming Thursday as Eilean a’ Cheo) and maybe get a climb of Ben Nevis in; is there any way going to the Shetlands could make sense (we were still attached)?

In the end we decided (with some helpful advice from our B&B hostess, Antoinette) to take a rest day and drive the North & West Highland Scenic Highway to Ullapool and catch the ferry to the Isle of Lewis, the northern island of the Outer Hebrides. The Scenic highway took as past our launch spot of the previous day, through Durness, across the Cape Wrath peninsula, then down through Kylestrome to Ullapool. The drive was ~150 miles on mostly single track. Fortunately the tourist season hasn’t started yet so the road was mostly empty, particularly in the northern section.

The scenery was exceptional and the weather even better than previous days. I know Lynn won’t believe this but I drove the entire distance with my window down and dressed in just a T shirt (well I did have pants on as well!). We have checked and are hoping that the weather will hold for the next three days (that is the prediction). It’s so nice we even discussed the wisdom of sharing certain photos we have on this blog as the beaches and sunny skies make it look like Santa Barbara. We are concerned you won’t believe we even came to Scotland!

Tonight we are camping on the west side of Lewis just a few hundred yards from the wide open Atlantic. Tomorrow we will set up a shuttle and paddle around the great Bernera peninsula. We have an accurate map but no other details regarding currents and exact tides so it should be an adventure. Jen hopes that Jake and I will learn to feel the currents (I think she may be asking too much).

Haven't heard from me in a while

2007-05-03T12:42:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Thom and Jen have been doing a great job of telling all that's been going on so I haven't had a whole lot to add, or much time to add it as we've been busy organizing our travel and paddling plans the last few days.

Jen and I were thinking about it while we drove south toward Anglesey after parting ways with Thom this afternoon. We've paddled 9 of the last 10 days and in that time I think I've logged 4 of the best paddles I've ever been on. The coast of Scotland is incredibly beautiful and we've been blessed with amazing weather allowing us to experience more of it more intimately than one normally could in a two week visit. There were numerous moments throughout the week that I could only think, "This is why we do this. This is why we practice, study, and learn all we can about handling our little boats in a very large and powerful ocean. To experience moments like we've seen this week." Scotland is more magnificent than I could have ever imagined and I recommend it to anyone who puts blade to water and has the drive to learn what it takes to be able to handle a kayak in these waters.

We're just starting our travel south but I already miss Scotland and am already looking forward to returning. Yet there is more to come in Wales and I can't wait to see the tide races down there.

Until then,

Jake

Last few days catch up

2007-05-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

Standing stones on the Outer Hebrides
An amazing structure from about 1000 BC!!!
The trio in the pub in Thurso. We were staring to feel like locals. A photographer working for the surfing contest gave us the password for free internet, so this was a nightly scene. Note the chursh steeple out the window. It's probably 9pm and still so light!
The drysuit seemed more than a little out of place here. The water just beckoned you to swim, but it's still close to frozen!
The caves and arches were numerous and varied - towering arches and narrow slots. Just fantastic!

Well, the ferry schedule didn't work out to the Shetlands with our schedule, so we went to the outer Hebrides, and then to Skye. Thom left us today and Jake and I are on our way back to Anglesey where I'm looking forward to spending some time with some good friends!

We had an absolutely fantastic couple of days. I moped for a day over the assessment and the disappointment that we didn't get to the Shetlands, and then went paddling and got over it. We've seen beaches that you just couldn't believe are in Scotland, awesome caves and arches (Santa Cruz has nothing on the British Isles), otter, eagles, gillamots, razor bills, fulmar, kitty wakes, grey seals, puffins (my favorites!), and so much more. We camped along the coast and were treated to warm weather and breathtaking sunsets (at 10pm!!!). It just couldn't have been any more perfect.

Thom will post tonight when he settles into a B&B and he'll fill you in on all the details. Jake and I are going to push on through the night so we can return Justine's van! I'm sure she's wondering where it is.

Thanks so much for all the great comments!

Jen

Results

2007-04-29T11:52:00.000-07:00

Thom's written more, but just a quick note to give you guys the results....
I did not pass. I'm disappointed, of course, but not devestated. I got lots of great feedback and know what I need to do for the next try. I think my assessors were more torn up than I was. Mike said it was one of his hardest decisions, so I was close. I'd rather pass with flying colors than squeak by and I know I will be that much better because I'll have to work hard for the next try, rather than resting on my laurels.

We're off the the Shetland Islands tomorrow, so no time to feel sorry for myself. Thanks everyone so much for your support! Don't quit reading just yet, there could be some good posts from the Shetlands!
Cheers,
Jen

From Thom

2007-04-29T11:34:00.000-07:00

Triple Arch
Snack break
Ben Hope in the background - the northern most Monroe
Fish arch. Fisherman used to dry fish under this arch - too much rain - but not today!

Today started early, very early… Theresa, Jane, Jon… you would have been proud of me for getting up this early for kayaking! Admittedly Lynn is not here so getting out of bed early is easier. I was up at 5:00 AM and luring Jen out of bed at 5:30 with a cup of coffee (now that’s a miracle!) so we could get our planned final test day in.

Today we took a risk and decided to go ~1-1/2 hours west to Eilean Nan Ron and Neve Islands. It meant an early start because we had to get our assessor (Doug) back by 2 PM to meet with the other assessors give the thumbs up (or thumbs down) for each aspirant. So off we went into a cloudy and windy horizon.

Today was Jen’s day to demonstrate her teaching techniques and acumen, and our day to be stellar students. The launching spot was an easy protected beach at Skerray (a harbor so surf launch was not an issue). After warming up we did a small bit of playing in the local harbor reef rocks, then off to Neve Island for more serious rock gardening with swells and timing. After some play we rounded the exposed side of the island and were greeted with today’s full wind of ~15 mph gusting to 20 mph. Not so bad, however, the water was broken up with small swells and lots of chop. We had hoped to pass through an arch that is quite famous, however, the tide was too low causing a overfall that simply wasn’t navigable. Nonetheless, we had plenty of rocks to play in, one which Jake and Jen slid through smoothly, I sat in front of for some time (my inner voice saying ‘not today’) and chose to paddle round. Then we headed for Eilean Nan Ron, the larger of the two, islands we planned to circumnavigate for the day.

This required a ~1 mile crossing with following wind and swell off our right stern. We didn’t have to consider current as much today but nonetheless, Jake once again did a masterful job at researching tide times and current speeds (~1 to 2 knots). Oddly the current was running right to left when we started the crossing, then shifted form left to right in the middle of the channel. Slight adjustments made for a smooth crossing and with the wind and waves we had a bit of surfing fun as well.

Once we reached Eilean Nan Ron we paddled into a natural harbor and were introduced to a low natural arch which looked impassable but if you laid you paddle on your deck and used your hands on the roof rock it allowed you to slip through and voila you were in a small harbor pool with room enough for just our 5 kayaks. It was sweet. Then off to circumnavigate Eilean Nan Ron as we had a strict timetable to keep.

The exposed side of the island was a tall cliff of sedimentary rock and we hugged the cliff side riding the swells and addressing the wind. This island too had great caves (one we all paddled in together) and arches. Soon we turned the corner and dropped through a slot that passed along the west end of the island providing a calm paddle with yet another cave after which we stopped on a pebble for a stretch and a snack.

After the break we headed out for the crossing ferrying against the wind, along the coast and into our harbor of safety. Our assessors headed back for their session and we layed up to load the kayaks and have lunch.

Jen’s test results were close… but no go. According to the assessors she needs more work on multitasking with multiple students during a simultaneous session (apparently this is a big thing with BCU folks). Of course, Jake and I didn’t agree – but we didn’t get a vote. Jen is taking the results well and plans to come back ASAP to get this done. It is unlikely we would return to Thurso and much more unlikely that the weather would ever be this good again.

Jen may get logged on tonight and post or not. She is currently researching weather and ferries for the Shetland Islands. If the ducks fall in a row we have decided that we may never get this far north again and plan to head first across to the Orkney’s for a day then catch the overnight ferry to the Shetlands for a few days of paddling. We would be returning probably on Thursday allowing all of us to get to our obligations on Friday. If you don’t hear from us for a few days it’s because we can’t get an internet connection wherever we are. We will catch you up whenever we get connected.

A Sunny But Wet Day

2007-04-28T14:22:00.000-07:00

We had a great breakfast this morning and were off… well not at the crack of dawn (that’s about 4:30 AM) but at the Thurso Youth Hostel (BCU headquarters) before 9. Jaz (the BCU director for this event) did a short presentation regarding the structure for the day and we were given our instructor examinee assignments (Jake and I got Ian from Inverness). After some conferencing with each group off in corners by themselves it turned out we had all decided to head to Scirza and round Duncansby head (once again for Jake and I). Everyone had a laugh at that and off we went.

While some of us prepared to get on the water – others set up the shuttle to John O’Groats. After warm-ups and some orientation we were on the water heading up the North Sea coast. We stopped for a bit at a low rock outcrop to work on strokes and swells so Ian could get a sense of our paddling ability. Then we were on to the tidal race off Duncansby Head (been there / done that). After some consultation we chose to drop into the race today at a higher angle, then into the first eddy. Ian was very communicative and we discussed tidal race technique before jumping in.

The upper end of the race was running stronger today (~6-8 knots), felt more powerful, but was not as clean as yesterday. Nonetheless, we were having fun and cycled in and out several times before assessing our next move. We had all noticed a second race that looked like it had more potential but was further off the point beyond the immediate one that we had just played on. So we discussed the idea of ferrying through the first race to reach that outer race and the consequences if we failed to return back to tuck in behind the ‘Knee’. Satisfied we had secured a safe plan we set off.

Indeed the outer race was bigger and better formed. One of our concerns (certainly mine) was that there would be no eddy to drop into for a break. That was answered by a big boil eddy right smack in the middle of the race. Tired – just slip a bit to the side and float for a while with roaring water and waves on both sides of you. After playing for some while we were ready to drop backwards down the race ferrying back to the Knee eddy. The current through this section was strong enough to have buried a crab trap float completely underwater. Jake, who was leading, slipped into the eddy. And then…

You guessed it, Ian, our 5 star instructor examinee went over and failing to roll after sever tries did a wet exit. I was still faced into the race but Jake noticed Ian. At first Jake thought Ian was just testing us but within seconds decided to raise the alarm. Nigel (our assessor) who was above me in the race but faced into it took off like a bullet to begin the rescue as Jake dived in as well. I proceeded to turn my boat in the race and also headed straight towards Ian (as he was quickly floating off into the North Sea). The path took me straight into the roughest part of the race which I though I could power through. But alas the waves were very close to one another and very steep and my stern got sucked into a whirlpool pulling me off balance. I went into a high brace, however, was clearly loosing that battle as my boat continued to slip under. Sensing defeat I took a deep breath and tucked my paddle hoping to roll. That too was stymied as my boat then went sideways on the wave presenting me with the water motion preventing any effective role. My offside being weak a wet exit was my final move. Now we had two of four paddlers in the water racing off into the North Sea.

I oriented myself to my paddle and kayak (Lost another Tully hat), grabbed the whistle on my vest to notify the others I was in the water and blew it as loud as I could. I have now come to realize that nothing is very audible in a large tidal race. Concluding that I was for the moment on my own I decided a self rescue was called for so I flipped my boat, slipped up on the back (a Valley Avocet I had borrowed for the day thank goodness), layed low on the stern and started paddling across the race towards the eddy along the cliffs. By this time Jake had become aware of my predicament and once Ian was secured came to assist me with a T rescue. All in all, even though Ian and I were separated by ~200 feet we were in the water for less than 3 minutes. Boy was I glad to be in a dry suite today!

No worse for wear we slipped into a geo (a sort of Scottish slot canyon), reviewed the events of the past few minutes, patted ourselves on the back for a job well done and went off around the head to a smooth beach landing, lunch and studies of tides, currents, tow ropes and races. While we were there the tide was supposed to slack and change directions, however, the race never seemed to loose intensity as we observed it over a period of ~1 hour. After we re-launched Nigel paddled out to the race and to our amazement (Jake and I) the direction of the race had shifted directions 180degrees and was moving at full speed with no apparent slack time in between. There was wind (which had increased in intensity) against swell that helped with this shift – but still amazing.

After practicing landing on rocks (nice flat ones) in swell we then paddled off to John O’Groats and landed. Tomorrow we are hoping for Rabbit Islands ~1-1/2 hours west of Thurso. It will require an early start as the assessor needs to be back for wrap up by 2PM.

Sorry – no pictures today. My camera chip really did bite the big one and couldn’t even be reformatted. Jen wanted to keep her camera with her to take pictures of her students (But never pulled it out).

First day over! One more to go!

2007-04-28T14:13:00.000-07:00

Thom is going to put up a proper post. I don't have a lot to say other than I had a really good day. I had fun, paddled in a beautiful place with a couple of great people, thoroughly enjoyed myself and my students seemed to as well. The day wasn't 100% perfect, but it was a really rewarding coaching day. One of my students, Sue (wouldn't you know it, Thom and Lynn paddled with her in Skye 2 years ago!!!!), began the day telling me that she'd lost her roll and I shouldn't be surprised if she swam. Just before we got off the water at the end of the day, she asked me to spot a roll and she banged it off beautifully - a sure sign that her head was in a really good place! So I know I did something right. But did I do ENOUGH right.? The assessor who accompanied me today isn't allowed to comment at all until the assessment is over. I have an entirely new assessor tomorrow and a whole new chance to screw things up. I just need to keep the energy up through tomorrow and then, regardless of the outcome, I'll feel good about the experience.

For those non-paddlers among you, "lost her roll" does NOT mean that she misplaced her sausage roll. It means that she once could Eskimo roll her kayak after a capsize, but recently has not been able to. This is a mental thing - fear and doubt cause you to do the wrong things and you fail. Her success today was really good for me!

Ok, off to get some sleep so we can do it again tomorrow!
Thanks so much for following our progress and checking in on us - it's nice to know you're there!
Jen

Some photos!

2007-04-27T14:57:00.000-07:00

There are many caves and slots along this stretch of coast. Very impressive! The temperature in the sun was quite warm, but in these slots, you could see your breath. Terrific numbers of birds on the cliffs too: Guillimots, razor bills, shags (like cormorants), fulmar, and a few puffins. Grey seals are common too (but lower down).
You just can't tell how big this is - you really could fit a freight train in it!

This is the tidal race that Thom talks about. The tidal swing is still within the smaller part of its range and there's no wind. In other words, this is the smallest and friendliest one is likely to find it!
Sottish highland cows. Too cool.

Another post from Jake

2007-04-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Once again at the Royal Bar with the surfers, spread out in the corner table as usual, with a couple pints of Guiness and a ginger beer. I think I could get used to this kind of life.

Sticking to my quest to experience the local culture, I ordered ham and eggs with french fries for dinner. That's not at all what the meal was called on the menu but that IS what they brought me. Ham, eggs, and french-fries individually - not exotic - but together one one plate for dinner - now that's culture.

Our Stroma island circumnavigation yesterday was amazing. In one day we saw warm sunshine, glassy smooth water, sea caves, a pleasant nap on an island, abundant sea life, ocean swell crashing headlong into sheer cliffs, fast moving tidal currents, and boat flipping whirlpools (thank god my roll works in the North Atlantic too). It all combined to create one of the best days of paddling I've ever had. Most definitely a day I won't soon forget.

Today we had a short but fantastic day on the water as we took Thom out to let him get acquainted with his kayak and get a taste of the local waters. We were only out for two hours or so but around here that's all you need to have an unforgettable paddle. We launched again by Ronnie's house at Skirza and headed north to Duncansby Head exploring the lofty sea caves and "slot canyons" along the way. The tide race by "The Knee" as going strong when we arrived and we had a great time getting long rides on the smooth face of the front wave of the race. The play time ended too soon for me, but we had a lot to get done before the first day of the assessment tomorrow so we finally turned and ran with the tide over to Thom's waiting car at John O' Groats Hotel. I was reluctant to get off the water on such a beautiful day but the promise of a long hot shower at the B&B sounded great to me.

Only hours remaining until the beginning of the assessment and Jen seems ready, I think she's going to do great.

See you later,

Jake

Rounding Duncansby Head

2007-04-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

Well I have good news and bad news for you. The good news is we are still alive and had a great run around Duncansby Head today. The bad news is that Jen’s camera lens was fogged over (from the inside) so was left in the van to hopefully dry out and my camera memory chip went sideways after taking pictures all day, loosing… well everything. We promise to try again tomorrow. Today I’ll try to make up for the lost photos with words.

Our paddling day was relatively short, caused by the tide times and Jen’s need to prepare herself for the BCU test beginning tomorrow. We were on the water for about 3 hours. The day was sunny beginning with only a mild wind from the southeast (at our backs). The wind picked up once we rounded the Head, however, only to ~ Force 3 and still only from the side. The air temperature was mild, the water is still very cold. We launched at 11 AM starting at Skirza ~3-1/2 miles south of Duncansby Head and followed the coastline north exploring cliffs and caves. Just as Jen stated in an earlier posting; there were caves you could drive a train through and yet another just meters away so narrow you could not paddle but had to ride the swell through (about 150 feet long). They both ended in the same large open chamber with the sun streaming in.

Next we moved on to the tidal race just off Duncansby Head. With the east flowing tide the North Sea flows rapidly around the Head, through the Pentland Firth, on into the Atlantic ocean which is just a few miles away. Thanks to Jake’s planning (part of his 5 star training) we hit the race at peak flow (~6+ knots). Duncansby Head is extended by large two vertical rocks, the second one called the ‘knee’. Due to reef and lower water level the passage inside the first rock was impassable so we rounded the first rock, stopping behind it in the nice clean eddy, then ferried out and played in the ‘upper’ part of the race. The race was the best I have ever been in with very nice clean waves at the upper edge providing long smooth rides requiring only stern rudder for control. We played there for a bit occasionally dropping in the eddy for a rest, then out into the race for more fun.

Next we shot down between the ‘knee’ and the Head and indeed it seemed like the North Sea was trying to fit all of itself through this little slot. A strong side current bouncing to the inside of the knee forced you to track the lesser current running along the cliff edge. The meeting of those two currents produced a narrow width of explosive rolling waves (this is where Jake rolled yesterday) that we powered through then tucked into the ‘boiling’ eddy behind the knee. This positioned us to play in the lower race. The lower race had considerably bigger and suddenly breaking waves that were much more chaotic, not providing great rides but definitely producing adrenaline. I, myself ferried in for about 5 minutes, fatigued myself (I also don’t fit too well in the Romeny and am petitioning for a new boat tomorrow) and then pulled back into the eddy. Jake and Jen played out there for much longer; Jake in particular letting his ‘little kid’ out, repeatedly ferrying into the biggest and baddest sections. Towards the end of this bit, while Jan and I were sitting in the eddy talking and waiting for Jake to work out his ‘jones’, the birds on the cliffs above us all decided to take off at once. One barreled down over my shoulder landing just between us exploding into the water like a bowling ball and continued straight down into the depths. What a surprise that was!

After sating our adrenaline needs we rounded Duncansby Head and landed at John O’Groates which is considered the northern most point of contiguous Britain (even though Dunnet Head which is just a few miles west clearly reaches a bit further north). Regardless, Jake and I shuttled back to get the van, returning to load the kayaks, then visited a small maritime museum (mostly full of war time memorabilia and photos of wrecked ships in the Pentland Firth). Just as we were about to enter a souvenir shop we were asked by an older couple with hiking packs if we would mind taking their picture. It turned out that they had, just at that moment, finished walking up from Lands End which is ~1,000 miles south on the other end of Britain. They were delightful and seemed more interested in our exploits and plans than talking about their own just completed achievement.

Also arriving while we were loading up at John O’Groates was another BCU paddling crew up from England and also preparing for tomorrows test. We helped them unload their boats and talked only a short while as they planned to dash across Pentland Firth to Stroma island and back again – all during slack tide. One quickly understands that all boating plans are intricately tied to the tides and winds here. If you miss your ‘window’ you simply don’t go because you will never get there!

Jen and Jake are now ensconced with me in the Valley View B&B and have yet to come down from their room (is it the shower, the bed, room enough to stretch out your arms or lay out your clothes?). If they ever come down our plans are to run over to the Thurso Youth Hostel (the headquarters for the BCU event) to meet up with arriving paddlers and get the ‘lay of the land (or is it the sea?) for tomorrows start. We will also grab a bite to eat most likely at the hotel because that is the only place in town with a wireless internet connection (if you know the secret surfer password) to download this posting.

Finally in Thurso

2007-04-26T13:29:00.000-07:00

It was a quick drive up from Edinburgh (~5-1/2 hours). The the second half of the drive runs along the North Sea often rising high above sea level with curvy roads that reminded me of Big Sur (but with rounded green scenery). The road finally turns east going up and over the moor to Thurso. Thurso is actually a small city but with an unusually small downtown. What I haven't seen mentioned yet is the fact that even this early in the year it stays light till nearly 10PM... and quite honestly it's not that cold (well at least today and it's only getting dark now).

I'm looking forward to getting on the water tomorrow and promise some photos. We have finalized our plans after studying the tide tables and have decided to start on the North Sea side at Skirza and run around Duncansby Head along the coastline pulling out at John O'Groats. A short, but I am told, spectacular paddle. Now that we have two vehicles a shuttle is possible. This will get us off the water early so Jen can get herself psyched up for her testing starting the next morning.

Regards - Thom

Thom arrives!

2007-04-26T13:12:00.000-07:00

A beautiful sunny day heralded Thom's arrival in Thurso today. Jake and I caught up with him at about 6:30pm after a fantastic day on the water. We had a bit of a play in a tidal race, then circumnavigated Stroma. A strong current stopped us dead in our tracks heading north along the island so we stopped for lunch by an ancient cemetary. There was a small building in the cemetary - empty now, but maybe once a tomb? The date carved into a corner stone was 1677. I hope to download some kayaking photos tomorrow.
Jen

Departing Edinburgh for Thurso

2007-04-25T22:36:00.000-07:00

Having finished my conditioning late last night here in Edinburgh with a wee dram of 28 year old Craggenmore I'm off to Thurso thoroughly insulated from the cold. Jen and Jake's postings are just too exciting to resist getting up there and on the water.

I too have checked the forecast for the Thurso area and the weather is predicted to be sunny with mild winds for Friday, similar with a few clouds on Saturday, and conditions building a bit on Sunday with heavy fog (they call it gaar - I think) possible. Generally it appears a high pressure area is moving across bringing clearer weather but cooler air temperatures (supposed to be 0 degrees tonight, brrr - think warm thoughts for Jen and Jake in their van). If you are interested, the best weather site I have found is the British Meteorological Office at

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/he/thurso_forecast_weather.html

Here is a swell and surf report. As you can see the swell is currently 8 feet and dropping off for the weekend. Note the wind direction is shifting as well... seems almost similar to our santa anna inversions in San Diego (without the heat) and wind speed is generally higher than the corresponding land wind speed report (as Jen indicated in a post earlier this week).

http://magicseaweed.com/Thurso-Surf-Report/47/

My Scottish friends are a bit concerned with the adventure but I have assured them that Jen and Jake will bring me back and I will see them once again and no worse for wear the following weekend. They keep asking if I am aware of the water conditions up north and I nod my head and take another sip of scotch. I do have the camera cable that Jen is seeking so you should get some 'on the water' pictures from her by this evening or Friday.

Regards - Thom

Another note from Jake

2007-04-25T14:45:00.000-07:00

Ahhh. Jen finally took a break from the computer so now I get a chance to say hello. We're once again hanging out at the Royal Bar in Thurso having a couple drinks while I do some chart work and Jen checks on weather (which is looking better for the weekend) and e-mails from home. The bar happens to be the headquarters for a big surf contest that's in town so it's been a bit crowded but it's interesting to hear accents from all over the world.

Yesterday saw our second day on the water. We got a bit of a late start due to srong winds in the morning and by the time we started to approach Duncansby Head (the start of our planned island crossing) we realized that we'd spent a little too much time exploring the amazing sea caves and slot canyons we found along the way and had missed the good tide window we'd planned. So we ended up turning back with plans to hustle over to check out another spot. We never did make it back on the water. When we arrived back at the put-in the gentleman that lives in the house right there invited us in for sardine sandwiches and coffee. We were in a hurry (and honestly a little leery of sardine sandwiches) but we knew we'd be crazy to pass up a chance to experience real Scottish hospitality so we went inside. We ended up having a nice chat with Ronnie who wouldn't let us stop eating until we'd finished an entire platter of sandwiches he'd set out.

Today we had big plans to do the crossing we'd passed up on yesterday but when we woke to puring rain and winds rocking the van we already knew it was a no-go. We did end up driving over to a different spot Jen wanted to check out that thankfully gave us some protection from the wind. Once again the coastline was absolutely beautiful and we entertained ourselves on rock garden pourovers and slots while grazing sheep looked on and baaed their approval from the cliff tops high above. We didn't completely escape the wind and had to turn back a few miles shy of our destination due to the fact that the 20 knot plus winds were making it just no fun. There was a point where I watched waves breaking and washing up on a huge sloped rock. The little rivulets of water that normally flow back into the ocean as the wave subsides never really made it. Instead the water droplets were picked up by the wind and hurled up and over the far side of the rock in a misty spray. Pretty impressive.

The weather looks good for tomorrow so with any luck we'll have reports about our Stroma crossing and circumnavigation.

See you later,

Jake

From Jen again

2007-04-25T14:14:00.000-07:00

I am so glad to know that I'm not the only one who immediately thinks about strippers when I hear the word "pasties"! I almost said something, but I was afraid people would think I'm strange. Just so you know, the food item is not pronounced the same as the stripper thing....the "a" is pronounced like "cat". Nevertheless, I have a hard time stiffling a giggle every time Jake talks about his mom's great pasties (sorry Lynn!).

Ok, enough of that. A steady rain and howling winds kept us in our snug bed late this morning. Our planned trip wasn't going to work out so well with 25 kts of wind, so we drove down the coast to try something else and found more magical caves and rock gardens and sea stacks. Hobbits poked their heads out from Hobbit holes and sea monsters swam past. I'll be able to download some photos off my camera when Thom arrives tomorrow, I hope. Until then, we're stuck with land photos.

From Jen

2007-04-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

We had a short day on the water today but it was stunning! All the best European cathedrals are right on the water and very few are lucky enough to see them. I hope some of my photos turn out, but I know they won’t be able to reveal the magnitude of the caves and slots we paddled through today. The most impressive was a set of three closely spaced, parallel passageways straight into vertical cliffs for 100 yards. The first passageway was open to the sky and as wide as road. The next was roofed and so narrow you couldn’t paddle. The third was also roofed and big enough to drive a freight train through. Just stunning! Many other caves and passageways riddled this stretch of coast and we were thoroughly distracted from our goal of reaching Stroma and rounding her north end before the tide turned. When it became clear we wouldn’t make it, we turned back to try a different stretch of coast. We’d parked at the top of a slipway next to a house and the owner had chatted with us before we left. Everyone wants to be sure we know that Pentland Firth is the most dangerous and treacherous piece of water in the UK (maybe the world!). Anyway, Ronny invited us in for coffee and sardine sandwiches for lunch. We got a history lesson and heard tales from the days of the Vikings, pirates, and Inuits washed up in their kayaks. His house was once occupied by a seaman who used to pilot ships through the treacherous Firth. If the weather was fair enough, the pilot would be dropped off on the other side - about 30 miles - to walk home. If the weather was poor, he'd be stuck on board until the ship reached America where he'd work until he found passage back. The sandwiches were much yummier than they sound (or maybe we were just hungry).

Jake shopped this afternoon while I napped. He returned with the “pasties” he’s been hoping to find. Apparently his mom used to make these things – bread dough stuffed with meat, potatoes, and cabbage - and he’s been hoping to try a traditional pasty here, where the recipe originated. We tried one the other day, but it wasn’t “authentic” in Jake’s view. “How will you know when you get an authentic one?” I ask. “Because it’ll be like my mom’s.” These turned out to be close enough.

We walked around town which I thought would take 20 minutes and took about 8. We’re hanging out in the local Pubs in the evening with emails and navigation homework. I’m adapting to this lifestyle pretty quickly. Cheers!

A Post From Thom

2007-04-24T07:55:00.000-07:00

Now your most recent posting describes the Scotland I have come to know and love. For just a bit I thought maybe you two had taken the wrong turn and ended in Fiji!

Your description of the wind and waves was perfect. It's not as though the wave tops are cresting your bow and flying in your face but rather they are separated from the water surface itself and have a life and direction of their own (always in your face). After reading that post I did go out of my way to pick up that extra storm cag and squeeze it in the suitcase.

I have successfully adjusted my plans to get up to Thurso late Thursday afternoon. It meant sacrificing the Royal Gardens walkabout so I could move up my scotch conditioning dinner to Wednesday night. Sometimes one has to sacrifice! I am hoping the weather permits getting on the water Friday to help prepare for the weekend.

Well I'm off to the airport and will see you on your side of the 'pond' in a few days.

Regards - Thom

p.s. I stopped by the shop and Eddie sends his love. He's missing you and seemed to be moping about and getting a bit fatter in your absence (is that possible?). When I suggested exercise he simply rolled over to get his tummy scratched.

Post from Jen

2007-04-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

Shorts and sunscreen should be fine, Thom (with enough whiskey you won't notice the rain and cold!). We had a wonderful day on the water! We paddled less than 2 miles across to Stroma, a pretty little island dotted with ancient stone houses that weren't entirely abandoned until the 1960's. Just about as 'Scotland' as one could imagine. The tide races were friendly for our first trip (thank goodness because the 'Coast Pilot' for the area, not to mention the advice of some people who've been here, had me more than a little worried). Neap tides and fair weather made for a glorious trip. Then the ominous clouds. Wind against tide and lumpy bumpy seas all the way back and me hoping I hadn't called it too late. But we made landfall in fine fashion and the weather hadn't gotten ugly enough yet, so we toodled down the coast a bit longer. It got nearly ugly enough as we turned around and soon found ourselves clawing our way into a force 8 (30mph) headwind. Weather reports claim it was force 7 but that's from some nerd in an office somewhere! It took us an hour to paddle a mile (normally an efforless 15 minutes). I was disappointed that this wasn't accompanied by driving rain. Scotland is letting me down. It did rain - after we were snug in our van eating a hot dinner. Hope the breezes are fair and gentle wherever you are!

Our first day on the water (from Jake)

2007-04-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hey Thom, don't put your cold weather clothes away yet! We had our first day on the water along with our first taste of what the weather CAN be around here. Lively to say the least.

We launched from a ferry dock in Gills Bay and did a mile and a half crossing to the Island of Stroma. The tide was flowing at a tolerable two or three knots enough to give me a good lesson on finding good ranges and navigating in moving water. We did go up coast (West) a bit to take a quick look at the "Merry Men of May" tidal race and even with a relatively mild tidal flow it was already lively. The crossing was good and we tucked into a tiny breakwater (harbor) on the south end of the island and pulled our boats out for a break. After walking a few hundred yards (looking for a spot free of sheep droppings to sit down) we make quick work of our PBJ sandwiches and tea. In fair skies and a pleasant breeze we entertained the idea of working our way down the East side of the island to it's Northern end just to scout things out. About then the wind started to build and we decided it would be a good idea to just head back. Considering the conditions of the water on the way back (2-3 foot sloppy seas) I think we made the right choice. Upon reaching shore we headed down wind and up current past our put-in back up to the Merry Men of May to re-scout some rock hopping areas in the now deeper water with the rising tide. It was when we turned around to paddle back that the wind really started to howl. I can't remember a time when I worked harder to paddle into the wind. We earned every foot of headway we made, The waves weren't big but the chop and slop sent spray after spray into our faces to add to the drizzly rain that was starting to fall. We made it back really no worse for wear, just very hungry and very glad we didn't screw around on the island any longer than we had.

Tomorrow, weather permitting, we plan on getting a much earlier start to do a re-crossing and circumnavigation of the island.

We'll let you know how it goes.

2007-04-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

Post from Thom

Jen it's good to hear the weather is balmy and you are running about in a T shirt. I was having trouble stuffing all this foul weather gear into my suitcase (or is that 2 suitcases?). Your good news has me changing strategies and I have now repacked with one pair of shorts and a tank top along with two tubes of sunscreen.

The pictures are great and I noticed there aren't even whitecaps on the water. Clearly I was much more concerned about the conditions than I needed to be. In that picture of you on the bluff at Duncansby Head I don't see a hair out of place so apparently wind is not an issue either.

Any recomendations regarding how we should meet up on Friday. It's about a 6-1/2 hour drive from Edinburgh (add just a bit of time for a bite to eat). I'll depart early in order to arrive in Thurso ~mid-afternoon. You have my UK phone number, however, I have no method for contacting you. A check-in at the B&B and if possible a short time on the water to acclimate to the boat would be nice.

Regards - Thom

Another Photo

2007-04-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

Me at Duncansby Head scouting some of the places I'm going to make Thom paddle!

Jake's Castle

2007-04-22T10:35:00.000-07:00

An early morning start today gave us time to swing by this amazing castle just before sunrise. Castles seem to be just about everywhere around here, many not as well preserved as this one.

Some photos

2007-04-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

This is our home away from home - Justine's awesome van and her rather distinctive kayaks! We're just minutes away from the furthest north point on the UK mainland. Those are the Orkney Islands in the distance.

Arival in Thurso!

2007-04-22T09:10:00.000-07:00

Jen and Jake have finally made it to the northern most point in the mainland UK! I'm wearing a t-shirt at the moment - Thom pay close attention! Of course, it might have to do with the fact that they've turned the heat up so high to combat the cold. Really though, it's not that cold most of the time! We've only have a bit of rain and the wind is tolerable. It'll probably get much, much worse.

Our trip began Thursday at 5am in San Diego. We finally landed in Manchester, England at 7am on Friday. We then took the train to Bangor, Wales where Fiona picked us up at about noon. She took us to a beautiful slate quarry where we stretched our legs and had lamb pasties and sausage rolls for lunch. Fiona dropped us off at Justine Curgenven's house (the film maker who made "This Is The Sea I, II, and III". She VERY kindly loaned us her van and a few kayaks for our trip since she's in New Zealand at the moment. So we loaded our unbelievable amounts of crap into the van and headed into Holyhead on Anglessey where we dropped by Nigel Dennis' place to say Hi and grab one more kayak. We'll end our trip here at Nigel's symposium in about 2 weeks. Since Justine's van has a stove, etc., we shopped and parked out by South Stack on Holyhead to camp for the night. The next moring, we started driving north and made great time. We finally stopped to sleep only a couple of hours shy of Thurso so we could finish the trip in the daylight. We arrived at the northern coast about 7am Sunday morning and are getting our bearings.

We've found the van to be exceptional as far as accomodations go! Plenty of storage for all our things, a cozy bed, a stove, and would you believe it, a 12 volt "sandwich toaster" that plugs into the cigarette lighter! While I drove, Jake toasted crumpets! I think Thom under estimates our very civilized form of travel!

The coastline is beautiful and not too rough just now. I'm looking forward to paddling tomorrow, but today has been primarily driving and walking and getting to know the place a bit.

We'll have internet access almost daily, so we'll keep posting! Thanks for the comments! It's nice to know we're not alone!
Jen

2007-04-19T17:54:00.000-07:00

And hello from Thom. I suppose since Jen and Jake have now disappeared into Wales, yet to be heard from, I'll fill in for a day.

I too am getting excited about heading off to Scotland. It's a country I love. I travel there every year about this time to attend a gemmological conference in Perth. After Jen's BCU exam in Thurso, weather permitting, we hope to paddle around a bit in the Orkneys (we will ferry over) and then paddle sweet spots along the west coast of Scotland as we head back south. Jake also hopes to bag a Monroe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munro) and Jen and I support the idea. After that I'll leave Jake and Jen and head east to Perth to give a lecture and meet up with my gemmological family for the weekend.

Being a bit older (and I like to think wiser) my remaining travel, training, and preparation schedule leading up to Thurso differs a bit from Jen and Jake. I depart from San Diego on this coming Tuesday and fly directly into Edinburgh where I'll go straight from the airport to bed at a friends house, not to arise till I damn well feel like it. Experience tells me that after ~24 hours of relaxing I'll be ready to stretch my legs so I hope to get over to the Royal Botanical Gardens for a walkabout on Thursday. After the vigorous exercise of ambling about the gardens I'll then move on to the next step of my plan; preparing for the cold (water temperature of 9 degrees C - Geez - whose idea was this?). That's right - we have scheduled dinner at the Royal Scottish Malt Whiskey Society for that evening. I promise you that I will be most diligent regarding my preparation for the upcoming cold (I feel warmer already).

By then I will have toughened myself up for the BCU challenge and will drive up to Thurso leaving Edinburgh early Friday morning in order to meet up with Jen and Jake that afternoon. Their job, as you know, is to have scouted out the coastline, carefully marking on the map all the dangerous spots for me to avoid. I rarely have leverage on the water with Jen - but in this case if I look good, then Jen looks good.

It became clear early on that Jake and Jen (Jen in particular) needed assistance learning how to 'travel well'. Jen, of course, was originally talking of she and Jake sleeping in a van and me in a tent! Clearly she needed help getting a grip regarding the weather of Northern Scotland in April (I'm getting cold just thinking about it). Naturally I am here to help so I did some research and arranged for us to lodge at Valley View B&B (http://www.valleyviews.co.uk/index.htm) for our three nights in Thurso. If you bother to visit the site you will notice that there are beds, and showers, and... well heat! But even better our breakfast (and box lunches) will be prepared by Chef Steven, the only holder of the coveted AA rosette cooking award in the county (I'm feeling warmer already).

I'm working on lodging for the Orkneys and think I have just the right place with heat, direct access to the waters edge, another award winning breakfast and this one even does dinners on request. However, convincing Jen to relax in the lap of comfort takes time. You can help by posting your supporting comments here for her to read.

I'll let you know how my plans work out. Regards - Thom

2007-04-18T22:06:00.000-07:00

Hello from Jake - Jen and I thought it might be interesting if Thom and I also do a few posts on her blog, so folks might see what we're up to from a few different perspectives, so here goes. For those of you who don't know me I'm her boyfriend and one of the, very lucky, long-term students going along to take part in her level five assessment.

Right now it's six hours and fifteen minutes till we have to have ourselves to the airport for a 6:20 departure. Jen's currently taking a break, but I'm sure she'll be up the rest of the night taking care of last minute kayak shop organization.

Jen surprised me on this trip by being pretty much completely packed two nights before we're due to take off. This time it's me running around at the last hour buying batteries, travel munchies for the long flight, and a travel sized bottle of shaving cream (I hardly ever remember to shave here but somehow it seemed necessary) . To say I'm excited is an understatement, it's to the point where I hardly have an appetite. Jen seems a little tense but nowhere near as bad as one might expect. I think as soon as the airplanes wheels touch down she'll be able to relax a lot.

This is the first time overseas for me, to many peoples surprise I got my first passport just for this trip. I've had to explain to them that traditionally in the place where I grew up world travel was done mostly by people who were being sent off to fight wars. I can't wait to experience the culture, people, and food of a completely new place. Of course many will say geeze man you're only going to Scotland, it's not THAT different, they even mostly speak english. To that I say pick up a map or chart and try to read the place names, and you thought Stachovak was spelled strange. I've always been able to understand most of what a Brit or Scott said to me, but when they talk to each other, forget it.

Kayaking will be the main focus on this trip, Jen's assessment and our own paddles, but I'm also looking forward to doing some hiking, and perhaps touring a scotch distillery to see where my dad's favorite drink comes from. In addition, as strange as it sounds, (if I get a chance) I'd like to snoop around a home construction site just to see how things are put together over there. I guess half a lifetime of building and designing houses just makes me interested. Of course I'm going to have to sample a pasty while we are there if anything just to see how they compare to the ones my mom makes.

That's all for now, I've got to get these new batteries in my camera.

Jake

What the test will be like

2007-04-16T20:13:00.000-07:00

The Level 5 Assessment is a two day test of my ability to coach sea kayakers. There are 2 other candidates taking the test, as well as 2 whitewater kayakers and one surf kayaker. Each assessment is a very individual experience. On the first day, I coach 2-3 students I have never met before. Depending on what those students want to learn or improve, I can choose any venue within a reasonable distance of our base. An assessor will spend the day with me and will primarily just watch. He's not permitted to "intervene" by making suggestions, or judgements during the day, but he can ask questions and I can talk to him. On the second day, I get asigned a different assor who watches while I coach 2 students that I have been working with for at least 6 months (my "long term students"). Aside to subjecting themselves to my abuse for many months now, these hardy and generous souls have agreed to go to northernmost Scotland with me. I have to confess that I kept the destination secret until it was too late to back out. I may have mentioned Fiji from time to time during our training sessions. They are Thom Underwood and Jake Stachovak and I couldn't be undertaking this adventure without them! They'll be posting here too so you can get their perspective.

A number of others embarked on this process with me many months ago as part of a larger group of long term students and I owe them a big debt too for supporting me and subjecting themselves to all manner of experimentation and sea states.

2 days left until departure!

Thurso, Scotland

2007-04-09T18:25:00.000-07:00

I'll be taking the Big Test near Thurso, Scotland - the northern most town on the UK mainland. Reports are that it's cold and wet. The surfers among you will be jealous of the surf - it's famous for a fast break onto a shallow reef. There are also fast tidal races and lots of wind. I've included a few links so you can get a feel for what it will be like. There are some spectacular photos on Doug Houghton's website (see "links" section).

We'll go to the Orkney Islands afterwards for a few days of R&R, paddling, and sight seeing before ending up in Anglessey Wales for Nigel Dennis' annual Sea Symposium.

The BIG TEST

2007-04-06T21:26:00.000-07:00

If you're reading this blog, you probably already have some idea that I'm trying to pass a test. You also probably have no idea what the test is about since it's a bit obscure. I'll try to shed some light....

As a professional kayak instructor, I've been following an internationally recognized certification scheme for kayak coaches. The governing body is called the British Canoe Union, or BCU for short. I have already achieved the highest award for personal sea kayaking skills (5 Star), and I have achieved the rank of Level 4 sea kayak coach. I now seek to pass my Level 5 coach award - the highest possible. To a very small group of kayak instructors in the world, this is a big deal.

If I pass the exam, I will be the first American (male OR female), to attain this award. There are perhaps only 25 or so Level 5 sea kayak coaches in the world (only 3 of those are women). My "tutor", Fiona Whitehead (more on her later), was the last person to pass the exam and that was about 3 years ago. When I asked her how many had taken the exam since then (hoping the answer would be "none") she said, "oh, 6 or 7". So, the standard is quite high and it will be a considerable accomplishment if I pass. If I don't, I will be among the ranks of many excellent coaches who aren't quite among the best in the world yet!

Countdown to Scotland

2007-04-06T21:22:00.000-07:00

It's two weeks until I leave for Scotland and my Big Test. I'll be able to post to this blog from Scotland and I thought people might be interested in following the progress. This also seems like a good place to tell you a little more about what it is I'm trying to accomplish. If you're interested, stay tuned!