4th Annual Winter Paddle - 2009

Just completed an annual winter paddle with paddling bud Rob F. This year we paddled around Lummi Island WA. Dec 28th was a cold but beautiful day to be on the water. Launched just north of the Lummi Island ferry terminal and paddled north then down the west side of the island. The lower third of the island is DNR land and is undeveloped and very beautiful I might add. Be sure to poke around Lummi Rocks on your way around the island, well worth it. Today, under bight blue skies and a light breeze ( not the norm for this time of year around here !) we saw several pods of porpoise fishing, loads of seals and eagles. We camped at the DNR site on the southeast side of the island, great camp site and what luck we had it all to ourselves ! Built ourselves a big fire and enjoyed the evening. Must have been 3-4 am and the wind started howling, kind of unnerving being in a tent and hearing the branches breaking and thumping on the ground. Up at 7:00 am although still dark just had to have that coffee and oatmeal and start the packing ritual. Everything is cold and wet from the overnight rain showers. On the water at 8:45 with a brisk wind out of the south southeast to our backs we made real good time and got back to our launch site by 10:15. The pictures are of southwest side of Lummi looking at Lummi Rocks in the distance, our boats on the DNR site and the Lummi Ferry. Total mileage 21 miles.

2009 DP DASH

This year's 6 mile Deception Pass DASH was a flat, calm water paddle, very unlike last years event. This year 177 paddlers on all kinds of water craft paddled the Dash. This has really gotten to be an event for all the paddling community to get involved with. Loads of goodies where provided by a long list of vendors, along with lot's of good food and hot drink. Had a blast myself, finished this years race in 69 minutes and 17 seconds which was the third time I have participated. First year I finished in 88+ minutes, last year it was 83 minutes in very BIG conditions. The 2010 DASH is scheduled for 12/04... looking forward to it.........

Hood Canal, WA Oct 2009

A group of four paddlers from the Washington Kayak Club launched ( 9:30 am) at Triton SP on the west side of Hood Canal for a 20 mile paddle south to Potlatch SP. A beautiful fall late October day greeted us on this journey. Calm, flat water interrupted only by the thousands of salmon heading back to the streams and rivers of their birth occasionally break the surface of the water. A number of eagles, seals and a few sea lions along with a goodly number of fisherman pay close attention to the returning salmon all vieing for a fish dinner. With a couple of short breaks and a half hour lunch stop/rest we made it to Potlatch at 4:15ish. Long day in the boat but the changing leaves in their brilliant reds and yellows along the hillsides where beautiful and well worth the trip. Potlach SP has a Washington Water Trails campground on the state park site which is where we will pitch our tents and camp for the night. No one is camping at the park this time of year so as the sun sets we have the whole park to ourselves. The bathrooms are open so we have access to (cold) water for cooking and washing off our salty gear. After the camp fire dies out the temps drop into the upper 30's it's throw on another layer of fleece and jump into the sleeping bags. Plan is to be on the water at 9-9:30 in the morning to paddle the mile and a half across the Canal then head north along the eastern shore for the 20 mile paddle back to Triton SP.

Morning breaks with overcast skies and a bit of fog. The only sound are the barking of seals who have congregated on a floating dock just off the beach. Today we will have the benefit of both the current and the wind which was blowing out of the south at 10-15 knots. The trip back to Triton was a lot faster and a much easier paddled with the aid of the water/wind pushing us in the right direction. We left Potlatch at 10 am and arrived at Triton at 3 pm share..

WKC Paddle around Cypress Island, WA

Saturday, Oct 10 a group of eleven WKC and WAKE paddlers left from Washington Park to circumnavigate Cypress Island. A beautiful fall day, minimal winds and with a little help from the currents we had a great day on the water. We traveled up Rosario Strait with a quick stop on Strawberry Island to check the vegetation, then around the north end of Cypress stopping for lunch at Pelican Beach. Completed the 17 mile/5 hour trip with the group in tack and smiles on all faces......

WKC Trip West Sound to Little McConnell Island

Tagged along on a WKC ( Washington Kayak Club) trip from West Sound on Orcas Island (WA) out to Little McConnell island. The island has a great view of Yellow Island to Jones Island SP and many of the little islands west of Orcas. Today we had beautiful blue skies, a minimal breeze and near perfect paddling conditions to just poke along the shore line. Some very cool rock formations, loads of seals and just glad to be on the water with some good paddling buds. By the way that's what left from a very large halibut that met it's maker....

Orcas Island circumnavigation.... continued

In December of 2008 a paddling bud and I started a circumnavigation of Orcas Island (WA), unfortunately the third and final day after leaving from Jones Island we where met with 40-50 mph winds when we got to East Sound and ended our paddle blown up on a beach in downtown Eastsound. You can see the first part of the story on this blog from last December. On Thursday July 10 I finally finished the last leg of that journey. Launching at the public beach next to Lieberhaven resort at 8am I made to North Beach a few minutes before noon. Making a couple stops along the way to enjoy the beautiful vista's of Mt. Baker and the Canadian mountains in the distance.

Penn Cove WA Sept 2009

I tagged along on a Washington Kayak Club trip today. We were going to paddle off the west side of Whidbey Island at Ebey Landing but it was a bit breezy and with a forecast of stronger wind and thunderstorms ( rare out here) the group opted to paddle the 'calmer' waters of Penn Cove on the east side of Whidbey. Seven paddlers in all launched out into Penn Cove heading first to Long Point then crossing to the west side and Klootchman Rock. By the time we crossed we were surfing 3 and 4 foot wind waves, all very exciting. Had a few folks trying rescues, 'cowboy' reentries ect. A very good day to practice those skills. Stopped at Blowers Bluff for a break and quick lunch then back into the elements for some more windy action. Had a rock garden to test one's skills in on the way back. Good fun, all made back to the launch site safe and sound.

DEER GROUP 2009

Deer Group Trip Report August 2009

Three paddling amigos met at my house at 4:00am on Thursday 8/13 to load our gear and boats on the two cars we will be taking to Bamford, BC which is our jump off point for a six day paddle out to the Deer Group. We caught the 8:15am Anacortes to Sydney BC ferry which we had made reservations (recommended) about a month earlier. After the two hour ferry ride to Sydney, BC we drive to and stop in Duncan, BC to gas up the cars, hit a restaurant and the liquor and grocery store. Driving on the ’ south main ‘road west from Lake Cowichan the pavement ends at the little town of Honeymoon Bay then its 60 miles of, at times, axle busting, flat tire making three and a half hour drive. The drive along Lake Cowichan and the scenic mountain views makes the trip via road worthwhile; it is a beautiful mountain lake. Camped at the Huu-ay-aht First Nations site at Pachena Bay, which was a very economical and well maintained camp ground. Pachena Bay has a huge sandy beach, good for many hours of beachcombing.
Friday 8/14: Into Bamfield we go for breakfast then a stop at the one deli/grocery store to pick up a frozen steak, then stop to get a parking pass ( usually ensures you will have inflated tires when you return), all these places open at 9:00am so no need to rush. The boats get loaded and we head out at 11:00am down Grappler Inlet and out across Trevor Channel. Great to be on the water this overcast 70 degree morning. We have a little wind and only a slight swell which aids our northwesterly paddle towards Robbers Passage. Our planned destination is one of the islands or islets in the Chain Group which lies west of the biggest island in the Deer Group, Tzartus Island. Paddled past Meads Island, Diplock Island (wonder how that island got its name), Friend Island before we saw the bright sugar white sandy beach on Stud Islet. That was the destination and our home away from home for the duration of the trip. It’s a 9km trip from Bamfield out to Stud Islet via Robbers Passage with Trevor Channel being a 3 miles crossing.
Saturday 8/15: Today the dawn breaks with a fog bank to our west over Imperial Eagle Channel and the Broken Group. No rain but a nice cool 70 degree overcast day, good day to do some exploring. We paddled north to Weld Island which has several very large sea caves to investigate. Latter we paddled over to Holford Bay on Tzarus Island to check out a stream which is a potential water source. Although it has been an extremely dry summer the creek does have a modest flow and is a good water source. Back at camp the resident pair of ravens do a flyby as they did on a daily basis to check out the newest island residents. Also saw mink tracks in the sand, another good sign, as they keep the four legged pests in check. I get out my fishing pole and two hours of fishing off the east side of the island produced two small rock fish and one big orange starfish, Mac & cheese for dinner tonight! The starfish which come in every color of the rainbow are in no short supply on these islands.
Sunday 8/16: Crystal clean, bright blue skies greet us this morning along with our two friendly ravens who where up earlier than we where and they loudly discussed their plans for the day in the tree’s right above our tents. Today we paddle back around to our north and Weld Island then onto Link Island. Link has several pocket beaches to explore. One pocket beach on the north side of the island had tons of oysters on the rocks and ten tons of mussels! We did not eat any of the shellfish on this trip, not trusting the water which was fairly warm considering you are on the Pacific Ocean and the water in general was stained a brownish color. After a quick stop on Link we crossed Junction Passage which is about a mile to cross, only thing to watch out for here are the hundreds of salmon fisherman and their BIG boats. There is an abandoned Ecoole Indian village which we where interest in checking out. Lots of cool rock formations and caves on the south end of Seddal Island but the ‘abandoned Indian village’ is only a couple of rusting boilers and a bunch of ‘no trespassing’ signs. From there we crossed back to Crosse Pt on Tzartus for a lunch break and cocktails. We see the first of many, many humpbacks that are also fishing for salmon. Just next get over how cool it is to paddle with those big, majestic fish. The humpbacks put on breeching shows every day we were on our trip.
Monday 8/17: Another beautiful sunny morning. Following coffee, oatmeal and the ravens flyby we paddle south today. A shore crawl around Diplock, Meade and Swiss Boy Island which is the farthest south island of the Chain Group. The south and west side of Swiss Boy is exposed to the swell and wind off Pacific and the water has a lot of “character”. Great fun if you have some ocean paddling experience. On the Westside of both Swiss Boy and Meade Island there are rock gardens to play in. Got to have a souvenir scratch or two on the boat. After a couple of hours on the water we head back to camp just in time to be entertained by a couple of humpbacks no more than 50 years off the east side of our campsite.
Tuesday 8/18: Another beautiful sunny summer morning. Following the normal routine of coffee, oatmeal and raven flyby today I will take my fishing pole and re-paddle yesterday route solo. Yesterday I saw a lot of sheer rock faces and bull kelp at the water’s edge on south and west side of Swiss Boy Island which will usually be a good place to wet-a-line. The water is a little livelier today with the one meter waves bouncing off the rocks which surround portions of Swiss Boy. Juggling a fishing pole in the waves is some fun, and despite my lack of skill I managed to catch four rock fish which will sever as dinner tonight for the crew. One of the challenges in fishing besides the balancing act is to avoid those pesky seals, they follow you around like lost dogs and the fish disappear when they are around so you have to move frequently. On my paddle back along the west side of Swiss Boy and Meads Islands the humpbacks are within 200/300 yards from my boat. Several breaches and even one whale turned on its side to wave a flipper my way. Again, what an incredible site! After a quick break on another beautiful sandy beach located on the south end of Meade Is. I get back to camp after four hours in the boat to clean fish. Campfire is ready, fish are seasoned and wrapped in foil and soon they are but a pleasant memory… tasty!. Latter the humpbacks are patrolling off the east side of the island, this time there are a pair of the big fish putting on the evening entertainment and again very close to shore.
Wednesday 8/19: Another beautiful morning and our last. Today, we pack up and head back to the ‘real world’. Our plan is to be on the water by 8:00am in order to have plenty of time for the miserable drive from Bamfield back to Sydney. We had hotel reservations in Sydney so there was incentive to get back for the hot shower and steak dinner in a place you actually get to sit on a chair and the beer is cold, some incentive especially the first hot shower in a week. Anyway the paddle down to Robbers Passage on calm waters and minor swell is an easy paddle. Stopped there for a 5 minute stretch then made the three mile crossing on a very calm Trevor Channel. Stopped in Bamfield for a sandwich and then hit the road for Sydney. Since I was the navigator in the car I will not comment on the ‘little’ longer route we took back to Lake Cowichan and eventually Sydney. We did luck out a bit on the drive back as approximately twenty miles of the road had been recently graded.
As it turned out this trip could have been paddled by less experienced paddlers but one must be cognizant of the long crossing which can get dicey in a heartbeat.

Strait of Juan DeFuca

This past weekend June 26,27 & 28 a bud and I paddled in three beautiful places along the Strait of Juan DeFuca which I had never paddled. Friday, under sunny skies, minimal winds and 65 degree temps we paddled Freshwater Bay which is just west of Port Angeles WA. Saturday at the crack of dawn 10:00 AM we hit Crescent Bay. Again, a glorious summer day in the Pacific Northwest, 75 degrees and thankfully a nice 10-15 kt breeze out of the northwest. A great place to paddle, if conditions are right this is a great surfing beach and even on calm day's if your looking for some adventure head out from the beach toward a big red buoy which guards a reef. When you see a large kelp bed west of the buoy , your getting close. Boomers appear to the west of the buoy for your paddling pleasure ! Sunday we did actually get up kinda early and hit Lake Crescent at 9 am. The color of the water in the lake is truly ausome, ice blue and an icy temperature to match. Another beautiful day under blue skies and a nice breeze we paddle for a couple of hours before jumping back into the truck and heading back to civilization :-(.

WKC 2009 Basic Class 5/29-31

23 Washington Kayak Club students enjoyed a 2 1/2 day class at Bowman Bay and 'in' Deception Pass. We had beautiful sunny weather for most of the weekend which added to the pleasure of the experience. This year as last we took over the Environmental Learning Center on Coronet bay for the weekend. Looking forward to next years class already !

Sunny Day in May

Salt Water State Park paddle over to Pt. Robinson and back to visit the light house and enjoy a paddle in the beautiful Puget Sound. Great view's of Mount Rainer on this fine day...

WKC Basic Class 2009

On a beautiful sunny, warm weekend the"BASIC" class was held at the Environment Learning Center. Twenty three students and a dozen instructors spent two and a half day's of classroom and on the water training sessions. On Sunday the class and about 40 other kayakers spend most of the day in Deception Pass which is an exception ' class room'... all survived, got a bit smarter, had a great time and went home with sunburn souvenirs, sore muscles and big smile!

Hood Canal May 2009

Clams, oysters, clams and more clams... great food.... This Memorial Day weekend coincided with extremely low tides which made for easy clamming. We had a very nice paddle under sunny skies and 75 degree temps in the Hood Canal in Washington State.

Venture 115 Crew Training

A warm, sunny day on ( and in :0) Lake Sammamish spent with a group of 15-18 year olds from the Venture 115 group. Had the opportunity, along with several of my fellow coaches of putting on a one day on-the-water training class for this group. Quite a few of the kids built their own wood kayaks ( and they did a great job ). Today we practiced paddle strokes, rescues and goofing off in the water, great fun was had by all.....

WKC Advanced Class 2009

Great fun was had by all who took part in the Washington Kayak Clubs 'Advanced Sea Class" over the past week and a half. This year five students gained a lot of experience paddling in varied conditions. Four pool sessions focused on rolling, one lake session focused on rescue/recoveries in cold water, then up to the frigid Snolqualmie River for some 'currents' work. Saturday a long ( 10 mile ) paddle from Washington Park in Anacortes, WA to Strawberry Island state park which was lead by the students and finally a Sunday paddle in Deception Pass. I look forward to next years class.

Earth Day 2009

I went out in my boat today and did my best to support Earth Day 2009. I paddled from Holmes Pt on Lake Washington under beautiful sunny skies to Sand Pt Navel Station and picked up discarded junk along the shoreline! A half hour at the most is all it took to fill the hatches of my Romany! Too bad I didn't have room for the 55 gal barrel and the many tires I saw along the shoreline.

Here's what I picked up:

32 tennis balls, 1 fishing bobber, 2 soccer balls, 1 Happy Valentines' balloon, 1 Happy Birthday balloon, I plastic coffee mug, 1 foam cup holder, 8 aluminum cans, 37 plastic bottles, 1 glass perfume bottle, 1 white ladies shoe, 1 flip flop, 2 plastic grocery bags, 2 nylon ropes and 1 rubber glove..

WKC Paddle April 2009

Had the opportunity to lead a paddle for the local kayak club today. Four fellow paddlers joined for the Seahurst to Fauntleroy Washington Kayak Club trip. What a beautiful spring day, minimal breeze, some long awaited sunshine and 60 degree weather greeted today.

Along the way we saw the usual community of ducks and water fowl, a sea lion fishing for lunch and a young eagle getting harassed by a mob of crows. A good day indeed !

Chasing Gray Whales March 21 2009

Beth, Rob and I launched the boats at Langley, WA after visiting one of the fine coffee&pastry shops (nice caffeine and sugar buzz) and headed north along the east side of Whidbey Island looking for the gray whales that feed in the shallow waters of Saratoga Passage. A beautiful bright, sunny day with little wind and temps in the 50's, great paddling weather. After a 30-45 minute paddle north we cross the couple of miles of Saratoga Passage to the west side of Cameno Island, another favorite haunt for the feeding grays... After a rest stop to soak up the sun we paddled south along Cameno for several miles but no luck in spotting the big fish. One more stretch stop and we head back to Langley.

Here's the url for the site that tracks whales in the Puget Sound, Oregon and BC "http://www.orcanetwork.org/"

Salt Water Paddle Feb 18, 2009

Been a while since I added something on my blog. Lead a WKC trip from Salt Water State Park to Redondo and back. A group of 8 hardy souls on this first club paddle for '09. It's an early season, dust off the kayak for some folks while other join me every year... kind of a reunion paddle. Today it was a bit breezy with the 15-20kt wind coming from out of the north, made some fun wave action on the paddle back to Salt Water. All survied and we celebrated with High 5's having cheating death one more time... :-)