The snow’s been piling up the last few days and I’ve been feeling a bit antsy as all the neighborhood kids are sledding away down the hills. So what’s a man to do but go kayaking with some friends? Went around Seward Park in the evening, the sky glow felt gorgeous and it was a beautiful. And yes, I’ve been hitting up the Instagram look for some fun. Photos after the jump.
One of our students from Canada, Alex Schiebel sent me some images of her Seawolf Stellar Sea Kayak, painted by a friend of hers, a NW Coast native artist named Beau!
The painting is of a supernatural serpent vessel who carried a young boy around the world 4 times after he was resurrected from near-death.
Alex says the boat was exhibited at a show and then paddled in a race, which is exactly what I think of our kayaks– beautiful works of art that are for real serious paddling. Another picture if you read on.
Folks, I am thinking about putting on a workshop where we all build a new true hide kayak skin-on-frame. Just wanted to inquire about people’s interest.
1. The whole class would build one kayak.
2. The class would take about 5-8 days.
3. I would allow (but not prefer) drop-ins.
4. It would cost about $250-300 for five participants.
Not sure about scheduling yet, or where we’d do it, but if you’re interested, let me know!
Apparently orca whales simply cannot resist singing. This summer I took some friends out to paddle the West Coast of San Juan Island and we encountered JPod, and their two new calves could not stop coming over to investigate our singing and our skinboats…
One of my favorite things about having Seawolf in Portland was the monthly wild foods potluck. Each time folks bring a dish that contains at least one vital ingredient– something either wildcrafted, homegrown, or otherwise gotten from a non-commercial source.
It was wildly popular and we ended up with dishes from sauteed fiddlehead greens (left) to… wait for it…. mountain lion chocolate molé. More than that it was always a great way to meet and hang out with other great people who like to get out and get their hands dirty while playing outside.
To start a new tradition of it in Seattle, I’ve started a Wild Foods Meetup Group. To join just go visit the Meetup page and then you’l be informed of when and where the wild foods potluck happens, but possibly even cooler there are regular outings to go and get delicious forage with others. Two proposed ventures are an oyster harvest and fry, as well as going to pick stinging nettles. Come tromp around with us! Also, if you’re thinking about a Seawolf expedition, it will give you a taste of the adventures to be had out in the wilderness open to kayak-campers.
Seawolf has officially landed in Seattle! Yesterday I took out a few friends on Lake Union, an urban yet completely satisfying paddling destination. We had glassy waters, a sunset and were treated to an exquisite view of the Seattle skyline from the water.
If you’d like to see some photos from our little jaunt, just minutes away from downtown, continue reading!
Hello all! I get many requests from all over the world to do a kayak-building workshop, but often we get just short a builder or two. Sometimes I have trouble finding a workshop space to accommodate everyone. I’ve created a simple forum on our site to make our lives easier!
This is what I need for a workshop to happen, in order of priority…
Okay, so one of the most frustrating and nerve-wracking thing about going on a multiday kayak expedition/adventure is what to bring. It would be so great to have a complete kitchen cookset with a sink (really!) but we really can’t complain. As kayakers we can carry about twice what a backpacker can carry, and it doesn’t even have to be lightweight.
There are two major categories of stuff- your gear and your food. Read on to see the pared down list I bring on my expeditions, both solo and when I’m guiding.
In Part 2 of this Expedition Gear series, I want to talk about the most important pieces of safety gear that are a part of your kayak system that don’t include what’s strapped on your body. A big part of this is onboard flotation. There’s never enough when it counts.
Quite a few kayakers have been asking about the gear I took with me on my monthlong kayak tour around Vancouver Island’s West Coast, and I can remember how important it was for me to do the research and put together the master list. My gear became everything I owned in the world for a month, and it kept me A) from becoming the guy that creates that horrible-death-in-the-ocean statistic, and B) sane and comfortable on an ocean coast that has no particular sentimentality for me!
The photo on the left here encapsulates much of the really important safety gear. I tried hard to make sure as much of my absolutely vital gear was strapped to my body, thus inside my PFD or in my waist pouch. Of course the most important piece of gear of all is the one between my ears and keeping it turned on was the difference between life and my untimely death.
Redfish Lake is the farthest inland that the Pacific salmon reach in their annual migrations. It only feels appropriate that in my migrations I come and paddle on this pristine and amazing mountain lake, captured by enormous peaks. My friend Courtney Samway froze with me on this excursion…
Barbara and George Gronseth of the Kayak Academy put on an amazing event, the first annual Greenland Week. I was there for the weekend portion, to watch the competitions in Greenland-style kayak rolling, harpoon-throwing, and kayak racing. I missed the ropes competition, alas…
Saturday night I also gave a presentation on my solo skin-on-frame adventure Saturday night. A few photos of the competitors in action are here.
