What does it mean to truly experience wilderness? Conservationists with the Sitka Conservation Society share their special wilderness experiences on the waters and in the forests around Sitka, Alaska.
Watch for a feature story on how members of the Sitka Conservation Society and others are paddling for science in the Spring 2014 edition of Adventure Kayak.
“Stakeout 2013 has been some of the most progressive paddling to date, with the likes of Dane Jackson, Rush Sturges, Nick Troutman, Ben Marr, Joel Kowalski, and the rest of ‘the boys’. Check out some huge air and big crashes as they move past double move combos into the triples on some of the biggest and best waves of the planet, like Buseater, Lucifers, Gladiator, High Tension, Bryson Bowl and Ruin.”
From Nicholas Troutman.
A test of the Saltwood Grasshopper paddle from Adventure Kayak magazine.
Grasshopper
If carbon doesn’t turn your crank, perhaps Saltwood’s one-piece wood shafts are more your speed. Artisan builders Richard Davis and Mike Robinson pair balsa-core, carbon composite blades with a fiberglass-wrapped, hollow wood shaft. The result is a light swing weight and stiffness where it’s needed, and the unmatched flexibility and feel of wood where it’s not. Plus, double hand indexes mean your fingers always know where they are, even if you don’t.
$375 (straight) / $450 (bent)| www.saltwoodpaddles.com
Take a peak at more hot new gear in the Summer/Fall 2013 issue of Adventure Kayak—click here to read for free.
As one era of transportation comes to a squealing halt, another is leaving the station under full steam. rail trails—multi-use recreational paths using abandoned railway lines—are ideal for family bicycle rides. Free of traffic worries, rail trails cross a vast breadth of scenery, offering a relaxing excursion into the countryside or an exciting climb through the mountains. Perhaps best of all, you’ll never have to face another hill—most trains can’t handle more than a three percent grade..
MEDICINE BOW NATIONAL FOREST, WYOMING
For mountain vistas, wildlife sightings and solitude— apart from the moose, mule deer, elk and pronghorn antelope—southeastern Wyoming’s Medicine Bow trail is hard to beat. Wending 34 kilometres through Medicine Bow National Forest, the recently completed (in September 2007) gravel path follows the corridor of an early 20th-century rail line that, at 9,050 feet, was the highest elevation standard gauge railway in the country at the time.
For an easy out-and-back ride that’s suitable for the whole family, start near the town of Albany at the Lake Owen trailhead and head south through evergreen and aspen forest mixed with open grassland. Lake Owen’s terrific trout fishing and relaxed 1.6-kilometre loop trail with views of 12,000-foot Medicine Bow Peak are your end-of-the-ride rewards.
WHEN TO GO: Mid-June to October
HOW TO GO: Hybrid mountain bikes are recommended
INFO: www.cyclewyoming.org
KELOWNA, B.C.
Constructed in the early 20th-century at an average cost of $84,500 per kilometre, the 600- kilometre Kettle Valley Railway formed a direct connection between Vancouver and the rich agricultural regions and silver mines of the Okanagan and West Kootenays. Along the way, it passed through an incredible diversity of landscapes, from cool mountain forests to Canada’s only pocket desert in Osoyoos.
If you just have one day, take a spin through Myra Canyon on Okanagan Mountain, south of Kelowna. This spectacular 8.5-kilometre section crosses 18 wooden trestles and steel bridges—including one 220-metre span 55 metres above Pooley Creek—and passes through two tunnels between the Myra and Ruth parking areas. This route was reopened in June 2008 after a five-year restoration following a devastating wildfire in 2003 that destroyed 12 of the 18 trestles.
WHEN TO GO: April to October
HOW TO GO: Suitable for most bikes
INFO: Cycling the Kettle Valley Railway, www.kettlevalleyrailway.ca, Penticton Visitor Centre, 800-663-5052
Discover four more great family biking destinations in the 2009 Late Summer issue of Canoeroots and Family Camping magazine. Read the issue in our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it online here.
My father always told me never to judge a book by its cover. Well, that’s not exactly what he said. My dad was a professional boxer and he actually said you shouldn’t judge a fighter by the colour of his trunks. But you get the picture.
I was reminded of his wisdom last week. Some tripmates and I were finishing up a remote route through Ontario’s Penokean Hills region. It’s a network of aqua blue lakes and clear streams north of Lake Huron’s North Channel that’s alive with feisty trout. It was a perfect trip, one that was to come to a tidy end when we reached the fishing lodge where we had scheduled a bush plane to pick us up. Poor weather made that impossible the first day, then the second, then the third. When rain changed to snow, we began looking for an alternate means of escape. That’s when the guides at the lodge, Chris Moose and Peter Roberts, suggested they drive us out by ATV.
Imagine, a bunch of snobby canoeists being rescued by ATV, the devil’s own bush buggy, the arch nemesis of canoeing. ATVs emit more greenhouse gases then any car on the road, their noise pollution ranks down there with personal watercraft and car alarms and those complaints are nothing compared to the way they tear up the ground while breaking down the barriers that keep remote areas remote.
The problem was, we all had jobs and families to get back to and waiting for another couple of days until the snow disappeared didn’t seem to be an option. So we took deep breaths and two-stepped over to the four-strokes for a ride back to civilization.
It wasn’t a pleasant trip. The so-called trail was 28 bone-jiggling kilometres long. Three hours later it ended at a river we had to ferry across before Moose could hitchhike down a dirt road to pick up his truck, a 1991 Ford with no working tail lights, tires that were balder than Bruce Willis and a stereo that had to be hit twice on the left and three times on the right before it would pump out a mix of Culture Club and Pet Shop Boys.
Arduous as the effort was, it worked. We got back to our own vehicle and made the seven- hour drive back to our jobs and families.
Moral of the story? Yes, ATVs can be a menace to wilderness areas. But so can canoeists trying to squeeze in wilderness adventures between strictly scheduled bush plane flights. It’s not the way you enter the wilderness but how you interact with it while you’re there that’s important. That’s another thing my father tried to teach me. Don’t look upon wilderness trips as something to squeeze in between appointments you aren’t prepared to miss.
We got to know the drivers of the malevolent machines during our joyless ride out to civilization. It was obvious that both guides loved the Penokean Hills region and would be dedicated to preserving it long after we had left. Moose and Roberts aren’t jockeying for the devil; they are the boxers who wear camo trunks and end up knocking down their arrogant opponent in the first round.
This article first appeared in the 2009 Late Summer issue of Canoeroots and Family Camping magazine. Read the issue in our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it online here.
Park your car and get right on the water with these three destinations.
Check the gauge for levels ranging from 3.7 to 4.7 feet, sign in at the Valley Falls State Park office and put in. This is a two-tiered set that drops a total of 24 feet, with many possible lines depending on levels. Its quick foot shuttle makes running laps easy. The falls themselves are pretty friendly but the hole at the bottom has a reputation for recirculating swimmers. Put in and take out on the right, avoiding the active rail line on the other side of the river.
YOUR RIDE
Wave Sport Habitat
SHUTTLE ROUTE
Take exit 137 off of I-79 and follow WV 310 south for seven miles. At the Valley Falls State Park sign, turn right and continue to the park entrance. The park is about 30 minutes
This forgiving waterfall is on the lower Quyon River, right before it dumps into the mighty Ottawa. Just outside of Canada’s capitol city, it offers aspiring hucksters a friendly, seven- to 10-foot drop with no rapids downstream to worry about. There is no gauge in the area but paddlers can perfect boof strokes, landings and downriver freestyle moves at Trick or Treat from March to December.
YOUR RIDE
Fluid Bazooka
SHUTTLE ROUTE
Take highway 148 west out of Gatineau for about 55 kilometers (35 miles). Park on the side of the road near the bridge over the Quyon River, just past the turn off into downtown Quyon. The put-in trail is on private property so be respectful.
At lower flows—around 300 cfs—the Ledges section of the Tellico is a great training ground. You’ll have to run or portage a couple of quick ledges before arriving at Baby Falls. Eddy out on the right and scout the drop. The 14-footer is best run to the right, which will land your boat into an eddy, or boof the left side into the deep pool below. A couple of class III-IV rapids downstream can be easily portaged, or run these as well to further hone your skills.
YOUR RIDE
Esquif L’Edge
SHUTTLE ROUTE
Take TN 165 east out of Tellico Plains. Stay right at the first split and right again onto Tellico River Road. Cross a bridge with the 80-foot Bald River Falls on your right and the Tellico on your left. Cross a second bridge and look for a pull off on your right. This is the put-in. Take out at the bridge about a half-mile below Bald River Falls.
For more whitewater destinaton articles from Rapid, click here.
This article originally appeared in Rapid, Early Summer 2012. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read the rest here.
The world’s top canoe slalom athletes return to Lee Valley White Water Centre this summer after the London 2012 Olympic venue was confirmed as host for the first race of the 2014 ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup Series (6-8 June 2014).
The world class Lee Valley venue will stage the first of the five events on the 2014 World Cup calendar before the centre comes back into the spotlight in 2015 when it holds the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships (16-20 September).
“The BCU is delighted that Lee Valley White Water Centre is holding the 2014 ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup. I have no doubt it will be a hugely popular event and I am sure it will keep alive the magic we experienced during London 2012,” said British Canoe Union CEO Paul Owen.
The Lee Valley White Water Centre comprises a technically demanding 300m Olympic standard competition course with a 5.5 metre descent and a 160 metre Legacy Loop with a 1.6 metre descent. It is the base for GB Canoeing’s slalom team, most notably C1 and C2 World Champion David Florence, his C2 partner Richard Hounslow and European Champion Fiona Pennie.
Since Team GB won gold and silver medals at London 2012 the centre has continued to evolve. Over £6 million has been invested into new training facilities, an elite centre, additional car parking and landscaping to enhance the experience for paddlers and spectators.
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority Chief Executive Shaun Dawson said: “We’re thrilled to be hosting the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup – the first major international competition since the Games – at Lee Valley White Water Centre in 2014.
ICF President and IOC Member José Perurena said: “It is fantastic that we are returning to the home of the 2012 London Olympic Games for the 2014 ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup. It demonstrates that our sport is truly benefiting from the Games legacy and maximizing the facility’s potential to host world class competition.
“I have no doubt that the event will be a huge success and that the technically demanding course at Lee Valley White Water Centre will, once again, test the world’s best paddlers.”
Tickets for the Lee Valley World Cup will go on sale in February.
For more information visit the Lee Valley White Water Centre or the International Canoe Federation.
As flood waters continue to rise in Surrey, England, some residents have taken to their canoes as a method of transport and for others, for entertainment.
Floodwaters turned an indoor parking garage into a floodlit lake, as seen above. The same group of young men that paddled the car park-turned-lake videotaped themselves wakeboarding behind a 4×4 on a flooded street several days earlier. Locals residents also also taken to their canoes and kayaks to communte to work and to school.
The flooding is a result of the River Thames breaking its banks do to high rainfall.
See more photos on Get Surrey.
It may take a little practice and adjustment to being upside down, but with these tips from the pros, you will be rolling your kayak anywhere.
When Rapid asked two-time Green River Narrows Race champion Andrew Holcombe to recall his most memorable roll, he replied, “Man, that’s all of them, ‘cause anytime you roll it means you’re not swimming!” Quite right.
In the spirit of not swimming, we bring you advice from three seasoned pros on which rolls work best in the gnarliest places. In cheese grater rock gardens, continuous steeps, relentlessly retentive holes and minibus-eating boils. Even in the pounding fury at the base of a towering waterfall. Here’s how to roll anywhere.
Super Shallow Rock Garden
In shallow, class II–III rapids, the sweep roll is your safest bet. Thin water usually means lots of rocks in very close proximity to your head. The sweep roll’s setup position keeps your body close to the surface and protects your face and shoulders, allowing your helmet and PFD to take the brunt of any impacts. Over the years, this roll has saved me a lot of skin and a lot of swims. —Simon Coward
Bottom of Gorilla on the Green
On a continuous, difficult creek like the Green, reaction time is critical. The sweep roll is quick under a wide variety of conditions. Less time upside down generally equals fewer encounters with rocks and means you’ll be upright before the next must-make move or drop. For me, the only exception to automatically setting up for a sweep is if I feel like I can exploit the natural momentum of a flip by doing a back deck roll. — Andrew Holcombe
Stuck in a High Volume Hole
When running big water, it is only a question of time before you get stuck in a retentive hole. In such unfortunate circumstances, my go-to is a back deck roll. Contrary to popular belief, this roll is the safest for your shoulders. When you flip, lean back, keep your elbows tight to your body and wait for pressure on your downstream blade. This technique also tends to keep you higher in the foam pile, which makes it easier to get control and orientation—two things needed to find a way out of the hole. This is how I escaped the Hole that Ate Chicago on the Stikine. —Maximillian Kniewasser
Monster Boils
In powerful boils, lean forward while rolling or you will go right back over. Try to roll through to the other side of the boil, where there is usually more upward water movement. If your first roll doesn’t work, tuck forward and test which side feels better. Boily water changes constantly. A traditional C-to-C combat roll gives a good compromise of leverage and the ability to change sides quickly while leaning forward. Below the big falls on Callaghan Creek, this roll gets me up time and again. — Maximillian Kniewasser
This article originally appeared in Rapid, Spring 2011. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
