“This photo was taken at dusk. You can see the kayaks on the beach with the beatiful water and clouds in the background,” says the photographer.
This photo is was taken by Flickr user jdun87 and licensed under Creative Commons. Want to see your photo here? Send to [email protected] with subject line Daily Photo.
This gear review was originally appeared in Rapid Media’s monthly Paddling Magazine.
Packing a towel for a paddling trip can be a challenge. Bath towels from home are simply too bulky to justify. Beach towels are thinner and perfect for sitting by the lake, but without any sunshine or wind to dry it out, a beach towel can get pretty funky after a day or two of use, and they hog a lot of space.
Enter MSR’s Personal PackTowl line. Made of polyester-nylon microfibers and available in four different sizes, you’d be forgiven for doubting the abilities of the PackTowl’s ultra thin cloth. I was a hold out for that very reason, until I needed something to dry off after riding my bike to work. Now, I’m a convert. Though it weighs in at just a few ounces, the PackTowl is durable and feels made to last, unlike other popular ultra-thin towels that feel fragile.
Helping keep the funk limited to your iPod, the PackTowl boasts an antimicrobial treatment that promises to stick around and keep your towel fresh for the long term. For extra freshness there’s machine wash instructions even I can follow—wash, then dry.
The extra-large PackTowl I bought measures 52 by 24 inches and packs down into a small mesh packet, just a bit bigger than a deck of cards. The first few times I tried to repack the towel it felt a bit like trying to push toothpaste back into the tube, but with practice, and after a few uses, it becomes easy.
The PackTowl claims to absorb four times its own weight in water and wrings out almost completely dry. The convenient snap loop makes it easy to hang from a tree or line to complete the drying. I’ve found it takes just a quarter of the time to dry compared to a cotton towel. While soft on the skin, it doesn’t have the cozy comfort of a plush towel and doesn’t rub the same way along the body. These towels are made to be dabbed and work best if you apply a slight constant pressure and push the towel around. If you already pat yourself dry, there’s no learning curve.
I plan to pick up another PackTowl—as much to have a second one at my disposal, as to have the XXL version. I’m not a big guy, but what can I say, I like big towels.
$22.95 USD | www.packtowl.com
This article appeared in Paddling Magazine.
A nifty new contender in the arena of waterproof electronics containers, DryCASE employs vacuum technology to keep your precious gadgets safe and dry. The science is similar to the vacuum- sealed, boil-in-a-bag spaghetti dinner you savoured on your last downriver overnight—DryCASE shrink-wraps around your camera, mp3 player or cell phone with the help of a one-way valve and small fist pump.
You can continue shooting photos and using buttons or a touch screen through the crystal clear, durable membrane. Tested to 60 feet, DryCASE comes with a buoyant armband and integrated headphone jack—an industry first—so you can listen to music through waterproof earbuds (available separately). Currently available in a small size to suit compact digital cameras, a larger case to fit items as big as a laptop is in the works.
drycase.com | $35
This article originally appeared in Rapid magazine, Spring 2010. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
Canoes lined up and settled for the night on Stoplog Lake. Where will your paddling adventures take you this weekend?
This photo is was taken by Flickr user Martin Cathrae and licensed under Creative Commons. Want to see your photo here? Send to [email protected] with subject line Daily Photo.
In the heart of the Skeena Mountains, 15 hours north of Squamish and 145 kilometres east of Prince Rupert on the lonely Yellowhead Highway, Terrace is the commercial hub of northwestern British Columbia. The town was founded in 1905 by entrepreneur George Little, who happened upon the site while snowshoeing south from the Yukon on the Kitimat Trail. Subsequently a port for Skeena River paddlewheelers linking the interior with Prince Rupert fisheries, as well as a booming logging and mill town, Terrace has long attracted hardy outdoorsmen. While the steamboats, mill and thriving economy are gone, the snowy peaks of the Hazelton and Kitimat Ranges, lush temperate rainforests and crystalline rivers remain. Today, quad-biking, hunting and an 11-month salmon fishing season are big draws for local roughnecks, but the town also attracts a few of the pedal-and-paddle adventure-seekers who flock to Squamish—the self-proclaimed “outdoor recreation capital of Canada.” So what is Terrace’s distinction over Squamish and other B.C. boating Shangri-Las? It’s home to the hardest of the hardcore—the local whitewater has been featured in TGR’s (Teton Gravity Research) kayaking films, and the town’s paddling scene includes world-class rippers like Corey Boux.
Terrace can lay fair claim to the title Creeking Capital of the north. Massive snowmelt and lofty mountains create a plethora of creeks and falls—some classics, many still awaiting first descents. One such classic is Shames Creek—or “boulder garden on steroids” to the local paddlers—which originates up the valley in the frozen slopes of the local ski area and melts into six kilometres of amazing class IV-V whitewater.
Other wicked steeps just 10 minutes from town include Kleanza Creek, a tight class IV-V canyon run, and Williams Creek, home to an annual downriver race. Not just a creeking Mecca, terrace is also central to a fine selection of class II-IV river runs, ideal for decompressing after a gnarly day on the steeps. Try the easy Kitimat or the high volume Kalum, which hosts a near perfect wave at flood levels (both 30 minutes away). Butze rapids—tidal rapids that resemble a smaller version of the famous skookumchuck—provide year-round saltwater playboating near Prince Rupert (1hr. 45 min.).
Mountain Biking: rip four kilometres of singletrack steeps like Lucky Seven and Big Easy at Copper Mountain, then swap your downhill bike for a cross-country steed and sweat it out on the not-to-be-missed Terrace Mountain Loop. This 11⁄2-hour ride is a super smooth blend of climbs, technical rocks and roots that starts at the base of terrace Mountain.
Rock Climbing: Squamish’s granite crags may be better known, but terrace has the same rock and none of the gumbies. Chalk up and head to Extew—a 5.8 mix of single-pitch trad and a seven-pitch bolted route—near the Onion Lake ski trails.
Skiing and Snowboarding: Terrace is home to some of the snowiest winters anywhere in North America. The Skeena Mountains boast heli-skiing in deep, dry powder, serviced locally by Northern Escapes Heli Skiing. Shames Mountain ski area (30 min) has 111 acres of glade skiing, 1,600 vertical feet (488 metres), 40 feet (12 metres) of annual snowfall and $42 lift tickets.
Big, bold and tasty burritos are the specialty at the Hot House, a great place for a quick feed after a day on the river. The Back Eddy Pub offers basic pub fare in the heart of town and is home to the world’s largest (stuffed) Chinook salmon at 92 pounds. Get your early morning, pre-paddle caffeine fix at one of Terrace’s several little cafés, two Tim Hortons, or even that West Coast staple, Starbucks. The Williams Creek downriver race in late June is a great place to hook up with local paddlers. For a river festival of a different sort, check out Riverboat Days, a weeklong celebration of Terrace’s steamboat heritage that features music, paintball tournaments, a 24-hour mountain bike race and much else.
This article originally appeared in Rapid magazine, Spring 2010. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
A couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with benign positional vertigo. Its effect is a sudden spinning sensation similar to walking off the Tilt-a-Whirl after drinking a bottle of Jack Daniels. It’s caused by a disturbance within my inner ear.
The specialists administered drugs, told me to stop drinking coffee and sent me to physiotherapy, where they performed a fancy maneuver that involved shaking my head back and forth. I was also told that the illness lasts forever and that my hearing will gradually get worse, my balance will depreciate and wilderness canoeing, especially alone for extended periods, will have to stop.
Being diagnosed with an odd affliction was a shock, losing my hearing was upsetting and walking around as if I were drunk most of the time would pose some serious challenges. The end of my solo canoe-tripping career was absolutely unacceptable.
So I did what any wilderness-loving paddler would do—I stocked up on the drugs I needed, taught myself how to do the head-shaking maneuver and packed enough decaffeinated coffee for an extended solo canoe trip. Most doctors advised against it, but my physiotherapist promoted it—and even helped me prepare for it.
The result was one of the best trips I’ve ever had—one that included awesome rapids, phenomenal fishing, incredible scenery, utter solitude and zero spinning episodes.
Maybe wilderness travel is the cure for all; maybe a stress-free environment should be put into a bottle and sold at a pharmacy; maybe the trip was more like taking a dash of placebo. The time spent paddling was proof that there’s magic in the woods—a drug like no other—and a reminder that wilderness is a necessity of the human spirit, not a luxury.
It’s no wonder we just smirk at people who don’t understand the importance of paddling.
My daughter, now 8, has understood the passion for wilderness paddling from the age of 6 months, when she completed her first canoe trip. My wife, Alana, understands. She insists our marriage has flourished because of our canoe trips together, but also never questions the times I head out alone. My friends understand as well. That’s how we became lifelong friends—we paddle together.
All of us, every culture on this planet, are born from wilderness. When we return to the familiarity of the outdoors, our senses peak and all the ills of society fade away. The dizziness disappears.
This article was first published in Canoeroots & Family Camping‘s Early Summer 2013 issue. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions here , or browse the archives here.
This is an adaptation of the title story from Kevin Callan’s newest book, Dazed But Not Confused.
A portage a day keeps the doctor away. | Photo: Kevin Callan
Coleman was founded in 1905 with the creation of a classic, liquid fuel lantern. Over a hundred years later, they still make the quintessential camping lantern found in the company logo. Solidly built and reliable in a torrent, one tank of white gas will last up to 14 hours. You pump, turn the dial and light the single mantle with a match. It’s a little noisy, but this design is likely to last another hundred years.
$90 • www.coleman.com
This article appeared in Canoeroots & Family Camping Magazine, Early Summer 2013. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
The Primus EasyLight is a butane mix-powered, canister lantern. It’s very compact and comes with a protective case. The replaceable mantle is housed inside a frosted glass globe, so it gives off warm, bright and adjustable ambient light. No fumbling for a match in the dark either; the EasyLight is equipped with an electric piezo lighter. Hit the switch, hang it up and you’ll have plenty of light to eat, read or work by.
$73 • www.primuscamping.com
This article appeared in Canoeroots & Family Camping Magazine, Early Summer 2013. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
Improve feng shui in your tent with this Japanese-designed, pocket-sized lantern. The Mini Hozuki is a solid-state LED light that runs on three AAA batteries. Solid-state bulbs give off a much warmer light than traditional LEDs. You can dim the bulb and even create ambience by setting it to flicker like a candle. To top it off, the handy magnetic toggle allows you to attach it to a tab on the roof of your tent, your backpack, boat, wherever.
$40 • www.snowpeak.com
This article appeared in Canoeroots & Family Camping Magazine, Early Summer 2013. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
This double-duty lantern will light up your dinner table and save you from becoming the main dish. Insert the butane canister, insect repellent cartridge and four AA batteries, and with the flick of a switch, you have up to four hours of protection from insects. Two settings allow you to change the intensity of the LEDs. Size and basic construction make it perfect for a dinner dockside and car camping.
$32 • www.thermacell.com
This article appeared in Canoeroots & Family Camping Magazine, Early Summer 2013. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
