June 30th - Discovery Island (#57)

I set out at 9:30 to meet Pete at Oak bay Marina who paddled around from McNeill Bay as well as Dan and Gordin (who will hopefully have some nice pcs!) and then we went over to Discovery Island via the Chain group. Another beautiful day! Once on Discovery, we gunkholed are way around the island and then stopped for lunch on the SE beach on Chatham. I paddled the Tahe Greenland all day and Pete and Gordin had a “test drive” at lunch. I though it would be good to give it a full day test paddle and I was very happy with it. The cockpit was comfortable for a 19 km paddle and the boat seems noticeably faster than my other boats. It is more stable than my Greenland SOF and also even easier to roll. Hand rolls are a cinch with this boat! (BTW, I have decided to buy this boat!)

19 km, 10 NM, YTD 609 km

June 29th - Sailboat launched!

After a somewhat “interesting” launching process at Cattle Point, the Hunter 19 is now at its mooring in Cadboro Bay.

 The Hunter 19 at its mooring

48.45535 N, 123.29680 W – I saw in Oziexplorer that the mooring is less than 500 m due south (almost exactly) from our house!

Waypoint Markers for the house and Mooring.

The Google Maps View…

June 29 - Loon Bay (#55)

Dan and I went over to Loon Bay for some rolling practice. The Tahe Greenland is an amazing boat to roll. I had no trouble doing hand rolls, norsaq rolls, body braces etc. You can see I checked out the mooring as well – planning to launch the Hunter 19 this afternoon…. Dan also tried the Greenland and his rolls improved too!

2 km, 1 NM, YTD 590 km

June 28 - Chatham Islands (#55)

I led a SISKA paddle to the Chatham Islands today. Conditions were magificent and we had a group of 18 in all. Winds were predominantly 0–5 knots with occasional gusts to 10 knots (see http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=IBRITISH32) and there was a steady ebb current in Baynes. We had a delightful lunch break on a SE facing beach on Chatham. John Kimantas was along as a club guest and brought along a Delta 16 to try.

15 km, 8 NM, YTD 588 km

June 28th - Victoria Paddlefest (#54)

I spent a very nice and busy day at the Victoria Paddlefest organized by MEC. I helped instruct a session on introductory rescuses as well as a session on weather for kayakers. I also got to paddle a Tahe Marine Greenland – this is a sweet boat. I also tried the Anas Acuta which was also a nice boat…

Tahe Greenland… Cadboro bay – Paddlefest

2 km (est) (1NM, YTD: 573 km

June 25 - Discovery (#53)

Dan and I went out for a nice paddle around Discovery. It was good to get out early and be back before noon. There was a nice ebb current, but no standing waves. You can see that my speed was well above 10 kph from Cadboro Point to Chatham island.

17 km, 9.5 NM, YTD 571 km

June 23- Kissinger Lake (#52)

I took Claire and a bunch of her friends to Kissinger Lake at the end of Cowichan Lake for two nights’ camping. While there I did some fishing and some paddling. The paddling involved a “circumkayakulation” of the lake as well as a bunch of rolling practice.

the rolling video!

2 km, 1 NM, YTD: 554 km

June 21 - Cadboro Point (#51)

Claire and I went out for a father’s day paddle out to Cadboro Point and back. Nice conditions even though showers were immininent. Ran into Paula just as we set off, Graham in mid paddle , and then Doug and Dennis who were running a course at the end. i was paddling the sirocco and Claire the Cape Falcon F1

5 km, 2 NM, YTD: 552 km

June 19 - McNeill bay (#50)

Gordin, Dorothea and I set out from caddy bay a bit after noon and decided to paddle into the breeze. The wind was mostly 5 to 15 knots and gusting between 10 and 20 knots for much of the afternoon. I put my Tuilik on at Gonzalez point and did a bit of rolling in the sirocco. I had forgotten how much fun the sirocco is to play in! Once we got back to the beach, Gordin and I spent some time practicing rolls. A very nice afternoon paddle!

15 km, 7 NM, YTD: 547 km

June 18 - Discovery (#49)

Dan and I set out from Cadboro bay to paddle around Discovery island. Conditions were overcast, a moderate flood tide and a bit of wind. I managed to get a bit of a sail in from Discovery to Flower Islands. We stopped on Chatham to take a look at the boat that has been aground there for a month or so – looks to be in sorry shape. We also checked out another possible mooring buoy in Cadboro Bay.

We made good progress on the way back due to wind and current in our favour.

testing an embeded slide show…

16 km, 8 NM, YTD 532 km

June 13 - Gonzalez Point (#48)

Monica and I joined a relaxed SISKA padle from Cadboro Bay to Gonzalez Point and back over to Cadboro Point. I was paddling my Shadow and Monica the F1. Conditions were magnificent and we had a delightful paddle along the shore and through both marinas. Lunch was at the bay south of Turkey Head. Unfortunately, I was using my old etrex legend in a waterproof box under my deck bungies and some how it slipped out without me noticing. Fortunately Dave O the leader gave me a copy of his track log.

15 km , 7 NM, YTD 516.

June 11 - Elk Lake (#50)

I went up to Elk Lake for the SISKA gathering and spent an hour or so rolling in my Greenland SOF. Practiced forward and reverse rolls, chest sculling, butterfly rolls, static braces, and norsaq rolls. I also practiced a wet exit in the SOF – it was easy enough to get out, but without adequate flotation it was very hard to get back in. Eventually the only way of getting back in and up was to do a reentry and roll and then a lot of pumping!

2 km, 1 NM, YTD 501 km.

June 9 - a week in the Broughton area (41-46)

I spent 6 days and 5 nights paddling around Johnstone Strait and the Broughton Archipelago with a group of 11 grade 10 students in our experiential programme. We had amazing weather and wonderful paddling conditions

• June 2 – drove to Telegraph Cove


• June 3 – paddled telegraph cove to Mound Island


• June 4 – paddled to Village Island and back to Mound


• June 5 – paddled to Hanson Island and back to Mound – visited the Earth Embassy


• June 6 – lazy day – did a short paddle around Berry Island – back to Mound Island


• June 7 – Paddled from Mound Island to Blinkhorn Penninsula


• June 8 – Paddled from Blinkhorn to telegraph cove – cleaned and packed gear

June 9 - drove back home.

close up of Mound Island area

Total Trip 72 km, 39 NM, YTD 499 km

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:48.4592
Longitude:-123.297
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/09/2009 19:36:25 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=48.4592,-123.297&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.547
Longitude:-126.8333
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/08/2009 15:15:39 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.547,-126.8333&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5402
Longitude:-126.7848
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/07/2009 17:08:09 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5402,-126.7848&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5915
Longitude:-126.6554
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/06/2009 19:43:54 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5915,-126.6554&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5914
Longitude:-126.6558
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/06/2009 15:49:10 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5914,-126.6558&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5979
Longitude:-126.69
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/05/2009 19:27:54 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5979,-126.69&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5915
Longitude:-126.6555
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/04/2009 21:19:10 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5915,-126.6555&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.6184
Longitude:-126.5778
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/04/2009 12:35:56 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.6184,-126.5778&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5915
Longitude:-126.6556
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/03/2009 22:11:51 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5915,-126.6556&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

OK ESN:0-7349589

SPOT Check OK. Group is well. Check out the location using the link below.
ESN:0-7349589
Latitude:50.5468
Longitude:-126.832
Nearest Location:not known
Distance:not known
Time:06/03/2009 08:38:24 (America/Vancouver)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50.5468,-126.832&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Off to the Broughton Group...

I am off to the Broughton archipelago to do a 6 day paddle with our school’s experiential programme. I look forward to repeat of last year’s success! I should have some spot messages come to this blog…