Paddle the Twin Cities

Liard Hot Springs

2011-11-01T19:07:00.000-06:00

A really great place to stop along the Alaska Highway, just south of the Yukon border is a spot along the Liard River called Liard Hot Springs. The campground is well taken care of by the folks in British Columbia, and if camping isn't your style, there is a nice hotel across the highway. I chose the camping for if nothing else, the $21 tag. I asked about some firewood, they delivered a robust armload of nicely split oak to the campsite along with a handful if dry kindling. A scrap of paper and a match and I had a nice fire, and with the good wood there was virtually no smoke to bother other campers. Likewise, no one else in the campground had smoke billowing through the trees. Maybe some campgrounds in the states could learn a bit from this! Of course there are the few that couldn't build a fire no matter what they had .. the guy in the site next to me spent about 10 minutes banging around with an axe, I was surprised he didn't hurt himself .. then the next 20 minutes smoking the place up trying to get a fire going. At least he gave up quickly and retired to his motor home with the family.

The real reason the stop here though is the hot springs. A short 15 minute walk from the campground, along a well done boardwalk, and the hot mineral water springs will ease tired muscles and make you relax for a great nights sleep. I had much of an afternoon there, and then after I made some dinner on my nice campfire, I headed back along the trail in the dark for another soak before heading to my tent and nice warm sleeping bag. I can't imagine driving by this place and not spending at least an afternoon there.

A well done changing room, the bottom is small pea rock instead of the mud from years ago. I was here in mid September, and even then, the nights were below freezing. The fall colors were just beginning.

Where did the Summer go?

2011-09-13T22:26:00.000-06:00

So its been since July 1st since I took the time to come here and write some things. I hadn't forgotten about the blog, just staying busy here with the day to day stuff. Also with facebook I have another internet social place to keep track of. Although I've had time to sit down and write, it just hasn't been and where I could bring the laptop along. Now the time has come when I need to finish all my little projects I've started, and gather all the stuff I brought along with me last April, and think about the trip back to Minnesota. Just a bit over 3,600 miles through some of the most beautiful country a person could ever see. Also some of the toughest roads I've run across in a long time .. I hope the frost damaged road from the Alaska border to Destruction Bay in the Yukon Territory has seen some repairs, or at least been smoothed out over the summer. That was a tough stretch! And it wasn't much better in June when Dee and I did the marathon road trip to pick up Elena in Whitehorse after her car broke down on the highway.

Well the only way I can keep track of what I've been up to here is go through the pictures I've taken since my last post in July .. so here's a few photos to catch up for July and August. These are mostly the highlights. Some of the day to day stuff is fun to talk about too, like flying out to do aircraft repairs on a beach and ending up spending the night there with the bears .. more on that one later ...

Just during a walk on the beach .. lots of eagles. This is a young bald eagle, before the distinctive white head.

On a fishing trip to the Kenai we flew through some nice glaciers on the Harding Ice Fields.

July flowers.

Some of the sights across Katchemak Bay.

Stephanie and Dee. Steller Air flew us to Brooks Falls for a great bear trip. The flights in Alaska are always good!

Well that gets us to mid August. Some friends came up to visit around the end of August, we took a week and saw sights, went to see the bears in the Katmai National Park, and did 4 days kayaking Katchemak Bay. I'll try and get some photos up from the trip soon.

Just fooling around

2011-07-01T19:51:00.000-06:00

In the bay working on some different rolls this afternoon when a sea otter seemed curious and came right up to me to watch. Usually they are gone at the first sound you make, this guy truly seemed curious. He was doing the same as me .. just fooling around in the water. I did a few rolls, and he would do the same. This went on for about 20 minutes. What a fun rolling partner!! He stayed right with me about a paddle distance from the boat.

Eagles

2011-06-28T00:48:00.004-06:00

Homer Spit is probably the best place I've found for eagle photos. Years ago there was a woman that fed them, she is now gone, but the eagles have remained. If you hang out here long enough, you will come up with a few good eagle photos. These I got today near the Pier One Theatre on the spit.

Lets go for a walk

2011-06-20T16:21:00.001-06:00

Bishops Beach is a great place for a walk during low tide. Small rivers flowing from tide pools make tall rubber boots a necessity, and the real cool thing is that all the rocks are covered in barnacles, so the walking is easy with no slippery rocks. Where we walk during the low tide is under roughly 15 to 20 feet of water during the high tide, so there is always plenty of cool stuff to see. The seagulls and eagles are hanging around at low tide looking for a meal.

This little hermit crab kept getting tipped over by the waves as he was trying to get back to the water. I think he was trying to hide out from the seagulls. I gave him a little help back to the water.

How would you like to be a hermit crab stuck in the middle of this bunch!

And I have absolutely no idea what this is .. and I'm not going to touch it!

Matanuska Glacier

2011-06-18T13:08:00.000-06:00

Just off the Glen Highway between Glennallen and Palmer Alaska is the Matanuska Glacier, a 27 mile long 4 mile wide river if ice that is the source of the Matanuska River. On the drive back to Minnesota this Fall, this will have to be a for sure stop and hike up to the glacier. I drove past the glacier this week on a marathon road trip from Homer to Whitehorse. Really the best and most stunning scenery on the whole Alaska Highway lies between Haines Junction in the Yukon, and Palmer Alaska. The Glen Highway in incredible.

Dashboard Mascot

2011-06-17T15:33:00.007-06:00

The last mascot I had was a lizard that my daughter made for me when she was about 4 years old. It was all made of beads that were strung together to shape a little lizard, and it was red and white like the sail on the ship. When she gave it to me I thought it was an alligator, but she corrected me right away saying it was a lizard. Well she's 22 now, and the lizard made it all the way to about 3 years ago. I think the string finally fell apart and the beads all found their way into the small places of the last pickup truck I had. I hadn't thought about replacing it with anything until a friend gave me this one. At first I just set it up on the dash, it kept falling over and I kept setting upright again. Then I had to make the decision to keep it up there so, it was time to fasten it down to keep it in place. The little ship reminds me of my Scandinavian heritage, and the travels I've made with it guiding my way. It also reminds me of the friendship of the one who gave it to me. Now after a trip up the Alaska Highway and a Summer of traveling Alaska this one will have some good memories too.

Lennies

2011-05-28T12:52:00.008-06:00

Some interesting clouds were forming over the Kenai Mountains this morning. Most people would maybe give them a curious glance, but a pilot should know a little about them, especially if they were planning a flight in the mountains. Standing lenticular clouds are formed when the air rises up over the mountains, cools to the dewpoint and the cloud forms. Then the wave descends into the trough, and as the air warms past the dewpoint again, the cloud dissipates. The cloud has the deceptive appearance of being stationary. Once in awhile a churning rotor cloud will appear below the lennie, but not always. Strong turbulence is always associated near the rotor cloud, or where it might be if the conditions were right. Gliders on the other hand will seek out the lenticular clouds because of the lift they can generate over the top. Altitude records in gliders have been set riding the lift associated with the mountain waves. At any rate, they are really an interesting phenomena, and have a very calm and serene appearance.

Fun with Tides

2011-05-20T00:50:00.004-06:00

At the Cook Inlet we have near a 28ft tide. A decision to head to the beach for some kayak fun has to first be checked against the tide charts. Here in town and on the local beach it is nothing more than a nasty carry for a 1/4 mile to find the water at low tide, or it could be a wild ride in China Poot Bay during the change. Last Summer when I had the chance to get some paddle time in with Tom Pogson at the Alaska Kayak School, we ventured into China Poot at somewhere near slack tide, and never really got into the tide race. Tom did give me some idea on what a person might encounter, and to give the area a great deal of respect. This year I have a little more time, but I still may have to get my good kayak time in during the end of an Alaska Summer.

Anyway, here is an image of Bishop beach at both the high and low tide. These are not extreme tides .. if I remember right, these are at a -4ft and a high of around 17ft. You could add a few feet to the high and low for a max tide day.

You can click on these images and look closely .. on the low tide shot, there are some peope out on the beach.

Ealgle Stuff

2011-05-16T01:01:00.003-06:00

I've been trying to get out to the bay after work for some kayak activities. At least spend some time playing in the waves and doing some of the different rolls I've learned over the last few years. I need to work on the balance/static brace to get some of the other rolls working good, the balance brace has been just a bit elusive for me. I get it for awhile, then it seems to go away. I'd like to spend some time this summer getting this one down a little better. While loading the boat up on the Jeep the other day, I had an eagle come by. He seemed real interested in something on the hill next to where I was parked and kept flying by, so I grabbed the camera and tried to capture some fly bye's.

Stand up Paddling

2011-05-12T01:14:00.000-06:00

Well the wind picked up, and the stand up paddlers came back, and this time they had some waves to play in. My comments earlier about them not going very far, and very fast will have to be re-thought. But I will stand my my statement that they look like they are having fun! I may have to re-think this paddle board thing. I thought about taking the NDK out for some fun, but it was a nasty carry over the rocks, and the dumping surf looked a bit intimidating. These guys seem to have it figured out. Just push the board out and climb on!

Bear Trip

2011-05-08T23:26:00.015-06:00

With the bear viewing season soon upon us we needed to go check out Hallo and Chinitna Bay. These are the areas we bring people to photograph and view the big bears up close. We were happy to see the bears out and about and digging clams. Early season, the clams are a major source for their diet. One of the reasons the bears are so tolerant of us being there is the abundant food supply in the area. There is always either the clams, the sedge grass that grows along the tidal areas, or the salmon. They have no reason to assume we would have food for them. Unlike the black bears I'm used to seeing in the Apostle Islands on Lake Superior, nobody here has fed them, or left anything laying around for them to associate us with food. Its an opportunity for us to see them up close and still feel safe. Augustine rises 4,134 feet from the sea ...

The flight out to see the bears is an incredible experience, and second only to seeing the bears. With good weather we can see three volcano's .. there's Augustine, Iliamna, and Redoubt. If the visibilty is really good, I'm told Denali can be seen, but 250 miles distant. I was able to get some good shots of Augustine on this trip. I had a couple photos earlier this week from the beach in Homer of Augustine with smoke, but at 75 miles distance it wasn't the greatest. The images here are pretty close, but no smoke.

It's hard to describe the flight from Halo to Chinitna, the whole distance is full of glaciers, mountains, waterfalls, and all the stuff that makes this place Alaska. I have a few of the images here from the flight, but a better way is to experience it first hand.

As we leave Chinitna Bay to cross the Cook Inlet we climb to 10,000 feet msl to make a safe crossing back to Homer.

Beluga Lake

2011-05-03T22:56:00.003-06:00

Beluga Lake is an FAA seaplane base so ... no kayaking here! You'd find yourself in a bit of trouble just doing a paddle around the lake. So drive another 1/4 mile, and do your paddling in the bay. I drive by here every morning on the way to the Homer Airport, and it looks like the ice is just about gone. We'll be seeing the float planes coming in over the road any day now.

Katchemak Bay

2011-05-01T21:08:00.006-06:00

I finally found some time when the weather was nice, well 40 F and sunny is nice in my book anyway, and I had the day to goof off, so I loaded up the boat and gear and headed to the bay. I wasn't the only one who thought it was a perfect day to be on the water, it seems there is a whole bunch of people here who really get into the stand up paddle board thing. Now, I've not tried it, and it looks like a lot of fun, but they don't go very far, very quickly. They all seem to bob around like a bunch of ducks in the same place most of the time. Oh well, it does look fun.

I didn't spend a lot of time on the water maybe little over an hour and a half or so, but enough time to paddle up the spit a ways, then I paddled into the wind off towards Bishop Beach, that way, when I got decided I'd had enough I could just let the wind push me back. A free ride so to speak! It was a nice day!

Homer Brewing

2011-04-28T17:28:00.005-06:00

Homer Brewing has some of the best beers I have found anywhere. And always a friendly smile when you wander in and have your growler refilled. A great session beer, the Broken Birch Bitter is one of my favorites, and at 4.5 ABV, you can have more than one. A local favorite, the Red Knot Scottish is a great beer. I have a couple good friends that would really like the China Poot Porter.

All there beers are cask condition, unfiltered, and unpasteurized ...

Ya gotta get up here and have one!

Favorite Places

2011-04-27T16:45:00.004-06:00

Captains Coffee in Homer is a great place to swing into and get a coffee and berry muffin on the way to the airport in the morning. They even have a drive through if you are feeling lazy!

Homer Spit

2011-04-23T10:02:00.003-06:00

Not long and the boards will come off the buildings on the spit, and the small shops will begin the season here in Homer. It's a short season, three good months with May and September being the wind up and wind down of the Summer. The Salty Dawg Saloon is open .. I'm not sure when it opened this year, but I stopped in for one of Homer Brewing's finest yesterday afternoon.
It's kinda fun feeling the anticipation in the small town as the shopkeepers are getting ready, my small part is getting two airplanes ready for the bear viewing season. This is my second season working with Kbay Air in Homer, the little yellow building in the photo above is our office on the Homer Spit.
Anyone finding their way here over the Summer please stop in to say hi .. and if you're feeling adventurous, come see the bears in the Katmai Wilderness.

Mt Sanford

2011-04-21T22:50:00.003-06:00

One of the many Alaskan giants I drove by along the way. Mt Sanford stands 16,237 ft and part of the Wrangell St. Ellias National Park. Although you can't see it in this photo, the South face rises 8000 ft in 1 mile. Having spent most all of my 55 years around the woods and lakes of Minnesota, spending time here among the mountains and glaciers is a treat I will never tire of.

Morning Walks

2011-04-20T15:15:00.005-06:00

First day here I had to go check out all the places I enjoyed while I was here last year. The Two Sisters was my favorite stop in the morning last year. I'd have a cup of coffee and do some emails most mornings before the day began. This morning was a grand day to begin the season here. The sun is shining and the air is warming nicely! I read a couple rumors through the emails this morning it was snowing in the Twin Cities! A run to the hanger and go through some of the stuff I was able to bring this year, and took some time to clean and oil up the bike, the poor thing rode on the back of the Jeep for 3600 miles of dust, snow, rain, and slush. There was at least 50 pounds of frozen crud on it at one time or another. A walk on the beach at low tide this morning I saw this guy on the image above, he didn't seem to mind me walking past and taking his picture. Walking the beach was a favorite pastime last year .. I imagine I will be doing much more of the same.

Day 4

2011-04-17T20:56:00.009-06:00

The day started out pretty much like day 3 ended. lots of snow and ice on the roads, but once the sun came out things did get much better. It's hard to believe there is actually a road through all of this. One can only imagine the undertaking to make the Alaska Highway. the last two images are looking across the lake to the tiny village of Teslin in the Yukon, the last is looking out the motel window in Teslin. Another 20 hours drive time and I should make Homer Alaska.

Windshield Time

2011-04-15T21:55:00.002-06:00

Lots of time looking through the windshield. this is a bit of road on 15 just South of Sweetgrass Montana. Canada is pretty flat .. at least the part I've seen so far. I am looking forward to the Canadian Rockies. Lewistown Montana for Thursday night, Whitecourt Alberta Friday night .. had a beer and a burger at a roadhouse next to the motel. The motel is offering a coupon for a free breakfast at roadhouse. I think I'll just have my oatmeal and hit the road early!

Alaska

2011-04-13T17:16:00.002-06:00

The Jeep is loaded and ready to go. A few hours of sleep and I should be on the road well before sunrise, I'd like to be well into Montana by tomorrow night. The plan is the Eastern route through Great Falls Montana, cross into Canada at Sweetgrass, and make my way North. It's been a busy week .. now some sleep.

Last weekend on Superior for awhile

2011-04-05T18:07:00.004-06:00

I'd been watching the weather all week, hoping for a break in the wind and rain on Superior. I don't know if it was luck, or a little bit of magic .. my traveling partner remarked she had a little magic working this weekend, and the winds would leave us alone. She was right!

We put in at Burlington Bay in Two Harbors and spent a few hours paddling northward along the shoreline. With the sunshine and a light warm breeze, it was hard to believe we were on Lake Superior for the first Saturday in April.

Sunday morning brought rain, wind, and snow.

This time next week I will be getting last minute preparations in order for the drive to Homer Alaska. It was nice to get up to Superior this Spring, my next time will be in September.

I hope the magic will still be working ...

Winter on Superior

2011-03-09T09:25:00.009-06:00

A few images from a Saturday run up to check out the ice along Lake Superior. We did get out on the lake for a short paddle up to the cliff along Split Rock Lighthouse. I managed to dunk my hand in the lake during a launch into the little bit of surf we had, so taking photos on the paddle was difficult with cold fingers .. so no images of the lighthouse. It's a 3 hour drive up from the Twin Cities, just close enough for a weekend trip, and well worth the drive to see the lake with the winter ice. We hoped to see some of the rivers flowing, but they were all locked up with ice for this trip ... thinking maybe another run up in a couple weeks and the rivers may be open.

Good Stuff!

2011-03-03T20:07:00.005-06:00

Read and article on coconut oil and thought, since it's now a darling of the health food world I'd give it a try. I sauteed some scallions, and a clove of garlic with some kale, tossed in some crushed walnuts and dried cranberries. Then a nice fillet of Copper River sockeye Salmon ... add a glass of wine. The finishing touch was Reel Water Productions Eastern Horizons to set the mood for the comming weekend. I'd recommend the coconut oil, it had a nice flavor ..

Weekend Plans

2011-03-03T10:26:00.004-06:00

Things are coming together for a weekend photo trip. When I mentioned I was headed to the North Shore for the weekend fellow paddler/blogger DaveO sent me an email letting me know that due to the recent wave activity on Superior, the ice on the rocks and shoreline would be especially picturesque over the next week, and now would be a good time to go check it out.

Another friend and fellow pilot/photographer/blogger Patrick was kind enough to lend me one of his better camera lenses for the trip. So I find myself well equipped for such an adventure! Now to dig a kayak or two out of their winter resting place and try and track down all the wayward paddling gear just in case I need to get out on the lake.

Gitche Gumee

2011-02-28T20:18:00.003-06:00

The lake looks pretty much open along the North Shore ... hmmm. It might be fun to load a kayak or two on the Jeep this weekend and make the run up to the lake. Friday night or an early Saturday departure, all day Saturday hanging out along the North Shore. Drive back on Sunday.

Lake of the Isles

2011-02-27T19:17:00.006-06:00

Winter seems to be holding fast this year. Last year around this time, the sun and warm temps were making short work of the snow. I think the first weekend in March last year we tried skiing the Vasa Trails up in Mora, and although we found some good skiing, we also found an abundance of grass where the trail was once hard packed snow! More than once we had to remove our skis and walk to the next area with enough shade to protect the snow pack. This year I managed to somehow injure my shoulder on the ski trails, so it looks like my skiing is over for the Winter regardless of snow cover. So, I am looking forward to Spring and soon getting the kayaks out on the local lakes again. With thoughts of Spring we ventured out in the 10f temps this morning for a walk around Lake of the Isles. You can see from the photos that we may have just a bit of a wait.

Just a quick Valentine's wish

2011-02-14T21:35:00.002-06:00

Take the time to tell that someone you care about ... that you do!
Hey V, Happy Valentines!

Brussel Sprouts and Grip Tape

2011-02-12T21:44:00.004-06:00

Running errands all day trying to get some things done I've been procrastinating over for a long time .. in fact, my week has been sort of a house cleaning week. Things tend to pile up and before you know it the list becomes insurmountable. Well, it feels like that anyway. So after a busy day I'm looking for something to eat, the doritos on top of the fridge don't look so good, had a banana earlier, cookies!! (bad idea) so I decide on trying to cook some brussel sprouts. Now, I've had brussel sprouts cooked by someone I enjoy cooking with, but the problem is I should have paid better attention. I came up with a pretty good plan and I was on my way. I had everything I needed! Olive oil, lemons, sea salt, pepper. Even though they got a little crispy, they were pretty good.

With the Vasaloppet Relay race tomorrow morning, and daytime temps forecast to be around 40f, anyone planning to ski the race classic is going have a tough time picking the right ski wax. I'd tried Grip Tape in the past, and have friends that swear by it, I had bad luck with it. Of course, I'm thinking I just might have used to much ... maybe. So we have a few people on the two skoac teams going classic, and tonight we spent some time getting Chris's ski's ready with the grip tape for tomorrows race. I'll be curious to see what people use for kick wax when the temp gets so warm. I have a tough time with it.

the photo is last years relay team. This year we have two teams .. should be a good day!

Sunrise 2011

2011-01-04T08:49:00.006-06:00

I probably have more sunrise images saved than sunsets, this one I took this morning. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference just looking at them, but the meaning behind them is all the difference in the world.
Many of us start new years resolutions at the beginning of the year, wouldn't be much more manageable to have that resolution at the beginning of the day? I belong to one of the local fitness clubs in the Twin Cities, and this time of year is near impossible to find a parking spot because of all the "I'm going to get back in shape this year!" resolutions. In about 4 or 5 weeks it will be back to normal, and all the resolution makers will go back about their normal lives ... ah well, maybe next year.
I guess its all about new beginnings and making the right choices along the way. Every morning gives us a chance to start over and try again. Best wishes to everyone for 2011!

Lemons and Water

2010-12-29T20:00:00.006-06:00

I always hear about drinking enough water, and I guess I am one of those people that has a hard time drinking enough to stay properly hydrated. A way I've found recently is to keep a thermos of hot water with a lemon to cut up and add to give some flavor. Its also a great way to warm up at the end of a long day ...

Sunrise on the Outer Loop

2010-12-26T09:18:00.004-06:00

Up early and did the 5k loop lighted trail, then hit the outer 4 mile loop to watch the sunrise. I'll have to round up some of the usual suspects for some afternoon skiing. Going to be a nice day!!

More Snow!

2010-12-24T12:20:00.005-06:00

A fresh 4 inches of snow last night made the outside loop at Elm Creek a bit of a slog this morning. It was a nice time to be out.

This owl was hunting for his morning meal ... he made a quick jump on something, more than likely a mouse.

And as soon as I passed him he was off. Great morning on the trails!!

Swix Blue

2010-12-23T21:32:00.004-06:00

With the highs a bit below freezing it's looking like a Swix Blue kind of week shaping up. Glide wax comes in a few different colors, and each color will be for a specific range of temperature. Around the upper Midwest, blue seems to be the color of choice most of the time. So with Christmas shopping all done ... a day ahead of time this year!! A peaceful evening here with a light new coating of snow, I took the opportunity for a relaxing evening in the shop and get the skis ready for yet another few training sessions. So with errands all completed, and the day off from work, I will be gliding over the trails at Elm Creek tomorrow morning, visiting family in the afternoon, dinner and some music for the evening.

Just a holiday wish for everyone to be with the ones they love and care about over their holiday celebrations.

Good Ski Night

2010-12-22T21:57:00.003-06:00

It's tough getting good night images without a tripod. I had to rest the little Olympus on a lamp post to steady it for the 2 or 3 second exposure time.
Had some good skiing tonight. After running some errands, trying to get a little last minute Christmas shopping in, I still needed to get at least an hour ski in. When I got to French, I found the place absolutely packed! Not even a place to park in the lot. I almost bagged it. Well, it was still 7:30, the lights are on in the park until 10pm so I really didn't have a good excuse for not going.
Elm Creek was only 20 minutes away so I thought I'd take a chance on finding a parking spot, and hopefully not have to ski through a mass of people. Traffic was light, Elm had plenty of parking room, and a lot less people.
I had some good luck with the V2 open field skate tonight, finally getting the timing down a little better. Good balance seems to play a big part in making everything go smoothly. The older I get, the more elusive good balance is! Tonight was good! I even had the chance to pass a few skaters instead of being passed all the time. Of course none of the skaters I passed tonight were real Olympian material, but none the less, it was nice to not get passed all night long!

Catching Up

2010-12-21T20:29:00.005-06:00

With the last couple snow falls we are well on our way to a great skiing season. I don't remember the last time we've had this much snow in mid December, and we were even fortunate enough to have some skiing in Duluth over the Thanksgiving weekend. I've actually had plenty of stuff to write about, I've just not taken the time to sit down and put another blog post together. So my apologies to those that came here and found nothing but the sound of crickets.

I couldn't be happier with the early snow this year. I'm going to need all the time I can get on the ski trails with the Vasaloppet, and the Birkie coming up towards the end of February. The Birkie I've never done before, so this is a first for me. And if I'm doing the Birkie I might as well sign up for either the 35k or the 58k in the Vasa. I think with a decent time in the Vasa I can move up a wave or two in the Birkie, I'm currently in the ninth wave.

So the training is going smoothly. I'm out skiing at least an hour most every night after work, and as much as i can on the weekends. I'm going to need it! Right now I'm only good for a bit over an hour and I start running out of energy, I'm going to need quite a bit more than that.

So since the training has begun, I will try and keep posting here how the progress goes. I'm also planning on skating the Birkie, and this is really only my second year skating so it could be interesting!

Border Lakes

2010-10-24T17:55:00.011-06:00

Late Fall trips to the Canadian border lakes can be tempting when the promise of nice weather is in the forecast, especially when I know Summer boat traffic is long gone. This time of year, the north country lakes are quiet. It's the time between fishing, hunting, and snow machines. Kabetogama was the choice this time, and with a base camp at Woodenfrog campground, we had a perfect opportunity to check out the West end of Kab. I'd never seen the the Ellsworth Rock Gardens so this was our first destination for a late Friday afternoon lunch stop. The gardens are a worthwhile stop to see, and I can only imagine the how it would look in the Spring with the flowers in full bloom. As it was we saw the stone structures one man had assembled over 20 years. One can only imagine the work involved, moving the large stones into place with planks and ropes. The gardens are worth the time to go see.

This was a weekend trip we decided to leave the GPS at home and do some seat of the pants navigation. It was hard to leave the reliable little Garmin at home this time, and on a part of the lake I'd never been on, it was going to be a challenge! I'd like to blame it on poor maps, because more than once I was wondering what island we were looking at. In the end we found our way, but it wasn't without some head scratching! Navigation among the lakes and islands of the north country is definitely a challenge, some map reading skills along with a good understanding of the compass is the only way to be comfortable finding your way around this place.

The weather was fantastic .. we had the full moon weekend .. and with a base camp at Woodenfrog, with the Jeep and a cooler full of good food, plenty of wood for the campfires for the long fall evenings, a deck of cards and a bottle of wine. Life can be pretty darn good if you give it a chance.

Silver Islet to Rossport

2010-08-26T15:53:00.011-06:00

Getting ready for a run up to do the Silver Islet to Rossport paddle. I've not done this trip yet, and I'm looking forward to the time on Lake Superior. It's been the fall of 2006 since I've spent any real time on the lake. I did my very first blog post on it in December of 2006. So I'm over due for an extended time on the water. The real big difference in a weekend trip and a 10 day trip is pretty much bringing more food, but the nice part is getting into a daily paddling routine. You get into a routine of checking weather just before sack time, and checking it again as soon as you're awake in the morning. Getting into routine with your group also starts to come together after a short time. I've done a lot of paddling with the people in our small group and skill levels are pretty equal, so with any luck, and some good weather, we should have an enjoyable trip.

I did read through Dave's blog today. Any time you go out on the big lake, you need to do a self check, and take into consideration who you are paddling with. Things can get ugly in a hurry when something goes wrong. I learned long ago that if you can recognize a problem developing, we need to stop and take a check. Real trouble doesn't just happen, it starts long before when the chain of events starts to happen, and isn't recognized. But there in lies the problem, it's learning to see it develope. It's not always that easy to see.

The Bears

2010-08-16T07:50:00.017-06:00

Jack ..

Having the opportunity to watch the Alaskan Brown Bear up close is something I never thought I'd have the chance to do. I think we are conditioned to see the Grizzly Bear as a fearsome predator, that will attack and eat you at the smallest provocation. The Alaskan Brown is the same bear, only bigger because of the rich diet of salmon along the coast. Also, because of the abundance of food, the Coastal Brown may just be the safest of all bears to view. These bears have never been hunted, or fed by humans (us!) they've been watched here in the Katmai National Park for over 18 years, and because everyone who has visited here has always respected this small fact. If you want to see the result of the interaction of people and bears on an absolutely destructive level one only needs to look as far as Yellowstone, or, in my neck of the woods, the Apostle Islands. Every year now for as long as I've been paddling in the Apostles, there have been islands closed to visitors because of problems with Black Bears. We are all losers in this situation, the people who can no longer visit the campsites and islands, and the bears. A problem bear will eventually need to be destroyed, and it's a learned behavior just from the interaction with careless people. Dave has made some excellent posts on the bear problems in the Apostles, and I just wanted to touch on this subject before I got into the Browns in the Katmai.

I had the chance to visit Alaska this summer for the first time. Alaska is one of the places I'd always dreamed of going to. The land of Denali, and so many glaciers I could never count them, caribou, moose, and of course, the big bears. The chance came as a job offer to work the summer on the planes at K Bay Air. Not getting into the details, but it was as fair an offer as any I'd ever had, and it was in Alaska. Little did I know how good an offer it was.

Before the bears I had the opportunity to meet, and spend a lot of time with the people of K Bay Air, a small company with two pilots Michael and Jack, a small office staff consisting of Dee and Elena, and the ground crew with Nick and Duncan, Canine Jim .. and me. I owe a debt if gratitude to these people for hospitality they showed me. They are the best! Check the website on the link, and if you ever get a chance to go to Alaska, it really is worth every penny to go see the bears.

When the salmon aren't running in the streams, the bears eat the sedge grass. The grass is abundant along the coast. It's high in protein, and the bears seem to enjoy eating it. When I first saw this I thought they just looked like cows in a pasture eating grass. but cows don't have big canine teeth and claws! But none the less there they were, grazing. I'd hoped to get a chance to view them in the stream catching salmon, and they didn't disappoint me.

These are just some of the over 400 images I took that afternoon. All were taken with Cannon EOS and a 200 mm lens, and are untouched by photoshop. Many I had to back off the zoom because they just filled up the viewfinder. When I could hear the grass tearing from the ground as the bears ate, and hear them breath as they walked by, you know you are as close as you will ever safely get.

The Katmai National Park is so inaccessible that the only way in is by plane and landing on the beach during low tide. I can only hope it stays this way so the bears and us will continue to coexist in this incredible place.

Flying into Katmai National Park

2010-07-30T12:20:00.013-06:00

These are just some of the images from the flight into Katmai National Park, we had low clouds so getting to some of the areas was not possible that day. A day in the life of an Alaskan bush pilot.

Airforce

2010-07-28T01:10:00.003-06:00

Today the Air Force was out with one of there C-130's doing some touch and goes. Just an amazing aircraft.

Coasties

2010-07-26T14:51:00.002-06:00

Hanging out at the Homer Airport today, hopefully the rain will let up and I'll get out and do some paddling this afternoon.

Caught the Coast Guard doing touch and goes this morning when I showed up.

Sunny Days

2010-07-26T01:24:00.003-06:00

The weather here is so often cloudy with light rain. I don't mind it, in fact I somewhat enjoy the peacefulness of the area with the clouds and quiet nature of the light rain. But the days when the sun comes out a person has to go out and enjoy it. I find myself walking the beaches most any day, but the sunny days are always good.

Tides

2010-07-15T14:53:00.007-06:00

One of my topics for the IDW/ICE was tides, and all though I understood the principles behind what makes it all happen, I've never really had the opportunity to witness this phenomena in action. The tidal range here at Kachemak Bay in Homer Alaska is one of the highest in the world, this week the range went from a low of -4.9 to a high of 20.5. That's a lot of water moving in and out of the bay! I had a quick lesson from local kayaking guru Tom Pogson at the Alaska Kayak School, and on a paddle across the bay we headed into China Poot Bay. It was our first trip out together, and had some folks along that wouldn't appreciate the "fun" in the middle of the channel so we stayed along the edges going in. The interesting thing in the middle of Katchemak Bay, there was very little current, the bay being around 300 ft deep pretty much allows the water in and out without much fuss. All in all it was a great day on the water, but we didn't get into the tidal action that day .. soon I hope!

Here is a shot of the same piece of driftwood at the high tide line during the high and low. If you click on the low tide shot you can see some people along the waters edge.

The Bears ...

2010-07-12T23:40:00.002-06:00

We did find some bears.

Here is a link to the photos

Lake Clark National Park

2010-07-11T00:20:00.017-06:00

To find the Alaskan Brown bear you can go on your own and take your chances. Or you can go with someone who does it every day. Even flying in to the areas where the bears are, one needs to have someone who can get you in and out safely.

Along the Lake Clark National Park shoreline

Turning into Chinitna Bay

Do you see the landing strip?

There's a beach to land on somewhere down there ....

Touchdown point is right on the curve.

Now lets go find some bears!

Plans

2010-06-29T08:55:00.007-06:00

Just back from an introductory trip to the Apostle Islands. I've done this trip for the last few years as one of the instructors, and the trip always proves to be rewarding to see people get on the big lake for the first time. Lake Superior can be intimidating, but with the right gear, and some good decision making, Superior can be one of the best kayaking destinations around. That's what this weekend was all about. Wind, weather, navigation, making the go-no go decisions, and using that information to get out and see the Superior is all about. The key is starting with small inner island trips with the right people, sticking your nose in the wind and waves a little bit at a time to gain the experience to take on the longer more advanced trips.

This was the last trip up for me until August. This time tomorrow I will be en route to Alaska for the month of July. For a guy that's never been further north than Thunder Bay, this trip is a big one for me. I will be working on planes while I'm there, but the location will give me some good opportunities to get some training myself on the ocean. I'm not a stranger to wind, waves, and cold water, but the tide thing adds another whole dimension. After some searching and asking friends, the Alaska Kayak School in Homer was recommended to me every time. And it looks like they have some classes I can sign up for this July.

Also, soon as I get settled in, I'll introduce you to the bear guy!

Some photos from last weekend

2010-06-22T20:16:00.005-06:00

SKOAC Intro 2010

2010-06-13T08:49:00.011-06:00

I was up around 5:30 am checking weather for the day ... predicting a high of 70F and a 5o/50 chance of rain showers for the day. A cloud ceiling of only 500ft, and a quick look at the radar showed a large band of rain headed our way, looking like it would arrive the cities around 10am. A quick breakfast, load some boats, pick up Chris, we are at the lake by 8:30 ready for the day. A quick discussion among the instructors and we had our doubts about everyone showing with the predicted weather, we had some extra warm paddling gear if someone needed it. Hopefully everyone would show.

We did the class at Shady Oak Lake this year, on recommendation from Michelle from ISK, and turned out to be a great place teach the class. A nice covered picnic area for the classroom portions, the lake was clean and small, perfect for keeping track of 12 new kayakers.

After a morning of teaching subjects on boats, paddles, and proper gear, and some dry land rescue demos, we are on the water just as the light rain starts. One on one for the initial wet exits and everyone comes through without a hitch, in what can be a tough part of the class. Most people are ok in the water, but put them inside a kayak with a tight fitting spray skirt, tip over, and it becomes an entirely different matter! Doing a few clean wet exits can add a lot to someones confidence when they start working on the rescues and taking time to be sure everyone is really ready, will make the whole day go much better than if this portion of the class is rushed.

We had an intrepid bunch this year. Everyone showed for the class, and held a positive attitude all day, right though the wind, rain, and cold. It never did get above 60F for the entire day. Every time I help teach this class, I end the day feeling like I got as much out of the day as anyone who participated in the class. Feeling the highs as someone completes their first wet exit, or gets the confidence to finally go out on a lake alone knowing that if they go over, they can safely do a self rescue, is as rewarding to me, as it is to them.

Thompson Island

2010-06-03T14:02:00.003-06:00

Finally getting a few photos up on SmugMug from the weekend. I'll keep adding to it as I go through them.

Moon Set

2010-06-01T11:35:00.004-06:00

4am looking out of the tent on Thompson Island on Lake Superior. Four days just wasn't enough ... gotta go back and spend some more time along the Canadian shores of the lake. Maybe this Fall.

First Apostle Sunset

2010-05-17T20:57:00.007-06:00

A late start to the islands this year. Usually I've been up camping in the Apostles by the first or second week of April, this year I'm well into May for the first overnight. Maybe I was just waiting for one of the nicer weekends.

Rather than drive two vehicles this time, we decided to cram everything in my Jeep, take the Skoac three place trailer and head out on Friday evening for the drive to Superior Wisconsin for a pizza dinner at one of the finest brew pubs around. The Thirsty Pegan has been a stop on the way up to places north for a few years now, and I've never been disappointed in the service, pizza, live music, or the beer. I recommend them anytime you're going through the Duluth/Superior area. The key for an enjoyable dinner is bar area seating rather than the dining area .. the older I get the harder time I have picking up conversation in an area with lots of background noise. Even though the band was playing I can hear better without the dining room noise. I don't know if it's just me, but I've heard the same comments from other 50+ individuals. The next morning after breakfast at the Egg Toss in Bayfield we meet Chris and Cathy at Boreal Shores Kayaking and look over the two kayaks they have set up for us. The black over black NDK Explorer I've had my eye on since way last year is loaded up on the Jeep, along with a nice NDK Explorer HV, and we are off to the islands. Lots to do this weekend in only a short two days. We need to make it to Manitou for Saturday night, but even though it's now a noon departure, we still need to spend some time meandering around some of the islands, maybe stop for a late lunch on the way. Manitou has been closed all last year due to bear activity, we found some tracks on the beach, but never saw any bears.

We did check out the collapsed "hole in the wall" on Oak Island the next day as we made our way around the back side of the island for an extended paddle back to Red Cliff. A nice first weekend on the islands, some new boats, and I'm ready for the next few weekends coming up. Its going to be the Skoac "Spring Fling" on Sand next weekend. Then a group of us are headed up to Thunder Bay for some time at the "Saunas". I've not made it to the Saunas yet so this one I am really looking forward to.

Catching Up .. boats and stuff.

2010-05-11T18:46:00.003-06:00

Getting behind on the posting thing again .. A great trip up to Superior last week, spent some quality time in one Chris's demo Explorers from Boreal Shores Kayaking. I think he needed a new demo for the season and just grabbed one of last years new boats off the rack and let me play with it for the weekend. Well, I've not a great deal of time in Explorers until last week. So, after a great deal of thought on the subject, when I returned I decided to put the Nordkapp up for sale and go for the Explorer. My paddling buddy Dave may be thinking the same thing because he spent a good deal of time in the boat too last week. We've a small group going up this weekend for some much needed time on the islands, I'm sure we will discuss the matter and come up with some solid boat plans!

On another matter. I've been arranging a month in Homer Alaska this summer. I was able to get a month leave from work, and have some friends in great places! More to come on this subject!

Chippewa Flowage

2010-04-19T09:56:00.003-06:00

The Chippewa Flowage is an outstanding early season kayaking destination. I had the good fortune of being invited along this year to enjoy some quiet time on the flowage. No fishing at all is allowed on the flowage until the normal fishing season has begun in Wisconsin. Consequently, we had over 15,000 acres and 230 miles of shoreline to explore with virtually no boater traffic to be seen. With the nice weather we could have easily had our choice of campsites. However, this time of year we could easily have had snow and or cold rain, so the cabin was a good choice.

Spring time on Superior

2010-04-15T07:17:00.003-06:00

I look forward to the first paddle of the season on Lake Superior. This year an early April trip was especially nice for a couple reasons, the early snow melt and warm weather, plus Dave offered up the deer camp for sleeping and an evening sauna after the days paddle. Couldn't have made for a nicer weekend! I tried some fishing for Coho on the lake this time, no luck, but I hope to change that in the near future. Some hiking throughout the trails at the deer camp to check out the latest forest management efforts on Sunday rounded out the weekend.

Apostles

2010-03-25T06:45:00.003-06:00

This latest satellite image is showing the Apostles relatively ice free! Looks like an early April paddle to the islands could be in the works.

Recovering the Skin on Frame

2010-03-17T07:07:00.008-06:00

The SOF is getting a new cover this week. Last Fall I removed the old covering thinking I'd have all winter to get some fabric, and have a go a the recovering job. Well here it is mid March and nothing happening on the boat ... until yesterday. It's a job I probably could have muddled through, but having someone with some experience could save a lot of time and mistakes. With the St Cloud Rolling Demo/Clinic fast approaching I needed some help. After a few emails Jeff Bjorgo ready to teach me a little about re-skinning a kayak. Jeff did a few minor repairs to the frame, and we were quickly getting underway, by about midnight last night we had the covering complete, and the combing attached. I need to order some color and the boat will be ready for some good years of service. I'll get a few more photos up soon.

First Roll!

2010-03-14T17:51:00.003-06:00

Just a quick congrats to Sherri for her first rolls at the pool session this afternoon. It's always fun to get someone rolling for the first time. Now we need to wait for the lakes to thaw out .. 62F today! March in Minnesota!

Transitions

2010-03-13T15:42:00.006-06:00

It's that time of year when its hard do much of anything outside. The lakes are still frozen solid, and the ski trails are closed. This has been the one of the quickest snow melts I've seen in a long time. I know a few people that will still get out and ski around the shorelines of the local lakes, but I have a hard time trusting the ice. Besides, it's starting to look wet along the shorelines. It is starting to get nice enough outside where I will have to quit going to the gym, and start running outside. Now just get the motivation to get on it! I took the camera along on a tour of the local lakes this afternoon to have a look, and start thinking about some paddling. I know a couple guys who have headed up to the Minnesota North Shore of Superior for some paddling this weekend. After checking the satellite photos of Superior it looks like the Apostles are still pretty iced in. Maybe I can get an early April trip to Superior in this year .. I tried last year but was pretty much iced in.

Spring Skiing

2010-03-07T19:21:00.003-06:00

The ski season here is starting to come to an end. With daytime highs well above freezing, the snow will be gone soon. Our small group of skiers headed up to Mora today to try and get in one last run at the Vasaloppet Trails, and we hit it early this morning and had a great day of skiing. There were a few spots we had to remove the skis and walk through, but for the most part it was one of the best days of skiing all winter.

Vasaloppet 2010

2010-02-16T10:46:00.003-06:00

The weather was perfect for the Vasaloppet Relay Team last weekend. It was a bit windy and around 20F for the race, but a far different race than the one two years ago when it was -16F at the race start! I'll take a little breeze instead thank you. The SKOAC Renegade Kayak and Ski team did just fine, I believe we even bettered our times from past years.

A few photos from the day on SmugMug.

Warm Summer afternoons

2010-01-20T08:48:00.005-06:00

With the freezing drizzle, rain, and ice forecast to hit the area this week, it's time to start thinking about some Summer paddling plans. The Apostle Islands are always an easy get away so I can leave that to a "last minute I'm outa here!" The North Shore I've found so over run with people that the only time the area is usable is during the off season. I'll leave that to the "Winter Campers". Talk of a Silver Islet to Rossport along the Canadian shore has come up in recent time with our small group of paddlers, and I would do another Isle Royale trip this year if I could get a group together. I do have some plans for a February run down to Florida for some paddling around the 10,000 Islands but finances just aren't looking like that will happen ... I may just start working on some Lake Superior ideas for now.

The Southpaw Band

2010-01-03T20:46:00.004-06:00

Wow! 32 years ago that was my job for about a year. It didn't pay very well, but we had a good time. We lost Bruce last month, he's on the far left of the photo. I'm the one with the goofy hat. Those of us who knew Bruce lost a good friend .. the rest of us lost a great musician. Music was his life. Next weekend we have a few of the old band members, along with some musicians who have known Bruce for many years are doing a benefit to help his family out, and I'm trying to remember songs I haven't played for 30 yrs. This should prove to be a fun and interesting night. Not only the old band members I haven't seen for years, there are going to be so many people at the benefit who I haven't seen for as many years as well. I'm thankful be be a part of it, but sad for this reason we are bringing all these people together after all these years. Rest in peace my friend.

New Year Weekend

2010-01-02T18:02:00.004-06:00

The plan was to get out and do some skiing today. At 7am this morning it was -23F so my skiing plans were in jeopardy. The Minneapolis "City of Lakes Loppet" is coming up soon, the "VasaLoppet" is the very next weekend after the city race, so I need to get out and get skiing! At noon the temps finally made up to -5F so off to the trails I went. Not surprisingly I found the ski trails at French Regional totally abandoned, maybe 6 or 7 cars in the parking lot. 4 laps around the Lagoon trail, and a half lap around the skyway trail and I pretty much had frozen fingers and was ready to call it quits. Fingers are the first thing to get cold and probably the last to warm up, I wasn't going to hang around to see if they would ever get to the point I could feel them again so and hour on the trail was about all I could do today. Maybe some warmer mittens for tomorrow.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T11:13:00.003-06:00

Just a quick "Merry Christmas" to all, and to good things in the new year.

Good Times

2009-10-29T07:25:00.004-06:00

Looking forward to three days up along the southern shore of Superior this weekend. A stop at the "Thirsty Pegan" for beers and pizza tonight, then we find our way to some kayaking on Superior and Lake O, hiking the trails, saunas, some social time with friends, and some good music (I may even bring a guitar along). Lots going on these days ...

Aleut II

2009-09-02T17:00:00.000-06:00

Another Valley boat! Four of us have pooled our resources to buy a lightly used Aleut II. We had it out last night on one of the local lakes to check it out a bit, and I brought along the Poseidon to use as a photo ship to record the maiden voyage. With two good paddlers in the boat ... this is about the only view I could get! It really is a performance kayak. It edges nice .. we never once needed to use the rudder to turn. I was getting a little carried away with the leaning, but nobody wanted to roll it last night. Hmm. I think it should roll just fine!

SOF Covering

2009-08-28T22:02:00.005-06:00

Well I was just going to repaint the SOF so I could seal up some of the little holes. As I was trying to clean off some of the silicone spots I had dabbed on as a temporary fix for some of the major leaks I got carried away. The skin was somewhere around 5 or 6 years old so it was time to check out the frame work anyway. I found everything in remarkably good condition under the fabric. I should consult a couple of the local builders here on the what I should do next, but it looks pretty strait forward, maybe oil the wood, decide what to cover it with and do it!

We're Going!

2009-08-21T14:39:00.003-06:00

I have to wonder how many people cancel trips because of the forecast. I know this lake can make its own weather, and we have to take in all the information we can to make a safe decision. But ... Only a few short hours ago the forecast was even worse than the earlier one.

Small Craft Advisory is Cancelled
Wind less than 15, waves 1-3 all weekend.

Apostle Island Weekend

2009-08-21T06:16:00.004-06:00

The plan is to head up to the Apostles tonight and spend the weekend with a group on the islands. Tonight is Oak, then Stocton for Saturday night. The weather forecast is not looking like it's going to be one of those calm relaxing weekends. Winds up to 25 kts and 4-6 ft waves for today, then 3-5 ft for Saturday. So many times the near shore forecast changes quickly. I've driven up with a forecast of calm winds and less than 2 ft waves and when I arrive I find the lake all cranked up with wind and waves. The group I'm going up with isn't ready for 3-5 footers. Will have to watch the weather closely and make some decisions soon.

More Skeg Stuff

2009-08-17T19:03:00.004-06:00

I suppose I shouldn't beat up on P&h for the Cetus skeg issues .. when I first picked up my Valley Nordkapp I had some issues with the skeg. It was so stiff I could hardly move it, I then took the boat on a quick trip to the Apostle Islands without taking the time to find out what the problem was and promptly bent the cable when I forgot to raise the skeg as I paddled up to shore on Basswood Island. I spent the rest of the weekend with the skeg stuck half way. the fix on the Nordkapp was to replace the now bent cable, and tip the boat upside down and spray WD40 in the little hole where the cable comes out in the skeg box until the stuff is running out the slider. That seemed to fix the Nordkapp cable skeg .. also I attach a short rope to the skeg so if the skeg ever gets stuck in the up position, I can ask one of my paddling companions to reach down and yank the rope to free the skeg. A not so much fun task when the water temp near freezing! I've added the rope to both the NDK and the Nordkapp, and have had to use them a number of times. Most of the folks I paddle with do the same. Much better than a bent skeg cable! I also had problems with my NDK Poseiden with the seemingly trouble free rope skeg. For some reason the whole system was binding, and just didn't work well, also the tube the rope went through leaked. I took everything all apart cleaned it up, reset the bungee tension, and tightened up the leaking tube. I also had to re glass around the skeg box for some leaks there too. Both these boats have had trouble free skegs now for years, and I know the Cetus will be resolved too. P&H needs to be commended for standing behind there product and taking care of the problem.

Cetus Skegs

2009-08-16T16:43:00.008-06:00

A close friend has just purchased a new P&H Cetus. An awesome boat to paddle, very responsive, edges nice, good stability. The only complaint she has with the new boat is the skeg is almost impossible to operate. Douglas at "Seakayak Photo" has written a comprehensive post on the subject and has spent a good bit of time working on the Cetus skeg also, and anyone trying to fix the skeg issue should check this out. She brought the boat over to the hanger today so I could help her install a new compass for her up coming trip to the Pukaskwa next week, and we also wanted to have a look at the offending skeg. If she can't resolve it this week she will have to take her old boat on the trip instead, the skeg is just that hard to operate. I spend a fair bit of time working on mechanical things .. aircraft have a plethora of cables, pulleys and such, and looking at this set up I can see a leverage problem from the start. I really don't think the small cord is binding inside the cable housing. The angle is off coming into the skeg box enough that the cord is chafing, and will break at some point. We may try a lighter shock cord first, it that doesn't help I'd recommend taking the boat to the boys at Northwest Canoe for some modifications to the cord angle. Some sort of cam to offset the increased tension from the shock chord could work too.

Black and White

2009-08-15T21:03:00.002-06:00

From my last post Silbs mentioned he would like to see this image in black and white. The sky was a bit washed out so I added some saturation to bring out the clouds ... I like it ... I wouldn't have thought to try it in black and white. Always learning!

Sand Island

2009-08-14T13:10:00.003-06:00

I finally got around to adding some images from the Apostle Island trip last week. Lots of wind and waves. Our campsite was protected from the wind so any waves that came through to the beach were coming from around the point. The big stuff was out a few hundred yards. Real fun weekend!

Two Harbors and Point to LaPointe

2009-08-10T18:39:00.006-06:00

I've been going to the Two Harbors Kayak Festival now since 2003. It's been sort of a personal annual event. This year however I didn't enter any of the races, or even participate in any of the events, I just showed up and watched some friends start the race in the fog, and then headed off with DaveO, Chris, Steve, and Cheryl on an outstanding 7 mile paddle along the North Shore. We put in a little before Split Rock and went up to Silver Bay. It was a real nice afternoon, and I didn't miss pounding away on an 18 mile race at all.

The real fun event I did participate in this weekend was the two mile swim from Point to LaPointe as a support paddler. I swim pretty much like a rock, I can do it, but not for any distance. These people really impressed me. An open water swim for two miles in Lake Superior is in my book a daunting task, and not to be taken lightly. I was assigned "community swimmer" Todd. Todd impressed me more than the elite racers who started in the first wave who everyone knew would make the finish. The community swimmers are the everyday folks who are getting out and taking new challenges. These people were required to have a kayaker as an escort all the way across. I was happy to be asked to go along with Todd as he did the two mile swim. He did an outstanding race!

Point to LaPointe

2009-08-07T06:27:00.002-06:00

Heading to Bayfield tonight for an early morning paddle with 200 swimmers. The Point to LaPointe swim has been going since 2006 starting with 24 swimmers, and in just a few years has grown to 200, the max allowed by the Coast Guard. Myself along with 30 other kayakers, will be escorting swimmers across the bay. Then it's off to Two Harbors for the Annual Kayak Festival. I'll be arriving late so I'll not be able to enter any of the races, but it's a great place to hang out for the rest of the weekend anyway.
Last weekend I had my little Optio W20 along with me on an Apostle Island trip with DaveO and most of the skoac renegades, I think I may have some water in the camera because the photos I took all weekend didn't turn out so well.

Cooper's Hawk

2009-07-28T14:22:00.006-06:00

We had a Cooper's Hawk with a broken wing here at the airport yesterday. Birds and airplanes don't mix well ... sometimes the birds will take down the occasional plane, but most of the time the birds lose. This little guy managed to get off the runway and hid behind the hanger where we were able to keep him out of harms way. We called the Raptor Center and they came out to pick him up right away. A little excitement at the airport!

Update: At first we were told it was a Coopers Hawk. After some checking I think its an American Kestrel.

Update: 7/29/2009 We spoke with the Raptor Center today and yes it was a Kestrel. They had to put it down because the wing was way to damaged.

Wednesday Nights

2009-07-23T06:42:00.003-06:00

What a great evening last night. The SKOAC skill are sessions on Lake Calhoun every other Wednesday night, and last night was a nice turnout. I think we had 18 people show up to work on everything from draw strokes to rolling. Michael got his first roll in last night by the way! Congrats Michael! The ISK group on their Wednesday night paddle even stopped by to say hi, with Jeff showing off the new Romany Surf he picked up from Chris at Boreal Shores Kayaking in Bayfield last weekend. Jill was sporting a brand new P&H Cetus she picked up at Midwest Mountaineering. Two new boats, one new roller, and a new resteraunt to check out afterwards so, really a nice evening. And I left my camera in the Jeep so no pictures.

2009-07-20T07:55:00.002-06:00

Even with two paddling clubs, and many friends, I still do a lot of solo paddling around the cities. But when you add the uncertainty of paddling on Lake Superior, it makes more sense to go with others. Now I get the free time, I call the park service and get a campsite. I send a quick email out to a few folks and find schedules just aren't going to work so .. what the heck .. I go anyway. The big lake has a lot to offer the solo paddler, as long as the weather cooperates we're good to go. A solo trip out to Oak Island is an easy 5 mile paddle from Red Cliff Marina, the crossing out to Oak is a quick 2 miles. Really not much more than a morning paddle. A little exploring the shoreline on the East side of the island, head back and set up camp for the night. I did have to share my little island with a group of 7 women that showed up later in the day. Not that I am complaining ...

here's a link to the photos from the weekend.

Apostles - Packed up ready to go -

2009-07-17T06:14:00.006-06:00

I haven't made it up to Lake Superior as often this year as in past seasons, so when I have some free time I need to take advantage of it. When I checked on available campsites in the Apostles for this weekend I was surprised to find Oak 1 open. Usually all the nice sites are taken right away. Being a last minute trip and everyone's busy schedule it looks like this will be a solo trip. I haven't done any solo trips to the islands yet, so this should be a fun weekend. Weather looks ok ... calling for winds in the 15 kt range with waves 2-4ft until late Saturday, then lighter winds with calm to 2ft. That may change, and it often does so, like always I watch the weather pretty close. So 4:00 pm I'm off ... Back on Sunday night.

4th of July Weekend

2009-07-06T15:15:00.004-06:00

Other than a windy weekend on York in June, I haven't been out on the islands yet this year. With a three day weekend and some camping permits in hand ... many thanks to Courtney ... our small group of six paddlers had some of the best weather the big lake has had to offer in many weeks. That and NO bugs all weekend. I think during the summer months its a timing thing, and luck! The stars aligned and it couldn't have been a better time to be on the islands.

We even found some new sea caves we hadn't seen yet, along the rocky northeast shore of Manitou, and on the north shore of Bear we found some really huge sea caves. Some we were back in 20 feet or more.

We had the opportunity to check out the Raspberry Island Lighthouse since the recent renovation. Really nice! The tour is worth the time to see and listen to, the gentleman on staff there gave a presentation worthy of the history of the lighthouse.

I did meet this fellow .. he had devised a way to bring that little bit more gear along by towing a little whitewater kayak along on trips. If you look closely there is a 6 ft 2x4 with a skeg to keep it going strait. He was with a huge group was headed to Sand Island for the long weekend. I was thinking he was maybe hauling the beer?!

Anyway ... a great weekend. Lots of good food! Good weather! And no BUGS!

Intro to Lake Superior Weekend

2009-06-29T14:57:00.010-06:00

Every year in June we offer an "Intro to Lake Superior" weekend for people in the club that want to get out on the big lake for the first time. We use Basswood Island as a destination because its only about a mile crossing, and usually a very protected bay when the wind starts to blow. Unfortunately this time we had an East wind as an unusually strong low pressure weather system came through. We had some new paddlers on this trip so we elected to camp on the mainland for both Friday and Saturday night. We did to the normal clinics on Navigation and map reading skills, along with plenty of talk on weather. Saturday morning we wanted to get everyone out in the wind and waves to get a feel for the lake, and also to let people push their limits a bit. We headed along the shoreline into the wind first, did some turns and maneuvering to get the feel of the wind and waves from all directions. The lake decided to calm down a bit while we were out, so we turned down wind to visit one of the shipwrecks. How long the lake stays calm is anybodies guess, so we then decide to make the crossing to Basswood to maybe check out the sea stack at Basswood. A little more than half way across the lake decides to let the wind and waves begin again. Well, one capsize, and some directional control problems we changed plans and headed back to the mainland. A little towing involved and everyone got a real lesson on how fast Lake Superior can change her mind.Sunday brings about more of the same wind and waves. Everyone who knows the area and still wants to paddle can find a spot to go. It seemed everyone had the same idea. Bark Bay Slough is a secluded place to go when there are small craft advisories and getting on Superior is a bad idea. We did get out for a nice paddle, the wind though was still blowing hard. Along the way we ran across two people who were getting blown along the shore, one of them in a solo canoe. She had almost no control and was getting into trouble. Chris, the good guy he is offered to tow her back to the launch. I really don't know how she would have got back otherwise.

Even the lily pads were having a hard time hanging on!

Bark Bay slough is a great place to check out regardless of the weather. Birds, and other wildlife are plentiful in this hidden little sanctuary.

The Greenland Thing

2009-06-25T20:45:00.002-06:00

When I received my email from Gail regarding the classes and who was teaching what, she said there was some room to change things a little bit after things got going. Once the symposium started, it became apparent that changing things around was going to be the norm, and not the exception! The traditional classes were full up, along with rolling. Both of my favorite subjects! I had been first assigned to the beginner classes, and by all rights that was where I should be, given my short tenure as an instructor. But I couldn't help wishing I could have the opportunity to help teach the traditional classes with Doug Van Doren. I could hope, right? At the instructor meeting at 8am on Saturday morning, when it was asked if anyone could help teach the traditional classes I raised my hand and was ready to give it a go. but to be honest I had to tell the lead instructors that .. yes, I've been paddling with a gp for the last 5 years, but if you want me to teach high level skills, and the like .. I will be in over my head. Doug assigned me with Lynn and Lynn for the first half day. This was perfect! I had the opportunity to work with two skilled instructors, with students who were just getting into Greenland paddling. Fun stuff to see people start to understand how the Greenland paddle works! My teaching assignment for the class was draw strokes .. I think I did OK. For the afternoon class, I fully expected to again help with the beginner class. But to my surprise Doug had me tail along with him and Mark Rogers from Superior Kayaks to help teach the advanced strokes class .. was I over my head to teach advanced Greenland strokes? Maybe. I was there to observe, and help as asked. But with Doug leading the class I was able to model after him and things went really well. He is a skilled teacher! It is amazing how well he can hold the attention, and keep a large class together while we drift in the wind across the bay. What I found I liked about the class was the practical use of the paddle. Nothing complicated, just the common sense way to use a tool in the water, to its fullest potential.
What I do find interesting though is the use of the Greenland paddle in just about any kayak. My little blue skin boat with the little white globs of silicone sealant to plug leaks was the only one on the beach all weekend. With the exception of Mark Rogers display boats. Greenland paddling is becoming all about the paddle. I'm not sure if that's the right way to go.

Inland Sea '09

2009-06-23T07:49:00.004-06:00

Back from the Instructor Update and Inland Sea Symposium. Lots to talk about, and lots of photos to go through. Now next weekend is an intro to Lake Superior trip with small group from the club. Hopefully I can sit down soon and get some thoughts and words together from the symposium. I had the chance to work with some really great people last week!

Inland Sea

2009-06-15T20:32:00.004-06:00

I'll be heading to Northern Wisconsin Wednesday morning. I hope to make it to Chris Gmeinders Grand Opening of his new shop in Bayfield .. "Boreal Shores Kayaking". He's been hard at work getting ready. Nigel Dennis will even be there for the opening. It should be a fine event, and a great addition to the town of Bayfield Wisconsin. Then I'm up for an instructor update, and a weekend of teaching at the "Inland Sea Kayak Symposium". Sunday seems a long way off right now, I'm sure the week will fly by.

Class of '09

2009-06-14T16:43:00.003-06:00

Teaching kayak skills can be as difficult as it is rewarding. I had the pleasure to work with 4 great instructors this weekend with our "Coastal Kayak Basic Strokes and Rescues" course. But the real stars of the show were the people who came out to spend a day learning as much as they could about strokes and rescues. I've not seen this much effort put out by such a large group of people for quite some time. I ended the day as tired as I was rewarded.

Midwest Demo 2009

2009-04-24T14:14:00.004-06:00

Well ... the rain and fog was replaced by wind that was gusting upwards of 30kts this year. This made for an interesting afternoon. I think the canoes had the hardest time with the wind. Our safety boaters did an outstanding job, as usual. Many thanks guys!

When things were slow we had a few of our dedicated rollers checking out the water, Ron S from Novorca Paddles brought the boat he and Alex Pak built this Winter. They were pleased do find out how nice the boat handled the wind. I'd like to spend a little time in this boat this Summer.

A side note: There were 350 people that signed in and tried out boats at the demo! Wow!

Boat Demo

2009-04-20T11:51:00.006-06:00

Last years Midwest Mountaineering Boat Demo was cold, and wet, the fog kept rolling in making it hard to keep track of people in the demo boats, but after all was done we were given a nice sunset. Every year SKOAC helps out with the demo by providing safety boaters to watch over paddlers as they try out new boats. And every year someone manages to go over, makes it a fun afternoon. This Thursday it's at Lake Nokomis and the weather looks to be a bit nicer.

Good Medicine

2009-04-16T13:20:00.002-06:00

Medicine Lake on the West side of the cities is close by for an after work paddle. The ice is out and the paddling season has begun in the Twin Cities!

North Shore

2009-04-13T08:45:00.003-06:00

Some photos from the North Shore over the weekend.

The Crow

2009-04-08T21:00:00.000-06:00

A warm Saturday in April, four guys in their early twenties decide to paddle two canoes down the Crow River. The river is high and running fast so they figure they can make some good distance. They drop a car off 20 miles or so down river and pack some sandwiches and beers for lunch. Only one of them is an experienced paddler, but he has only paddled lakes in the Boundary Waters of Northern Minnesota, the other three will be on a steep learning curve. It’s going to be a great day! The first town they come to is Hanover, as they get close someone sees them from shore and runs out along the river yelling something about a dam, they humor the guy and pull up to shore about 50 feet from the drop to check it out. What could possibly happen, the water is going over the drop as smooth as silk, and it’s only a small drop of maybe six feet, it could be lots of fun. Grudgingly they carry the canoes around the dam and are off again for the rest of the adventure. A late afternoon lunch stop on a warm sand bar and they are starting to wonder how long 20 miles of river is compared to the drive on the road to drop the car off, it sure seems like a long time since they started. The river is high here, and much of the water has overflowed the banks and is going through trees. It might be fun to paddle the canoe between the bank and the trees. But they manage to broach one of the canoes between two trees, and now their first experience of ice cold water as it flows instantly through their cotton clothing. The other canoe is in the middle of the river and witnesses the event, they quickly try and turn about to help their friends. In their haste to turn around they manage to go over also. The first canoe was close to shore, so they get the canoe emptied and climb back in to try and rescue the other two, who are still floating down river. Amazingly they gather all the floating possessions and catch up to the other canoe, they had managed to pull up to shore and empty the canoe and were getting ready climb back in. It was still a long way to the car with everyone cold and wet. A farmer sitting at his dinner table just happened to look out his window and noticed a swamped canoe floating down river, and then shortly behind two people. The kind man he was as he drove his pickup down to find them. He brought everyone back to the farmhouse and gave them dry clothes to wear and let them warm up next to the old wood stove. He then drove them down to pick up their car. He was the second person that day to save the lives of those four guys who knew nothing about paddling a canoe down an ice cold river in April.
My blood still runs cold everytime I think about the Hanover dam. I was in the canoe that broached the two trees that warm April day in 1977.

Canoecopia!

2009-03-15T19:35:00.004-06:00

Just back from another great weekend in Madison at the Canoecopia Show. Lots of stuff to see, meeting up with friends for the weekend, and trying to do my part to stimulate the economy. I didn't spend much, if the economy is waiting for me to generate enough business to get things moving again .. I'm afraid we are all in for a long wait! My original plan was to just pick up the new "Eastern Horizons" DVD. Which I did! But after checking out a bug shirt and remembering the ferocious tenacity of black flys, as they go after any exposed flesh during the mid summer season on the islands. I couldn't pass on the price! Plus, I know I could easily double my money by selling it to some hapless soul who ventured out to the islands without protection.

Valley Boats!!

Superior Kayaks had a nice display for the traditionalists .. some cool stuff.

Local Lakes

2009-03-08T19:53:00.003-06:00

thought I'd check on some of the local lakes today since the predicted snow never showed, with the ever increasing grassy areas showing up, and the warm sun, I've been anticipating the up-coming paddling season. Although the sun is high, and the warm days have started, the lakes are still quite iced over. In fact, checking out Lake Independence on the West side of the cities I discovered a few ice fishermen along with their pickup trucks still venturing out on the ice. Dave did a post today on the ice conditions on Lake Superior. I've been planning a trip with a few other paddlers to the islands during the the second weekend in April ... we may be moving the date out a bit if things don't warm up some.

Qajaq Preview

2009-02-27T08:00:00.001-06:00

Ron Steinwall with Novorca Paddles and Alex Pak have been working diligently this winter on a qajaq. Last fall during the Traditional Paddlers Gathering Ron had brought along a small replica of the design he and Alex had been working on, this design has gone from cad drawing, to replica, and finally to a full size qajaq. I'm looking forward to trying it in the pool this weekend at the ISK Pool Session.

Pool Sessions

2009-02-22T18:32:00.004-06:00

I always enjoy Sunday pool sessions. If it's the camaraderie with fellow paddlers or just the opportunity to get out of Winter mode and play in the water for just a little while ... either way ... It's worth the effort to deal with chlorinated water, the frozen tie down straps, and frozen gear (after you leave all the wet neoprene in the unheated hanger) for just a couple hours of splashing around in warm water. Our small group of paddlers did chalk up a first roll for our efforts, with Matt getting some good solid rolls in. I've even been able to get some good consistent narsaq rolls in with the SOF, also a reasonable balance brace .. fun stuff! The hand rolls are still elusive though. I can feel it .. it just isn't happening yet. I've done some nice hand rolls in Alex's Yost Sea Ranger, but not in my boats yet. It seems to be a matter of body mechanics that are not quite right yet. Today I spent some time working with a couple new paddlers getting the beginnings of a roll going. Some would say age would have a bearing on learning to roll .. I beg to differ. I believe it has everything to do with a little bit of confidence, and desire.
Lots to look forward to this Spring! Some Spring skiing in northern Wisconsin come mid March, Canoecopia is coming soon! I am looking forward to meeting up again with all the people that put on this great event in Madison ... I may even have to buy something this year. Not sure what yet I really need yet, but I'll think of something.
When you look in the back of the Jeep this time of year there is quite a mix of stuff .. kayak on the roof, snow shoes, skis, paddles, neoprene, and tennis shoes ... makes you wonder about the typical Minnesotan.

Then again, maybe I'm an exception!

Pool Time

2009-02-12T12:35:00.003-06:00

I'd like to get out of town for some skiing this weekend, but some projects here are making it hard to do that. So, since I'm here for the weekend, I'll need to dig a boat out of the hanger for Sundays ISK pool session. I've not taken the SOF to the pool yet this year and really should spend some time with it. It about wears me out if working on rolls for two solid hours for the pool session, and having the Nordkapp to climb on and do some other things makes sense. But I do need to get the SOF wet. Maybe I can spend the last half session working with some others on their rolls.

Looking Ahead

2009-02-10T21:15:00.006-06:00

After three days of isolation from a nasty bug I managed to pick up from some co-workers I was in no shape to go out and ski a 42k race. As it was I felt fortunate to get out and cheer on the SKOAC kayak and Cross Country Ski Team in the 58k Relay race. They did a great job of keeping the team in the top 10 finishers again this year. Well done!

Thoughts are now turning to Spring, and the paddling season. Of course with 40f temps and all our snow melting into huge puddles, it feels like Winters icy grip is letting up and giving us all a break from the sub zero stuff we were getting not so long ago. I'm sure we are in for some more cold and snow, it just seems like the end of Winter is close. A couple pool sessions, one or two more ski trips to Northern Wisconsin, and I'll need to start planing the first Apostle trip ... last year we were on Oak Island for the first weekend in April.

Loppet Weekends

2009-02-03T10:38:00.002-06:00

A really great weekend of skiing and hanging out with fellow paddlers/skiers. I managed to get through the 25k Hoigaards Classic race last weekend with out to much trouble, I'm not real good with the warm skiing conditions. Over dressing and choosing the right kick wax were my primary problems. I'm so used to skiing in the sub-freezing temperatures that when it warms up it throws my game off. Now with the 42k Vassaloppet coming up next weekend and temps again above the freezing mark I will need to re-think my usual plan and waxing strategies. Number one ... Klister or grip tape are going to be in the plan this week! Not sure exactly yet as I've not much experience with either .. none with the grip tape. With Thursday weather to be much like the forecast conditions for the Sunday race, I'll be out doing some testing.

Paddle Float Re-Entry Roll

2009-01-22T22:45:00.003-06:00

A while back I wrote about teaching a paddle float re-entry roll as a basic skill, my thoughts are it is not a difficult skill to learn, and once learned it is a better solo rescue than the standard paddle float rescue. A recent article on Paddling.net brought up the same subject. It's worth a read.