Serious film photographers wouldn’t think of it, but point-and-shoot digital shooters routinely snap photos with camera at arms length. Not just holding the digicams straight out in front of them, but overhead, down low or off to the side. Some point-and-shoot LCD’s even cleverly fold out and twist to aid in composing, though this isn’t […]
Baja by Kayak Mothership Ursa Major
Sea Kayaking aboard Ursa Major in the Sea of Corez in Feb, 2006. We travel from La Paz to Loreto, and return. February, 2006. Baja, MX. After 28 or so consecutive rain days in a dreary Seattle, the sweet, dry desert air of La Paz, enveloped us in bliss. We boarded the charter yacht Ursa Major, […]
Sitka Adventure Cruise
Sea Kayaking on the mothership Home Shore in SE Alaska. Destinations included Endicott Arm, West Chichagof, Icy Strait and a circumnavigation of Baranof Is. June, 2004. An American Dipper beats a small, inch-and-a-half long fish – perhaps a candlefish or salmon fry – against a rock. She (or he) repositions the fish in her bill […]
Prince William Sound
“The Enchanted Circle” A week in early May sea kayaking and wildlife watching, traversing Prince William Sound aboard the charter yacht Faithfully. Sea Otters. They porpoise, they dive, they crawl up on a nearby iceberg and slide back in. They frolic in an intertidal lagoon full of bergie bits from a nearby glacier. Sapphire-blue ice […]
Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival, March 19-21, 2004
One weekend a year, the board surfers yield famed Steamer Lane to kayak surfers. Santa Cruz, CA. The March 19-21, 2004 Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival featured waves so small they were drowned out by the bark of sea lions and the squeal of offshore sea otter pups. A high mid-day tide forced kayakers in […]
Wild Capes, Great Crepes
Aboard the Home Shore, routes from Sitka to West Chichagof and Lituya Bay, and then to Tracy Arm and Icy Strait. A sea kayaking cherry-pick. May, 2003. “I wouldn’t want to take a boat through here”, I said, looking up from the chart to the rock-strewn entrance to Piehle Pass. “That’s just why I wanted […]
Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival, March 14-16, 2003
Veteran kayak surfer Kim Sprague called it “epic”. A series of storms rolled in for the March 14-16 Festival. Wave height by Sunday morning reached 25 feet. Kayakers surfed the big wave trains. Many got “worked”; quite a few swam. Spectators were treated to plenty of action. K1 (whitewater class) paddlers showed some new moves, […]
Sun River, Oregon
Sun River and Bend, Oregon, Mountain Lakes August, 2002 (and 2003, 2004, 2005). The volcanic spires near Sun River (just south of Bend), Oregon, provide a magnificent setting for quiet water canoeing and kayaking. We paddled Sparks and Hosmer lakes, Crane Prairie Reservior, plus a class 1 river trip down the Deschutes. We scouted, but […]
Wild Side Easy
Kayak Mothership Cruise. Three weeks in Southeast Alaska aboard the charter yacht Ursa Major, with wildlife watching, plenty of paddling, and a trip to fabled Lituya Bay. Charter yacht Ursa Major motors into Saook Bay, Baranof Island. She parks briefly mid-bay to toss out shrimp pots. The water depth is 160 feet. Crab pots are […]
2002 Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival
One weekend a year, the board surfers yield famed Steamer Lane to kayak surfers. Santa Cruz, CA. The March 22-24 Santa Cruz Kayak Surf Festival began with wind-whipped waves and penetrating rain. The swell was moderate, a good test for the field of competitors that arrived from as far as Jersey (off the coast of […]