canoe
No River For Old Men
12.03.2010
When Chris went down with a broken leg halfway through the portage, I started doing the numbers—25 miles against a strong current back to the put-in, then God knows how long a hike to the nearest home. No way. The takeout was 52 miles downstream, through a dozen named rapids we’d never seen. That would [...]
Instructor Profiles: Wayne Dickert
12.02.2010
Photo by Patrick Cavan Brown While Wayne “Wayner” Dickert is working toward his Master of Divinity degree at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in Charlotte, N.C., it’s on the water, preaching his paddling wisdom, where he truly shines. “I like to teach a concept and work around that, rather than just a skill,” says the 1996 [...]
Running The ‘Last Great Unknown Canyon In Peru’
12.02.2010
“I mean, it wasn’t like a bullet-proof plan. But it was good enough.” — Matt Wilson Of the major tributaries that flow from the Andes into the Amazon River, only one section of one of them—The Great Bend of Rio Huallaga, in central Peru—could be classified as unknown at the beginning of 2010. Much of [...]
Once ‘Round The Big One
12.01.2010
Lucas Will and Greg Petry’s dream to paddle around Lake Superior began five years ago. As roommates and outdoor education students at the University of Minnesota-Duluth (UMD), Will, 30 and Petry, 29 talked about their passion for the lake and how it had shaped their lives. They promised each other that in the summer of [...]
Instructor Profiles: Les Bechdel
11.25.2010
Photo by Alpenglow Press For McCall, Idaho’s Les Bechdel, rescue should be a vital part of any paddling instruction program. He should know. An ACA instructor-trainer for the Nantahala Outdoor Center for 10 years, it was the drowning of an NOC raft guide that led to his co-authoring River Rescue with Slim Ray in 1985, [...]
C&K’s 2010 Holiday Gift Guide Part 2
11.24.2010
Teva continues evolving from its humble Velcro sandal roots into more lifestyle-oriented, yet functional riverside footwear. Case in point: the new Kayode Mid, a flexible Mush-infused insole paired with a rugged outsole and suede leather/canvas upper that keeps your ankles covered during any holiday snow stompings ($90). Too much fashion over function? The worthy Sling [...]
C&K’s 2010 Holiday Gift Guide
11.23.2010
You won’t find many waterproof-breathable jackets as reasonably priced as Immersion Research’s Zephyr. One hundred bucks gets you a foul-weather friend for drizzly days on the water, with a unique anti-microbial mesh liner to prevent post-paddling funk ($110, www.immersionresearch.com). Cut off an extra slice this holiday season: Give your paddler more slice through [...]
Video: Kate Wagner on the White Salmon
11.19.2010
Soulful look at paddler Kate Wagner on one of her local favorites, the White Salmon River, in fall, by filmmaker Skip Armstrong and Banks Mag. — C&K Staff Kayaking the White Salmon River, Autumn – Kate Wagner from The Banks Mag on Vimeo.
Instructor Profiles: David Johnston
11.18.2010
Photo by Jovan Matic David Johnston’s motivation as a sea kayak instructor changed when he no longer had to make a living at it. “Now I tell the students, ‘This better be fun because I’m on vacation,’” says the Toronto-based civil servant and Web designer. It’s not that Johnston didn’t know how to have a [...]
Sheboygan Surf ‘Stache
11.15.2010
Jake Ament and John McConville paddle out on Lake Michigan during squall conditions—60 mph gusts, 10-foot waves, small playboats. There’s even a rainbow (single), a few linked freestyle moves, loud talking directly at the camera and creative facial hair, the sum of which amounts to a genuinely extreme morning… in Sheboygan, Wisconsin anyway. Cue the [...]
Instructor Profiles: Peter Sturges
11.11.2010
Photo by Darin McQuoid After 29 years coaching hip snaps at Otter Bar, a Northern California-based kayaking ranch, owner Peter Sturges is now spread out with management duties. But his number one focus—to make learning to kayak a world-class vacation—is as sharp as ever. “When I started kayaking the Klamath in the mid-1970s, I paddled [...]
Mission: Tierra del Fuego
11.09.2010
Justine Curgenven and Barry Shaw recently announced plans for a January 2011 sea-kayaking expedition to circumnavigate Tierra del Fuego (Isla Grande De Tierra del Fuego) at the southern tip of South America. The duo, who jointly have a long list of expeditions behind them, will be paddling clockwise around the tip of South America from [...]
Get On It: Deception Pass Dash
11.09.2010
Nearly 200 paddlers start the 4th annual Deception Pass Dash off NW Washington last December. Photo: Bill Walker The 5th annual Deception Pass Dash — a curious boat race involving sea kayaks, SUPs, outriggers, rowers, surfskis and even (once) a pedal boat in (typically) spicy open-water conditions — returns on Dec. 4, 2010 off shore [...]
‘The Safest Most Dangerous Race in the World’
11.09.2010
Photo: Matt Fields-Johnson (Ed’s note: This story was first published in the July 2010 edition of Canoe & Kayak Magazine.) Eyes focused dead ahead, her trademark red hair streaming from her helmet, Shannon Carroll drives her 11-foot race boat powerfully toward Gorilla, the defining drop of the Class V Green River Narrows. Then, about a [...]
Greasing the Green
11.08.2010
Photo: Matt Fields-Johnson Asheville, N.C.-based whitewater boater Andrew Holcombe found himself on unfamiliar ground at the 2010 Green Race, held Saturday, Nov. 6, on the infamous Class V Narrows of the Green River in western North Carolina. Holcombe, unable to defend his 2009 long K1 title and course record time due to a back injury, [...]
Burn Fest
11.05.2010
In its sixth annual incarnation, the Oregon Rafting Team site for more details on the series, and Matt Thomas, who was paralyzed from the chest down in 2009 mountain bike accident and is recovering with Project Walk. — Dave Shively RESULTS: Men’s Long Boat – Dan Menten (Overall) Men’s Short Boat – Justin Patt Women’s [...]
Northern Forest Canoe Trail Pioneer Donnie Mullen
11.04.2010
If you think you’re tough, try paddling and carrying a canoe some 740 miles over 56 days. That’s what Donnie Mullen did in 2000 when he became the first person to through-paddle the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which follows ancient Native American canoe routes across New England. The trail starts in Old Forge, New York, [...]
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