canoe
Pair ‘em Up; Make ‘em Dance – Canoe Reviews
09.20.2010
“Criminy,” one tester said, looking over the fleet on the banks of Montana’s Gallatin River. “Who would have thought this herd of boats would spend a day on the river together?” Packable, crossover, tripping, inflatable, whitewater, touring, single-blade and double … the spectrum is considerable, but the concept is elegant: Pair up canoes from a [...]
Dirtbag Diaries: Mapping Quebec’s Vachon
09.16.2010
The Vachon River begins at the base of Pingualuit Crater, more than 1,100 miles north of Montreal. A national park was created there in 2007 and I was hired to make a survey of the river. It took me 16 days: a week to cross 37 miles of lakes, eight days to paddle the 125 [...]
Unfiltered: Payson Kennedy – Paddler, Mentor
09.15.2010
Photograph by PATRICK CAVAN BROWN Almost four decades ago, Payson Kennedy, his wife Aurelia, and Horace Holden founded a whitewater rafting business in a small gas station-grocery on the banks of the Nantahala River in Western North Carolina. Since 1972, the Nantahala Outdoor Center has grown into one of the nation’s leading companies for outdoor [...]
The People Have Spoken – C&K Reader’s Choice Awards
09.11.2010
Official results are in for our First Annual Reader’s Choice Awards. Our recent online survey asked about the paddling people, feats and gear that most inspired you in 2010, and the votes poured in as 3,600 voted on 13 categories. Readers weighed in on everything from their favorite paddler to their favorite kayak. No surprise, [...]
Unfiltered: Tom McEwan – Adventurer, Teacher
09.10.2010
Photograph by Irene Owsley Tom McEwan grew up at his family’s outdoor camp in Maryland, honing his paddling and mountaineering skills with his childhood friend, Wick Walker. They were among the first to regularly run waterfalls, and in 1975, McEwan, Walker and Dan Schnurrenberger made the first descent of Great Falls, the Potomac River’s crucible [...]
Outrigger for the Ocean – A Journey From Seattle to San Diego
09.09.2010
When Margo Pellegrino launched her 21-foot outrigger canoe into the waters of Puget Sound, near Seattle, in early July, she wasn’t sure she’d ever make it self-propelled to San Diego, her destination. She wondered about how she’d handle the notorious surf of the Washington coast and the fickle river mouth sandbars of Oregon. But equally [...]
World Records and High Water at Missouri’s Epic 340-Mile Monster
09.07.2010
By Phil White Reading about Huck Finn’s leisurely jaunts down the Missouri River is one thing. Making your own downriver adventure a reality is another matter. Scott Mansker emulated Mark Twain’s iconic literary figure on a homemade raft when he was a teenager. Five years ago and a decade of paddling adventures later, Mansker decided [...]
The Big One
09.01.2010
Canadian sea kayaker Joe O’Blenis is on the home stretch of his bid to reclaim the speed record for circumnavigating British Columbia’s Vancouver Island, and it seems like the race is going to go down to the wire. As of August 31, the 44-year-old speed demon was camped on the island’s outer Pacific Ocean coast, [...]
O’Blenis Reclaims Vancouver Island Speed Record
09.01.2010
Canadian Joe O’Blenis has reclaimed his speed record for circumnavigating British Columbia’s Vancouver Island by sea kayak. O’Blenis completed the 750-mile journey on Saturday with an epic 55-mile day along the Gulf Islands, just across the border from Washington’s San Juans. He finished his “Race Around the Island” in 16 days, 12 hours and 14 [...]
Book Review: Navigation – Sea State & Weather – A Paddler’s Manual
09.01.2010
The biggest difference between sea kayaking and other paddling disciplines is the unique challenges brought about by the vastly diverse and constantly changing marine environment explored by coastal paddlers. The suite of skills needed to address these challenges is known as seamanship, and includes navigation, interpreting the weather and understanding how weather influences bodies of [...]
Kayak Close Encounter
08.28.2010
The waters off Dana Point in southern California have long been a favorite summer destination for whale watchers. While there are many types of craft from which to seek blue whale sightings, the experience from a charter motorboat–watching the world’s biggest whales through binoculars–does not compare to an up-close encounter from a sea kayak. “It [...]
Paddling South Florida – How to Make it Happen
08.27.2010
Photos and Story By Pete Zimowsky The screech of an osprey grabs your attention and breaks your momentum as your’re paddling across the blue waters of Indian River Lagoon in South Florida. The white-and-black fish hawk blasts out of a tree, plunges into the water and comes up with dinner wiggling in its talons. The [...]
Boat Book – Native Watercraft / Liquidlogic
08.24.2010
Each week, we highlight companies in Canoe & Kayak’s 2010 Boat Book. Today, we look at the 2010 designs of Native Watercraft / Liquidlogic. Stay tuned next week for more from our Boat Book. INUIT 12.5: $999; L: 12’6″; W: 26″; 52 lbs.; 13.5: $1,779; L: 13’6″; W: 23.5″; 57 lbs.; 14.5: $1,229; L: 14’6″; [...]
Paddling Her Own Kayak – Cathy Mumford
08.24.2010
New Jersey Mom becomes the first woman to through-paddle the Northern Forest Canoe Trail Photos: Alain Ouellette and NFCT Cathy Mumford wasn’t aware of the double precedent she could set when she loaded up her kayak and set off to paddle the 740-mile Northern Forest Canoe Trail alone this summer. Mumford, a Colts Neck, NJ-based [...]
Accent Paddles
08.24.2010
ACCENT PADDLES P.O. Box 19346 Minneapolis, MN 55419 612.791.3016 accentpaddles.com ELITE Carbon Foam Core 210-240cm Straight Shaft 23oz $380 Bent Shaft 25oz $460 The Elite represents Accent’s most noteworthy employment of advanced engineering principles and research-proven materials. It begins with a high density solid foam core. The core is then layered in carbon and fiberglass. [...]
Adventure Technology Paddles
08.23.2010
ADVENTURE TECHNOLOGY PADDLES 111 Kayaker Way Easley, SC 29642 877.766.4757 atpaddles.com ERGO TOUR T4 SERIES Ergo Tour T4 C, $299, Carbon, 33 oz. Ergo Tour T4 E, $189, Fiberglass, 35 oz. (pictured) Available in standard and small shaft options, the Ergo Tour T4 lets you enjoy the benefits of an ergonomic touring paddle at an [...]
Buyer's Guide
