A Novices Sea Kayak Trip

August-September 2001

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.
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by Elle Andra-Warner

It was one of those baby boomer 'I-can-do-anything' moments that put me wilderness sea kayaking in British Columbia's Johnstone Strait and Inside Passage. In a surge of daring adventurism, I signed my husband and myself to a six-day summer kayak trip - even though I had never kayaked.

Giving the boats a chance to rest! Photo by Elle Andra-Warner.

Our paddling group, eight novice urban adventurers and three professional guides from Sea Kayak Adventurers, gathered in mid-July at Port McNeill. Next morning at the Alder Bay Resort launch site, we slid our bare feet into slithery wet-suit booties and sloshed through the low-tide mud to load the kayaks. Everything needed for eleven people to be completely self-sufficient for a week was packed in six Seaward kayaks (one single, five doubles): food (three gourmet meals a day), drinking and washing water, juice, cleaning supplies and all gear (tents, sleeping bags, duffle bags, safety equipment, cook stove, cooking and eating utensils, and one porta-potti).

For the first two hours, we paddled along the shoreline of Vancouver island, building up confidence in our kayaking techniques. But the relaxed pace and light chatter belied what was on everyone's mind - our paddling skills would be soon tested crossing the big moving waters of Johnstone Strait.

After a buffet shore lunch, we lined up the kayaks, side by side, and fixed our gaze across the strait to our beach campsite on Hanson Island, two nautical miles away.

"Stay together as a group, paddle steady, and focus on our landing site" instructed Lead Guide Jacqueline Holmes. "The guides will be out front and on both outer edges. Everyone ready? Let's go."

I chewed gum vigourously as we pulled away from the comforting shore. No one spoke as paddles rhythmically dipped through water that reached depths of 450 metres. At some point, someone shouted "Paddle like crazy!" just before a churning rip tide crossed our path. Fueled by an instant adrenaline rush, I paddled ferociously; soon we were through it and back into calmer water.

It took over an hour of steady paddling to complete the crossing. We hauled the kayaks to higher ground (to secure them against the night's tide) and then set up our tents in the old growth forest behind the beach. As the guides prepared a delicious dinner (salmon, tortellini, broccoli, salad, peach cobbler), we sipped wine, nibbled hors d'oeuvres, and toasted each other as true adventurers.

In the next six days, we paddled 3-4 hours a day and covered over 44 nautical miles. Amazingly, I never tired. My arms dipped the paddle effortlessly as I became the observer, mesmerized by the stunning scenery, the freedom of the pristine wilderness and the beauty of the elemental water highways. I absorbed the energy of its wildness and revelled in this new intimate connection with nature.

Giving the boats a chance to rest! Photo by Elle Andra-Warner.

Every day was an adventure in spectacular surroundings. We paddled almost six nautical miles to the abandoned Native village of Mamalillacula on secluded Village Island, wandered among fallen totem poles, and met the island's Kwakiutl cultural keeper and storyteller, Tom Sewid.

We kayaked two nautical miles (twice) across Blackfish Sound (famous as a whale pathway); paddled alongside rock walls with ancient Native pictographs marking sacred burial sites; tented on secluded forested islands; and, hiked 2.5 kilometres to the magnificent Eagle Eye Lookout overlooking Johnstone Strait and met researcher David Briggs, who has studied whales there every summer since 1984.

An unforgettable highlight was our close encounter with orca whales on our return crossing of Johnstone Strait. At about the strait's midpoint, guide Antonio Monzon sighted three large dorsal fins of male orca (killer) whales coming towards us. We quickly rafted the kayaks together (to appear as one large object on the whale's sonar) and positioned ourselves to face the oncoming whales. Jacqueline lowered the hydrophone in the water to hear their vocalizations and sonar clicks. We waited. Then, about a hundred meters if front of us, the whales began to surface and dive in close synchrony, finishing less than fifteen metres to our right before continuing down the strait. Awesome!

The sea kayak adventure was a journey of learning and challenge. It would be an oversimplification to say that I conquered the apprehensions of a novice kayaker. The fears were there every morning, but I acknowledged them, climbed into the kayak and paddled. If I had let the fears stop me, I would have missed the thrill of wilderness sea kayaking and an opportunity for personal growth. I took the risks and the rewards were priceless.

In six days, our knowledgeable guides honed us into modern day explorers. Our spirits soared at the accomplishment.

On the last night while gazing at the gorgeous sunset over the Johnstone Strait, I reflected on the baby boomer idea that had brought me here in the first place. I asked myself, 'Would I do this again?' And without hesitation, the answer came back an unequivocal 'Yes."

© Elle Andra-Warner currently lives in Thunder Bay, but is moving to Yellowknife in the North West Territories.
Sea Kayak Adventures can be reached toll-free at 1-800-616-1943 or by email skadvent@iea.com. Their website is www.seakayakadventures.com.