Editorial: Aqueous Access

October-November 2002

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.
To download a pdf copy of the magazine click here: > DOWNLOAD

by Alan Wilson

Cover Photo: The WaveLength Mothership by Deborah Leach

Humanity’s terrestrial attachments tend to blind us to our aqueous side. But the experience of our water world helps put us back in touch with the ‘flow’ underlying all things, allowing us to tap into this source of life and the true pulse of being.

Whether we swim, dive, paddle, row, motor, sail, or just admire the beauty from shore, many of us are profoundly drawn to water.

Of course it flows through us, runs in our veins—we are water beings. But in a terrestrially-focused world, locked up in cities, many are distanced from this reality.

How can we access the aqueous and get the transfusion of energy it provides?

The best way I know is in a kayak. Dry, warm, snug, safe, buoyant and balanced, you glide across the breast of the water with a fluid stroke.

If you’ve never tried it, you can rent a kayak, take lessons or go on a tour without investing in your own equipment. This can give you a chance to try out a number of different boats to see what you like best.

Many power or sailboaters are now carrying kayaks on deck to expand their options upon reaching anchorage. Kayak mothershipping is catching on, as you can see in this issue.

But you don’t have to be well-heeled to get on the water. The kayak is really ‘the people’s boat’. You can build a wooden kayak or buy a new ‘recreational’ kayak quite inexpensively. Or you can pick up a good used fibreglass touring kayak at an end-ofseason rental or touring fleet sale. Just be sure you get sound advice, good basic gear, take some lessons... and the whole aqueous world opens up to you.

You can cartop your kayak or wheel it to the water’s edge on a simple kayak cart, you can carry it on your shoulder, have it on the deck of your boat, or—with an inflatable or folding kayak—you can backpack it, fly with it, have it in the trunk of your car.

The goal is to get on the water, to get in closer touch with this liquid world of ours, its many creatures and habitats. And rediscover our own flowing nature.

This is the best way I know to ensure more people care about, protect and restore our waterways, as we come to understand that water is as vital as our own lifeblood.