When asked if I could put together an outline of the 2003 paddling year, my mind almost went blank. Then I thought, No problem. I'll get all the info by reviewing my emails. So, gingerly I moused to the folder where I kept the past year's emails related to paddling.

The folder was almost empty! #@%$! The emails were in my old computer. I had not transferred the data into my new one. If I accepted the task of writing the article, I would have to rely on memory.

I asked myself, What did we do last year? Unable to think of anything just yet, I sat back in my favourite chair and relaxed. I let my eyes wander to the large quartz crystal I once collected on the shores of Comox Lake. Slowly, the room went out of focus, and I began to feel the rocking motion of my canoe. Little by little, things started coming back to me. Jumbled memories of wet paddles flashing in the sun and beach fires burning in the rain flooded my mind. I swore I heard the call of a loon.

Oh yes! Now I remembered. We started with the Amor Lake trip where we got reacquainted with fidgety cooking stoves and the acrid smell of campfire smoke.

We also paddled and portaged around the Sayward Canoe circuit on Canada Day week end. I could see the small Canadian flags we stuck on the bow of our canoes.

And wasn't it this year that we cleaned up the Puntledge River and its estuary? Yes. The canoes went down the river and the kayaks concentrated on the estuary, then we met upstream of the Airpark and floated downriver for a while. The sun was hot, I remembered. On another day, we cleaned up Maple Lake and had lunch on the small island in the middle of the lake.

We paddled windy Okeover inlet and caught crabs in the warm waters around Savory Island.

We won the FASRAGAD trophy by default because the Nanaimo Paddlers did not show up.

And we had a great moonlight paddle at Goose Spit, where a mystery about lost clothing was solved.

During the year, I more than once watched the wind toy with the tops of the Douglass Fir trees near my house and thought of paddlers stranded on Tree Island. I held my breath when told about a capsizing in the frigid water of the West Coast, and also when related the stories of two close encounters with cougars. I winced at the report of a bad fall on rocks covered with razor sharp barnacles. I danced at the ski week-end, savoured delicious meals at restaurants, and exchanged gifts with club members at Christmas.

Somewhere in the back of my mind floated a vague recollection of trips to the Copeland Islands, of crossings to Denman Island, of long paddling days under a hot sun, and of hiking adventures by club members. All of this in one year.

My quartz crystal was now becoming fuzzier. The images came and went, like seagulls flying in and out of the morning mist. And then, just as the seagulls' strident call echoed on the beach . . . the phone rang.

It was Norm wanting to go for a walk.

"Don't have time," I said. "I have to write an article for the newsletter."

Michel Gauthier.

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Well… it did taste good out there… but no Guaranties!

Curry Sauce from Chris & Cheryl's cookbook:

-1 Tbs. oil 1/4 c. dried chopped apples

-1 Tbs. flour 1/4 c raisins

-2 tsp. onion flakes 1 tsp. brown sugar

-1 c. water 1 1/2 - 2 tsp. curry powder to taste

-1/2 tsp. salt

Heat oil & flour stirring constantly over low heat until mixture is smooth. Add spices, water and fruit. Bring to boil and simmer until apples are tender. Serve over lentils, rice, bulgur or couscous. And we threw in some of our leftover bacon as well. You might have to double the recipe but it was enough for Steve & I (chuckle).

Chicken Curry (serves 4)

-2 oz. fr. dried chicken or home dried

-1 pkg. fr. dried peas or home dried

-1 env. Knorr Leek soup

-1 env. Oxo Instant Chicken Broth

-3-4 tsp. curry powder (to taste)

-1 1/2 c. instant rice

-some or all of: coconut flakes/cashews/raisins or dried cranberries

Bring 5-6 c. water to boil. Add chicken, peas, leek soup mix and chicken broth. Set aside to rehydrate (15 - 30 min. or the time it takes to drink a glass or two). Add curry powder. Bring back to boil and add rice. Cook 5- 10 min. stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with cashews etc.

This is easy to cut in half if desired.

Chicken Dinner (mmmmmm good!)

-Fr. dried chicken (or home dried)

-Lipton's Sidekicks mashed potatoes and chicken gravy

-Stovetop stuffing mix

-Dried veggies

You might have to break down the packaging to reduce the portions (or maybe not!) If you do, leave the extras at home in Ziplocs (you'll have to improvise for your next trip) so that you can take the foil pouches on your trip. They are perfect to prepare the food right in them, just add the water - no leaking and they keep it hot. You might have to sit them inside a cup or something so that they don't tip over.

Rehydrate a package of fr. dried or home dried chicken.

While it rehydrates, boil more water to add to other items. Set your veggies to rehydrate. The stuffing, potatoes and gravy take just minutes so timing is important here. Stuffing first (takes appr. 5 min). Potatoes next (approx. 2 min.) Then gravy - once all mixed in the pouch, add the hot gravy mixture to the chicken to add some heat and flavor the chicken a little more.

The foil pouches work so great, they keep everything warm right until you need to open them as long as you're not drinking too much (time sure flies when you're having fun!) You can make it a turkey dinner just by changing the meat and gravy - or change your veggies too. Maybe scalloped potatoes? Try them all!

Double Layer Lemon Tarts (Serves 6)

What you will need:

1. Jell-O Double Layer Lemon Tarts No Bake Mix 294 grams (they also make cheesecake and oriels choc mix, I haven't tried these but I bet they are terrific).

2. A package of 8 aluminium Deep Meat Pie Plates to be used as tart shells -- 4 1/2 X 1 1/2 inch.(You'll only use 6 of them)

3. 3 T of powdered milk

4. 4 T of butter or margarine

5. 1 large and 1 medium size Ziplocs freezer bags

Before you leave home:

Take the three bags out of the box. Cut out directions on the back panel, and then put everything inside the large Ziploc bag.

You've been three days on the trail and you need a treat for you and your friends. What you do:

Put content of Crust Mix bag inside medium Ziploc and add butter. I don't add sugar because I find the dessert sweet enough as it is. Seal bag and mash together with fingers. Spread mix evenly on bottom of six tart shells and pat down.

Put Filling Mix bag contents in large Ziploc. Add powdered milk and 1 1/4 cups of clean, filtered water. Seal and shake gently or 1 minute. Pour evenly into the six tart shells.

Pour Topping Mix in the large, used ziplock bag. Add 1 cup of cold, filtered water. Seal and shake vigourusly for 3 minutes or until topping thickens and forms soft peaks (do not overshake -- it could go back to liquid). Cut one corner of the ziplock and squeeze content evenly unto your tarts.

Let tarts sit for an hour in the coolest place you can find (By this time in the trip, I usually have a collection of empty ziplock bags. I slip the tarts in those to prevent flies, ashes, or twigs to mess the chef d'oeuvre.)

(I will definitely vouch for this one. Ed.)

Prepare before the trip:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups of barley flour

1 cup blue corn flour

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 tbsp. Baking power

1 tsp. Salt

2/3 cups margarine

Optional: 2/3 cup skin milk powder

At camp: add 2 cups water

(amounts can just be shrunk in proportion if above is too much)

Add water slowly, kneading the mixture as you go. The dough should end up a bit stiff, not too wet and not too dry. You can cook in a number of different ways… roll around a stick and cook over a fire… or make into a flat round pad in a frying pan and bake over low heat… heat up a flat rock in the fire and pull out and lay the bannock on top and let the heat cook it… use your imagination. We have put it between two metal plates on the hot ground beside a fire and then put more hot coals on the top so it cooks from both sides. The trick is to watch carefully and don’t let it burn!

Serve with anything... stew, soups, peanut butter, jam, cheese, porridge… it’s all good outside!

——————

The Web Page

Weather http://weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/forecast/maps/bc_e.html

Tides http://www.tides.info

Links to Kayak & Canoe related stuff

-paddle links BC http://www3.bc.sympatico.ca/cschwab/links.htm

-more paddle links http://khornby.freeyellow.com/paddlinglinks.htm

-kayak stuff & links http://www.seekayak.com/

-the ultimate link http://home.adelphia.net/~kwinter/kayakmain.html

-lots of BC links http://home.earthlink.net/~ccbroome/kayaks.html

-misc. books available http://www.kayakers.nf.ca/kayak_bibliography.html

-canoe links & info http://www.out-there.com/htl_cno.htm

-more links & info http://finepots.com/canoes/

-safety floats http://www.sponsonguy.com/

-canoe links http://cgi.canoe.ca/AllAboutCanoes/canoe_links.html

more BC links, Clubs etc. http://canoe.info-pages.com/dbase-new/club-c.html

-Trail peak bc 1000 bc adventure trails http://www.trailpeak.com

Knot Tying http://www.mistral.co.uk/42brghtn/knots/42ktmenu.html

http://www.northnet.org/ropeworks/text/arch.html#ANIMATED

Navigation -using dividers http://boatsafe.com/navigation/divide1.htm

-using parallel rulers http://www.boatsafe.com/navigation/rules1.htm

-distance to horizon http://boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/distance.htm

Road Rules -basic rules http://www.boaterexam.com/Training/nautical1.html

-more rules http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/boating/rules.html

-Canadian Collision regs http://www.oz.net/~papillon/kbmanual/colregs.html

-Fisheries & Oceans http://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/obs-bsn/main_e.htm

-Canadian Safe Boating http://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/obs-bsn/sbg-gsn/main_e.htm

-Good start to navigation http://home.att.net/~agligani/navigation/navigate.html

Parks -BC & National http://bcadventure.com/adventure/wilderness/parks/index.html

-all BC parks inc marine http://www.bcparks.com

-Forest Service Campsites http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/rec/brochure/update.htm

-Strathcona Park Trails http://mars.ark.com/~bjtipper/trails_g.htm

BC Ferries http://www.bcferries.bc.ca/schedules/

Merchants -Mountain Meadows http://www.mountainmeadowssports.com/

-Mountain Equipment Co-op http://www.mec.ca/Main/home.jsp

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Broken Islands ‘03

Somehow, I have been given the responsibility of writing up our trip to the Broken Islands. Chris, Cathy, Mark and Deb, all had lame excuses, to not write, and I guess mine wasn't lame enough. Other things have been getting in the way, of writing, until now. If Deb had gotten out the gummy bears, the report writing would have happened earlier.

We chose to meet at Toquart Bay, to get an early start, to Clarke Island, the next morning. Three of us arrived, about 4 in the afternoon, and all was well, until we realized that the 2 who hadn't arrived, had Deb's kayak, food and gear. As 6:30 arrived, we were well into nail biting, some of us having the memories of our Heriot Bay trip, very imbedded in our minds. Cell phones proved useless, but just before biting to the quick, Mark and Cathy arrived, unscathed. We were all very relieved, especially Deb.

The next morning arrived much too early. The fisherman, next door, were up at 5, and we were not able to sleep much later. The early start proved to be a good thing, though. We had calm waters, to start. We put our sights on what we figured was Dodd Island. Going around the back side of Innes put things slightly askew. We landed on an island, on our course, but it wasn't Dodd. Luckily, we were ahead of where we thought we were, and very close to our destination. It's amazing how all those islands can blend together, look alike, and take on a different appearance, depending on what the tide is doing. Oh for a GPS! Luckily, Mark was very savvy with compass and chart, and was an excellent navigator, even with fog.

Clarke Island is a beautiful, sandy island, with incredible views. We set up our tents right on the 5 star point. It even had ground keepers, who built a Zen garden, and tended to it each day. It became our place for worshipping the sun. It also was a camping area for a group of firemen from Kamloops, so how could you go wrong? Mark had our group, as well as their crew, all learning about True Colours. The colour "Orange" was certainly a common denominator. Ask Mark about what it all means someday when you have about 2 days to sit and take it all in.

From Clarke Island, we went over to Wouwer, to see the sea lions. The outside waters were exciting, and there were a lot of "Yahoos" being heard, as we kayaked over the huge waves. We likely got a little too close to the sea lions because one decided to chase Deb. As she was racing away from the sea monster, dubbed Henry, a rogue wave decided that her adrenaline hadn't kicked in enough, and rolled her boat over. It was a good thing we were all heading toward Deb, fearing that of Henry might do something evil to her, and then suddenly we all were now part of a rescue at sea, something you believe will never happen to you. Deb got her boat back upright and then Cathy and Sharon steadied it as Mark and Deb vigorously pumped seawater out of the cockpit. Meanwhile Chris stayed on the lookout for more rogue waves. Within minutes Deb mentioned that she was starting to lose feeling, in her fingers and arms and we all soon realize how close we were to an all out disaster. We quickly paddled to a nearby beach, and thank goodness for all our preparations, broke out the dry clothes along with matches, food, first aid, etc. In some ways our experience was a very humbling one but in another it was a positive thing which helped to build confidence in the group’s ability to survive unexpected situations. We pulled off a rescue in rough water, and pulled it off well. We can all be proud of each other, and Deb who stayed a calm victim in a severe situation. She kept her cool (even when cold) and did what had to be done. We all learned a bunch in adverse conditions. The Broken Group didn't break us; we've all come out stronger and wiser.

The next day was relatively calm and Chris, Sharon, Deb and Mark headed to explore some more outside islands and waters. Deb had climbed back on the horse and "Yahoos" over the waves were heard again. Well done Deb!

What incredible rock formations. We saw rocks that looked like the North Shore lions and the Sydney opera house .Perhaps that's where the opera house architect got his idea. Cathy chose to have a day at camp and Mark caught a really big cod but as you're not allowed to keep them, had to throw it back. Our next day involved a small paddle to a nearby island called Benson. Most of us went for a quick dip just to get clean. It was then I realized, as my head started to ache, how really cold the water was that Deb had overturned in the previous day. Hmmm... More food for thought.

Cathy didn't want the day to end. She had stored up energy from the day of rest and put it all into an awesome job of whipping up all kinds of culinary delights all over the camp stove for dinner.

Our last day involved taking leaving for home in the fog. It was somewhat unnerving but with Mark's excellent navigation, we hit our targets each time. Unfortunately Deb cut her finger and an infection set in. The ride home was not very much fun, but I hear that she's almost back to her old self again and ready for another orange adventure. Well... maybe not quite as orange as last time!

The Broken Islands are truly a kayaker's paradise. This margin where protected inner waters meet the powerful swell of the Pacific is magical. There's almost unlimited shoreline to explore, the sunsets are glorious, the wildlife plentiful and the serenity and beauty are beyond words. It's easy to understand why more than 12,000 people visit this area each year--although we sure never had a sense of it being busy. We will definitely be back!

Have good, safe fun out there,
Sharon

Broken Islands Trip,

August 2003

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Do You Remember When…?

SEA KAYAKING : A MANUAL FOR LONG-DISTANCE TOURING. 4TH ED Dowd, John

The Optimum Kayak : how to choose, maintain, repair, and customize the right boat for you Knapp, Andy,

http://www.wavelengthmagazine.com/

http://www.intelenet.com/cgi-bin/sk-form.pl

http://seapaddler.ca

http://www.viewit.com/wtr/TASK.html

http://www.gopaddle.org/

http://www.lau.chs-shc.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/english/Canada.shtml

http://tbone.biol.sc.edu/tide/sites_allalpha.html

http://tbone.biol.sc.edu/tide/sites_allcurrent.html

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