When you kayak in ocean rock gardens, you may want to land on a rock to exit the water to eat lunch, camp, evacuate the area, or check out an interesting feature. Derek Hutchinson, in his SEA CANOEING book called this maneuver a seal landing. Decades ago experienced sea kayakers told me to eschew seal […]
sea kayaking
How to Teach a Beginner to Sea Kayak
Kudos to kayaking clubs, professional trainers, and organizations for introducing thousands of people to the wonders of sea kayaking each year. This essay centers on my opinions on how a seasoned kayaker can teach a greenhorn how to sea kayak. So here we go. First, I only teach beginners who are truly interested in learning. […]
What about Baja?
“To find the Baja of myth and legend, one must do what adventurers have always done—travel light and fast and beyond the creature comforts of so called eco-tourism.” Kenny Howell, veteran Sea of Cortez kayak explorer and guide Over two decades ago I made the kayaker’s pilgrimage to the Baja peninsula in northwestern Mexico to […]
How Sea Kayakers Should Deal With Sharks
A three-foot dorsal fin headed straight for Jim Kakuk and me as we paddled from Point Tomales toward Point Reyes. My mind was electrified as I sat there with mouth agape as the sea monster sped toward us. It would be upon us in one second. What to do? Then the 20-foot predator rushed between […]
Tsunami Rangers Paddle Big Sur
I just returned from a fantastic sea kayaking trip on the southern Big Sur coast. Nine members of our Tsunami Rangers kayaking team spent several days exploring every nook and cranny of a short stretch of beautiful Big Sur. Our team policy prohibits me from naming the exact location, so try to guess from the […]
Sea Kayaking Big Sur — The Next Tsunami Rangers Adventure
This is my first official blog post, so please bear with me. The Tsunami Rangers ocean adventure kayak team is venturing back to beautiful Big Sur and plans to spend a few days exploring its many rock gardens and caves. I will give a full report when I return in late August. We first explored […]