Sea Kayaking

Sea Kayaking

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Happy Meals, Happy Paddling: A Guide to Food Planning for Sea Kayaking Trips

My partner Barbara and I were experienced campers and backpackers when we moved to Seattle in 2000, but we didn’t have much experience kayaking. We owned sea kayaks, had taken classes in San Francisco Bay, and we’d even done a kayak camping trip for a week in Prince William Sound, Alaska in the 80s. But we knew that Puget Sound was both fabulous and challenging for sea kayaking, and we’d better have more training before heading out there. As soon as we joined The Mountaineers, we signed up for the Basic Sea Kayaking course. Read more…

How the Basic Kayaking Course Opened a New World

Life was good since I retired in September of 2015 at 63 years young. In March 2015, I purchased the Mokai: a motorized kayak intended for use on rivers. The Mokai is 11’ Long 36” wide, powered by a 7hp 4-cycle Subaru engine, has an electric start, is a sit in kayak, and is rated for SK-III rapids. I bought to use in Washington rivers for fishing. Read more…

Sign Up: Tacoma Basic Sea Kayaking Course

Sea Kayaking is fun! It offers camaraderie, calm, easy paddles, kayak surfing, marine life viewing on rocks and in caves, camping on islands, and playing in currents. Kayaking is anything you want it to be, and its great fun to paddle with friends. The Tacoma Mountaineers Basic Sea Kayaking Course is coming up soon. You want in? Read more…

What Are The Ten Essentials?

The Mountaineers Ten Essentials™ dates back to our climbing courses of the 1930s. This widely respected safety and packing system was formalized in the third edition of Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills, released in 1974. Each of the nine editions of Freedom, as it is affectionately known, was written entirely by volunteers and reflects the collective wisdom of hundreds of outdoor skills instructors. The list has always sought to answer two basic questions: Read more…

Your Rescue Practice May Look Like an Emergency to Someone Else

As Mountaineers, we are committed to learning from our experiences. We examine every incident that happens on a Mountaineers trip for opportunities to improve the ways we explore and teach. Our volunteer safety committee reviews every incident report and picks a few each month to share as examples of ‘Lessons Learned’. The trip report below describes what happened on this trip, in the leader’s own words, and outlines the lessons the leader has identified. In some cases, we offer additional key learnings from the incident. Read more…

Outside Insight | Charting New Waters: Creating a Cross-Branch Paddling Community

In the Pacific Northwest, year-round sea kayakers are a tight-knit community. These brave individuals don their drysuits in all conditions and relish in the opportunity to paddle big waves during winter storms. They seek adverse conditions to build their skills, growing more confident in their ability to explore wilder and more remote places. Read more…

Explore Puget Sound with Tacoma's Basic Sea Kayaking Course - Begins May 2

The Tacoma Mountaineers Basic Sea Kayaking Course is coming up - you want in? Read more…

Top 10 Trip Reports - Fall 2019

What better time to look back on your autumn adventures than when you're waiting for winter to arrive? Soon, snow will cover all of your favorite ski hills, the streets of the Pacific Northwest will be full of colorful down jackets and rain shells (if that hasn't already happened), and one single snowstorm will slow roads down for longer than is reasonable.  Read more…

Top 10 Trip Reports of Summer 2019: Part 1

Unsurprisingly, The Mountaineers community takes an astounding number of trips all around the Pacific Northwest in the summer months, and many of those yield great write-ups and photos.  That makes aggregating reports for these Top-10 posts a lot harder. After looking through every report dated between June 1 and July 31, I pulled out the best of the best, which left me with about 50 reports - way too many to turn into a top-10 list. Therefore, I dub the reports below the "best of the best of the best." Read more…

How To Create Knee Bracing for Your Kayak

Want to master that “bomb-proof” roll or brace? Want to more effectively edge your kayak? Then you need to make sure your knees are properly secured in your boat to maximize your performance. Wedges can accomplish that. The last thing you want on a brace or roll is for your knee to slip off, and a secure foam wedge allows your knee to flawlessly pull hard and right the boat. Read more…

Leader Spotlight: Bill Coady

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Bill Coady, a volunteer leader with the Everett Branch who encourages others to lead because he enjoys helping other similarly-minded outdoor enthusiasts ... and because he loves it! Read more…

Top 5 Trip Reports - September 2018

Fall is here, which means lots of transitions between t-shirts and raincoats - don't forget your layers, folks! Although our Washington weather can be fickle at this time of year, when you get a  crisp autumn day perfect for an outdoor adventure, it's well worth it. We hope you're able to get out there and enjoy the season before it's time to  start strapping on skis, snowshoes, and snowboards. Read more…

Leader Spotlight: Henry Romer

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Henry Romer, a volunteer leader and instructor with the Olympia Branch who leads for multiple activities and encourages new leaders to take advantage of the wealth of knowledge available within our Mountaineers community! Read more…

Leadership on the Water: An Interview with Tom Unger

Tom Unger has been hiking, climbing, skiing, paddling, and sailing up and down the west coast for 25 years. He’s widely praised by students and participants for his outstanding communications, group facilitation, instruction, and collaborative leadership. In the summer of 2017, Tom led a two-week trip with The Mountaineers around Cape Scott with Barney Bernhard, Esther Ladwig, Marty Mayock, Charlie Michel, and Karen Cramer. In this interview, Tom discusses how he intentionally brought his group together around common goals, expectations, and trip styles. Read more…

Top 10 Trip Reports - July 2018

Picking the best 10 trip reports from an entire month of Mountaineers activities and courses isn't easy. Especially when that month is July. Mountaineers are out adventuring, and seemingly, only pause between trips when it's time to report on them.  Read more…

Why Developing a Routine Could be Your Most Important Water Safety Precaution

I have been a recreational kayaker for twenty five years and paddle often.   I kayak on slow moving rivers, ponds, lakes, and protected salt water coves. I continue to improve my skills as I gain even more experience and become involved with various paddling communities.  I have learned that most of what you can do to stay safe while paddling happens off the water. Read more…

The Communications Devices We Carry

On June 24, I will be leaving home - along with a group of three other Mountaineers sea kayakers - to paddle down the west coast of Vancouver Island. Our plan is to take three weeks, starting in Winter Harbor and ending in Tofino, paddling a distance of over 200 nautical miles of exposed and remote outer coastline.  As a part of our safety plan, we've included electronic signaling devices which we can use to call for emergency help. This blog describes the various options that I considered for our trip, an overview of what we decided to bring, and how we will use these devices throughout our journey.  Read more…

2018 Updates to the Sea Kayaking Minimum Standards

As a part of their annual review process, members from each of The Mountaineers sea kayaking committees met in Tacoma on February 10 for the 2018 Sea Kayaking Summit. During this meeting, the group discussed a wide variety of topics, including ways to make The Mountaineers sea kayaking programs more accessible and consistent.  Read more…

VHF Radios and Safety 101 for Sea Kayakers

A group of six of us set off from the north shore of the mouth of Willapa Bay. The tide was coming in, but was going to turn around noon and the swell outside was about six feet. We intended to cross over to Leadbetter Point, enjoy the beach there for lunch and then return in the afternoon. We had four people with lots of experience in coastal paddling (surf conditions) and two with much less experience but were strong paddlers. Read more…

2018 Olympia Sea Kayaking Program

The Olympia Sea Kayaking Committee is launching our 2018 sea kayaking program with trip planning, instructor training, incident management training, Wednesday evening paddles, and a new group of sea kayak students. Join us for another season of fun on the water! Read more…

Kayaking Cape Scott: A Leader's Perspective - Feb 28

A year ago, I had the notion to lead a group of Mountaineers sea kayakers on a difficult trip around the northwest corner of Vancouver Island. This is a classic trip because the launch point (Port Hardy) and the landing point (Coal Harbor) are separated by only 20 minutes of driving - and 100 miles of remote, beautiful coastline. It is a thru paddle with a very easy shuttle. But the paddling is mostly open coast, much of which is exposed to ocean swell with surf on the beaches. It's an advanced paddle and it takes two weeks. So, I wondered:  How will I find a group of capable and compatible kayakers? Read more…

Sea Kayaking the World with Justine Curgenven - Jan 22

Pull up a chair, settle in, and enjoy stories and video from award winning filmmaker Justine Curgenven. With 15 years of sea kayaking adventures spanning six continents, Justine's hair-raising experiences appeal to anyone with an adventurous spirit ... be they climbers, skiers, sailors, or kayakers themselves! Read more…

What is Progressive Outdoor Education?

The Mountaineers 'Vision 2022' Strategic Plan calls for us to invest in being “innovative leaders in outdoor education.” This means we need to respond to growing needs and address new century challenges in ways that are different from traditional  outdoor education. This includes investment in our volunteers – the greatest source of innovation and a priceless resource that is uniquely Mountaineers. We call this new approach "Progressive Outdoor Education."  Read more…

Did You Know? Hope Island State Park

Hope Island State Park is a 106-acre marine camping park in Mason County on the Puget Sound. This island is not only a state park, but also part of the expansive Cascadia Marine Trail that extends all the way north to the San Juan Islands. This quiet island can only be reached by boat. It is covered with old growth forests, saltwater marshes, and a two mile long beach. With the proper training and equipment, it makes for a great adventure! Read more…

Leader Spotlight: Charlie Michel

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Charlie Michel, a Sea Kayak Leader who can still hold his own with the young guns. Read more…

Youth Kayak Programs in July and August

Want to get your kids out on the water this summer? Sign up for our new kayak program for kids aged 7-13. The program is designed with fun and water safety as the primary goals. Read more…

How To: Implement Low-Impact Recreation Skills

At The Mountaineers, we've believe venturing into the outdoors is an essential piece of the human experience. It's important to implement low-impact recreation skills to keep our wild places as sanctuaries for the human spirit. Read more…

How To: Reduce Your Backcountry Bathroom Use Impact

At The Mountaineers, we've believe venturing into the outdoors is an essential piece of the human experience. It's important to implement low-impact recreation skills to keep our wild places as sanctuaries for the human spirit. Read more…

How To: Reduce Your Backcountry Camping Impact

At The Mountaineers, we've believe venturing into the outdoors is an essential piece of the human experience. It's important to implement low-impact recreation skills to keep our wild places as sanctuaries for the human spirit. Read more…

How To: Reduce Your Backcountry Eating Impact

At The Mountaineers, we've believe venturing into the outdoors is an essential piece of the human experience. It's important to implement low-impact recreation skills to keep our wild places as sanctuaries for the human spirit. Read more…