by Gerry Felsky
On July 17, 2013 Phil Vallance and I travelled to Grand Marais Michigan to attend the 29th Annual Great Lakes Sea Kayaking Symposium.
The Memory of Water
Allen Smutylo
Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2013
Reviewed by Rob Muylwyk
It must have been around 2004 that I was first exposed to the fine artwork of Allen Smutylo, in this case a colourful etching of an arctic kayak, nicely framed and appropriately hung over the mantel of the GLSKA president of the time. He and his partner happened to walk into the Circle Arts Gallery in Tobermory following a kayak trip in Fathom Five National Marine Park and decided that they could not go home without it. As Smutylo describes in the second chapter of this collection of ten memoirs, he was one of a group of Toronto expat artists that founded Circle Arts in the late sixties. More than forty years later, the gallery still carries his work. Around the time that we moved up to the Bruce Peninsula, Allen was presenting a series of slide shows and talks based on his trips to the High Arctic. Much of the material presented in the slide show is repeated here, so that it can reach a much wider public.
Kayak Trailer
by Jennifer Kilbourne
First, I purchased my sea kayak and all the equipment needed to spend some time on the water. My next big purchase was a roof rack for my car, complete with cradles to hold my kayak as I zipped down the highway to my next paddling destination. And it worked well, as long as I had another person to help heft my 16’6”, 56 lb vessel onto the roof of my car. After a couple hours of solo paddling, heaving something that weighs half as much as I do over my head was taking some of the fun out of what was supposed to be a relaxing evening on the water. As I am 5’2”, this was quite the feat (and probably a bit entertaining to watch). Additionally, my car is a very fuel efficient Volkswagen Jetta TDI, and I noticed that I was using more fuel when I had the rack on the car, even with a fairing (“spoiler”) installed.
Have Kayak … Will Travel?
by Keith Rodgers
Almost every one of us needs to haul our kayak around from time to time and the usual way we do this is by tying it on the top of a vehicle and hoping it stays on for the ride. Whether you do this a couple of times a year, over a short distance only, or many times and over thousands of kilometres, the consequences of a kayak flying off en route are potentially severe – in fact, possibly disastrous or even fatal. So it makes sense to get the right equipment and learn the best methods of securing your boat so that it stays on through wind and rain, alpine turns, emergency stops and the many other perils of the open road.
Kayaking Parque Nacional Bahia de Loreto – Mexico
by Ken Chorel
The idea of kayaking in the Sea of Cortez had been rattling around in my head since long before I ever “set foot” in a kayak. I don’t recall any more how the idea first formed, but for some reason, Baja has always been a destination I associated with kayaking. Finally, after far too long a wait, the opportunity presented itself, and now I’ve been twice in the span of two years.