Here are a few video/slide shows I have put together of a kayaking trip I made in British Columbia and Alaska along the Inside Passage. The first one is the shuttle back to my starting point on the Alaska Marine Highway ferry. If you want to hear the background music make sure your speakers are on.
Enjoy
The Inside Passage on the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2APAJ9pCqbw
San Juan Island to Powell River
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oafr4HUqCGI
Powell River to Port Hardy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nzu3M0QGrvg
Port Hardy to Shearwater
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgLeU5UjrSM
Shearwater to Butedale
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zcjr_MXXMD8
Butedale to Prince Rupert
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTWW5kNS30A
Prince Rupert to Ketchikan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqp3watRQB0
Ketchikan to Wrangell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTzXuVgpV1I
Wrangell to Juneau
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcRtlVNe2DY
Juneau to Skagway
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9G7xb4AWenY
Denis…
Thanks for posting. I just viewed Port Hardy to Shearwater and I've read through your entire trip and viewed the slides at your blog but posting them this way is a nice way for folks interested in the trip or portions of the trip to see sections in digestable mouthfuls. Hopefully it will drive folks to your blog for the Whole Meal Deal. BTW.....for those scoring at home, Shearwater to Port Hardy is a very good trip all on it's own and very worth traveling across the country to experience.
It looks like you got really good conditions for crossing "the Queen". Were those shots of the Deserters?
The Shelter Bay photos were nice and you had stellar conditions for rounding Cape Caution. Where was the current when you crossed Slingsby Channel? The lack of wind and swell cut you a huge break, yeah?
Red Sand Beach looked inviting. Out of curiousity why did you camp on the beach instead of the forest?
Where were the bears? I think that you ducked back into Smith Sound, yes?
The shot of Bella Bella and the approach to Shearwater always brings to mind Blind Faith and "Can't Find My Way Home". For me the approach to Shearwater has always been very melancoly. Back to the world.
I gotta go now and review more videos. I really admire your accomplishment and the huge effort that you have put into documenting the trip for the benefit of others.
My buddy and I are putting together the pieces of exploration from Olympia to an undetermined point in Alaska. We are doing Port Hardy to Port Angeles this coming summer, which will be a big piece. Our route will be down the west coast of Vancouver Island. We will still have a piece from Prince Rupert to wherever we choose in AK and a few bits and pieces that remain between Port Angeles and Olympia.
I'll be tapping your expertise for advice.
Jon
http://3meterswell.blogspot.com/
To answer your questions
Jon,
Thanks for the nice complements. I'll be watching for posts of your upcoming trips on 3meterswell. Very nice site by the way.
You're right, I lucked out and had very good conditions for the three days it took me to get from Port Hardy to Smith Sound. Mother nature paid me back later on the trip with days of continuous bad weather.
The islands in Queen Charlotte Strait that you saw were the Deserters and the Gordon Islands. I didn't spend much time doing any sight seeing amongst them as I wanted to get across QCS while the weather held.
I can't say what the current was doing in Slingsby Channel as I passed. It must have been slack as I didn't notice any current at all.
You know, I can't say why I camped on the sand at Red Sand Beach instead of up in the trees. Maybe because when I camped in the trees at Shelter Bay the bugs were so bad I thought the beach would be better. I do remember it being a pain in the butt to clean the sand off everything in the morning as I packed up. I don't think I camped on another sand beach for the rest of the trip.
The three bears photo was taken in Rivers Inlet from the dock at Duncanby Landing. I never saw anything like it during the remainder of my trip. Just lucky to be in the right place at the right time.
I'll be watching for photos of your trips.
Denis Dwyer
QCS…
…is a big serious chunk of moving water and the time it takes to cross leaves the potential for you to experience plenty of change. I’ve crossed it only once and the conditions were perfect yet I stopped only long enough in the Deserters for a quick caloric refuel as I felt like I was stealing something and might get caught. I know that you are familiar with that feeling.
Jon
http://3meterswell.blogspot.com
Time to cross QCS
You got me thinking about how long it took me to cross QCS so I pulled out my charts to see my time marks. I left Duval Point at the NW tip of Port Hardy at 8:25am, I passed through the Gordon Islands at 9:25, rounded Castle Point on Desserters Island at 10:30, passed through the Millar Group at 11:25 and reached the mainland coast at 12:15. Just about four hours with no breaks other than water and a power bar.
It’s amazing how being alone in the middle of long crossing like QCS provides a solo paddler with plenty of initiative to make it across before the weather can change.
Denis
Wow!..
…You flashed that crossing.
We started from Shelter Bay at 7AM and arrived at the Bear Cove boat ramp at about 2:30PM. I know that we lost a ton of time by starting too early and having to compensate for a 3 knot ebb. We also got out of our boats in the Deserters but the slimy boulders that we ate lunch on weren’t comfy and I don’t recall hanging around. We also got out on a rock ledge and stood in thigh deep water at the south end of Bell Island while regaling a couple of paddlers heading north with our adventures and loading campsites into their GPS.
Still, the difference between our times is vast and you were clearly more efficient. I’m thinking that Dave and I are slugs and would never be able to maintain your pace.
Nicely done!
More BC Coast Slideshows…
…Here are a few slideshows that I put together on a trip made to the Outside Passage in 2007.
Klemtu to Milne Island:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbRdCH51xDc
Laredo Sound and a day trip made to a 400 year old longhouse site:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PjwHDKw5jQ
Milne Island to Higgins Passage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4p0LEyChFvc
Jon
http://3meterswell.blogspot.com/
Yet more slideshows…
Here are a few more slideshows (with music) from that trip I took in 2007. I posted three that were sort of complete earlier but these complete that trip along with music of my choosing rather than WMG’s.
Denis will recognize some of it. So will others.
We took the ferry from Port Hardy to Klemtu and paddled out through Meyers Passage to Laredo Sound. South down to Higgins Passage, across Milbanke Sound and Seaforth Channel to Gale Passage. Gale Passage south through the McMullin Group, Goose Group, Cultus Sound and back north the catch the ferry at Shearwater.
Ferry from Port Hardy to Klemtu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOPJNisJbMY
Klemtu to Milne Island
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbRdCH51xDc
A day spent paddling on Laredo Sound
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWvItiKJwAw
Milne Island to Higgins Passage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3gpKfS4WFw
Higgins Passage to the McMullin Group
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jixc1sMD3c
McMullin Group to Cultus Sound
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzGXEloxTy4
Cultus Sound to Shearwater
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZr-akAcaLw
The trip report can be found here:
http://3meterswell.blogspot.com/2008/05/blog-post.html
Jon…
Gear Question
Dear Jon and Denis,
Thank you for working up your programs. They’re inspiring, and absolutely beautiful. I was curious on two points, and that is what the two of you use for a sleeping pad under your sleeping bag, and what cameras you used. Trying to get a good night’s sleep is crutial to a full day of paddling, and seeing some of the places you had to sleep, really would appreciate knowing what you used and how it worked. Thanks.
Sleeping Pads & Cameras
Thanks for the compliment.
I have been using the Big Agnes Insulated Air Core pad for the past 4 years. It works well for me though I have read reports from some who didn’t like it. It takes 13 big breaths to get it inflated to where I normally sleep with it. Product link here: http://bigagnes.com/Products/Detail/Pad/InsulatedAirCore
Action photo here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/A8ZdVpKu0KLivh5SHkLIbw?feat=directlink
I’m not a camera expert so I offer no advice but I carry two on trips. I’ve had a Pentax Optio W60 for a couple of years that I carry in my pdf pocket and a Canon PowerShot A510 that I keep dry and only take out on shore now. In my opinion the Canon allows me to take better photos than the Pentax but it doesn’t have to deal with waterspots and smudges on the lens.
Jon
http://3meterswell.blogspot.com/
Sleeping pads and cameras
Hello Thistle
I just checked this thread and found your question seven months after you asked it. Sorry for the late reply but I wasn't notified of your question by e-mail like I normally am.
The pad I used was a Therma Rest 3/4 length standard thickness. I would also place my wetsuit underneath it for added padding. This also came in handy for leveling a small sleeping spot on an angled beach.
As for the cameras, on land I used a Sony Cyber-shot and while paddling a SeaLife ECO Shot waterproof camera. I have more information about these cameras on my web site if you need further information.
Denis Dwyer
http://denisdwyer.blogspot.com/
Wow
Sorry I missed this thread a year ago. I’ve followed Jon’s blog for a long while and really enjoyed Dennis’s, too. Lyn (a big fan of Thermarests)
Lyngo posted…
…a trip report on this site a few years back when she and a partner paddled from Bella Bella to Port Hardy. Look it up. She has some great photos of that trip.
She also just returned from Greenland (hope I didn’t blow it).
Jon