QUESTION FOR YOU ALL. DO ANY OF YOU KNOW WHAT IS CONSIDERED THE "EVEREST OF KAYAYING TRIPS/EXPEDITIONS?
LIKE MOUNTAIN CLIMBING THERE A CERTAIN PEAKS THAT ARE CONSIDERED THE PINNACLE OF ACHIEVEMENT IN THAT SPORT, WHAT ARE THEY FOR KAYAKING? THANKS.
hmm
the pacific ocean
Paddle California to Hawaii
it’s been done, but it isn’t done often that’s for sure…
I’d nominate the Open water Crossing from Newfoundland to Greenland as one.
For the people who developed it…
…it was all about survival–food on the table and other necessary supplies to survive in their environment. That’s a pretty impressive achievement in an ultimately harsh environment for a human being.
With regards to the modern “sport” or “recreation” aspects of the activity, I’d have to say that the “ultimate” is entirely individual in nature. Each of us has our reasons for doing it, and while it’s pretty easy to recognize some of the more impressive feats of certain individuals, I’m sure there can be just as great a “meaning” in poking around a quiet wetland for one person as there is in crossing the Pacific for another.
Each of us discovers, in our own ways, what is most meaningful to ourselves. Sometimes it’s entirely personal, and sometimes it’s about sharing something in common with others. Most often, methinks, it can be a combination of many things. Just as it’s pretty much impossible to pick ONE favorite piece of music, I suspect there’s little point in deciding upon one single act of paddling that defines its pinnacle for everyone in the world.
Melissa
All awesome but check this recent one
They are all amazing. Check out this one just successful
Scotland to the Faroe Islands, two kayakers in regular Tiderace boats.
http://www.paddlefaroes.com/
Right on!
There’s only one highest mountain, but no matter the kayaking feat, one could always think of something more challenging. So, forget mount Everest, get in a kayak, and go find what excites your imagination.
Well, written, watersprite!
~~Chip
Everest is not the toughest climb …
Just to keep the question in perspective. There are much more challenging climbs. Especially since climbing Everest has been turned into a business, where Sherpa’s drag clients up the mountain, who would not make it on their own.
sounds like…
some sea kayak trips I’ve guided!
=:-0)
steve
Yup, sounds like
a trip I was on a few years ago. Had to pity the poor guide. A couple obviously didn’t read the prerequisites & description, or simply disregarded them. “Ah, we’ve never actually paddled in the ocean before.” Oh great.
seadart is correct here…
Everest is the highest but not the most technically challenging by a long shot.
Think of it this way. If it’s something that is brought up at a cocktail party it may be a pretty darn impressive feat but probably isn’t the penultimate kayaking feat.
How many people can name the man who paddled from California to Hawaii? He never really talked much about it. Mostly, it seems to me, he was forced to discuss it. That’s 2200 miles of open ocean and a really amazing feat but that isn’t the most amazing thing that could be done in a kayak.
What is Everest?
Let’s maybe start with K2, and it isn’t the hardest.
The Big Three Islands…
…are reputed to be Iceland, South Island New Zealand, and Newfoundland.
My Everest
My mountain is a lot lower, maybe in the 14,000 foot range. I am sure that alot more folks have climbed Mt. Rainier here in Washington more than have paddled the inside passage to Alaska, but that is my Mt. Everest and I daydream about that expedition.
It is in my bucket list. No where near as expensive or challenging as Everest, but a challenge non-the-less.
DD…
Thanks for representing the left coast.
Ed G.
Ed Gillett. HIs book showed just how difficult and how NOT fun it was, I mean talk about the “art” of suffering. OH MAN
everest
hmm
it depends keeping in mind vals post.
everest is like the moon more than it is like the earth. Maybe australia. I think caffyn and maybe freya if she finishes will be the only two to have done it solo. That is a tough nut to crack. But in saying that, maybe that makes aussie more like k2?.. not sure
sea kayaking and climbing are so different.
that said, chris duff the last time I spoke with him said he was going to tackle the ultimate paddling adventure that was the everest of paddling. He wouldn’t say what it was. I later heard a rumour that it might be the nw passage. not sure. Jon turk came close on that…
Keith
go kayak now!
Can’t compare
Mount Everest is 29,000 feet, you can’t clime any higher. Sea kayaking is in the ocean; therefore is an almost endless mountain. There is no comparison.
In kayaking you setup your own distance, how far do you want to go? What are the logistics? I live in Florida, near the everglades; for me a trip into the wild everglades just by my self is a challenge that I think can be compared to mountaineering where you need to have good physical condition, navigation skills, trip planning, logistics, and an unpredictable environment.
Another big difference is that you can kayak all by yourself. It is impossible to do a “solo” to mount Everest and many other tall mountains. If you want to sea kayak in the most treacherous waters, try the Straight of Magellan or Cape Horn.
TASK…
…I watched him reluctantly recount that trip at TASK in Port Townsend after the fact. He wept. Maybe it was too soon for him to view it in perspective. I don’t know. I was amazed that this low-profile guy had done something of that nature and didn’t really seem to feel good about it. It really didn’t inspire me to run out and try to do it too.
Sure glad I don’t have that bug
I watched “Lost at Sea” about Andrew McCauly’s attempt to cross the Tasmen Sea. It looked like sheer misery and while nobody knows what happened to him, I think when he got close to the end he was so miserable and anxious to get it over he probably threw caution to the wind and went for it, taking risks that were his undoing. We’ll never know.
I could never understand the attraction of long crossings. Day after day of paddling while the scenery stays the same and the misery just mounts. Fun? Not in my book.
Then I watched Lost at Sea. OMG. Just f’n misery. Well, it’d be boring world if we all got excited about the same thing, but for the life of me I can’t understand what motivates the ultra-crossing, ultra-circumnavigation zealots. Nevertheless, it is impressive, inspirational, and instructive. No denying that. I’m just glad I’ve never had that urge.
~~Chip
circum Africa
thats what Duff refers to.
Sounds like my first Baja trip …
Epic surf at K-58, I got rescued about 3 times by the AquaAdventure Crew in one hour … but boy was I hooked …