~Happy Holidays 2009! ~

Glassy Dash through the Pass !

No wind and barely a ripple of current,

meant flat, calm conditions

for this years big race turnout, as the 2009 Deception Pass Dash

will go down as

one of the fastest Dashes through the Pass...First male and female overall wins were both

well-earned by former Olympians, Greg Barton and Sherri Cassuto,in this years record-setting heat

of 158 boats and boards of all varieties....

Giant Thanks to Bill Walker (on the left below), OAC crew,
and all of the awesome volunteers and sponsors who make the Dash possible~

Check out more race photos at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/expeditionpaddlers/DeceptionPashDash2009#

Final Countdown to the Deception Pass Dash !!

Less than a week to go until the most popular winter paddling race in the Pacific Northwest takes place right here in our backyard in the infamous swirling waters of Deception Pass...

the Deception Pass Dash !!

Last year while racing tandem

(in the wrong boat for those rough o' waters)

we finished 17th overall outa nearly 140 participants,

while the "Perfect Storm" conditions forced another 30 racers to DNF!

~~~

This year, Jim & friends have been training hard...

2009 Dash racers- Debbie, Greg, Jesse & Jim-

chillin' out after practicing the course...

~ ~ ~

~With over 160 racers signed up already- it's going to be an exciting race weekend!

Different Worlds...

Several years ago, when my dad first started writing to me about Jim,

I was living in a Chinese city of 15 million...

After travelling to nearly 30 countries,including seven years of teaching,

and playing,

around four Asian nations...

I finally returned back HOME to the great Pacific Northwest

and can confidently say after so many years of

gypsy wandering- That there truly are such a rare place in the world,

you can be lucky enough

to look out your living room window

and catch as spectacular view as this... A late fall sunset, complimented by a rising full moon

over a nearby volcano basked in twilight alpen glow,

shadowy foothills and a rugged island archipelago.

We relish the enchanting, quiet beauty surrounding the

sleepy little island town we now call

'Home Sweeeet Home"...
~~~

"Three things cannot be long hidden,

the sun, the moon and the truth." -Buddha

Stormy Salish Seas...

This time of the dark, drizzly year in the Pacific Northwest, when we're not out pushing ourselves to the limits- paddling, hiking, biking or 'boarding around our favorite Northwest island waterways and mountain trails...Goretexed-up, with cameras & binoculars in hand, we'll head out to a nearby vantage point, eagerly anticipating the arrival of the next big storm front. As the first clouds roll in over the surrounding Olympic & Cascade peaks and cat paws dance across the San Juan waters & Admiralty Straits...We'll stare out at these familiar, white-capped, wind blown waterways, darkened on these blustery days & even more threatening with wicked rip currents, winds and tides colliding explosively..., Rosario Strait can offer some of the gnarliest, inland waters in the Puget Sound, when ocean-size swells are blown in by these 'big wind' fronts and collide with the currents in narrow channels and around the countless island reefs and rips...
Looking across at the dark shades discoloring our normally enchanting marine playground will humble us with memories of paddling out there on similar days, when the weather has changed quickly & 'caught us'~ as the San Juan waters are notorious forCrossing channels to get home in unexpectedly 'extreme' conditions- We've paddled through white-out fog, gale force winds, wicked walls of waves, dodging lightening strikes, sideways rain, snow and darkness ....

** Inspiring famous storm survivor & casualty tales from others in film & books such as
"I Shouldn't be Alive!" & "Deep Waters" **...while a hop, skip and an island away the Surfs up in Admiralty Inlet!

On the west side of Whidbey island, you'll find a beach popular on stormy days with the cold water lovin', PNW Surfers & SUPer's - for the potential Wave Ridin' swells which can occasionally occur here...

And for some on the water Storm Chasin' while keepin' the

Risk Factor at a minimum= take a ride on the small & notoriously unreliable

Pt Townsend - Keystone ferry
This quirky, smallest of the WA state ferries, often cancels runs when the stars do not align between the seasonal storms, strong winds, big tides, and near-reef landing. Once in a while this normally 30 minute ride in rough seas turns into more than an hour and a half crossing-!! We've hooted & hollered all the way across, while standing on the car deck , enjoying 6+ foot seas slappin' our silly faces!

~~~~

Happy Storm Chasin' around

North Puget Sounds

Fidalgo & Whidbey islands

~Rain shadow protected - prime views of up to 3 different mountain ranges!- endless free family fun! - year round- LAND BASED, whale-watch viewing of Orcas, Minkes, Grays & Humpback whales on miles of public clifftop & beachside trails in state & city parks... come explore while getting your stroll on, ride on, surf on, fly on, sail on, ___ on!

Fall trip to Jones island

Steve, Jim & I couldn't resist the calling of the islands this weekend with the summer-like-weather on Sat., so we loaded our kayaks & set off for another weekened outing of paddling adventures in the San Juan islands... We launched Sat. morning into Guemes Channel and were spoiled with perfect glass-like conditions all day and dreamy fall temp's near 60F! Crossing the 3 shipping lanes in our usual leap-frog route, over Guemes to Bellingham Channel & then around the south end of Cypress island to Rosario Strait, *which was unusually busy this particular morning, with shipping lane traffic, causing us to stage at the SW end of Cypress island for about 20 min's as 4 BIG shipS passed by - including a tug & barge and then a closely following freighter while we were nearby...
Then on with the currents through Peavine Pass to take a peaceful lunch break on Blakely island...bellies full, back into boats we went to paddle across Eastsound, down Harney Channel along miles and miles of Orcas island shorelines across Westsound, through super narrow & shallow Poe Pass ending the day at just over twenty-something miles of paddling...

~ to finally set up camp at our favorite campsite ,

on the south end of Jones island We enjoyed a Spectacular star-studded night, bright half moon, warming campfire, visits from racoons, deer, eagles & seals....

Sunday we slept in, took our time packing up & set off, weaving through Yellow & Wasp islands, with more close-up nature sightings of hauled out seals, harlequin ducks & greebees....and then across San Juan Channel on over to pull out at the convenient kayak docks in Friday Harbor...
The Ultimate grande finale of our trip occured just before we entered Friday Harbor, when two HUGE steller sea lions appeared quite close to Steve & started having a feeding frenzy on big salmon....it was absolutely Amazing to observe....

Once back in dry clothes, we met up with our friend & fellow paddler David Halpern for lunch, sharing stories & laughs!

...then wheeled our boats onto the ferry and enjoyed a free ride back to Anacortes, just as the winds & rains were really picking up...

Fall circumnavigation of Fidalgo island

Every few months we like to test our endurance levels by going on a one-day Paddling Circumnavigation of Fidalgo island ...

We start in Anacortes, launch from mid-Guemes Channel, go with the currents down Rosario Strait, around Biz Point and through the powerful waters of Deception Pass... weave across Skagit Bay, up the Swinomish Slough, (always stop for bakery treats at the Calico Cupboard in La Conner:), continue along the slough & under the Twin Bridges, cross Fidalgo Bay and finish back in Guemes Channel....

In past laps, we've averaged this "ultra"-island circumnavigation distance in 34-37 miles, with paddling times between 6 1/2 to 7 1/2 hours, while pushing a tandem, kevlar sea kayak which weighs approx. 80 pounds...

Last weekend we rallied our friend Jesse to join us as we excitedly set out for another fun-filled day on the water.

Pockets and hatches stashed full of energy treats, cameras & extra clothes (just in case). We used the swift currents to aid us paddling as we passed by numerous islands, under a couple of cool bridges, past several sea caves, enjoyed the company of playful seals, bald eagles, & river otter...with the added bonus of magnificent fall colors painting the island shorelines all along the way!

All in all, according to the handy dandy GPS, we ended up spending a total of 7 hours and 8 minutes going the distance of 33.4 miles...reaching our Top Speed of 11 mph while going through Deception Pass (yee-haw is right!!)

~Where will next weekends winds & currents take us in the Salish Seas?!.....check back soon to find out!