Kayaking Adventure

In a memoir remarkable for its quiet confidence and acute natural observation, the author of Paddling Hawaii and Paddling My Own Canoe begins with her decision, at age 60, to undertake a solo, summer-long voyage along the southeast coast of Alaska in an inflatable kayak. Paddling North is a compilation of Sutherland's first two (of more than 20) such annual trips and her day-by-day travels through the Inside Passage from Ketchikan to Skagway. In 22 years, she encountered more than 30 bears, four wolves, and hundreds of whales.

In 1958, while flying from one island to another, Audrey Sutherland sees the remote and roadless northeast side of Molokai, with its spectacular sea cliffs and waterfalls. Always an adventurer, she decides that she must find a way to explore this then inaccessible area. After much study, she determines that the best way for her to navigate these treacherous sea walls is to swim while towing an inflatable kayak. This is the story of fulfilling her dream, of planning then implementing, of launching and advancing, of retreating and reconnoitering, of challenge and success.

After accelerating their studies and graduating high school early, two teenagers set off from their hometown in Minnesota to embark on a 2,200-mile canoe journey up the heart of North America. Their destination: the permafrost shores of Hudson Bay. Inspired by a passion for the simple life, where gadgets and schedules are replaced by nature and its harsh beauty, the duo found something that many believe is lost: a true adventure.    

Kayaking at night has its rewards and hazards. I have noticed that when you master a sport, you eventually want to challenge yourself. Sooner or later you end up doing it at night. Low visibility takes a sport and turns it into an extremely isolating, yet empowering, experience. My life and joy for living are in only my hands. I must make peace with God, silence my personal fears, then embrace life to its fullest. This is the pleasure I have found in kayaking at night.

The fog is just beginning to disperse after sunrise but this is not a problem for navigation because you are just going to follow the western shore. You are the first person in when the gate opens at the West Bay Park and your hand launched vessel slides effortlessly into the water. You are off. You pass a tiny Island 50 yards from the launch. Islands no matter how small always excite my mind. The island is perhaps 20' wide and has one small stick like tree growing on it.

This 148-day journey began on Darcy Gaechter’s 35th birthday. She sold her successful outdoor adventure business, upsetting her partner and boyfriend of 12 years and getting them both fired in the process. The emotional waters that would fester and erupt on the ensuing journey were often more challenging to navigate than the mighty river itself. With blistering lips and irradiated fingernails, Darcy would tackle raging Class Five whitewater for 25 days straight, barely surviving a dynamite-filled canyon being prepared for a new hydroelectric plant.

Feel the adrenaline rush as Dave Norell plunges over huge waterfalls, gets lost in the Philippine jungles, and experiences carnage in Costa Rica. In need of medical attention, Dave and his extreme kayaking friends trudge through waist-high sugar cane fields full of poisonous snakes, in search of a road that hasn't been washed out by recent flood-waters. Dave and fellow kayakers travel throughout Idaho, British Columbia, other parts of Canada and the US in their quest for whitewater adventure.

Tourists visit popular islands of the Caribbean by the planeload. What they don't see from their resort hotels are the hundreds of out-of-the-way, uninhabited islands sprinkled along the West Indies, from Florida to South America. This alluring archipelago, strung with beaches accessible only by boat but spaced temptingly close together, led Mississippi adventurer Scott B. Williams to embark upon an open-ended quest to see how far south he could go in a 17-foot sea kayak.

The Last River: The Tragic Race for Shangri-la is a breathtaking account of the ill-fated October 1998 expedition of an American whitewater kayaking team who traveled deep into the Tsangpo Gorge in Tibet to run the Yarlung Tsangpo, known in paddling circles as the "Everest of rivers." For Wick Walker and Tom McEwan, extreme whitewater pioneers, best friends, and trip leaders, the Tsangpo adventure was the culmination of a twenty-five-year quest for glory. Yet the team's magnificent dreams crumbled when their ace paddler was swept over a thunderous eight-foot waterfall, never to be seen again.

Erik Weihenmayer is the first and only blind person to summit Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. Descending carefully, he and his team picked their way across deep crevasses and through the deadly Khumbu Icefall; when the mountain was finally behind him, Erik knew he was going to live. His expedition leader slapped him on the back and said something that would affect the course of Erik’s life: “Don’t make Everest the greatest thing you ever do.” No Barriers is Erik’s response to that challenge.

As the sun rises over the tranquil waters, casting a golden glow on the horizon, you find yourself drawn to the allure of kayaking. The rhythmic sound of water gently lapping against the kayak's hull beckons you closer, promising a world of adventure and serenity. In this chapter, we will delve into the joy of kayaking and explore its numerous benefits.

In the still and cool hours before sunrise I have learned a few things about myself and God. It is my hope to share them with you, as I share the experiences which take place in my orange 15' kayak. Take what you like and forget the rest.

South Solo is a story of indomitable courage, of passion to save an endangered species like the albatross, and the unique adventure of solo kayaking in the frigid waters off Antarctica.