subaruguru Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 House-swapping with a family in Victoria on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. My provincial eye-opening miscalculation of scale means that we'll probably NOT get all the way down to Seattle (and thus Bob B's Kayak Academy), so I wonder if members can recommend favorite kayaking spots either on the Island or off Vancouver proper, where we'll also be staying at a friend's apt part of the time. To keep packing to a minimum I guess I should leave all my gear at home and hope to rent decent stuff there, although I'm REALLY tempted to take my bent Ikelos...and my skirt...PFD...radio...tow belt.... Thanks, and see y'all in September. Ern Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael_Crouse Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 Ok now that I'm over my jealously that you're going to BC and I'm not...... Tofino "a quaint little town with a surfing problem" Bob recommended we go to Tofino and it was well worth it. Protected areas to paddle in and some lovely west coast surf if you're into that. Anytime you see someone peddling a bike to the beach with a surf board under their arm you know it's going to be a cool place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gcosloy Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 Hey Ern soften my envy by letting me borrow the Vaag whilst you're away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suz Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 House-swapping with a family in Victoria on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. My provincial eye-opening miscalculation of scale means that we'll probably NOT get all the way down to Seattle (and thus Bob B's Kayak Academy), so I wonder if members can recommend favorite kayaking spots either on the Island or off Vancouver proper, where we'll also be staying at a friend's apt part of the time. To keep packing to a minimum I guess I should leave all my gear at home and hope to rent decent stuff there, although I'm REALLY tempted to take my bent Ikelos...and my skirt...PFD...radio...tow belt.... Thanks, and see y'all in September. Ern Ernie, As soon as you pack a paddle (which I recommend bringing along), you are already into a bag for your stuff. Might just as well fill the bag up. Last flight I took to Michigan for the Great Lakes Symposium, I didn't give it much thought ahead and last minute borrowed a Snowtube which worked but such a waste of my paying for one bag transport there and back. John Carmody travels with a travel "golf bag" Fits a paddle and nearly everything else you may need to bring - pfd, skirt, tow belt and clothes. (I recommend traveling with your dry suit and radio in a carry on). If you use a dry suit, you don't need to bring an assortment of other items to choose between. Also you will travel home with less wet clothes on the way back. (Water is heavy - a just below weight bag will be too heavy on the way home). Enjoy and take loads of pictures for us to see! Suz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scamlin Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Ern: Beth and I paddled the outside coast of Vancouver Is. in 2002 and would go back in a heartbeat. As Michael suggests, Tofino is best place for kayaking if you're traveling without a boat. You;d need a car to get there from Victoria via Alberni. Very cool town: a mix of First People (aka native canadians), descendants of 19th century European gold diggers and fishermen, and various old American draft dodgers and hippies who arrived in the 1960s and 1970s. Kind of a laid back California vibe. The beachfront condos and cottages do a big business in the off season: the surf is spectacular during winter storms. We rented Current Design and Necky boats from Tofino Sea Kayaking who we recommend. They are on the Tofino waterfront so you just launch from their beach. http://tofino-kayaking.com/ Rental come with PFD, paddle and spare, paddle float, throw line. We brought our all our own equipment except the boats and food in one duffle. Well worth it. Also, stayed at two of the numerous B&Bs the nights before and after the camping trip. Many very good restaurants in the area if you want to splurge. Any number of islands to camp on and paddling can be as exposed or protected as you wish. Multiple sightings of gray whales a day (including a few very close encounters) along with seals, big turtles, huge trees, etc. The Pacific NW coast has about 5 times the biomass (land and marine) compared with New England, so it's a different world. We did find wolf footprints around our beach tent site one morning, but were told the big cats and black bears keep them in check. The second week I camped in the Broken Island Group in the Barkley Sound area southeast along the coast from Tonfino. More of the same, except this time found much evidence of First Nation people who flourished on these islands until the 19th century when European diseases decimated them. Gray whales and Stellar sea lions were the highlights. We put in at a public campground in Ucluelet, BC on Toquart Bay Rd. off the Alberni highway. Beware the major shipping lane from Alberni: I can tell you from personal experience that big boats come through the Broken Islands and they are deceptively fast. Link to the camping ground: http://www.toquartbay.com/index.html Happy to give more background if you contact me. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted August 17, 2010 Author Share Posted August 17, 2010 Thanks, Scott 'n Suz. I'll check Tofino for intermediate trips and gear rental, as I'm loathe to give American Airlines $25/bag each way for my stuff. If Ellen wanted to 'yak it'd be a different trip. Here I am trying to pronounce Island names while she sifts through Chowhounds recommendations for downtown Vancouver. Sigh.... Gene, Sorry I missed that last trip up your way. Hope to repeat this fall. And sorry, ya CANNOT borrow Le Vague, as it's still awaiting a new P&H (sic) back-band to mate with my carved up and glued-in Cetus seat. See you all in Sept., and happy paddling! Ern Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted August 18, 2010 Share Posted August 18, 2010 John Carmody travels with a travel "golf bag" Fits a paddle and nearly everything else you may need to bring - pfd, skirt, tow belt and clothes. (I recommend traveling with your dry suit and radio in a carry on). Suz In San Francisco I saw some fellow kayak travellers using travel golf bags and I think they're the best kayak air travel luggage option Ive seen. They're tall enough to fit paddles, big enough to fit all essential kayak travel gear, they have wheels on the bottom , are bult strongly so they wont bend or change shape if handled roughly. Also, lots of people with money and influence go vacation golfing , so the airlines are used to dealing with them , and they're generally more likely to be treated with respect than hippie travel gear. I checked some out at Dicks sporting goods. They cost @ $200, give or take. If I find that air travel for kayaking is likely to be in my immediate future, I will definitely try to get one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thief Posted August 18, 2010 Share Posted August 18, 2010 here is a thread i started on the West Coast Paddler forum. http://www.westcoastpaddler.com/community/...?f=1&t=3747 My fiancee (will then be wife) and i are going to Vancouver for our honeymoon in October....I asked the guys who know out there for some advice...got some good responses. Ernie: did you call Joel about that back for your seat? saw it there the other day again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted August 24, 2010 Author Share Posted August 24, 2010 Ha! Cheerfully flummoxed by my provincial sense of scale, El and I finally got to Vancouver Island, so far acting touristy in Victoria et environs. A daytrip SW to Port Renfrew revealed some active halibut and salmon fishing, but so far no kayaking 'cept a couple of rec boats in the inner harbours. So we hope to take a couple of days out in Tofino if we can book a B&B, wherein I hope to finally paddle a bit. A friendly customs agent (?!) remarked that I'll find either complete flatwater opportunities or gut-challenging conditions, with nothing in between. We'll see. I'm hoping Scott's experience prevails. Sunny and in the 60-70s so far...not even a hint of rain. No wonder there's so much blue hair around this almost obsessively clean isle. So far I miss Tuck's.... Ern Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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