Paddling The Salish Sea

Features 23 wholly new routes Paddles range from protected lakes and short routes for beginners to more exposed, longer saltwater trips for advanced paddlers Detailed information on paddle duration, difficulty, planning considerations, and more All new full-color maps and photos In Paddling the Salish Sea, professional kayaker and paddling coach Rob Casey guides paddlers to the most rewarding destinations across the region. This comprehensive guide covers everything from the quiet inlets of the South Sound to an entirely new section featuring the fjords, waterfalls, and local waterways around Vancouver, B.C. In between, paddlers will find urban explorations near Seattle and Everett; routes on the lakes, rivers, and shorelines of the Olympic Peninsula, Hood Canal, and the islands of the North Sound; and even more new choices in Canada’s Gulf Islands and around Victoria, B.C. Beginner, intermediate, and advanced paddlers all can find beautiful, rewarding routes for their skill levels. Casey’s expert advice on navigating the marine environment, paddling safety, gear, trip planning, and more provides all the practical information paddlers need to prepare for a successful, safe outing. For sea or flatwater kayakers, canoeists, rowers, or stand-up paddle boarders, Paddling the Salish Sea is the must-have guide for discovering the wonders of the Puget Sound.

In this insightful account of her solo voyage in a sixteen-foot kayak, Jennifer Hahn vividly relates the ecstatic moments and terrifying predicaments of paddling against the wind through Alaska's Inside Passage. Hahn's adventures include dramatic encounters with animals and heartwarming experiences with coastal characters. Much more than a memoi...

The Gulf Islands are a group of a dozen large islands and hundreds of smaller islets located around the southern tip of Vancouver Island. Spectacular scenery, low rainfall and the many protected waterways offer ideal paddling conditions. Protected from the pounding waves and extreme weather associated with the open coast, the waters in this area provide hours of paddling for the novice and experienced paddler alike. Hundreds of kilometres of shoreline offer countless hours of intertidal exploration. Quiet coves, pebble beaches and sandy shores allow for putting ashore, exploring inland, setting up camp or for simply gazing seaward.

For the experienced and novice alike, this comprehensive guide leads paddlers through some of the best kayaking waters on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Twenty trips are outlined, covering prime paddling destinations within Barkley and Clayoquot sounds, including the Deer Group, the Broken Group Islands, and Vargas, Flores and Meares islands. Each trip is headed with important information on tides, currents, safety considerations and launching. Included in each route description is practical information on the different land jurisdictions, campsites, suitable landings and paddling conditions. Sidebars embellish the history of shipwrecks, examine the Nuu-chah-nulth people and introduce interesting characters like Salal Joe and Fred Tibbs. Others detail some of the natural history of the west coast with topics ranging from grey whales to barnacles. This edition also provides well-researched information on the parks in the area, including Pacific Rim National Park and several parks within the BC Parks system.

Now recognized by the United Nations as a world heritage ecosystem, Clayoquot Sound, with its spectacular bays and beaches, has enthralled everyone privileged to experience it-from the First Nations peoples to the first European explorers, to the recent wave of whale-watching tourists from around the world. Joanna Streetly and Adrian Dorst, who live in the area, bring an insider's knowledge and pride to this account of their week-long trip through Clayoquot by kayak. They depict in vivid words and breathtaking colour photographs the present-day allure of the sound. Streetly also delves into the region's colourful past, from Native culture and traditions to more recent, high-profile confrontations between forest companies and environmentalists. A new addition to the popular Raincoast Journeys series, this is a well-rounded portrait of one of the world's finest natural reserves, whose hard-won preservation is an inspiration to all lovers of the wild.

This paddling guide to Desolation Sound and the Strait of Georgia provides historical travel information on a part of the Inner Passage between Vancouver Island and the BC mainland. Follow the Marine Trail up the east coast of Vancouver Island with perhaps a digression to Hornby or Denman islands. Or tackle the savage inflow-outflow winds of Jervis Inlet to reach the jewel of Princess Louisa Inlet.

The Straits Salish Indians of the San Juan and Straits of Georgia's islands were using an advanced technique to catch sockeye salmon hundreds of years ago; probably before Columbus, Vespucci, Bering, Drake and other European explorers were even born. That technique survives today and is considered to be one of the most environmentally sensitive of all the methods of catching fish. The indigenous peoples we now know as the Lummi, the Samish, the Semiahmoo, the Sooke, the Songish, and the Saanich, were a distinct group particularly distinguished by their invention of, and use of, an ingenious apparatus known today as the reef net; an apparatus especially designed to catch the elusive sockeye salmon. This book tells the story of the reef net as invented by an unknown genius among the Straits Salish peoples of hundreds of years ago. This book is also an attempt to examine the lessons to be learned from the past and their potential for informing the future; what can we learn from the past to enhance our approach to the future? The lessons of the reef net include respect for a people capable of developing an advanced technology based on the natural world they lived in. The lessons of the reef net lead to an increased respect for the environment. The lessons of the reef net include material for reflection about the value of self-reliance and an entrepreneurial spirit. The lessons of the reef net have much to teach about the value of community and people working in a common cause. Invented hundreds of years ago, the reef net is still in use today. According to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife: "The term, selective fishing, has been used to describe any of several fishing gears and management objectives, yet at its most basic definition a selective fishery is one in which by catch (the capture of undesired species) is avoided altogether or is able to be released alive and unharmed. As the Department of Fish & Wildlife has experimented with selective commercial fishing gear and moved toward selective fishing practices in recreational fishing, reef nets stand out as the original and still the best in selective fishing. Practiced by the Indians of the Puget Sound region using materials gathered locally, reef nets are unique to the area. Modern materials and hydraulics have improved efficiency but the basic methods remain the same. Reef nets do not gill or surround salmon with a net. Rather they count on natural and manmade structures to lead the salmon into a shallow laid net which is then lifted and the fish spilled into holding pens. Minimal handling and stress coupled with the ability to keep the fish alive make reef nets the most selective fishing gear available. Reef nets are fixed to one location and only catch migrating adult salmon that swim through their gear. For years reef nets have released non-target salmon species when management needs dictate. Mortality and bycatch are lower than any other fishing gear. Today reef nets are used in northern Puget Sound, targeting sockeye and pink salmon during summer months and coho and chum salmon during the fall."

Often called one of the Seven Wonders of Canada, the canoe has played a particularly important role in British Columbia. This seemingly simple watercraft allowed coastal First Nations to hunt on the open ocean and early explorers to travel the province’s many waterways. Always at the crossroads of canoe culture, BC today is home to innovative artists and designers who have rediscovered ancient canoe-building techniques, as well as community leaders who see the canoe’s potential to bring people together in exciting, inspiring ways. The story of Canoe Crossings begins some fifteen thousand years ago, when, as compelling new evidence suggests, the first humans to reach the Americas did so by canoe down the West Coast. It continues through the centuries, chronicling the evolution of the canoe and its impact on the various people who used it to explore, hunt, trade, fight, race, create, and even heal. The book contains dozens of stories of colourful, passionate people who have contributed to the province’s canoe culture, including a teenager who lived ninety feet up in a tree house while designing and building the world’s longest kayak; a group of high school students who practised on a tiny lake and went on to win several World Dragon Boat Championships; and at-risk Aboriginal youth who reconnected with their traditional culture through annual “big canoe” trips. Canoe Crossings will appeal to anyone who has ever sought adventure, found solace, or seen beauty in a canoe or wondered about the origins of its design and use in British Columbia and beyond.