Overview

Section 1 - Hecate Straight

Section 2 - Queen Charlotte Sound

Section 3 - Vancouver Island

The Voyagers

The Pilgrims

In case you were wondering who the Pilgrims are, the paddlers are Jonathan Walpole, Kirti Walpole and Jenny Johnson, but the Pilgrims are Kirti's and Jenny's new kayaks (Mayflower and Speedwell). They are "Pilgrim Expedition" sea kayaks from Sea Kayaking UK (SKUK), designed by Nigel Dennis specifically for smaller paddlers. This is their first major expedition and we are keen to see how they fare. Hopefully, the Speedwell will fare better than the original!

Like the early pilgrims we'll be embarking on a sea journey in search of freedom, and we'll be heading for America, but unless our navigation goes horribly wrong we won't be crossing the Atlantic! Instead we'll be paddling a combination Outside / Inside Passage route from Prince Rupert at the northern end of Canada's west coast to Victoria at the southern end. Our exact route is not fixed. This is not about conquering anything or breaking any records: we plan to move cautiously and let nature determine our pace and route.

We hope to send position updates via SPOT most days so people can follow our progress. Less frequently we'll try to communicate via satellite phone to a friend so he can add the occasional update to this blog. However, please note that we will be in very remote wilderness areas for the vast majority of our journey, so it may prove difficult to make contact for extended periods of time. Please consider absence of contact to be normal and any updates that appear to be the exception!

Our Schedule

June 23 - Drive from Portland, Oregon to Vancouver, British Columbia

June 24 - Ferry to Vancouver Island, drive to Port Hardy

(stay with Pat Kervin of Odyssey Kayaking & Dive Center)

June 25 - Inside Passage Ferry to Prince Rupert

June 26 - Launch