California Coastal Cleanup Day 2010

The sun was shining on us as we joined forces with the Lost Coast Chapter of the Traditional Small Craft Association to clean up Fort Bragg's Noyo River. We could not have asked for a more beautiful day.

Of course being water folks, we kayaked and rowed to locations to retrieve trash and retrieved quite a bit (over 800 pounds).


It is amazing how many little plastic wrappers accumulate in our our waters - ziplocs, chip bags, and wrapper from candy. Thanks to Jim and Jim for their efforts in collecting those annoying little bits of trash.


Lin donned some gloves and waded in to retrieve a toilet that someone had dumped into the river.

Jeff turned one our our recreational tandem kayaks into a garbage barge, and Stan and Selby towed an old rowboat garbage boat as well.


Speaking of towing . . . we have another story to share from the day. Stay tuned for the Towing of the Vrrroooom, Vrrroooom.

End of a Foggy Mendocino Summer

Fall is almost upon us on the Mendocino Coast. Our tomatoes are finally getting some sun and our first rain of the season is predicted. Yes, we get excited about rain which in Mendocino County means mushrooms and whitewater kayaking.


After a super busy summer with lots of visitors joining us kayaking; we are enjoying quieter days, the late summer weather, and calm coastal paddling conditions. Many of the old time fishermen tell us that these calm ocean conditions with lots of fog used to be the norm for our ocean in the summer.


We are enjoying our relatively calm seas and are planning some special trips for the fall of 2011 including a Tour de Mendo with new twists. One of our recent exploratory paddles involved a beach launch at one of our most picturesque Mendocino Coast beaches followed by paddling around giant sea stacks and headlands with sea caves that were interconnected by tunnels. Any guesses where we were? No, it is not Russian Gulch, Elk, or Van Damme.


Jeff and I are also cleaning out the gear closet and kayak rack and having a sale. We borrowed Marna of Kayak Zak's idea of a kayak yard sale and put our own spin on it to make it an online yard sale. Check it out and see if there is any kayaks or gear that you need.


We are offering lots of fall kayaking classes for beginning through advanced paddlers. Monday night, our Introduction to Kayaking Class starts at the Mendocino Park and Rec. CV Starr Pool. Next weekend as the Bay Area Sea Kayakers visit, we are offering several kayak rock gardening classes including our specialty - Whitewater of the Sea.


In October, we are preparing for birthday celebrations as both Jeff and I celebrate birthdays in October. Lots of play in short boats is likely to be in store (kayak surfing and rock gardening). We are also looking forward to attending the Traditional Arctic Kayak Symposium just to the north of us in Trinidad, CA.


Planning for 2011 is in the works . . . more Tracks to Kayaks, regular kayak surfing instruction, winter and spring whitewater classes in Mendocino County and beyond . . . are a few more goodies that we are adding in for 2011. If you have a special group, trip, or event that you would like to plan for 2011 - let us know.

September's Second Sunday

Beneath a blanket of fog, we ventured in our sea kayaks to paddle and explore a section of the Mendocino Coast on our monthly Second Sunday Paddle. Each month on the second Sunday, we are guiding and playing along different stretches of the coast. Giving our students and visitors a chance to apply their sea kayak skills to the rugged Mendocino Coast.



This foggy morning, the sirens of the sea must have been slumbering . The ocean was calm allowing for safe passages through many sea caves and arches.



We encountered some abalone divers in zodiaks and marveled at how close to the rocks with harbor seals they passed without disturbing the seals. We are very cautious and turned around in a couple of channels to avoid scaring the seals. It is amazing how they seem to be threatened by us in our non-motorized craft while they are complacent about the growling 2 stroke motors. I guess that since they have a long history of being hunted by kayak, wariness has become programed into their DNA.



The visibility when we launched was less than 100 yards; however, the fog receded as the morning went on and was long forgotten when we landed.



Anyone recognize this bridge?