We had a most sublime paddle today, for so many reasons. The first one was that we realized that exactly a year ago today we were starting our paddling adventure in Belize.
We remember the teal green waters, fascinating underwater scenes when we snorkelled, the lovely people and the laid back and relaxed feeling we had during that 10 days. It was sublime then too. So much has changed since then. A year doesn’t seem that long but for us it does seem long ago, because we have experienced so much in between. These memories are treasured.
Today’s paddle was quite different but will be treasured for so many reasons. We have never paddled in Canada in February, let alone when there is snow on the ground. That was a first! The weather was perfect. No wind, 5˚C, and sunshine! We were tramping through knee-high snow 2 days ago and paddling today. This is why we came to the Island!
We also fell in love with our new Greenland paddles. We found a craftsman in Nanaimo who makes custom paddles, so we could choose the length, the size of grip, how far apart our hands are on the paddle. And he carves them out of old-growth red cedar from one of the islands. It created a new dimension to paddling. It’s quieter, easier and although it sounds corny, holding a wooden paddle feels ‘right’. We just seemed to glide through the water; it was a great experience.
So it was a pretty perfect day and it was fun to realize we were paddling in a completely different world a year ago. We can’t say one is better than the other; they are both special in their own way! As we returned to shore, the reflections were beautiful; a great way to end the day.
Life on the Island 
Lovely views. You guys must be very organized with regard to your clothing and equipment to switch between cold weather kayaking, biking, and hiking as often as you do! lol
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Hi Dave – it’s not has hard as you may think because the temps are almost constant between 0 and 10. So Merino base layer with or without another shirt and then either the biking jacket or vest for hikes does the trick. Paddling just needs the base layer and the drysuit. So the same clothes get used a lot!! Battery operated socks are used for both paddling and biking! They are the godsend for me. What I have noticed is that the Greenland paddle is much wetter paddling because there are no drip rings. So I am looking for thicker neoprene gloves. As usual, it’s the extremities that are the biggest challenge.
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