Archive:Sea kayaking to Lighthouse Park

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Synopsis

We will depart from Granville island by Ecomarine at 09:30, paddle to Lighthouse park on the north shore and back again before 6:00pm. The directness of our route will be inversely proportional to wind velocity, ie if it's windy, we will follow the shoreline. Aye, great fun be mountains and beautiful they are but me true heart belongs to the sea. But the sea can be a harsh mistress. Aye, she beckons you hither with fair winds but you musn't throw caution to the wind or she'll break wind and bite you in the arse. This trip is weather dependent. I am NOT certified as a kayak guide or instructor.

Skills required

  • Strong swimmer (able to swim 200m unassisted in under 8 minutes)
  • Competent wet exit self rescue, ie when you flip, you need to be able to get out of your boat upside down, then turn your boat over and get back in using your paddle float and practiced skill. This can be practiced at the voc kayak-polo sessions in the pool every other tuesday night.
  • If anyone wants to practice wet exit self rescue skills beforehand, the voc kayak polo sessions in the pool are an excellent place to learn.
  • Definitely check out this brilliant set of animated tutorials

Equipment required

  • Ocean kayak (not a river kayak)
  • Hand pump
  • Paddle (bring an extra if you can)
  • Paddle-float
  • Sprayskirt
  • Wetsuit (5mm full body) or drysuit or combination of farmer john wetsuit with drytop (drytop is half a drysuit, has sealed gaskets)
  • Neoprene booties or rubber boots (or if using drysuit with integrated feet then wear shoes overtop)
  • PFD (Personal flotation device, life jacket)
  • All of the above can be rented from Ecomarine on Granville Island or MEC. MEC is not adjacent to the water so you'd need a car with racks.
  • Dry change of warm clothes, including toque and gloves
  • Drybag(s) big enough to keep all of these clothes dry
  • Sunglasses
  • Headlamp (The plan is to return before dark, but just in case, a headlamp is very useful both for seeing and for being seen)
  • Emergency kit in another dry bag including (but not limited to) basic first aid supplies

Timeline

  • Saturday April 2nd
  • Meet at Jericho sailing centre early enough to be in our boats paddling by 09:30
  • Arrive at Lighthouse park around 11:30
  • Return to Jericho by 18:30

Weather and Tides

  • Important: If the weather is too dangerous, we may postpone until Sunday or another day and/or alter our route

Questions? Ideas?

  • Again, This site is brilliant!
  • email me
  • Time dependent idea 1: if you have snorkeling gear, bring it and maybe we'll have time to explore near the shore of lighthouse park
  • Time dependent idea 2: Lighthouse Park has some bouldering and top roping opportunities if you don't mind the risk of saturating your gear in salt water

Participants

Limited to 10 participants. This number may change depending on ratio of experienced to non-experienced people.

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