Water

The ocean -the open stuff -is alive, bounding, rebounding, crashing, rolling, breaking, sucking back, roaring, hissing, thundering, and ominously quiet.                                      ~ Sea diary, June 2010, Dixon Entrance, Alaska   It’s been said that a person doesn’t take a trip, but rather a trip takes a person. The Inside Passage took me – in a kayak – from Anacortes, Washington, …

One good tern deserves another. To everything tern, tern, tern. Tern left, tern right. I wasn’t quite sure how many more horrible puns and plays on words my poor wife, Heather could take. We were paddling in the middle of Dungeness Harbor surrounded by Caspian terns. The shallow sandy islands in the harbor are excellent breeding grounds for these sea …

When I plan a backpacking trip and am working out where to camp each night my main consideration is “Where can I take the best pictures?” I think about the best views and which angle of light I want. And so my camp sites and hiking goals each day are based upon trying to be at the right place at …

Summer is here, bringing with it the promise of long days, endless miles of hiking and…you guessed it: Those hot summer afternoons beneath a northwest sun. So where are you supposed to go to beat the heat? Some of the best swimming holes are surprisingly close at hand to those of us who call Bellingham home. Whether you’re looking to …

When you first see someone Stand Up Paddling (SUP), you may think this person bought a surfboard without the requisite skills to surf the waves, then gave up and just started paddling around on it. Like many first impressions, this would be wrong. Not only is SUP deeply intertwined with big wave surfing, but it was popular long before surfing. …

During my first paddle with WAKE (Whatcom Association of Kayak Enthusiasts),  I learned two important lessons about kayaking in Bellingham: first, that uncrowded lesser-known destinations are immensely gratifying, and second, that there are often good reasons why these spots are uncrowded. The Salish Sea is replete with destination gems enjoyed by paddlers “in-the-know.” These special spots demand advanced skills, rough-weather …

It has been a torrential downpour in Whatcom County over the past week and the rivers are flowing high with turbulent water, a white water kayaker’s dream. With a lack of precipitation this winter, there have been few pow days at Mt. Baker and even fewer high water laps on the North Fork of the Nooksack River in Glacier, WA. …

My left paddle blade drags heavily across the water as I lean back in my seat and glide toward the beach. At the water’s edge, a 3-foot wide, red digital clock clicks off the time: 22 hours, 8 minutes, 15 seconds and counting. In knee-deep water, a crew of six are waiting for me, and when my surfski reaches them they …

by Ted Rosen There are two sports worlds. There is the world of mainstream sports, with its glamorous superstars, enormous budgets and massive marketing machines. Then there’s the world of passion sports, with its underdog heroes, relative poverty and niche marketing efforts. Everyone knows the mainstream sports legends. But in the passion sports, our heroes are legends in the true …