The Calusa Blueway Paddling Festival kicked off this past weekend down in Southwest Florida. While the crew here at BornToPaddle.com didn’t make it down there this year, we are thinking about our paddling friends in Lee County.

A 100-mile, marked paddling trail, the Calusa Blueway is something Florida paddlers can be proud of, but they have a lot more to be proud of… Keep Lee County Beautiful, Inc., sponsored their annual trash clean up to coincided with the festival.

About 110 volunteers on boats and kayaks lugged 3,600 pounds of trash — some bags of rubbish tied to the back of their kayaks — or helped unload the trash at the dumping sites, said Trish Fancher, program director.

“It’s always amazing to see what they come in with,� Fancher said as she helped a kayaker unload a slimy fish cooler and a garbage bag of hooks and fishing lines. “The first year they did this, they found a prosthetic leg.� (courtesy, The News-Press.com)

As a kayaker, hiker, runner and general outdoor enthusiast, I can never figure out why people throw their trash all over the place. I’ve seen motorists throw all kinds of garbage out their windows while they’re driving down the highway. I’ve seen people on hiking trails leave trash behind. I’ve seen people “toss” trash towards a garbage can, miss and just walk away! I just don’t get it! (more…)

Face it, any race in which the starting gun is a Civil War era Mountain Howitzer just has to be a great event, and the 6^th annual Phatwater Kayak Challenge was (as usual) a great event. Organizers Keith Beniost and Melissa Morrison are great people with a true love for paddling, they put together a great bunch of volunteers and proceeds from the Challenge benefit the Adam’s Co. Humane Society. This year some records were broken, Mike Herbert set a new course record of 4 hrs 16 minutes and 55 seconds. However the sub 4 hour time was NOT broken and therefore the $1000 purse rolls over and becomes $2000 next year.

Melissa Morrison came within 21 minutes of becoming the first solo woman’s sub 5 paddler, the river and the winds were her downfall, but I’d bet that record will fall in ’08. The most participants in a Phatwater was set this year with over 100 registered and 89 boats in the water. Alas, at least 11 boats were assisted off the river by the safety boaters. The Phatwater is demanding and humans are frail in comparison with the mighty Mississippi.

A special thanks is owed to the US Coast Guard, for their assistance and to the Captain of the Port for closing the river to barge traffic for the time of the race. It was a pleasure not having to worry about the tow boats. Although the 5 short blasts of a tow boat’s horn, which indicates an out of control tow, does tend to make one paddle faster. The volunteer safety boaters were numerous and visible, assisting paddlers in distress or just handing out Gatorade. (more…)

Have you checked your states boating registration requirements for your canoe or kayak?  If you live in Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Indiana or Ohio (to name just a few) you might be surprised to find out that you need to register or purchase a “Use” permit for your canoe or kayak. Registration fees can range from as low as $5 to as high as $24 and from 1-3 years.

I’ve heard many a kayaker moan and groan about wearing a PFD or life vest. The fact of the matter is, no matter how experienced a paddler you are, or how strong a swimmer you are, anything can happen. You can find yourself in a situation where you’re in the water and your boat is out of reach.

Here is a story reported by KRIS TV in Corpus Christi, Texas about a woman in just such a situation:

Kayaker survives after eight hours stranded in bay
Oct 4, 2007 07:43 PM CDT
CORPUS CHRISTI - A recent incident involving a woman kayaking out in the bay makes for an amazing story of survival. On Tuesday, Theresa Holland went kayaking with her two dogs, when the dogs fell overboard.

She jumped in after them, but that’s when her kayak got away from her. She spent eight hours in the water before she reached safety.
Theresa and her Boston Terriers, Spike and Sophia, enjoyed a morning at the park on Thursday, but two days prior, they all fought for their lives.

“They both had their life jackets on,” she said. “I had a personal floatation device in the boat. I thought I was fully prepared.”

But she wasn’t prepared for what happened next. A wave knocked one dog overboard, and when she lifted him back in the boat, she fell out, along with her other dog.

“…and then I realize the kayak is gone, and so I realize my PFD hasn’t fallen out of the boat like it’s supposed to,” Theresa recalled.

First Spike swam off, and then the bigger dog, Sophia, wouldn’t keep her life vest on and swam away. “So I had this little vest and that was basically it,” Theresa said.

Stranded miles off of shore, Theresa went into survivor mode. First, she saw her water bottle.

“So I emptied out half the water for buoyancy, and so I put (the bottle) in between my thighs,” she said, “and then a bit further off, I saw my paddle.”

She waited, hoping someone would see her empty kayak drifting ashore, but hours later, there was still no sign of help. (more…)